Your website is the heart of your digital footprint. It’s your most important digital brand asset because you own and control it. Attracting website visitors to your website isn’t as easy as ‘build it, and they will come’. There are many tactics and strategies you can use to get visitors into your virtual front door. Content marketing is, by far, the best. Content marketing for web traffic includes taking a consistent approach to developing content that’s relevant and interesting for your target buyer.
Instead of seeing your website as just a place to park your contact information or show off your products and services, think of it as a publishing platform. When you have this mindset, you’ll begin to see substantial returns in traffic.
The Basics: What Is Content Marketing for Web Traffic?
Every content team starts its mission with a content strategy. In that strategy, you have the blueprint for how you’ll develop content and the goals it should support. Undoubtedly, one of those goals is to increase website traffic. You want to attract new visitors, keep old ones coming back, and prompt them to stay on your site for longer.
So how can content marketing help you achieve those goals? Content marketing for web traffic means your content team commits to the regular development of content that lives on your website. While most of your content is likely in written blog format, there are other options, including downloadable long-form content like ebooks and whitepapers. Image driven content, including infographics and videos, can also live here.
Some key things you should do to prep your website to have a content-first approach:
- Include blog excerpts on the home page: Those that land on your home page can quickly find interesting articles from here.
- Promote gated, long-form content: Use a “block” on your home page and update it regularly with new content offers that will resonate with buyers. For example, the beginning of October is a good time to put out resources around how brands can attract and retain holiday shoppers.
- Add a featured video: Create a space on your home page where videos that your visitors will want to view can live.
How Can You Manage Content Production Consistency?
Your organization realizes the importance of content marketing but may still face challenges in doing it well and consistently. That’s a recurring problem, and it happens a lot in enterprises, even if you have plenty of resources and a generous budget. The issue often relates to disorganization around content planning and content workflows.
The answer? A content calendar that is dynamic, transparent, and accessible is what you need. If you want to keep your content creators on task, you need a tool that tracks a project from beginning to end. There are lots of small tasks required to create a piece of content.
For instance, a blog requires writing, editing, approvals, SEO optimization, image selection or creation, publishing, and distribution. That’s a lot of steps, and it would be easy for any of them to fall through the cracks. A content calendar is an accountability tool. Easily set up each project with tasks and contributor assignments. Anyone can look at the calendar and know the status of a project and what’s lagging.
How Will You Know If Visitors “Like” Your Content?
Luckily, content performance is measurable. By looking at content analytics, you can determine if your content is driving website visitors. First, you’ll want to look at how your visitors are finding content. Organic search is typically the most prominent avenue (and it’s the one you want to be number one, too!). Social media profiles are usually in the conversation, as well as third-party sites.
Next, you’ll want to look at the growth in visitors to your website. Are you seeing month-over-month growth? Also, look at metrics around time spent on site and if it’s increasing. These areas can provide tremendous insight around what your visitors like about your content.
If you see numbers drop off, it can be cause for concern. However, it doesn’t mean you’re not producing great content. It could have more to do with the user experience of your website, especially around mobile. It’s a good idea to ensure a mobile-first design for your website. Make sure that the mobile experience of your blog or content download delivers. Look specifically at font size, if links are visible, and other formatting essentials.
Content Marketing for Web Traffic: The Proof Is in the Rankings
At the heart of every content marketing strategy is its ability to rank. With every piece of content you create, be laser-focused on being the best result on the web. Users who don’t know you but need you, will likely only find you through organic search. The more content you develop that’s SEO-optimized, expresses in-depth knowledge, and highlights thought leadership, the more likely you are to rank on Google.
When you hit this content marketing for web traffic nirvana, that’s when the real returns on your content begin. However, just because you start ranking well for key terms, it doesn’t mean you should pump the breaks.
Google algorithms change all the time. New competitors enter the market every day. Anyone in your industry is going to be vying for those same high rankings. Thus, you must remain active in your efforts with content marketing. Continue your content planning, considering what you learn from metrics, changes to audience needs, and your new product offerings.
Streamline Content Marketing for Web Traffic with the Right Tools
To keep your workflows moving and accountability in check, you need a content marketing platform that includes a content calendar, content metrics, and more. With one central software hub, your team, no matter where they sit, all have access.
Check out DivvyHQ today to see how it can streamline your content marketing.