When a company wants to grow its client or customer base, there’s usually one department they look at first — marketing. And in today’s technical world, improving your marketing tactics means enhancing your digital content strategy. But how can you level up your game? And what’s the most efficient way to do it?
The bad news: there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to stepping up your strategy. The good news? There are tools that help your company get in front of not only more people but the right people. Whether you focus on a gap analysis or copywriting, there is a software, platform, or person to help you along the way.
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What is a Content Strategy and Why Do You Need One?
Content strategy is a plan to capture and keep more customers or clients using written, audio, and/or visual content. Essentially, it’s knowing your target audience, then discovering the best ways to engage them. While the end goal for many content strategies is to get the user to make a purchase, it should not stop there. The real objective is to keep the user coming back, even after the sale is made.
A quality content strategy consists of finding the gaps, brainstorming ways to fill them, and executing successfully. It’s a road map to follow on the way to growing your audience, and thus, your brand. And though all this may sound pretty straightforward, it often comes with many moving parts. That’s why having the right tools in your back pocket is essential to meeting your content marketing goals.
5 Tools to Enhance Your Content Strategy
1. MarketMuse: SEO Analysis
The first step in improving your content strategy is figuring out the areas that need attention. Since your website is often where a user will make their purchase, this can be a great place to start. Gap analysis tools, such as MarketMuse, can tell you where your site is lacking. This is done by looking into monthly search volumes, keywords you’re ranking for and targeting, and topics you and your competitors are covering. Once the data is configured, you can see what your content should be covering to boost your marketing efforts.
While competitive analysis is often used for improving an SEO strategy, it’s also important to set your company apart. Simply trying to emulate your competitor can erase what makes your business unique. Rather, finding topics for your site that help you take a credible position, while also standing out, is crucial. The best way to do this is to skip the overwhelming spreadsheets and utilize an SEO tool.
2. Fiverr: Freelancers
After finding your content gaps and figuring out how to fill them in, you need to find someone to execute them. This is potentially one of the most crucial elements in the process. While some companies can leverage their internal marketing team, some need to think outside the box. Companies like Fiverr put you in front of talented freelancers who can tackle your marketing projects as needed.
Utilizing these services allows you to find workers who are experienced in a particular niche. This can include SEO optimization, copywriting, social media marketing, videography, photography, or graphic design. Even if you have a highly skilled internal marketing team, finding freelancers to pitch in where needed can be beneficial. Delegating certain tasks can ensure your team members are always utilizing their strengths.
3. Canva: Graphic Design and Branding
Do you have an internal marketing team, but want to make the graphic design process more simplistic and efficient? If the answer is “yes,” Canva may be a great addition to your content strategy. While Adobe tools are great, Canva is user-friendly for all levels of experience. It allows for easy editing, contains a variety of templates, and keeps all your projects in one place.
Canva also allows you to build a branding kit with colors, fonts, and logos. When it comes to posting visual content, branding consistency is crucial. Canva makes it easy to create and utilize your business’s branding kit. That way, your team can easily collaborate on design projects. A major perk is that many of these features are completely free to use.
4. Hootsuite: Social Media Marketing
No matter what industry your company is in, social media marketing is almost always a necessary part of your content strategy. While the need for quality social media posts is important, it’s also important to post consistently and review a post’s performance. Having a tool to manage this, such as Hootsuite, can help organize and simplify the process. Hootsuite can schedule posts in bulk, recommend publishing times, and build customized reports.
Hootsuite not only assists with organic social media content, but it also consists of features to help with sponsored advertising. You can create ads, track performance, and optimize the campaign directly from the tool. With their in-depth reporting, you can see which campaigns are performing well, which allows you to maximize ad spend.
5. Mailchimp: Email Automation
Whether someone visited your website, put items in their cart, or already secured their purchase — they need a follow-up. This habit has the potential to boost sales and keep your brand top of mind for consumers. Email marketing is one powerful way to do this, and tools like Mailchimp can help immensely. This platform can help you build contact lists from scratch, create email templates, and analyze the data all in one place.
Many email marketing platforms, including Mailchimp, include point-of-sale software. This allows you to know where a customer is on their buying journey to enhance your email personalization. It also can help you grow your email list by utilizing pop-forms and Facebook ads. You can even utilize A/B testing for different campaigns to see which ones perform better to optimize your strategy.
Time to Meet — and Beat — Your Marketing Goals
There are many tools and tactics to take your content strategy to the next level. What’s important is knowing which ones to use and how to use them for your specific needs. While some strategies may see results immediately, some come with time and take trial and error. The key is focusing on what’s working, learning from what’s not, and always looking for ways to set yourself apart.
