We’ll start with an interesting example from a book called Epic Content Marketing by Joe Pulizzi. A company that sells and installs fibreglass pools runs a blog that answers questions about all kinds of pools – not just fibreglass ones.
They brand it ‘The most educational swimming pool blog in the country’, and while they, of course, focus a significant amount of time on blog posts about fibreglass pools, the extra content brings in an audience that would otherwise overlook their business. Broadening their website content to include slightly beyond what they sell, and beyond their geographical scope, has brought them success according to the book.
The way to better content
Content doesn’t come from nowhere – it starts with gathering information. Lots of it. We usually start with sales people, or at least the person who answers the phone and the email enquiries. What are the common questions they get from potential customers? What information is sent out by email? How much of this could be backed up on the website to draw traffic and answer basic questions?
We know that you want these people to contact you, but if they have to call you to get simple questions answered, they’re less likely to pick up the phone. In the digital age we’re in, people (not just customers) are looking for as much information as possible on the internet before they make contact with someone.
An uplifting example
Take forklifts for example, and think about all the questions someone might have when they’re looking to hire or buy a forklift truck:
- What size forklift do I need?
- Do I need any training to use one?
- What if I need one just for an hour or so?
- When should I be using forklifts and when should I be using access equipment?
- What mistakes can be made by opting for the cheapest model?
- What additional costs are there?
- What do I need to know about fuel type, maintenance, and training?
The list could go on, and the answers to these many questions are where we get your website content from. With enough of this content, we can be publishing the ‘forklift bible’ – getting you on the path to becoming the leader in your niche.
You might now be asking ‘when we have this content, how do we get people to read it?’ Well, that’s the easy part. Once your website is full of engaging and informative content, you will always have something to say on the increasingly popular social media channels…
