10 Pro Tips for Creating Killer Inbound Marketing Content

At the core of your successful inbound marketing program is a consistent stream of website content. Not surprisingly, that’s not so easy to do day after day, week after week. So savvy publishers and knowledgeable editors use a few tips, tools, and techniques to make sure the great ideas that produce killer content keep on coming.

Here are 10 tips to create remarkable inbound marketing content that you can use to keep your business front and center in clients’ minds:

Tip #1 Follow Industry News

Keeping up with a world full of industry information may sound like a daunting task unless you know how to set it up so the information finds you.

Set up RSS feeds from bloggers and other journalists who cover your target industries
Subscribe to industry newsletters that cover the niche areas you’re interested in, your vendors, and even your competitors
Set up Google Alerts to send you everything published on nonbranded keywords related to your industry, products, and your buyer persona’s pain points

Identify trends that your clients would find interesting and put your own spin on the stories you find. For example, a landscaper might use a series of articles on climate change to teach customers about changing needs and challenges in their climate zone and which plants will tolerate them.

Tip #2 Monitor Social Conversations

Social media can be a real-time reflection of your brand and your audience. Use the comments posted on your company Facebook and Twitter pages as a jumping off point for generating story ideas.

If, for example, if you notice a lot of comments or questions around a particular aspect of your business, consider writing a blog post or even an ebook to explain the process to customers and prospects.

Tip #3 Build a Team of Content Creators

Too often business owners or managers feel like the burden of content creation is theirs and theirs alone. It doesn’t have to be that way. Encourage other team members in your organization to contribute to your content bank.

Graphic designers might contribute blog posts about effective design techniques.
Salespeople might record a short video about how best to choose the products or services you sell
You might even post a Q&A with some of your best customers explaining how they benefited from your efforts.

Tip #4 Set Up a Style Bank and a Content Bank

Experienced editors know are days when you feel tapped out for ideas. That’s why the pros keep a content bank of stories they can plug in at a moment’s notice and a style bank of design templates they can use to keep things fresh.

Fill your blog style bank with:

Bulleted lists
Product, book, and movie reviews
Photos and captions
Videos
How-to guides
Interviews

Tip #5 Repurpose Content

Recycle your content in fresh new ways. Let your consumer decide whether they want to read a blog, watch a video or download an eBook. As an exercise, see how many ways you can repurpose a single topic. Consider:

Producing videos using the information from an old eBook.
Turning your videos into blog posts.
Using questions from a webinar as thought starters for blogs.
Turning your PowerPoint presentation into a Slideshare post.

Tip #6 Take Your Video Camera Everywhere

Video production is no longer the big deal it used to be. Any smartphone equipped with a video camera is your instant marketing content tool.

If, for example, you’re at a trade show, pull out your video camera to conduct mini interviews with thought leaders who stop by your booth.

Tip #7 Write Annual and “Best of” Features

People love lists, especially “Top” lists, “Best of” lists, “Year in Review,” or “What’s Next?” lists.

Put together your best blog posts as an eBook in December.
Make a list of the top products or services you provided this year.
Make a “Summer Reading List” of books to read or a “Best Videos to Watch” list that can help your customers improve their own businesses.

Tip #8 Conduct Original Research

You don’t need an army of clipboard-toting researchers to produce exciting, interesting new data. Tools like SurveyMonkey or SurveyGizmo offer free and paid services where you can quickly craft surveys about topics of interest to your customers.

Take the answers and the trends revealed in your surveys and create blog posts, press releases, Facebook posts, Tweets, and more.

Tip #9 Look Beyond Your Industry and Audience

Don’t let your industry limit your options for topics. The world is more interconnected than it’s ever been and that means more ways to demonstrate your understanding of those connections to clients and prospects.

Did a blockbuster movie just open and get everybody buzzing? Hitch a ride on that PR train with a Facebook post and some tweets that tie into the movie’s themes.

Tip #10 Promote Your Content on Your Social Networks

Let your customers be your embassadors. Post an excerpt, along with a link to your blog, on your company Facebook and Twitter pages. Create social sharing buttons on all your blogs and simple “tweet this” links to let them share your blog posts and other content on their social networks.

Now that you know what the pros know, keep these key points in mind and start creating!

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10 Pro Tips for Creating Killer Inbound Marketing Content