Influencing Content Strategies

By KayChatz Social Media 3 Comments on Influencing Content Strategies

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Content strategies are crucial for the success of any social media campaigns by either a business, non-profit or government agency. What is a content strategy? A content strategy flips the tables on traditional, linear marketing by defining the process and then securing the right resources for producing a consistent stream of content mapped to buyer needs across all phases of the buying cycle. It involves listening, curating, adding insights and giving your followers a reason for them to follow you. If you’re a business, non-profit or government agency and you don’t have a content strategy then you’re doing it wrong! But there are differences amongst the three sectors. There are different ways each party can go about planning and executing a content strategy. Below are some different examples for each sector.

For government agencies, content can be very descriptive and long. Websites of government agencies can have thousands of pages, with content that an audience may not have the time to read through or even understand.

“The complexity of information and service provision at one end is compounded by the amount of content made available by an organisation. The organic growth of governmental online presence over the course of close to two decades often renders the content hard to find and hard to read, and ultimately impossible to manage as an important organisational asset.” – Rahel Anne Bailei

Instead of all of this long and painful-to-read content, government agencies should first, and foremost, declare who their target audience is. This way, they can ‘listen’ to what they are saying, and share content based on their interests and based on the governments goals. Although government agencies may have a wide range of their target audience, they still should keep it concise, informative and easy to understand. Government agencies are made of professionals, however, their audience may not be ‘professional’, so challenging content is an issue. This is what government agencies need to pay attention to.

Governments & Content

For non-profits, creating a content strategy is important to gain an audience. When doing organizational planning, you brainstorm ways that your website and social media pages can tie into your main goals, however you should also keep in mind the importance of what interests your supporters. Non-profits should incorporate into their content strategy the idea of how communication needs to be a two-way street. They should listen to their supporters and include them in the conversation. Non-profit organizations should brainstorm what content will engage their supporters. Ask questions to involve them. Give people the opportunity to tell their own stories so they know they hold importance within your organization. Authentic content is a great way to create emotional connections with your website visitors. This can add emotional communication to your organization and create emotional connections. This is what can inspire someone within an audience to become a volunteer.

Non-Profits & Content

What about businesses? Businesses can do SO MUCH when it comes to creating a content strategy. Instead of just sending out articles on the items/products that a business sells, or any promotions or sales, instead they should create content that interests the buyer. Personally, when I scroll through my social media feeds, and I see a business posting something like, “15% off all sweaters! Buy NOW”, it just completely turns me away from even wanting to continue following them. I feel like if I only cared about the sales, I would just stare at the banners and signs that already tell me there is a sale going on. Instead, businesses should first create their buyer personas so that they exactly know what their target audience is looking for. Your product may not be cool, but your content should be. Content allows for, instead of selling a product, but selling the lifestyle of that product. Use keyword analytic tools to figure out what exactly your audience is searching for and use long-tail keywords within your content. Another example, business should stop concentrating on their products. For example, when I visit an online shopping store, I don’t only want to see the products they have – well of course I do but I want to see more! I want to see other sitelinks that include blogs, customer experiences, how the company was found, etc. This is all interesting content that WILL attract a customer.

The three above sectors can all have similar content strategies with differences in how they will execute them. It is mostly important to firstly figure out a target audience, which all the sectors should do. However, Governments need to concentrate on making their content accessible and understandable. Non-profits need to have an emotional connection and businesses need to build relationships not just by selling a product. At the end of the day, content is King, and it is super important to make that content outstanding!

Sources:

Why Do Government Websites Need A Content Strategy

Tips on Nonprofit Content Strategy from David Hartstein

What is Content Strategy?

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