Last updated on June 17th, 2023 at 09:54 am
You’ve poured your heart and soul into creating killer high-quality content. You haven’t been this proud of yourself since you made little turkeys by outlining your hand in the 1st grade.
Here’s the rub, though. It’s not getting the results you want.
No likes.
No shares.
No conversions.
Ouch.
No bueno.
So, what gives? It’s time to face the music, my content marketing friend. If your content isn’t driving action, you need to give up the game. Pack it in. Call it a night. And, leave the content game forever.
Unless, like me, quitting isn’t an option.
(side note: This is why I’m still paying $9.95/mo. to Columbia House Records. I never quit anything.)
When you write compelling copy that works, you quickly understand the importance of content marketing. And I’m here to share the secrets to creating quality content that converts.
Are you ready to learn how to create content that not only engages but also drives action?
Part 1: The Holy Trinity of Content Marketing
Before we get into the thick of it, let’s talk about the holy trinity of content marketing: value, relevance, and engagement. These three elements are crucial to creating quality content that not only grabs your audience’s attention but also compels them to take action.
Value
Your content must provide something of value to your audience – whether it’s solving a problem, offering expert advice, or entertaining them. Value is the backbone of effective content marketing.
Check out this blog from Ryan Robinson (RyRob) on How to Start a Blog (and Make Money) in 2023:
Look how he opens with value:
- “learn how to start a blog and make money from it.”
- “in 6 steps”
- “in 10 to 15 minutes”
You immediately know what you’re learning, how difficult it is, and how long it’ll take you to get up and running.
RyRob doesn’t skimp on the value. This one article is stuffed to the gills with information. It’s nearly 13,000 words! And this value is how he’s been able to build his email list to more than 330,000 potential customers.
Relevance
Your content needs to be relevant to your audience’s needs, interests, and pain points. If it doesn’t resonate with them, they won’t bother engaging with it, let alone take action.
Dickie Bush wrote this tweet immediately following the launch of ChatGPT4. His audience, full of entrepreneurs who want to figure out tips, tricks, hacks, and shortcuts to online glory, were hungry to consume insights around the launch.
If Dickie started writing about snowboarding or studying Spanish it wouldn’t have landed the same way. Sure there would have been some die-hard fans that still would have engaged (only because they already fell in love with his prior content), but the fact that this was relevant content on a relevant topic to a relevant audience in a relevant voice is what drove more than 5M impressions and 37K bookmarks.
This relevance is what has fueled his 7-figure business.
Engagement
Your content should be engaging, thought-provoking, and shareable. This isn’t traditional marketing. You’re not trying to find passive viewers, but rather keeping audience participation in the forefront of your content creation. The more your audience engages with your content, the more likely they are to take action.
Look at the level of engagement on this post from Allie Miller:
Peep the 4,278 “likes”. Allie writes relevant, valuable content and it drives massive engagement. People feel compelled to indicated to the algorithm (or their peers) that they want more of this content.
Keep these three elements in mind as we explore the strategies and techniques that’ll help you create content that drives action.
Part 2: Strategies for Content Marketing Success
Now that we’ve got our holy trinity locked and loaded, let’s dive into some actionable strategies to ensure your content marketing efforts hit the mark every time.
- Niche Down for Success: Understanding your target audience is crucial to creating quality content that resonates with them. Develop detailed buyer personas, conduct market research, and analyze data to get a clear picture of who you’re trying to reach and what they care about. Niche your way into a clearly defined audience. You’ve heard the saying “the niches are in the riches”. It’s true. Use this fact to clearly define who you’re writing for. Here are 7 ways to narrow down your niche (courtesy of Dickie Bush)
- Master the Art of Storytelling: Everybody loves a good story. Use storytelling techniques to connect with your audience on an emotional level, making your content more relatable, memorable, and shareable.
Remember Exposition, Conflict, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution.
Using these steps when telling about the founding of your company, losing your job, or even losing your keys will help paint a picture that sticks with audiences. - Powerful Language is Key: The words you choose matter. Use strong, emotive language to create a sense of urgency, evoke emotions, and persuade your audience to take action. When in doubt, opt for power words that pack a punch.
- Visuals for the Win: Don’t underestimate the power of visuals. Incorporate eye-catching images, videos, infographics, and GIFs to support your content and make it more engaging. Just remember – quality and relevance are key.
Up to this point, I’ve already included 5 images. They interrupt patterns to ensure that readers slow down and they help to cement the story in their minds. - SEO is Your Friend: Say it with me ‘Search Engine Optimization’. Creating amazing content is only half the battle; you also need to make sure people can find it. An effective SEO technique, such as targeting relevant keywords, optimizing meta tags, linking between, to, and from external sites, and creating shareable content to boost your search engine rankings will drive more traffic to your site.
- Consistency is Key: To succeed in content marketing, you need to be consistently publishing content. If you aren’t creating consistent content, your audience won’t know when to engage and will eventually fall off. Develop a content calendar, stick to a posting schedule, and ensure you’re regularly publishing fresh, valuable content that keeps your audience engaged and coming back for more.
- Engage, Engage, Engage: Build a loyal following by actively engaging with your audience and your peers. Respond to comments, ask questions, and encourage feedback. The more you put yourself into conversation the more people are going to reciprocate. This not only shows your audience that you value their opinions but also fosters a sense of community that can lead to increased action.
- Measure, Analyze, Optimize: This often overlooked. Many content creators think that once they’ve published, that’s that. There’s nothing more to do. Wrong! Create optimized content in order to continue building a loyal fanbase that actually acts. Keep tabs on your content’s performance using analytics tools. Identify what’s working and what’s not, and use this data to refine your content marketing strategy. Continuously optimizing your content based on performance metrics will help you create content that drives action and achieves your goals.
Part 3: The Finer Details – Tips and Tricks to Level Up Your Content Marketing Game
We’ve covered the basics, but let’s take it up a notch with some tips and tricks to help you supercharge your content marketing efforts.
- Craft Compelling Headlines: You need a hook. If you aren’t able to garner attention in seconds, your opportunity is gone. Your headline is the first thing your audience sees, so make it count. Use attention-grabbing language, power words, and numbers to create headlines that entice readers to click and explore further.
Don’t be cute.
Don’t be clever.
Say who it’s for.
What they’ll get.
Why they should read. Which of these two titles would you read?
“So you wanna side hustle?”
OR
“Drop Servicing: The Dead-Simple Process I Used to Go From $0-$64,232.50″
The latter says it’s for people that want to build a drop servicing business, they’ll learn the process I use, and they should read because I made more than $60K on the side last year with this process. That’s much more compelling. - Use Social Proof: Incorporate testimonials, case studies, and user-generated content (UGC) to demonstrate the value in all of your content. Social proof helps build trust and credibility, making your audience more likely to take action.
In fact, 92% of consumers look to online reviews when making a decision and 80% of consumers trust these reviews. Getting your existing customers to create custom content on your behalf is an immediate win. Pillow Slides has one of the best tactics I’ve seen to get their current customers to create content for them. Immediately after the product has arrived, they send the below email:
It tells their customers that they have a refund ready to be claimed and all they need to do is create content and send it back to them (UGC). This content then fueled their growth to a 7-figure business.
If you don’t have customers to help in the content creation game, then do what I’ve done in this article. Each example of high quality content throughout is a mini-case study that continues to build social proof. - Don’t Skimp on Quality: Quality always trumps quantity. Invest time and effort into your content marketing.
Creating high-quality, well-researched content that showcases your expertise and provides real value to your audience will help you maintain a positive brand reputation and make sure that prospective customers think of you as the go-to source for their needs. - Embrace Variety: Mix up your content formats and distribution channels to keep things fresh and engaging. Experiment with blog posts, videos, social media posts, webinars, the list goes on and on.
Russell Brunson tells a great story about how he upsells audiences based upon delivering the same thing in a different format. A book becomes an audio book becomes a course. People will pay more based upon the delivery mechanism.
This same logic holds true for content. Distributing valuable content across different mediums allows you to engage your audience where they are most receptive and likely to take the desired action. - Create a Sense of Urgency: Encourage your audience to take action by creating a sense of urgency. Limited-time offers, countdown timers, and phrases like “act now” can nudge your audience to take action sooner rather than later.
Don’t misunderstand the tactics above. This shouldn’t be a sleazy marketing trick, but rather helping the audience understand why it’s in their best interest to take action today, rather than in a week.
Conclusion: Content Marketing Superstar
And there you have it – your blueprint to creating a high quality content marketing plan and ensuring that your content drives action. By focusing on the holy trinity of value, relevance, and engagement, implementing the strategies we’ve covered, and embracing these tips and tricks, you’ll be well on your way to creating content that not only gets noticed but also gets results.
Remember, content marketing is an ongoing journey. It takes time, persistence, and a willingness to learn and adapt to truly master the art. But with determination, creativity, and a little bit of elbow grease, you’ll soon be reaping the rewards of your hard work and watching your audience take action like never before.
So, go forth and conquer the content marketing world, my friends! Your audience is waiting for your next masterpiece – don’t keep them waiting too long!
