This post is the latest in our series on scrappy marketing – an approach can help you achieve better results in less time.
Creating content campaigns with serious impact doesn’t have to be the preserve of larger companies. But creating content that’s both fast to produce and effective in driving results requires inspiration.
This blog looks at scrappy ways you can use free digital tools to conceive, build and launch winning content campaigns fast.
Zero-in on the right content titles with Google Autocomplete
Even though you may have buyer journey maps and positioning documents that define what your target customers might be looking for, there may be specific terms buyers are using that you have missed.
Google Autocomplete makes its search predictions based on what other people have searched for. By reviewing what phrases or questions are associated with your keyword, you can discover what people want to know about your product and create content that they’ll want to engage with.
You can also use Autocomplete to find out what terms your keywords are related to, and place these into your content to help improve its relevance.
While taking this approach alone is unlikely to result in winning lots of organic traffic, it can provide both a useful tool for gathering ideas and a place to make sure you’re creating content that people are actually looking for.
Plan your next webinar campaign with Google Trends
In addition to Autocomplete, check out Google Trends to see how the popularity of a particular search term, and its related queries, have varied with time. Which industry topics are most relevant to your potential customers, and what’s falling out of favor? Are there any seasonal patterns?
There’s also an option to view ‘rising’ search terms, which shows you which topics and queries related to your industry have increased most rapidly in popularity over the last year. Are there search queries that imply emerging pain points for your customers? Insights like these could inform what emerging subject your next webinar could be about.
Discover existing content to repurpose with social data
Which of your social posts have had the most shares? Are there any themes that have worked well for other companies? Go back through your timelines to find out. If you go back far enough, you may find a piece of content that still has legs, or for which a recent theme has given it new relevance.
Discuss what it might be about the popular post that worked so well. Does it solve a problem that your potential customers might have? If so, it may be possible to repurpose the content.
For example, a popular how-to video could be spun into a longer guide that goes into greater detail than the video. Make the guide available to only those who have filled out a form, and you can start generating leads.
Make the most of upcoming events
Events are a great opportunity to generate content, even those you’re not holding.
If there’s an industry event on the horizon, find out what main themes will be discussed and use these as inspiration for your own content. Keep an eye on social activity during the event, making note of the topics that are firing up the most discussion among your potential customers.
Even for events that aren’t your own, producers will often release delegate lists to show what companies are attending or presenting. This can provide you with a list of targets that could form part of an account-based marketing campaign.
Create your next breakout blog with ego bait
Content that boosts the egos of influencers or industry leaders, or ego bait, can prove a major traffic driver if done well. Ego bait usually takes the form of an interview or listicle, and tends to perform well as the subjects featured are – unsurprisingly – keen to share any content that praises their work.
The key is to keep it authentic. Put aside your metrics head while your building the campaign and focus on engaging the person you’d like to feature in your content. If they’re a good fit, the content is informative and your customers find it helpful, all those shares and links back to the site will follow.