Anyone can create content, but not everyone can make content that works or has an impact on their target audience. It may sound easy, jumping onto a platform and starting content – and it is designed to be – but that makes it much harder to distinguish yourself.
However, creating content takes more than just starting a blog or a YouTube account. Content production takes a lot of forms, ranging from article blogs to YouTube videos, and can vary widely amongst websites.
So, there are metrics you need to consider in order to make your content easy to discover. When it comes to content creation, there is no specific formula, but you can follow these simple steps to make your content more discoverable on search engines.
You can also check out our article focusing on how blog headlines drive traffic to your website.
Understand your target audience
A content creation process does not just mean choosing what type of content you want to make. The key to inbound content is also to give each audience the impression that you are speaking personally to them.
The best way to do this is to become connected with the audience. To achieve this, you also need to know to whom you are speaking to, how to deliver and where to find them. You should be aware of their needs, challenges, goals and anxieties. Your target audience is human, so they want to feel connected with the content they consume.
Start by identifying the keywords and phrases your ideal customers will most likely use when searching for your product or service. Then, create content that speaks directly to them and their needs.
Use language and terminology that your ideal customers would use, and make sure that your content is easy to understand and engaging. By creating content that is tailored to your ideal audience, you can improve your SEO and attract more targeted traffic to your site.
You can also start by creating a buyer persona if you find it difficult to connect directly to every audience that visits your content. A buyer persona is a person you want to reach out to with your content. This semi-fictional persona represents your target audience.
Building a buyer persona will give ideas for topics to write about and questions your audience may have. Then you determine whether the topics can be applied on a bigger scale to a larger audience. Creating a buyer persona requires some research, but it will help you have a clear idea of the best outcome of your content.
Extensive SEO research
The higher your website or pages rank on the SERP (Search Engine Results Page), the more likely they are to be seen by your potential customers. This is where SEO plays its role.
SEO research or keyword research will help you to measure the volume of a given keyword and whether it is worthwhile to invest in developing certain content by identifying the topics and keywords that your target audience is searching for related to your niche or industry. It plays a significant role in creating content that is both engaging and discoverable by your target audience.
Writing down some questions that your persona may have based on their difficulties and aspirations is an excellent way to start the research. By understanding the questions and concerns of your audience, you can create content that directly addresses their needs and provides valuable information.
Incorporate relevant keywords into your title, meta description, and throughout your content to make your content more visible to search engines.
You can add search engine results analytics to this strategy. This way, you can gain insights into the type of content that is ranking highly for your target keywords. This can help you understand the content format, length, and other factors that are contributing to its success.
If you can also understand the intent behind specific search queries, you can create content that addresses your target audience's specific needs and interests.
Tracking the performance of your content over time allows you to identify trends and patterns in user behavior, which can help you refine and improve your content strategy. As a result, you should be able to create more engaging content that resonates with your target audience and drives better results for your business.
Follow trending topics
The final step is to keep an eye out for trends, especially in social media, and ride the wave. This will help you get the general types of content to post. While it won’t be very specific to your audience, it can still be useful for your platform growth.
By staying up-to-date with trending topics in your industry or niche, you can create content that is more relevant and timely. You are also more likely to attract backlinks from other websites, which can help to improve your search engine rankings.
For example, you can check what’s trending right now on social media such as Twitter and Instagram, then you can combine the topic with your targeted delivery and identity. As a result, you can engage in new traffic coming, expanding the potential targeted audience.
You can also try analyzing the content of your competitors to identify gaps in your own content and opportunities to create more engaging content. In addition, you can position yourself as a thought leader in your industry, which can help to build trust and credibility with your audience.
However, it's important to note that you should only create content around trending topics if they are relevant to your brand and your audience. You would also need to completely avoid the trending topics that don’t align with your brand's message or values. After all, it's always critical to keep your target audience in mind and create content that suit their needs best.
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