Let’s be honest here.  How many people enjoy being marketed to? 

Do you ever feel stalked when adverts follow you around on your social channels, or flash up on websites you visit?  How much does this turn you off that brand?

Conversely, what about the brand that is always offering free resources, knowledgeable information or fun and interactive content? 

Which brand are you more likely to purchase from when you are ready to buy?

Understanding this must be the key to defining your content marketing strategy and plan.  It should always be about adding value and never about straightforward selling your services or products.  Of course, your objectives still need to be met, but you will meet them so much quicker if you  build the relationship and trust first, before thinking about that conversion, or sale. 

Before you launch into a content marketing plan, it is worth defining your strategy and objectives.  Below is an overview of how to approach this, and a few tools to get you started or review your existing approach:

A very powerful free tool for your business is your Google My Business listing. Being right at the heart of Google itself, it is an essential ranking signal for local SEO and when you gain some of those magical 5* reviews, it will help attract new clients to your business.   

What is Google My Business?

A free resource that allows you to manage your online presence throughout Google Local results in a comprehensive manner. This presence includes your business details within search and on Google Maps. You can add a myriad of details to your listing including opening hours, images and videos and contact details. You can interact with your customers by responding to their reviews, you can add content to share, information about your products and use your listing to launch adverts.

Choosing high quality directories to list your website on is an important first step to raising your visibility online.  Google uses this in their algorithms to help rank your website and of course this will also help direct more people to your business.  There are several things that you need to consider: