Choosing The Best Types of Content Marketing For Your Small Business
The options are endless. There are millions of ways to market your small business. New statistics come out all the time explaining the benefits of this marketing tactic and that marketing tactic, but you can’t and shouldn’t do all of the things. So how is one to know what would be the most effective? How is one to know where to even start?
Below I’m sharing the options available to you and the framework by which you can make decisions about which marketing tactics to choose, so that can attract more of the right leads, establish or improve your brand’s reputation, and consistently produce content with simplicity and effectiveness.
Ahhhh. Sounds dreamy, right? Stay with me.
When the options are endless, you need a system to weed out what’s not right for you, to determine what does what, and how to choose what will be a good fit.
So that we’re all on the same page, the Content Marketing Institute defines content marketing as:
“… a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.”
My definition is that content marketing is the material you create and publish in order to, educate, and inspire your ideal clients. When done well, your content marketing solves real problems and improves people’s lives in a specific way. And the purpose of content marketing is to provide consistent exposure of your brand to your desired audience over time, so as to influence behavior.
The more your audience is exposed to your educational content marketing materials, the better suited they are to make an informed decision on how to move forward in a way that’s right for them.
Your audience ultimately wants something different than they currently have. Maybe it’s better health, more money, better lunch options for their kids, a healthier marriage. Whatever specific thing your ideal client wants, you have to be able to guide them through the process of getting them from where they are right now, to where they want to ultimately be.
Your content gives them what they need to be able to trust you to be that person.
This is not a comprehensive list by any means, but to give you an idea of what content marketing is, here are 13 examples:
Blogs
Podcasts
Videos
Webinars
Email Marketing
Social Media
Ebooks
Whitepapers
Free Consultations
Lead Magnets, like checklists or free guides
Quizzes
Presentation Slides
Infographics
Again, content marketing is the term used to describe the material you create that represents your business and your brand that you share with the world and the mediums listed here are some examples of content marketing.
Understanding different types of marketing is essential.
For example, when you go to the store to buy milk, there are so many different types of milk to choose from. Some may give you a stomachache and you know to stay clear of those. Some may have a really strange name or come from an unconventional source, but they don’t taste so bad and happen to have magical health benefits. Some you may need for a specific recipe (like buttermilk), and then there’s the milk you keep in your fridge as a staple item.
Marketing is the same way: Your baseline marketing strategy is comprised of the marketing tactics you do regularly...this is the milk that is always in the fridge.
If you’re launching a new product or service like a digital course or a new freebie, you may take out digital ads for a specific time period, or do some guest podcast spots...this is the buttermilk, this is the specific milk you buy for a particular recipe. You don’t use it every day and chances are, you won’t use the entire carton. It’s necessary for a very specific purpose.
There are some marketing tactics that could be VERY effective for your brand, but you’re just not terribly sure how to implement them or how to get started. There are marketing tactics that don’t appeal to you AT ALL. For some that may be showing up on video, or showing up on a particular social media platform, or writing a blog post.
Now, I want to pause here for one second because it’s important to differentiate between not wanting to do something because it’s not something you’re naturally skilled at or enjoy, versus not wanting to do something because you’re really just worried about how it will be received. Podcasting/social media/ putting your work out there... becoming visible comes with its own mental gymnastics, doesn’t it? Fear of being judged, fear of being seen, all of this is totally normal.
I want you to grab a pen & paper if you're able, or start a new note on your phone. Answer the questions I’m about to ask so that you can do the due diligence of understanding where your strengths lie.
What are the creative pursuits you’d gravitate toward even if you didn’t HAVE TO? Stop reading if you have to, then come on back after you’ve answered that question.
What did you write down? Are you a natural writer? A natural public speaker? A sketch artist? Singer? Musician? Whatever creative pursuits you jotted down will be the guideline as to what type of marketing tactics will serve you best.
If you listed that you enjoy singing, creating music, for example, you may enjoy an audio-heavy medium like a podcast or video. Likewise, if you lean more on the introverted scale, podcasting allows you to create in private and it’s not performative. The point here is to simply understand your strengths and consider the marketing tactics that may play well to those. You're more likely to stick with it if it's something that appeals to you and comes naturally to you.
If the idea of sitting in front of a computer screen and writing a blog post makes you want to pull your eyelashes out, then blogging isn't for you. It will show in your copy and it will feel like drudgery every time. You'll procrastinate and it will be "that thing" that nags at you every month. You have permission to skip it and pick something that appeals to you because you'll look forward to doing it regularly and the quality of the work will be substantially better.
Different Tactics Serve Different Purposes
Another thing to keep in mind is that different tactics serve different purposes. They can drive traffic, generate new leads, grow your email list, and convert leads into paying clients.
Knowing what you want your marketing tactics to DELIVER is essential.
How do your ideal clients like to consume their content and/or how do they like to learn?
Understanding how your ideal clients prefer to get their information is a key component to a good marketing plan. Understanding your ideal clients pays off, and this is one critical example.
My team did a deep dive into the most recent statistics on how different generations like to get their content. We pulled from different credible sources and one interesting statistics we found was that Baby Boomers, who happen to be the generation with the most spending power of ANY generation right now (2022). In November 2021, 68% of Baby Boomers use Youtube for various reasons. Multiple studies showed that Baby Boomers use Youtube for tutorials, for entertainment purposes, and to get their news. So if you’re trying to reach an audience comprised of Baby Boomers, have you considered Youtube as a means by which to educate, entertain, or inspire? You may want to … it could serve your audience really well.
The point here is that you want to make it easy for people to find and consume your content. The whole “meet them where they are” bit applies here. If they’re already scrolling Instagram, work on getting your posts to show up in their search feed. If they’re listening to podcasts on sports nutrition, maybe a podcast on sports nutrition is a good fit for both of you.
In episode three of The Marketing Solutions Podcast I talked about identifying & prioritizing revenue producing activities. Creating the original long form content, the blog post, the speech, the presentation, the free course, the podcast, these are revenue generating activities and they’re examples of work that ONLY you can do. The editing, transcribing, creation of supporting materials. This is work that your assistant or team can do.
What Do You Offer?
Choosing the right marketing tactics will be influenced by what your offering is. What do you sell? If you have a physical product that needs a demonstration, showing up on video regularly is a great idea! If your services require a demonstration to really communicate the value, then showing up on video is a real service to your audience. Instagram Stories, Facebook Live, IGTV, Youtube, all great platforms for you.
Once you have your long form content modality identified: your blog, video, podcast, etc. Then you or your team can break that apart into bite-sized pieces and use for social media posts, for email marketing content, for mini-videos, for lead magnets, etc. Ever seen an author give away the first chapter of a book in exchange for your email address? That’s an example of repurposing long form content as a lead magnet (or opt-in). Simple. You’ve already done the work of creating the big thing, now break it apart into bits and pieces to promote it.
A mental reframe for you to consider: Think about your long form content as a product all on its own. Think of your blog post, for example, as a stand alone product. There’s the creation of the product and there must be a promotion plan for that product, right? Otherwise, no one will know your blog post exists.
So let’s recap the ways that you can choose the best marketing tactics for you (and eliminate those that won’t serve you well):
#1 is to understand where your strengths lie and what you can continue to produce with a certain level of enthusiasm and joy. You want to create from a place of generosity and confidence. It shows in your material when you’ve just whipped something together so think through what you’d really enjoy creating on a regular basis.
#2 is to understand how your ideal clients prefer to learn and consume content. You can find a lot of this information with a simple Google search. You need to know who your ideal client is first, then you need to know how they like to learn and where they enjoy spending their time. Do your best to marry your strengths that we discussed earlier with the mediums your ideal clients are already using.
Simply put, show up on platforms that they’re already using and enjoying .
#3 Consider what you’re selling. Think of your offerings. How can you best showcase them so that people are crystal clear on what they’ll deliver? What mediums could best your display your expertise? For example, could your service be better explained or demonstrated with a video tutorial so that people can better understand the benefits of working with you?
And lastly, I’ll leave you with this...commit to a certain set of marketing tactics for a specific period of time. Go all in and do your very best. Stay focused and execute your marketing activities to the best of your ability. If you half-ass it, you’ll never know if they really would have been a great tool to drive business. At the end of the duration of time you had set, you can re-evaluate your marketing activities. Make changes where necessary.
Nothing is set in stone and nothing is permanent. Marketing is largely trial and error.
Ok, your homework assignment for today is to make a list of creative pursuits that you really enjoy. This can be the gateway to understanding what type of marketing activities would serve you and your audience best. Once you have your list, cross reference that list with the content marketing ideas we discussed earlier, or do your own search.
Ultimately, how you grow your business is up to you. How fast or slow, by what means, and your reasons for doing so are all personal to you. You’re not missing anything and you’re not late. Show up in a way that feels good to you and honors your integrity, your expertise, and solves real problems for the people who you want to work with and you can’t go wrong.
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Thanks for being here,
Kelly Smith
