Content Strategy Guide (part 1)
Welcome to my Content Strategy Series! 🤩
My goal is to show you that content creation doesn’t need to be hard or complicated. I’ve prepared a step-by-step guide that will help you understand the content creation process and hopefully will make your life easier.
What is Content Strategy and Why is it Important?
Content strategy is a plan detailing how to use content to achieve business goals. It involves organising existing content, creating new content, and monitoring content success.
A successful content strategy not only builds trust but also educates your audience, establishes your authority, and highlights the importance of your business with a positive touch. 🙌🏻
Defining Goals using SMART Framework (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound)
- Specific: Get crystal clear on what you want to achieve.
- Measurable: Keep your progress in check with measurable goals.
- Achievable: Dream big, but keep it real.
- Relevant: Make sure your goal aligns with your personal values.
- Time-bound: Give your goal a deadline.
Read more about setting SMART goals here.
Audience Understanding – Create Buyer Personas (Target Audience)
Time Investment: Understanding your audience and creating accurate buyer personas takes time. It involves research, data analysis, and possibly direct interactions with your audience.
How:
Clearly Define Your Target Audience: Before you start creating content, it’s essential to have a clear understanding of who your audience is. This involves identifying the demographics, interests, behaviors, and preferences of the people you want to reach. For example, if you’re a small business owner aspiring to become a marketing leader, your target audience might include other small business owners, entrepreneurs, or individuals interested in marketing strategies.
Buyer Personas: A buyer persona is a detailed and semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer. It goes beyond demographics and includes information like job role, goals, challenges, and even personal characteristics.
Why?
Crucial for Relevant and Valuable Content: Understanding your audience through buyer personas is crucial because it allows you to create content that resonates with them.
Selling Products or Services: Whether you’re selling products or services, the principles remain the same. By aligning your content with the needs and interests of your audience, you increase the likelihood of engagement and conversions.
Voice and Tone: Knowing your audience helps you determine the appropriate voice and tone for your content.
Content Creation Process
Establishing content creation process from the outset is crucial for efficiency and effectiveness.
Let’s break down the steps involved:
- Initiate the Content Creation Process Early: When embarking on your content creation journey, start by outlining a clear and organised process. This involves defining roles, responsibilities, and workflows to ensure a streamlined and efficient content creation pipeline.
- Set Guidelines: Establishing guidelines provides a framework for you. Clearly define the tone, style, and messaging that align with your brand. Consistent guidelines help maintain a unified voice across all your content, reinforcing brand identity.
- Identify Necessary Tools: Depending on your content strategy, various tools can enhance your content creation process.
- Here are some examples:
- Content Management Systems (CMS): Platforms like WordPress, Drupal, or Squarespace facilitate content creation, publication, and management.
- Social Listening Tools: Tools such as Hootsuite, Buffer, or Sprout Social help monitor social media channels, track conversations, and stay updated on industry trends.
- Editing Software: For visual content, tools like Canva, or PicMonkey assist in creating professional graphics and visuals.
- Content Calendar Tools: Platforms like CoSchedule, Trello, or ClickUp [link] can help you plan and organise your content schedule effectively.
- Integration of Tools: Ensure seamless integration between the tools you choose. This integration minimises friction in the content creation workflow, allowing for a more collaborative and efficient process.
- Iterative Improvement: Regularly assess your content creation process and tools. Identify areas for improvement and be open to adopting new tools or refining existing workflows based on the evolving needs of the industry.
- Quality Assurance: Implement a quality assurance process to review content before publication. This ensures that your content meets the established guidelines, aligns with your brand, and resonates with your target audience.
Top tips:
- Make sure to back up everything – you wouldn’t want the hard work to go to waste, would you? 🙈
- Take notes 📝 – write down tips and tricks for yourself to use in the future.
- Content ideas – create a list (in notes or in Todoist) with all content ideas 💡
