Content marketing is not just for marketers. In fact, with a bit of planning, a comprehensive strategy, and by taking advantage of some online tools, it’s something that a small business owner can set up and implement relatively easily.
There’s no doubt that, in a crowded – and often expensive – digital world, content marketing has become an essential for small businesses. The good news is, it’s one of the most economical forms of marketing available, as it capitalises on digital and other assets you most likely already have, such as your website, blog, social media and online business profiles, videos, FAQs, eBooks, photos, etc.
RELATED: What is content marketing and why you need it for your business.
Above all, content marketing has significant benefits in boosting your online presence and generating leads to your business, at a fraction of the cost of paid advertising.
In fact, recent studies show that:
- Businesses with a blog get 55% more visits to their website
- 70% of people would prefer finding out about a business through an article rather than an ad
- Per dollar spent, content marketing generates approximately three times as many leads as traditional marketing.
The key to a successful content marketing campaign is to utilise your content – blog articles, social posts, how-to videos, etc. – as effectively as possible, ensuring that it’s on the right platform, reaching the right audience and increasing engagement with your brand.
Related: Content marketing ultimate guide.
Not sure where to start? Read on.
Get started with content marketing using our free content strategy template.
To help you get started on your content marketing journey, we’ve created a handy template for you to use to outline your strategy – from setting up the team, identifying your main competitors and KPIs, to defining your audience, planning what content to develop and establishing where and when to post it. A content calendar is essential for planning and scheduling content effectively.
We’ve included guidance on evaluating existing content and establishing key performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of your strategy. It’s crucial for the marketing team to align their efforts and understand the target audience to create relevant and engaging content.
We’ve also provided a list of free or inexpensive tools to help you in the various stages of your strategy. Best of all, the template is in a PowerPoint format, so you can insert your own text and add or subtract pages to tailor your strategy to suit your business.
Get started with your content marketing strategy today.
Download FREE template.