Content marketing is one of the best ways to drive more leads. And while it is extremely effective, it is certainly not easy to implement. If you think that all you need to do to be seen as an industry expert is to write a few blog posts a month and syndicate them on social media, you would be mistaken. It is important to learn not only from your own content marketing mistakes but from competitors mistakes, too.Â
When you are creating a content marketing strategy there are certain mistakes you should avoid. Not performing any research into what your audience wants before you start writing can be highly detrimental to the success of your content, not having any goals for your content can make it difficult to monitor any success, and trying to please too many different audiences with your content can make it feel confusing to your consumers.Â
In this article, we discuss some of the content marketing campaign mistakes you need to avoid.Â
Not Researching What Your Audience Wants
Writing or creating content simply to have content on your website was a content marketing strategy several years ago. Now, you need to have content that connects with your target audience and answer the questions they might have. Good content provides valuable insights and information, and you will need to perform some research to find out what questions you need to answer.Â
You can turn to online resources such as forums to find out what your audience truly cares about (what you think they care about might not be what they actually care about), or you could use Google Analytics tools to find what keywords you can focus on for your next blog or infographic. This information will help you to create content that your audience will react positively to, because they are searching for it.Â
Being Everything To Everyone
A mistake that ties in to not performing research into what your audience wants is trying to please everyone…while ending up pleasing nobody. You might be writing several blog posts a month, but if they do not focus on one industry or on similar topics, you will likely not form a loyal reader or consumer base.Â
 Think about it like this: the same customer that wants to learn about your core products likely is not interested in any side services that are not related. You could divide your blog up into different categories and focus on one category a week, which will allow you to appeal to a wider audience, but be sure that you keep all of your blogs related to your business and your industry.Â
Not Setting Content Goals
Having goals for your content is important, especially if you are creating it to reach KPI (Key Performance Indicators) or as part of a content marketing campaign. Goals help you to figure out the “why†behind your content and keep you focused when creating topics and content calendars.Â
Your goals should include the metrics that matter the most for your content and that will help you to evaluate the success of your content marketing campaign. For example, if the goal of your content is to create brand awareness, then the goals and metrics you will be looking at include impressions, visits, and time spent on-page. Knowing why you are creating content and what you hope to achieve from it will help to keep your content valuable for both your business and your customers.Â
Publishing Too Much Content
If you are a new business or brand, you might thank that constantly publishing blog posts and social media posts will help you to gain online visibility, but it is better to focus on the quality of your content rather than the quantity. Publishing too much without thinking about what you are publishing can also be detrimental to your content marketing strategy.Â
Creating and publishing less but high-quality content will help to improve your online visibility and will provide your consumers with relevant and valuable content. Focus on the goals fo your content and the KPIs that you will be measuring rather than simply having content on your website or social media. Bombarding your audience might make them lose interest in your brand.Â
Keep It Simple
Another mistake that many people make when it comes to a content marketing strategy is overcomplicating their calendar, goals, and topics. Keep these simple and you will be able to follow your guidelines easily and effectively. Remember to perform research into what your audience would like, and focus on one topic each month or week.Â
Publishing too much content without any clear goals is also a very detrimental way to create a content marketing strategy. If you would like to improve your content marketing, speak to NetMechanic today to find out what we can offer you.Â
