Why Businesses Need Content Marketing

One of the greatest things about the internet is that it levels the playing field for everyone, making it easier for smaller companies to compete with large national corporations. But by the same token, that same level playing field can make it extremely difficult for businesses to get their voices heard if they don’t know how to strategically communicate the unique value they provide to their target audience.

Content is information you post online to attract your target audience into your content ecosystem, and build authority, rapport and trust in you and your ability to help them. Its purpose is to influence your target audience to purchase from you when they are ready to buy.

Crafting and implementing an effective content strategy can be challenging, but mastering it will give you a massive competitive advantage in the attention-grabbing game.

Here’s why.

12 Benefits of Content Marketing

1. Helps your target audience find you – Posting content that addresses the needs of your target audience creates an opportunity for them to discover your company, product or service as they’re searching online for information about a problem or challenge they’re trying to solve. By consistently posting relevant high quality content, you will improve your SEO (search engine optimization) ranking, enabling your content to appear higher on search engine results pages.

2. Makes it easier to do business with you – Most people now prefer to do the majority of their research in advance of reaching out to a salesperson, and this is particularly true for individuals purchasing on behalf of their company. If you don’t have enough information on your blog, website or social channel, you may lose out on a potential sale as people continue their research elsewhere.

3. Generates leads and sales – A well thought out content strategy can help guide your target audience through your sales funnel. By posting content for all five stages of buyer awareness, you can generate leads, nurture them through the five awareness stages, and convert them to paying customers.

4. Educates people about why your solution is best – When people are in research mode, they are open to learning as much as they can about a product or service they may want to purchase. They will be more relaxed and less defensive when viewing this information online compared to speaking with a salesperson. In addition, adding charts, diagrams, videos and other visual aids to your content enables you to explain complex concepts more easily and effectively than when you’re speaking to someone on a personal call.

5. Builds authority and trust – Your online content provides an opportunity for you to showcase your knowledge and expertise. As you educate potential buyers about your product or service, you’ll be establishing yourself as an industry authority, creating a connection with your audience, and earning their trust. And in our increasingly cynical marketplace, building authority, rapport and trust is key to acquiring and retaining customers.

6. Addresses objections and concerns – You’re not always able to speak to potential buyers in person as they’re evaluating how well your solution will meet their needs. Addressing anticipated objections and concerns up front in your content could mean the difference between them deciding to reach out to you instead of moving on to investigate an alternate solution.

7. Differentiates you from your competition – Posting content gives you the opportunity to outline the unique aspects of your solution and explain why it’s better than competing solutions. You can highlight one or more issues your audience may not have thought of, so they are clear on the additional benefits of your solution vis-à-vis the competition. Even if they decide to research further, you’ve established the benchmark against which all options will be compared.

8. Is always on, even when you’re sleeping – The Internet never sleeps, and Google will serve content to anyone at any time anywhere in the world. That means your content will continue to nurture prospective buyers even when you’re not online, and it will do so 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

9. Cost effective – Content is widely recognized as one of the most cost-effective marketing tools for businesses. Once you’ve invested the time and resources to create your content, you can reuse it indefinitely to attract and nurture your target audience. This process can be done at scale, with Google serving your content to as many relevant individuals as possible without any additional investment on your part. The same piece of content can be repurposed across a variety of mediums to enhance its reach.

10. Facilitates the sales process – Content enables a lot of the traditional selling process to be done in advance of the actual sales call. By the time someone is ready to get on a call, they’ve been pre-sold on your offer and may only have a few unanswered questions related to their personal situation. You and your sales team can therefore close more quickly and with much less pushback.

11. Supports other marketing initiatives – Content can be used to enhance other marketing strategies such as social media marketing, email marketing and paid advertising. For example, a blog post can be shared on social media, included in an email newsletter, and used in a paid ad campaign.

12. Engages and retains customers – Providing valuable content that addresses your customers’ interests and needs helps keep customers engaged and encourages repeat business. Regular content updates through blogs or email marketing helps keep your brand top of mind.

The Bottom Line

Think of your content as the way your audience gets to know, like and trust you over time as they engage with your content and learn more about you and how your product/service can benefit them. Your goal with content is not to get someone to buy right away, it’s to nurture them along in their decision-making process so that when they are ready to make that purchase decision, they will choose to work with or buy from you.