The holy grail of publishing is to get the right content to the right audience at the right time. There are several ways to approach this. A solid social strategy, listening tools, and a close relationship with your audience and your analytics can go a long way in ensuring you know how to create quality content for your audience.
Organic search traffic, when correctly generated, can help your audience find you when they need you.
Decide who you are
You need to know what you bring to the table. What is your mission? What is your voice? If you aren’t sure, here are some questions to ask:
- What kind of content is critical to our operation? Maybe it’s news or entertainment or niche content like technology or medical or local interest.
- How formal/informal are you?
- Do you have a “face” for the brand? People that show up in videos, Stories, and more?
- Are you super chatty and engaging in stories and comments? Or more informational/no nonsense?
- How do you go about communicating with your readers?
All of these things are choices you should make when you’re defining your social brand. find some examples that feel right to you and roll with it.
Define your audience
You need to know who you’re talking to. Take the time to understand your audience demographics and preferences. The beauty of social media (and also the downfall, depending on the moment) is that you will get instant feedback on how well you hit the mark.
If you aren’t sure who you’re talking to, you’re going to have a very hard time generating content that they want to read. What do they like? WHO do they like? What do they hate? What are they trying to find, and how can you fill that need?
One helpful practice is to create audience personas. This can go a long way in helping you hit the target in your content creation process.
Do some keyword research
What do you think your readers will be searching for in an article?
Creating content around topics and keywords relevant to your readers is an excellent first step in improving organic search traffic. People Google search where to go, how-tos, and the current news. Using tools available to gather even more detailed data can take the guesswork of choosing the right keywords and topics for your content.
Some keyword tools that may help:
If you want more, we covered in-depth strategies and insight and have all the information you need here.
SEO is the name of the game
You’re not going to get anywhere without optimizing your site well for search. This means that you take those keywords you attached to your articles and make sure that they are not only relevant, but that you have executed them well.
Plugins like Yoast can help ensure that you’re including the right terms and meeting some basic search guidelines. Your content creation process should always include keyword research and execution, or you’re doing yourself a serious disservice.
Listening tools
Always be mindful of the news cycle, and it’s essential to be aware of trends. Google Trends is an excellent resource for finding quick updates to keep you in the know. Additionally, exploring what’s relevant on social media is probably the best insight into the minds of your audience. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other platforms are constantly collecting data on their users. Everything about your audience is tracked – age, race, gender, likes, level of education, where they work, relationship status, and more.
Don’t just guess! Use the available tools and create a process to help you construct content precisely as your audience needs. True Anthem has a ton of insight into social listening to make creating relevant content a breeze.
Close relationship with your audience
After using listening tools to get you into the minds of your audience, the next key is to build trust and relationships with them and make your content relatable. They will follow what they find to be a true, trustworthy source. All the data you’ve collected will give you insight into people’s likes, dislikes, and everything in between. Now, it’s about using that knowledge to engage with your audience and creating a tone of voice that makes you stand out.
Quality content and structure
We talk about producing high-quality A LOT, and for a good reason. You can put extraordinary effort into SEO strategies, keywords, posting consistency, and all the other steps for increasing your organic search. But if your content is not awesome, you’ll never attract the traffic you need to snag a premium search spot on Google.
High-quality content is well-written, eye-grabbing, in demand and created using adequate resources for the type of content you’re creating. You can tell there was thought behind quality content; it engages users longer and inspires connections they have to share and seek more of. High-quality content also lowers your bounce rates, keeping users on your website and social pages longer.
Mobile optimization
Don’t underestimate the short attention span of the younger generations and smartphone addicts. Most of your users will be making inquiries and purchases on their phones rather than a desktop. If your website is too difficult to access or operate, users will move on to the next website, and your search engine rankings will pay for it.
It’s crucial to ensure your website is optimized for mobile devices and smaller screens to make it easy for users to navigate. Keep a cohesive look between your mobile site and desktop to maintain consistent brand awareness. Test to ensure the mobile site has the same features your users need to shop, explore, and purchase.
Analytics
You can use tools like True Anthem Organic to deliver your top content to your audience automatically. We’ll help you circulate your best content 24 hours a day. We promise to help you work smarter, not harder.
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