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Content marketing has become the bread and butter for quality website destinations and attracting traffic, especially with sensitive search engine algorithms like those being used by Google. However, there’s a basic question in a lot of minds as to what exactly is content marketing. Many feel like it is just a buzzword made up by salespeople trying to pitch another consulting gimmick for website development. However, site content literally produces the fresh material targeted by the latest search engine formulas.

Online Content Basics

If you’re a writer, filmmaker, photographer, builder or coder then you naturally know what content is. The product of deliberation comes easily to you. However, you do not have to be an experienced creator in these fields to produce good site content. Follow these steps instead for an effective approach:

• Think about what makes your website valuable to readers and customers. Match the right content type that makes sense for them. Don’t worry about not being able to create it yourself, and think instead about what works. If you want people to connect with images, then photography and video should be a priority. If you want people to read specifications and details, writing is the better path. If you have multiple goals to deliver, then a mix of tools and mediums can work as well. Whichever is right, put some thought into it as that content path will be the one you need to dedicate yourself to going forward.
• With the content type determined now focus on how to produce it. If you’re good at a particular discipline then for a while it may work for you to be hands-on. Eventually, however, the work will become fulltime. Instead, plan for and spend your energy outsourcing for the right help. Doing so you will put more of your energy on content strategy and less on the production of it.
• With your creation resources in place put together an umbrella plan what your content should do, what it should say, and who should be your ideal audience. This becomes your overall direction. When this is solidified then your content each day, week or whenever follows a consistent path from one piece to the next. You don’t need to worry about thinking up the ideas for each submittal. Instead, focus on making sure the content stays on track with being generated timely and your overall message gets delivered with impact. Pay attention to feedback, adjusting your path as needed for better results. By keeping your sight on the forest you won’t get stuck in the weeds.

Bringing Things Together

As your site content produces traffic on its own you want it to grow exponentially. Despite the stories of a sudden “viral” response that takes the Internet by storm, 99 percent of successful sites rely on hard work that consists of linking, back-linking and networking. This is where your energy should be, promoting your content, so people become aware of it and start seeking the information you provide intentionally. They will then become your ambassadors, bringing others to see as well. And that will subsequently catch the attention of the search engines, which also rate on traffic interest and not just the content itself.

How you approach your content marketing services will have an impact on your content production, but ultimately your planning and responsiveness to feedback will influence your website’s success. Content creation is not an impossible, ambiguous element to online traffic. It’s simply one tool of many. Learning how to use it effectively is what makes content such a powerful component of your online presence.