The goal for your content marketing is to offer content your audience loves, content that will engage them, and content that builds a strong relationship. When Tony Robbins invited me for drinks in Canary Wharf, London my peers were confused. Why has he invited me and not them? And a few former friends actually verbalized this. The answer is simple – I had his audience. By meeting me I'd talk about him. And here I am, doing exactly that.  When you have content success your audience starts to follow you, subscribe to your email list, and eventually buy from you. It means your content attracts big fish to your small pond. For this reason, the first step in any effective content marketing strategy is to know your audience well.
Create an Ideal Client Profile
The way to do this is to create an ideal client or ideal customer profile. This profile describes your ideal buyer in terms of demographics but also talks about their attitudes, beliefs and behaviors. It should tell you who they are, what they like, and what problems they’re facing. Although you’ll appeal to a wide range of people, it’s important to be specific in your targeting so you speak directly to those who most need your products and services.
Understand Content Preferences
An important part of your profile is your customer’s preferences in terms of content. Do they take the time to read long-form content or do they like it short and sweet? Do they prefer text or video? What tone and language do they use? This is critical to making your content relatable. For example, do your customers prefer a formal, authoritative tone, or something friendly and casual? What pop culture references do they get? What’s their sense of humor like?
Focus on Customer Needs
Another important thing to know is your customers’ needs. What information are they looking for? What problems do they need solutions to? Do they have a budget for the solution, or the tools needed to make the fix? You need to provide these answers using your expertise. If you can provide what your ideal customers are looking for, you’ll be able to build strong relationships with them.
The Customer Journey
One thing to consider when planning your content is the customer’s journey with your brand and where they are at each point of contact with you. When they first come into contact with you, they’re looking for information on general topics. Your aim is to provide this information and get them to keep following you.
Once they’re following you, you’re building a deeper relationship by offering more personal engagement as well as more specific topics within your niche. At another point in the journey, a customer is considering products to buy. At another, they’re ready to purchase. You need to be offering different content at each step of the buying journey.
Gather Customer Feedback
It’s essential that you base decisions about your website content on actual feedback from your audience. Don’t act based on assumptions alone. And just because your mum doesn't like your bright red anorak, it doesn't mean your Gen Z neighbor won't love it… Find out directly from your audience what they expect from you so that you can deliver it to them.
There are several ways to gather feedback from the market. One is to create a two-way conversation with members of your audience. Connect with audience members on social media and engage with them to find out more about them.
The other way to obtain objective data is to look at analytics. Website metrics will also tell you whether your web content is performing or not and why.
Keep It Focused on Your Audience
Although you’re talking about your unique offering, always keep it focused on your audience. Start by gaining a clear understanding of who they are and what they like. Content Success depends on many factors, but if you focus on something other than your audience then your content won't resonate and will be a complete waste of time.
Do you want to learn more about creating the perfect content for your website? Join the 30 Day blogging challenge. You'll love how you can grasp all the content-customer connections in 30 swift days!