Through mistakes, we learn the hard lessons of life. Isn’t it? 
But some mistakes can wreck failure if they’re not fixed quickly.
If your website isn’t making profits, it could be as a result of content marketing mistakes.
This post will help you get rid of them, today. Keep reading…
There are hundreds of thousands of websites out there, and almost as many ideas about what constitutes good content marketing strategies.
Assuming that you are interested in the truly valuable tidbits of advice, how do you know when a tip is a good one and when it could lead to disaster?
Well, unless you are a seasoned content marketer, it can be difficult, to say the least.
Some ideas are quite obviously bad ideas while others seem to make sense until you put them into practice. If you’ve been led astray by unsound marketing advice, it’s vital that you correct the problem right away.
- Remember: Hoping your problem will work itself out is the worst thing you can do. If you have a problem, solve it right away!
You can hire the best SEO company in the world and still shoot yourself in the foot if you are insisting on using tactics that simply don’t work. If you are making any of these content marketing mistakes, it’s time to fix them right now.
1. Trying to speak to the entire world
Yes, it’s true that the Internet gives you the platform for reaching a global market, but you’ve got to identify who your market is. The world is full of all sorts of different types of people, personalities, professions and interests.
Tip: Broader isn’t better. It doesn’t matter how many people SEE your “Like our Facebook page!” ad if no one actually clicks “like.”
Narrowing down your target audience does not take away your potential to do business worldwide. Rather, it allows you to present yourself as an expert and authority in your niche.
How do I start narrowing down my audience?
- Sex
- Age
- Location
- Household income
- Interests
Sure, you may miss out on a handful of potential sales, but you’ll also dramatically increase the amount of sales you are making to people who are looking for quality products or services from a reliable source.
2. Failing to Deliver Grammatically Correct Content
It really, really should go without saying, but so many websites with great potential are failing for one simple reason: their grammar. You don’t have to write like someone with a PhD, but you should present what you do write correctly.
- Remember: GRAMMAR is vital.
Keeping the language simple is one thing; massacring it is another. Try to always use complete sentences with the exception of your title and subtitles. Avoid confusing words and meanings such as there, they’re and their.
Grammar lesson:
- There are five blog posts being published today.
- I was reading their blog yesterday.
- They’re the best content marketing company in the country.
Taking the time to ensure that your content is grammatically correct can go a long way toward making you seem credible.
3. Using Hype in an Attempt to Engage Your Audience
Engaging your audience is crucial to making conversions. However, going over the top with marketing hype is your quickest ticket to losing a sale.
People get tired of reading worn-out language that promises the greatest thing in the world but delivers little.
- Remember: Don’t be annoying. Nothing screams desperate (or scam) like an excessive amount of exclamation points and SENTENCES WRITTEN IN ALL CAPS!
To avoid turning your visitors off, be forthcoming and honest, but also be creative. You can tell a compelling story without resorting to fabricated claims and empty promises.
- Example: “Our Company has helped over 500 clients increase their sales and brand awareness! We would love to add you to our list of success stories, check out www.website.com today!”
If you have something of value to sell, you don’t need to take away from it with shady sales tactics. Present your information in a way that speaks to your market and the conversions will come.
4. Not Promoting Yourself
No one likes a boaster, but if you’re not willing to speak up for yourself, how can you expect anyone else to speak up for you?
If you’re sitting around waiting for your website to take off from search engine rankings and organic traffic, you’re going to be waiting for quite some time.
- Do: State how proud you are to work at such an amazing company.
- Don’t: Brag that you work for the greatest company and badmouth your competitors.
There is nothing wrong with using white-hat marketing tactics to spread the word about your website. If no one is seeing the brilliant content you have created, then why are you spending the time creating it?
How can I spread the word about my company?
- Submit to blogs that have active readership
- Answer questions on forums
- Comment on other blogs
- Promote your company on social networks
As long as you don’t go overboard—as in posting every hour or couple of hours—no one will see you as a self-promoting psycho.
5. Delivering Excellent but Sporadic Content
One singular truth about content marketing is that you must be committed to it in order for it to work. You can do more damage by posting on a sporadic schedule than you can do by not posting at all.
Remember: When it comes to content marketing, consistency is KEY.
When you have a steady supply of fresh, quality content, it shows people not only that you care about what you’re doing, but also that you are engaged in what you’re doing.
Now, this isn’t to say that you have to put up fresh content every single day, but it does mean that you need to do it regularly.
If you want to have daily content but don’t think that you can come up with that many ideas or keep up with the writing, consider outsourcing.
- Tip: Create an idea pool! Tell your employees to fill it with blog post ideas, funny photos, relevant news stories, useful tools, et cetera. That will cut down on researching time, and give you more time to create your content!
If you want to do all the writing yourself, make a content schedule that is realistic for the time you have available, such as every other day or twice a week.
In your journey, you are sure to come across hundreds or thousands of content marketing tips, each claiming to be the best way to generate traffic and sales.
Use your own common sense as to whether each tip has merit or not. Ask the experts if you need to. You can be successful on the web if you have the right techniques and strategies.
What do you say?
What other content marketing mistakes do bloggers and writers make? Do you think content marketing is powerful enough to grow your online business? Please leave a comment below – See you ahead!