Are you ready for a content marketing strategy?

Review your website based on your content marketing strategy

A website is more than just a content marketing strategy prerequisite. Think about it like the town square of your business – the place where everyone comes together to find information, have a chat, or just see what all the fuss is about. The purpose of a website can vary depending on your offering, but there are essentials any digital space should cover. Most importantly, you need to help visitors get to know your business and give them an easy way to act when they’re interested.

If you’ve got all that covered, you should start thinking about guiding your web visitors along a path to conversion.

The road from website visitor to lead, and ultimately client can take many forms and lead down a range of paths. As evident by this article, content marketing is one of them, and in a way, I could argue it’s all of them. After all, no matter how you decide to guide people through your pages, you will do it by using what’s on them – content.

For example, some content marketing strategies your website can support are lead generation, quizzes, and blog writing. All these need a place to live and I could not emphasise more how important it is that this place is your own website. After all, the last thing you want is to guide an engaged lead away from your business and to another platform.

Decide how you will handle the information you gather

Number two on the list is a way to manage and record the information your leads provide you with. A key goal of any content marketing strategy is to build a database of engaged and interested leads. If you’re setting up for success, you’re likely to end up with more than a couple of leads. In this case, a customer relationship management (CRM) software will become a necessity.

To clarify, I’m not saying you have to pay for expensive solutions from the get-go.

Many business owners start with an excel sheet or even a notebook, and there’s nothing wrong with that! It’s an inexpensive way to record data and it might work perfectly for you. However, if you’re planning to automate your lead generation process, it’s best to set up a CRM early on. Depending on what platform you decide to go with, you can automate email follow-ups, score leads, and track project information in one place. Some great options for small businesses are HubSpot’s free version, Active Campaign, and Dubsado.

Get all the legal stuff sorted

Once you’re set up with a website and CRM, it is important to look at the legal requirements for processing data. As a minimum, you will need a privacy policy that clearly outlines how you’re handling data. Another key requirement is a cookie policy that tells website visitors how you’re tracking their actions on your website.

Don’t skip over these two essentials, no matter how little data you think you’re keeping. Even the simplest of contact forms imply that once someone gets in touch, you will keep their details. Moreover, a content marketing strategy can have several touchpoints and follow-ups. If this is the case, make sure they are all stated in your privacy policy.

If this seems a bit daunting, don’t worry! You can find a range of free resources online and even add plugins to your website that generate policies for you. I will add that it’s always best to invest in legal advice from a professional when you can. However, if you’re not there yet, start with a free option and upgrade later.

Lastly, if you are a UK-based business, you need to register with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Paying the data protection fee is a quick and easy process that won’t break the bank and you should complete it as soon as possible.

I’m ready for a content marketing strategy!

What’s next?

Well, that’s up to you! To begin with, you need to decide what your goals are. Next, you need to pick a trusted partner that will help you achieve them. Some business owners like to work with agencies so they can rely on a larger team. Others prefer freelancers for their personalised approach and flexibility.

Overall, the most important thing is to find someone who aligns with your business and who you can easily communicate with. If you’d like some help figuring all this out, you can book a strategy chat with me. We’ll discuss your goals and your business, and see how a content marketing strategy can fit into the mix.

Just drop us a line or book a free discovery call to chat about what you have in mind and how we can help you achieve it.