It can be hard to get customers to buy in the B2C market. This is especially true for niche products or brands that are competing with you. It’s even more difficult if your product is new and you need to build trust.
Content marketing is a crucial strategy. It will help you reach your audience and convert them to customers if you do it right.
Publishing blog posts for the sake publishing blog posts is a waste of time. There is a lot of useless, repetitive, and poorly written content on the internet that serves no purpose.
Instead of following that path, your blog should be a conversion tool. You can do this by creating content that converts or contributes.
Here’s how.
Cover Your Entire Audience Spectrum
Content marketing starts with matching your target audience’s preferences. It should.
Image source: Ryrob.com
Customers won’t pay for your time if you don’t cover topics they are interested in. Why would they do that?
Begin by understanding who your audience is and what they want from your site. Do not limit yourself to a single group. Reach as many people as possible. If you are selling jewelry for women, don’t forget about their significant other.
The content strategy should be tailored to each audience segment’s interests. You should also ensure that it is compatible with the different stages of your sales funnel.
Image source: Futuredesigngroup.com
If you are selling nutrition and exercise programs, your top-of the-funnel posts might be about the dangers of being overweight. A bottom-of–the-funnel posting will focus more on a specific macro split.
This blog is worth a look. Bay Alarm Medical sells medical alerts, which are often associated with seniors. Their blog posts are not limited to this audience. They produce content for family members and caregivers. They have a wonderful example of how to care for a senior in the midst of a pandemic.
Image source: Bayalarmmedical.com
Your chances of converting leads and capturing them are higher the wider you can cast your net. It all comes down to audience segmentation and pinpointing the pain points for each person.
Make sure your content is easily read
To make your blog effective, you must carefully consider how it looks. While the content of a blog post has a lot more value than its surface, posts that are difficult to read will be overlooked in favor of better content. This is the reality in the online world.
These are some tips to make your content easier to read:
- Keep your sentences brief and to-the-point. Your goal is to communicate information.
- Think about the level of reading you wish to use. 8th Grade is the best recommendation. However, your rule should be to write at the lowest level possible that doesn’t offend your audience. You can use online tools such as Readable to determine the performance of your blog posts.
- Get good readability scores for your posts. Yoast will run a readability check for you and point out any issues you might need to correct. Grammarly and the Hemingway app are also options.
- Keep your posts in readable sections One paragraph is enough. Skimmability is your goal. You want to make sure that readers can find the information they need quickly.
- Think about the colors that you are using on your blog. The colors should be bright enough to draw people in but not distract from the words. They should convey an emotion that is consistent with your brand.
Image source Crazyegg.com
Let’s look at some examples.
This guide for pet parents gifts was a great job by Threadless:
- They have provided lots of illustrations to illustrate their suggestions.
- These paragraphs are not too long.
- There is ample white space on this page.
- It is very easy to read, and the font is quite pleasant.
You can also check out our blog on B2B marketing vs. B2C.
- The headings make the text easy to read and break it up nicely.
- Numerous bullet points add to the ease of reading.
- These sentences are concise and sweet.
Do Your Research
Your readers will trust you no matter what topic you blog about. This is especially true if your blog contains YMYL content. Your Money or Your Life, which means you advise your customers about their finances and health.
Image source: Lokalyze.com
Poor advice from your audience on a topic like “how to fix wobbly chairs” isn’t nearly as dangerous as poor advice regarding where to save money or how to lose weight.
You should do more research for your blog content if your niche is YMYL or if your products have a significant impact on your customers’ lives. Every word must be true.
Also, you should try to offer as little advice as possible or at the very least to make a list of people to whom your advice is applicable.
All claims should be supported. This can be done by linking to reliable and credible sources, or by inviting a subject matter expert to your board. They will review your data and offer advice. Your posts will benefit from their expertise, which can be the difference between abandoning carts and conversions.
Future Kind’s blog is a great example. This post about vitamin B12 is a great example. You will find a lot of links to back up their claims. This makes their post the best possible.
If you don’t have any research to link to, list them. No matter if you’ve ever tried something, had a particular result or experienced it yourself, you should always record where your information came from.
Add to your written content with other formats
While your blog will primarily be populated with written content, you may also want to add other content formats to enhance its engagement and keep your readers’ attention on the page.
You should be aware that this is not something you can do for every post. You should focus on creating an additional point for your most important posts.
Videos
A video can be used to improve the page’s speed and value. You can also feature a video to:
- Demonstrate how a product is used
- Describe some of the advantages of buying your product
- Give more details about the point you have covered in the text
As a brand, it is best to create an original video. You can also feature videos created by other people, provided they are not competitors. YouTubers that aren’t trying push a brand through their content may be a good option.
Solo Stove’s approach to this is how it was done: Solo Stove created a blog post that introduced their product and also featured a video to show the benefits of the product and allow customers to see it in action. It’s short, but it is very effective.
Image source: Blog.solostove.com
Podcast
You can also opt for audio and include a podcast in your blog posts. You can also launch a podcast, and post a transcript on your blog. This content repurposing method can be a great way to get something published when you don’t have the time or energy to write a blog post.
This post features Naturally Curly’s podcast in video format. This article is not a summary of the episode, but rather an introduction to the podcaster. It gives the listener a little insight before they listen.
Infographic
An infographic can be used to give the post some visual interest. This is a great way to make the data more appealing to your readers.
This infographic by Truity proves it well. If the brand had written about this topic, it would have been quite long and clunky. The infographic allows them to convey a lot of information in a single glance.
Image source Truth.com
You can also promote your brand on a variety of new channels with the help of all these content formats. You can:
- Create a YouTube channel and feature your video on social networks
- You can either list your infographic at Visually, or pin it to Pinterest
- Promote your podcast on a variety of podcasting platforms
Present Your Product Logically
Many brands mistakenly think that content marketing is synonymous with selling. You are trying to provide meaningful, valuable information that will allow your potential customers to get to know you. It’s not about shoving products in people’s faces.
Therefore, it is important to mention your product in a logical manner. The product mention should not feel like a rude awakening. It should feel natural and continue the conversation between you and the reader.
Introduce the problem before you present the solution. Make sure you are specific and concrete, and make sure the product is in line with the topic. For example, if you’re writing for people who have curly hair, do not mention shampoos that are made for them.
Let’s take a look at the Impossible healthy energy drinks. They cleverly allow their product to be compared against the best in the business. The article is informative but respectful. They don’t make a big deal about the competition and have done a great job of highlighting key features of their product without degrading another’s.
This is the way you want to go. Keep your posts civil and useful. You don’t want to be a slave to lesser brands.
Provide Serious Value
We keep repeating the point that content marketing exists to create value for your customers. Do not just write and post. You should aim to publish at most two posts that are truly the best resources on a topic.
It can be difficult to choose the right topic. You want it to be searched for, but not covered completely. You should choose something that is of interest to your audience and where you can add value to the conversation.
There are many ways to hunt down keywords with low competition that have a high monthly search volume. You can try them all to find the one that works best for you.
Image source: Moz.com
This part can be skipped and you can produce a resource of great value to your readers.
This post about the best paddleboard accessories has been done by Gili. It does many things right. It’s not too long but it doesn’t bore the reader, and provides enough information about each product. Every item comes with an image and bullet points that highlight the key features. A link takes the reader to the product’s page.
Although the post is stuffed with information, it doesn’t feel overwhelming or too long. It’s all organized well so the reader can easily jump from one point to another.
Tell the story of your customer
Personalize your efforts to make them more effective. Tell your readers their success stories to connect with them in a new way.
Customer stories and case studies are a great way for you to show your customers that your products and services work as promised. They also help customers get to know your brand and products. You can overcome many objections to purchasing if you show customers how someone like them solved a problem. Plus, people who feature your feature will likely share it, which can help promote your business.
You can choose to tell the most relatable stories or highlight the challenges and triumphs you have over. Sometimes, pulling at the heartstrings of your audience is a good idea (just look at the John Lewis Christmas ads), provided that you don’t make it too sappy or cringeworthy.
Mixam uses videos to tell stories instead of writing them. They show their customers how they create custom products and what they can expect. Mixam’s expertise is highlighted and appeals to many senses, adding value.
Image source: Mixam.com
Video doesn’t necessarily have to be the only option. You can make a blog post with original images and still succeed.
Last Thoughts
B2C content marketing is a lot of fun, if you are willing to accept the challenges and work with your audience. Be sure to match your efforts to what your customers are looking for and to cater to their interests and tastes. Do not just show off what appeals to your personal taste.
Scoop.it Blog published the article B2C Content Marketing: How To Engage and Convert Consumers With Your Blog.
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