How Great Content Can Drive Sales

25 Jul

How Great Content Can Drive Sales

Every organization, big or small, has to consistently market itself in order to survive. Of course, not everyone has the same budget. A local burger joint’s not going to have the same marketing dollars as a nearby McDonalds, Moxie’s, Baton-Rouge or Joey’s. That doesn’t mean the burger joint can’t compete with these larger, more established corporations for new customers. Today, creative and unique content that’s well-placed can drive more business to your door, build your brand and let you stand apart from competitors, all without breaking the bank. Deciding on a direction to take your content can be tricky, though. So we’ve got a few tips to help you get started, along with examples of business owners who put them into practice.

1. Create content that’s conversational and informative, without turning it into a sales pitch.

River Pools and Spas educates their entire target market on a variety of topics, not just existing clients.

Marcus Sheridan, who’s one of the owners of “River Pools and Spas” in Warsaw, Virginia provides a great example of how the educational approach to content can be effective.

In the early 2000s, Marcus turned his website into an encyclopedia of everything you would need to know about buying a pool, including how not to get ripped off.
Soon after, the business experienced a substantial boom in sales as well as traffic to their website. A noteworthy achievement considering this growth occurred during the aftermath of the economic collapse of 2008.
Being helpful without pushing for a purchase establishes your company’s credibility as an industry-expert and builds invaluable trust.
To learn more about Marcus Sheridan’s content marketing approach, check out a link to the New York Times article covering his story: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/28/business/smallbusiness/increasing-sales-by-answering-customers-questions.html

2. Effective content can use the element of surprise and humour as a fun way to engage and connect with your target market.

An example of the product descriptions Frank Body has throughout their website. The captions are informative, humorous and resonate emotionally with their target audience.

Jess Hatzis is the co-founder and creative director of Frank Body, a skin-care line based out of Australia. They’ve received global attention for how they launched the business, sticking to very specific messaging and social media.

From their website to their product packaging, Frank Body’s content is heavily branded, features funny and cheeky descriptions of their products and distinguishes them from most skin-care companies.
Their content is designed to speak to people in a “frank” tone, which is refreshing and engaging, and plays well off their name.
Through their content, the team at Frank Body demonstrates an intrinsic, emotional connection to the folks who buy their products.
Clients readily identify with the company’s values and attitudes, not only loving their products but becoming loyal to the brand.
The company started off with a 10 thousand dollar investment in early 2014 and is now valued at 20 million dollars. And the company relied heavily on its quality product, but also social media and refreshing content.
Visit their website and see for yourself: https://www.frankbody.com/ca/

Above are examples of the heavily branded content that Frank Body produces and incorporates into their website. Artfully messy and casual, their content resonates emotionally and aesthetically.

3. The best content plays to your business’ strengths, it’s part of your brand because it’s part of you.

Content can be designed for a number of platforms, online videos, in-store displays, blog posts, and more. You should focus on what works well for you and your business.

For example if you’re a restaurant owner and also great with a camera then starting an Instagram account or photo blog to showcase your menu plays to your strengths and helps you engage with your potential customer, “the foody”.
Burger Revolution in Belleville, Ontario is a great example of a restaurant using Instagram and photo-sharing effectively. They’ve been very successful in gaining a loyal following on Instagram with over 2600 followers (and counting) by uploading their own photos, snapping pictures of comments left by satisfied customers, and reposting user-generated content.
To see what they’re doing, have a quick peek at their Instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/burgerrev/?hl=en