Business is shifting to the internet, and content creation is one of the best ways for your business to establish an online presence.
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, e-retail has increased from about 5% of total retail sales in 2012 to 13.6% in 2021. Since the census began tracking e-commerce, this trend has continued upwards.
Blue Corona observed that less than 64% of small businesses had a website in 2019. You can get a leg up on the competition just by creating a website.
Now, think about the growth opportunity that comes with promoting that website. By attracting views, you can steadily grow in the rising internet market.
Content creation is one of the best ways to promote your business. As the clicks stream in, so do your potential sales. But that’s not the only benefit.
Traditional marketing is about telling the world that you’re awesome at what you do. Content marketing is about showing the world that you’re awesome at what you do.
Through that distinction, content creation can reshape reputation and keep your business at the forefront of the market.
To better understand this, look at content creation in the form of the marketing funnel. This funnel describes the sales process from start to finish, and splits the process into three stages: lead generation, lead nurture, and sales.
Top of the Funnel: Lead Generation
The most basic goal of any marketing campaign is for your business to be seen and noticed by as many people as possible. Through this audience, you generate leads that could end in sales.
On the internet, content creation is the cheapest and most effective method to attract customers.
Content marketing costs an average of about 62% less than traditional marketing, and generates three times as many leads. In fact, after reading relevant content, six out of 10 consumers are inspired to check out a product (Demand Metric).
Content creation is cheap and effective, but it is also efficient. According to Social Media Examiner, more than 81% of marketers experienced increased traffic by investing as little as six hours per week in social media content.
At the top of the funnel, content creation excels. This is in part due to backlinks.
Some blogs and people would be willing to share your content with their followers. Many content creators will link to similar content in order to be Search Engine Optimized (SEO).
The result is the exponential generation of leads. One piece of content is mentioned in two others, and those two in four, and so on. This is the key to why “content is king” when it comes to promotion.
Middle of the Funnel: Lead Nurture
This stage of the marketing funnel focuses on when the consumer is doing research and narrowing down the options before purchase.
There are three pillars of consumer engagement: expertise, authority, and trust.
Expertise
For a consumer to consider a purchase, they must first recognize that a business has suitable credentials. To establish expertise, the first step is brand-building. Name recognition is the easiest way to become a perceived expert.
According to PPC Protect, the average person is estimated to see between 6000 and 10000 advertisements a day. With that much exposure, it’s difficult for businesses to get noticed.
Content creation encourages consumers to spend time on the posts, learning about the topic at hand. They are more likely to recognize your brand if you provide a benefit to them, like education.
The more content associated with your business, the more “credentials” for consumers to consider.
Authority
Authority is all about quality. Consumers often look at associated content to determine the quality of a business. The Content Marketing Institute found that 70% of consumers prefer to get information about a business in articles rather than ads. More often than not, consumers are looking to content to find out about your business.
If any content affiliated with a business is high quality, then consumers are more likely to view that business as high quality. This establishes that business as an authority in their field.
Trust
The most important and difficult aspect of consumer engagement is trust. Trust is the end-goal of content creation. After brand recognition and acceptance of quality comes trust in the business as a whole.
Trust is based on validation. Content often leads to trust, much like authority. Consistent production of quality content leads consumers to believe that anything you produce will be helpful.
Consumers who trust your business are more likely to purchase your products, recommend your business to others, and become repeat customers.
Bottom of the Funnel: Sales
After consumers find the options and narrow them down comes the most important piece of marketing: sales.
While content creation can do a great job of promoting products for a sale, the real benefit comes after the sale. According to BIA Advisory Services , 61% of small to midsize businesses say that half of their revenue is coming from repeat customers.
Creating repeat customers is where content creation excels.
Business websites that regularly update blogs get bookmarked 434% more often than businesses affiliated with outdated blogs (Impact). Consumers return for consistent, quality content.
On top of that, content can be reshaped and redistributed countless times. One well-received blog post can be reformatted into a video, social media post, or sales pitch, which can attract customers for months on end.
Through content, you can continue to expose customers to your business. This forms a relationship, and consumer relationships are invaluable.
Content creation leads to efficient marketing
There are few techniques that can be used in all stages of marketing, and none that are as efficient as content creation.
With six hours a week, you can help your company in the present and the future. Being noticed is easier, reputation is solidified, and relationships are formed.
We are not saying content creation is a requirement.
But it certainly helps.
