5 Ways Content Marketing Benefits Small Business

Running your own small business is a huge accomplishment. Marketing it well is a huge challenge.  You’ll be competing for the attention span and disposable dollars of every member of your target market – as will every business owner. Content marketing via your blog can help you stand out in the crowd. Here are five reasons you should give it a go.

1. Content Marketing Can Be Uber Specific
   Marketing to all people with skin is a waste of time. Period. Marketing to people who have expressed an interest in your topic/genre and who have money to spend on your products and services is strategic thinking. Niche. Niche. Niche. You can use content – and its targeting tools – to reach these people and make more sales. Put plainly – use content marketing to reach the readers whose problem you solve. Period.
2. Content Marketing Creates Relationships
   Most consumers are looking for something when they make a purchase. They’re looking for an answer. A solution to some problem.  A blog or Twitter Chat or Facebook post that solves their problems and keeps them coming back does more than sell your wares. It creates a relationship with your reader. And we all know that old adage: people do business with people they know, like and trust.
3. Content Marketing Is Cheap
   Your business can be refashioned into a lot of content. Creating follow up content for your marketing efforts takes far more time than money. Take the time to mine your genre for quotes, nuggets of wisdom and tweetables. Include that info in your blog posts.
4. Content Marketing Gives Your Target Audience A Sneak Peek
   Like a movie trailer, your content marketing material can be used to give your target readers a sneak peek into what you’re writing. One great way to do this is by blogging. Blogging is a wonderful way to get your readers invested in and engaged in your small business.
5. Content Marketing Reaches Your Target Market In Multiple Ways
   From word-of-mouth to online reviews to Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, content marketing can be shared over a plethora of channels.  Having multiple entryways makes it easier for clients to find you.

There you have it. These are my 5 favorite reasons to use content marketing to grow your business.

Here’s a shameless plug for my friend and colleague, Lisa Larter. Lisa authored one of my favorite blog posts on how to turn one piece of content into five. Talk about great marketing! Whew!