Content is used everywhere on the web. There’s no way around it – words are essential on websites, blogs, social media, web articles, and all other corners of the internet. So it’s probably no surprise that web content is important if you’re going to put your business on the ‘net (which, of course, is a requirement). But do you really know all the incredible ways great web content can help promote, build, and expand your business? No worries, here are 5 outstanding ways web content will help you grow your business.
Good Web Content Builds Credibility
Having solid, professional, helpful web content – whether on your website, blog, social media profiles, or anywhere else – helps you build credibility in your market. People respect a business that can continually produce content that is useful, well-written, and communicates effectively. Let’s look at web articles as an example. When you write and publish a well-researched, informative article on some facet of your industry, people begin to recognize you as an expert with valuable things to share. You’re not just spewing promotions and advertisements – you’re contributing the web and providing value to your prospects. This makes your business credible, which is something you certainly want to be.
Good Web Content Creates Buzz
You want people to talk about your company, right? Having an outstanding product or service is a great way to get people talking, but web content can actually help create an even more effective buzz for your business. People have to buy your product or service before they become obsessed with it and begin telling all their friends. But giving away awesome content on the web can create buzz among your prospects – people who haven’t even entered your sales process yet. Let’s say you create a free special report that talks about 5 insider secrets to your industry. You publish it on your website, promote it on social media, and begin distributing it to your target market. If you’ve delivered on your promise and written a great special report, people are going to be excited about it. They’ll want to send a link to all their friends, tweet about it, and post it on Facebook. You’ve just created buzz for your business that has the potential to reach hundreds, thousands, or even more of your penitential customers. All with one piece of content!
Good Web Content Builds Traffic
We aren’t going to get into search engine optimization and the fine art of getting a great page rank on Google. But I do want to point out that fresh web content does help bring more people to your website. Fresh content gives visitors a good reason to come back. It also gives them a good reason to tell their friends to log on. Creating fresh web content for your website on a regular basis also gives you a continual excuse to share a link to your website on all your social media profiles, helping to increase traffic. Search engines also like websites with updated, fresh content (for example, websites that have a built-in blog). Creating and publishing content off your website (for example, guest blogging or e-newsletters) is another great way to increase traffic, because it gives you the opportunity to promote your website all over the internet and create inbound links.
Good Web Content Reaches New People
When you’re putting yourself (and your business) out there on the web via content (whether it’s a blog, web article, e-newsletter, or your website) you have the opportunity to reach people you wouldn’t have normally thought to connect with. A client might like a blog post you published, and share it with a friend who works in a different industry (or region, or whatever) then you normally work with. You’ve just expanded your reach. Anyone could stumble upon the web content you plant on the web. You’re putting yourself in front of a limitless audience. (Side note: super popular content doesn’t just happen. There are tons of strategies out there for promoting your content and getting the most out of it. If you’re interested, check out this article.)
Good Web Content Establishes Loyalty
Your prospects and customers will grow to appreciate the content you produce. By putting out great web content on a regular basis, you will begin to grow a following of loyal readers (who will hopefully turn into loyal customers). You get the chance to build relationships. People will count on your helpful advice, informative posts, and engaging website. When you’ve built a loyal fan base, you’ve built a great business opportunity. Who doesn’t want that?
Web content provides your business with so many great opportunities. Producing, publishing, and distributing web content is an easy, effective way to give our business a boost.
How have you used web content to build your business? Share your stories and questions below!