Content marketing is awesome. With it, you can start a business in virtually any niche, and get a steady stream of high-paying customers.
Of course, it’s easier said than done. Content marketing is NOT easy – far from it. You need to be producing high-quality content, and you need to be doing it very consistently. If you stop for even a few weeks, you can undo all the work you’ve done leading up to that point.
That being said, it’s also important to realize that business IS work. Hard work. Creating a website or company that prints money is not an easy task. If it was, everyone would be rich. Only a handful of people have the dedication required to make content marketing work, and it’s that handful of people who are capable of creating very profitable businesses.
Now, at first, content marketing can seem like a shot in the dark – especially if you just started your business. After all, it’s no secret that content marketing takes time to truly pay off. Not weeks, but months or even an entire year.
So what are you supposed to be doing in the meantime?
Hustling. That’s what.
Content marketing is generally done from a position of authority, on your blog. Meaning, you write content, post it to your blog, then submit it to various social media channels. But there are other social media channels that you can simply become an authority on PERSONALLY, building your own personal brand and finding clients that way.
It’s much quicker, and it also compounds your original content marketing efforts. Here are a few places you can hustle:
Quora.com
Quora is a massive social website that specializes in questions and answers. People will ask questions on virtually any topic imaginable, then other people will provide answers. This is the PERFECT place to show up as a true authority.
Simply sign up for a profile, fill it out with all the details of your business, and then start answering questions in DETAIL.
Remember – hustling is virtually the same as content marketing. The difference is, you’re going out and making things happen instead of waiting for a blog post to do so. Ideally, this supplements your original content marketing strategy.
So just like content marketing, the key here is quality. When you answer a question, don’t just answer it… go above and beyond the call of duty. Make sure you really show that you’re a top expert, and give the person asking the question everything they need and more.
As you answer questions, you’ll find yourself quickly becoming an authority. As a result, you’ll get traffic and customers through Quora.
Reddit is one of the most influential websites on the planet. There are “subreddits” for basically anything and everything you can think of. Do you have a gardening business? There’s a subreddit for that! For any business, there’s a subreddit.
And this is awesome because subreddits are really micro-communities. Not only do we highly recommend submitting each and every blog post you write to Reddit, but we also recommend you get in the trenches and start participating whenever possible. This will build up your authority and you will become a trusted source, dramatically increasing the odds one of your posts goes “viral” when you submit it to Reddit.
Forums
Last but not least, forums! Forums have always been an awesome way to find potential clients or business partners, and that hasn’t changed. Forums are very similar to both Reddit and Quora, but they are a bit more personal. Meaning, people will remember who you are very easily, and you can quickly build a reputation for yourself – either positive or negative!
Because of this fact, it’s vitally important you provide REAL VALUE in a forum setting. If not, you’ll quickly be labeled as a spammer and have your IP address banned.
So, you built it, but they did not come! Did you promote it, or did you expect them to know where and how to find it?
Google has been warning website owners against link building, even making white hat tactics appear like a risk to SEO specialists and webmasters. Although there are, plenty of ways to effectively create a link-building campaign without getting penalized, content creation is where Google wants your priorities to lie.
You took Google’s advice and started writing quality content, so now what? Everyone and his or her brother are trying to promote their quality content, so how are you going to be noticed?
More than 90% of all B2B marketers use, and have been using content creation as part of their campaign. Google is now focusing on what they already knew:
- People are more likely to buy from a company that offers quality content.
- Interestingly unique content is one of the main reasons why people follow brands on social media platforms.
For some, content creation is difficult enough, without the promotion. The content MUST be original, interesting, have something to offer the reader, and of course, be well promoted. This is a huge undertaking for the novice, and can even be overwhelming to the advanced SEO specialist.
Google has increased the competition for content marketing, so getting your content seen is now harder than ever, but the rewards are much higher. Having a strong brand is the most effective marketing tool available, and the best place to start building your brand is through content marketing!
If you are not a writer, hire one! There is no shame in asking for help, but make sure you do it in a way that will be effective to your business, not hurtful. When looking for a writer, expect to pay more for quality. Look for a writer that offers some expertise in the area, not one that just posts gibberish on your site that makes no sense to those who actually understand the topic. Remember, Google does not approve of black hat or grey hat guest blogging techniques, so if you are approached by a blogger who says they can increase your traffic, be wary. Look for writers who have a Google author rank; those writers have content that displays in the search results much quicker than those who do not.
Begin at the end
If you are writing yourself, there are some helpful tips to turn your content into SEO gold. Most content creators write the content and then look for ways to promote it, and most fail. Before you create the content, create a promotional strategy. Basically, start with an end result or goal in mind, and then work towards a system of how to reach that goal.
What Type of Media Coverage Are You Looking For?
Consider what types of publications you want publishing your content, and make sure you have a checklist of what type of content those publications are most likely to accept. This eliminates the hassle of finding a place for your content. Do this before you even start writing the content, so you have a good idea of how it needs to be written, and what style would be most effective.
Check Your Calendar
Always look ahead at what is happening in your industry. If there is something big scheduled, try to release your content a few days prior to the event so you can ride on the coattails of the media buzz. Have the content written and ready to go well before the date, so you can pre-read, proof, and edit the article before it becomes public.
Write Your Content with the Right Hook
Make sure when you create the content at this stage, you have a good hook ready. You want to make sure you are writing to appeal to the audience of the selected publication. For example, business publications are concerned with revenue, technology publications with how stuff works, etc.
Now Start Promoting
Now that you have gotten past the planning stage and the writing stage, it is time to stage your promotion. There are various ways to do this, all with their own unique effectiveness level, so combining platforms is necessary for good content promotion.
Use Twitter to Pitch Your Content
Posting links to your articles on Twitter is one thing, but learning how to get others to pitch your content is an entirely different ball game. Pitch your article to industry leaders, and to business owners with a heavy influence on your topic. Those super-connected people on the social media platforms you share are essential for getting your content out there quickly!
Use Pinterest to Promote Visual Data
Including a “Pin it” icon on your content page can generate a ton of traffic. Most content marketers forget about this site, thinking it is just for recipes, funny images, and cleaning tips. Business owners use Pinterest, just maybe not in the same way others do.
Create Follow-Up Stories
Create at least two or three follow-up stories for your content. This helps to keep your content stronger longer. Use the follow-up material to revive your dying content before it is considered dead and useless.
Include a Paid Ad Management Plan
Facebook and Twitter can generate some organic results, but for a larger audience to view your content, you are going to have to pay. The ad campaign does not have to be expensive to be effective.
Don’t Forget About Remarketing
Chase your audience across the Google Display Network with image ads by using the cookies you obtained when they read your content. You can reach up to 84% of your visitors across 5-10 different sites between 10-18 days a month, which is well worth the effort for a strong brand campaign!
Repurpose Marketing
Blog managers know how time-consuming it can be to create original research, so they often use repurposed content from people just like you. Reach out to the blog managers and let them know about your most interesting pieces. You can summarize your content for their blog audience, which in turn, builds your brand.
Some Methods You May Have Neglected
Most Internet business owners only think about Internet marketing being done online. The fact is, offline marketing can get your business noticed just as quickly, if not quicker than online marketing. Consider this, radio and television reporters, columnists, editors, and journalists are all looking for stories to talk about and report on, so why not yours? If you have written something interesting, something unique, or something helpful, why not market it to the local radio and television stations? These platforms offer a chance to market to millions without any cost to you, and no more effort than what was already spent on creating your content.
If you want the local reporters to pick up your content organically, market to International publications. Media platforms that translate content from one language to another, such as AFP, Dow Jones, Thomas Reuters, Wired, and IDG are all on that list.
Stay Connected
Once you work on this type of self-promotion for a while, you will become an expert of sorts. That is where authority comes in, and of course, Google Authorship. The connections you create, work at keeping them. Send relevant information to them, even if it is not yours, check out what they have to say, and build a relationship with those top influencers.
