If you want to drive online readership and conversions, you need to build your site foundation on high quality, compelling content. But what do readers want? With so many websites, what will make your brand stand out?
A quick look around at leading sites suggests that there are several post styles that draw readers in – so give them a try. With these 3 approaches to online content, you’ll create an eager and engaged audience.
The Listicle
Lists are ideal for online reading because they’re naturally broken down into small, digestible units – and you can make a list from almost anything. For example, you can make a list of styles, like this list of content marketing approaches which offers strategy options, a list of products, or a “best of” list for auto loans, restaurants, local vets, or just about anything else you can think of. Even this post is a type of listicle!
The Infographic
When infographics hit the web, they exploded – everyone felt like they needed a dozen on their page, even if they had negligible data. That’s why now, sites that use infographics to boost engagement need to make them extraordinary, or else they can become a kind of terrible black hole, sucking value out of your site.
To make a great infographic, you need a talented graphic designer on your side – the technical aspect simply can’t be managed by your average marketing staff member. You also need to develop a clear outline of facts and statistics and a compelling visual theme. Infographics that grasp all of these aspects, like this Sound of Color infographic from Kelly-Moore paint will attract attention even from those without paint on the brain.
The Guest Post
Your marketing team is great. They understand your brand and your message, they know your website inside and out, and they’ve got a handle on what your customers want. But the fact is that sometimes when you’ve worked on the same topic for a long time, you start to run out of ideas. You wind up in a rut and you can’t get out. If that happens, it might be time for a guest post.
From a marketing perspective, guest posts are valuable for several reasons. Not only do they bring a new perspective to your blog, they help build brand relationships across the web. When someone writes a guest post for your blog, you can be certain they’ll also link to it from their site – they want their readers to know what else they’re doing and enhance their own links in the process. That link is then another quality backlink establishing your page’s credibility.
Marketing your website doesn’t require a store of endless ideas – it just demands that you create high-value permutations of traditional formats. If you can innovate on the blog modes that readers already love, you’ll create an environment that’s both comfortable and exciting, new and familiar.
Originally posted on March 11, 2017 @ 11:57 am