Broken down into non-marketing lingo: content marketing makes sure that when a customer is seeking a solution for their problem, they can find helpful and relatable information that will lead them to become your customer.

What types of content fall into content marketing?

In a word, everything. Your social media posts, your newsletter, even your email signature can all be a part of a content marketing strategy.

The key is that the content that is created must have a strategy behind it that helps you meet your business goals by providing value to your target customer and ultimately driving profit to your bottom line.

A Real-Life Content Marketing Example

You’re probably thinking, “well, that’s nice but all my content is about my business” and you’re right. Content marketing, as opposed to general content, will help usher a consumer along the sales cycle.

For example, the other day I was researching whether I should build a fence or hire someone to do it for me. I searched “how to build a fence” because I like to think I’m willing to sweat that much (spoiler alert: I’m not).

I clicked on the first link, a blog post by a large retailer, that outlined how someone would go about building a fence. First, you measure the yard, then buy the lumber, etc. There were helpful video links that I could click on if I preferred to visualize the information. After reading the post, I realized I’m not even ready to decide what type of fence I want, much less start the process of building one. Luckily, there was another blog linked at the bottom that was about how to choose the right type of fence for you. I clicked on it, read it, and now have my choices narrowed down to two options.

Talk about helpful content. While I haven’t yet hit the contact link that was on the bottom of both blog posts, I know who I’ll be working with when I’m ready to build a fence because this retailer has already provided me value. As a consumer, I trust them. It feels like they really care that I have the fence-building experience that I want.

What is really interesting about this isn’t that I keep reading blogs about fences but that when I do contact them, I’ve already made up my mind to do business with them. They’ve already convinced me through their content marketing.

Many businesses haven’t explored content marketing because it can be overwhelming and expensive. If that’s you, don’t worry.

Blue Spec Marketing helps businesses thrive by crafting a marketing strategy that will work for you, on your terms. We specialize in content marketing because it is one of the most effective ways to reach customers, it builds trust in your brand, and frankly – we just love it.