Alexis Kestler
If you want to convince your audience that you’re worth the money, you need strategies that ensure they get the right message at the right time and on the right platform.
It sounds like pretty serious stuff, right?
Don’t worry; it’s not nearly as hard as it sounds. All you need are the right tools and tactics that will propel your marketing into a conversion-rich trajectory.
5 Content Marketing Strategies
Without further ado, here are the top 5 content marketing strategies that guarantee a boost in your conversions:
1. Find Content Gaps in Your Niche
Even if you think you came up with a unique content idea, there’s a fairly high chance that someone else already did it.
However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t strive for originality when developing content. There are still content gaps in most niches where the supply and demand for certain information don’t align.
With a keyword research tool like Ubersuggest, you can easily identify these content gaps using any “seed keyword” in your niche. It works by generating hundreds of keyword variations based on any keyword or phrase.
Take note that you can also adjust the localization of your keywords if necessary. Just click select the correct language and region from the drop-down menu.
Once the results are in, scroll down to view hundreds of keyword suggestions.
There are only three things you need to remember when selecting keywords from Ubersuggest:
Start with the “Search Volume”
In keyword research, the average monthly search volume directly measures a keyword’s popularity.
You don’t always have to go for keywords with thousands of searches. Keywords with an average search volume of around 100 or more should still give you a reasonable traffic boost.
Look for low-medium competition keywords.
Ubersuggest rates keyword competitiveness from 0.0 to 1.0 — the latter being the highest.
To find low-medium competition keywords, aim for around 0.4 or less competitiveness rating. You know you discovered a content gap if a popular keyword has low-medium competitiveness.
Look for long-tail keywords.
As a rule of thumb, avoid settling for broad and unspecific keywords regardless of their monthly search volume and competitiveness. They may look good on paper, but they won’t be as efficient as long-tail keywords in pulling in qualified leads.
A long-tail keyword is a keyword that contains three or more terms. As a result, they often target a narrower audience and pertain to a more specific topic.
With these in mind, you should now pick out keywords you can weave into your content strategy.
For example, the keyword “custom WordPress theme” has a monthly search volume of 1000 and a competitiveness rating of 0.29.
Not bad at all.
You can then build topics around this keyword, such as “How to Build a Custom WordPress Theme from Scratch” and “Top Benefits of Custom WordPress Themes.”
2. Find Keywords’ Transactional Intent
Speaking of keyword research, your content strategy should include a lineup of keyword ideas that signal commercial or transactional intent. These are keywords that are more likely used by searchers who are ready to take action, be it by subscribing to a newsletter or making a purchase.
Again, using Ubersuggest, you can find these keywords by sprinkling transactional terms in the form of filters. Some examples of transactional terms are “buy,” “for sale,” “services,” and so on.
For example, if your seed keyword is “event planner,” you can enter terms like “hire” or “price.”
Sure, these keywords aren’t exactly phenomenal in terms of popularity. But since they are instilled with transactional intent, they can probably convert better than a generic term with thousands of searches.
3. Pack Value Above the Fold
If you think that most visitors to your website will spend 15 minutes reading your content, think again.
People want quick and straight-to-the-point solutions to their problems in the digital age. The worst thing you can do is hide the value of your content beneath a thick wall of text.
While it’s sometimes a good strategy to use storytelling to increase engagement, that’s not usually the case with landing pages and pieces of content built for conversions.
A better approach is to utilize visual content to make valuable information visible and presentable. Infographics, for example, make in-depth data more digestible with the help of visualizations like charts, graphs, and diagrams.
With a tool like Canva, you don’t need a graphic designer to create professional-looking infographics. The drag-and-drop interface will help you build your own within minutes.
You can also use Canva to create original feature images for your blog posts. Keep in mind relying solely on stock images is bad for your image — as candidly stated by ConversionXL.
Apart from visuals, you can also highlight the value of your post with bulleted or numbered lists. This will provide the audience with a peek at the key takeaways of the post, which should compel them to dig deeper if they’re relevant.
4. Optimize Your Calls-to-Action
A call-to-action or CTA may not be the most prominent element in your content. However, they often differentiate between a successful conversion and another lost customer.
Put, CTAs give the audience that one last push needed to get them to convert.
Big-name brands might seem like they’ve figured it all out:
Unfortunately, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution that everyone can rinse and repeat. There are, however, a set of rules that will help you concoct effective CTAs for your content:
- Use contrasting colors
The first rule of CTAs is to make them stand out from the background. Using a contrasting color for your CTA button is a great way to do so. - Match the CTA with user intent
It may seem like a no-brainer, but there are actually marketers who make the mistake of pushing CTAs that don’t make sense for the target keywords. - Spice up with action words
“Buy Today,” “Download Now,” “Grab It,” — these are the kind of action words you need in your CTA. They pack emotion as well as connect with your audience on a personal level. - Add urgency into the mix
To maximize the value of your proposition, introduce the sense of urgency with phrases like “Limited-Time Offer” or “Reserve Your Spot Now.”
5. Track and Measure
Let’s face it.
Even if you’re the most talented content marketer in the world, it’s challenging to get everything right the first time.
Headlines, images, CTAs — many conversion-affecting elements to mix and match. That’s why the only surefire strategy is to let data show the way.
You can do this with the help of analytics tools that track important metrics such as traffic, average session duration, bounce rate, and conversions.
Google Analytics is perhaps the best free tool that fits the bill. It measures everything there is to know about your website and provides actionable insights you can benefit from.
If you’d like to cut through the number-crunching and visually observe how your audience consumes your content, then you should consider a heatmap tool like Crazy Egg. It works by visually mapping the “hot” zones that get most of the clicks and the “cold” zones that are often ignored.
Conclusion
Content marketing is like a huge puzzle that you must piece together with the right strategies.
The tips above should provide you with all the pieces you need as far as conversions go. Rest assured that your content only gets better when you apply them to your strategy.
