The internet is full of content to keep us all entertained or distracted – depending on our current mood. The problem is that with so many content creators out there trying to get a brand noticed, it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. Companies that take the time to understand their current market and the limitations in their content can get ahead. With some honest reflection and a strong content marketing strategy, you may soon improve your reach significantly.
Understanding the Current Demographic of Your Website
Before you can look at how to reach more people with better content marketing, you need to know more about the people you already have. You might find that you have a very strong group of fans within a small demographic. If so, there are two routes available. You could play into that and improve the content they love so they recommend you to others. Or you could look at ways of diversifying your content to attract people you are missing.
It all depends on whether that current group engaging with your content is paying off. Are they paying for subscriptions, buying recommended products, and using other services? Is there a product line that’s growing stale because it isn’t connecting with the right people? The more detailed your data, the more you can find out.
Understanding your audience comes down to three main factors. One of those is gender. Are you looking to target one gender in particular, or are you out to appeal to everyone? Is that reflected in the stats for those engaging with your content? Then there’s their age. We can break this into generations now. Is the content you made to appeal to a millennial crowd reaching them? Or is it actually getting more clicks from older Boomers or younger Gen-Z viewers? Finally, there is the location. Is your content going global, or is it worryingly restricted to one region?
What Content Are They Most Interested In?
Knowing who visits your website and engages with your content is just the start. You also need to be sure you provide content they want to engage with. Preferences for various content forms vary by age group. So, if you’re trying to connect with a more mature audience with content loved by younger viewers, you’re not going to make that connection.
A good example of this is video content. There is the assumption that everyone wants video content – either through short-form TikTok videos or longer episodes on a YouTube channel. However, research from Artios shows that video isn’t that big a deal right now. They studied engagement rates for various forms of content and found a 0.17% engagement rate for videos. Social media posts were higher, at 9.16%, suggesting that the platform and presentation make some difference.
What was most interesting about this data was the top three. There was a surprising 10.37% engagement rate for blogs, then 14.07% for online courses, and an impressive 51.29% for podcasts. The question now is how does this relate to your content and strategy moving forward? Are you in a position where a company podcast would be a viable option? Is it time to kick-start an old blog with new written content? Or do you simply need to rethink how you present your video content?
How to Get Improved Content to Your Audience
Now that you know what demographics are most interested in your content and how to attract those you’re missing, you can build a new content marketing strategy. You can start to figure out where you are going wrong and how to make improvements. One place to start is by looking at what the competition is up to. Your competitors that rank higher on Google and other search engines have something that makes them more noticeable and attractive. This doesn’t mean you have to copy them – that would be lazy and counterproductive. You can, however, gain inspiration for new tactics and find their weaknesses.
From there, you can work on tightening up all your content to make it more appealing to potential viewers and the Google algorithm. If you decide to move into podcasting, you need to make sure the quality is there to compete with other providers. Bloggers can’t get lazy and turn to AI for short posts with no sense of personality or human connection. Those focusing on videos can’t just throw anything onto TikTok and expect it to trend.
However, this doesn’t just mean working on the content itself, but also the presentation. This means looking at your social media, website landing pages, and other platforms. For example, you might find you need to refresh the meta tags and descriptions on your content. This is essential for website listings and for hooking people into videos, podcast episodes, and online courses. These short, to-the-point snippets use just the right keywords and phrases to tell viewers what’s on offer without them losing interest. Those keywords are also important within any additional written content for higher rankings.
Staying On Top Of Your Content Strategy
It is also important to remember that whatever you do now to get noticed online, you can’t rely on that to work long-term. Content creation and SEO evolve consistently, so you need to be sure you have used the best tools for optimal results. A regular audit can make all the difference here. Professionals can come in and give your content and SEO strategies a thorough examination. Don’t be offended if they find weaknesses and room for improvement. That’s their job. Their suggestions and fixes can keep you competitive for longer.
So, if you feel that it’s time to upgrade your current content marketing strategy, look at getting some professional help. It is possible to make some improvements yourself with appropriate market data and some hard work. However, an expert SEO team with diverse analytical skills can dig deeper. They can give you a clearer picture of your current demographics, see what’s working and what isn’t with your content, and get you back on track.
