In the age of social commerce and giant marketplaces, small & medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are faced with the challenges of growth and the opportunities to go global hence the answer to this paradox is content marketing.
You see, content marketing is the marketing strategy used to acquire, engage, and retain customers by sharing thought leadership content. This content may include; videos, articles, podcasts, social media posts, and every content piece in between.
Additionally, content marketing involves the development and distribution of this content via different formats to existing and potential customers. Therefore, there are several benefits to content marketing for SMEs that include;
- Increase of online visibility – Educative and informational content can help SMEs create online visibility. This same content can be repurposed to other channels like social media and other formats like from video to text.
- Increased loyalty – The bread and butter for most SMEs is loyalty. Repeat customers build and sustain the business. Offering customers educative content constantly can help retain them long-term.
- Improved authority- Producing thought leadership content as an SME will help build authority. The content builds trust over time and SMEs that tap into this will win.
- Generation of more leads – Top-of-the-funnel content generates leads for SMEs. Educating customers builds trust and gets them through the purchasing funnel.
In this article, we will cover the power of content marketing and how SMEs can leverage it for growth – globally. So, let’s get started.
How to Get Started with Content Marketing as an SME
Identify the Audience
Several factors go into defining your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) for your small and medium-sized businesses. In case you have not nailed on your target audience, here are the questions to ask:
- What is the age, gender, and occupation of your audience?
- Where do they live?
- What are their interests?
- What needs do they have that your SMEs can meet?
For those SMEs with their target audience nailed, look at their commonalities in terms of age, location, and psychographics. This will help you segment the content to develop.
Determine the Right Formats
After determining the target audience, you will understand the kind of content format that resonates with them. Additionally, depending on the industry your SME operates in, the audience will prefer one content format from another or a mix of two or more.
Set Your Distribution Frameworks
From the not-so-new kid in the block TikTok to paid media on platforms like online casino games, determining where to distribute your content is crucial to the growth of your SME.
For instance, podcast content makes sense to be distributed to platforms like Spotify and iTunes. Also, the content can be repurposed into text for social media and articles via a blog.
Choose the Scheduling Times
Another important aspect of content marketing is determining the best scheduling time, more so on social media. For instance, if you want to create for Instagram, the best time would probably be mornings and at night.
Conclusion
As a small and medium-sized business, the growth in your revenue will be determined by the content marketing strategy you lay down. And most important is the quality of the content and how well you execute on distribution.
