As a cybersecurity and tech PR agency, content marketing is definitely one of our favourite channels at our disposal. It’s highly effective for raising your brand’s profile and should undoubtedly form a key part of your PR strategy. But how does PR support content marketing?
In this blog, we’ll explore why content marketing is so successful, and we’ll give you a few tips about how to build your own content marketing plan that fits with your brand.
What is content marketing?
The wider marketing industry used to place a great deal of emphasis on the ‘look’ of materials. Printing direct mails or sourcing branded merchandise to send to prospects was a big percentage of outreach. These days, things work a bit differently. People make decisions about brands based on trust, morality and leadership. Because most people search online for a service provider, now companies need to be able to ‘sell’ themselves digitally.
Whatever channel you are discussing, one thing matters most when promoting your brand: The message.
If you can connect with your audience by delivering a message they want to hear, then they’re more likely to think favourably about your brand. Content marketing is by far the most powerful way to deliver your message to prospects, customers, stakeholders and anyone else who might encounter your company.
Why it works
Many companies make the mistake of thinking their content should all be about them, their services and the stuff they’re trying to sell, but this isn’t particularly interesting to readers.
Instead, content marketing is a good opportunity to showcase your credentials as a thought leader, spokesperson and expert in your field. You’ll want to do your research, try to use stats and figures to back up any claims and not be afraid to have an opinion on issues that affect your industry.
A solid insight piece will do wonders for your company’s PR. It will drive traffic to your website, increase enquiries and position your company as experts in your industry.
Many companies outsource their content to a freelancer or agency who have the time to create compelling content that resonates with the audience. Of course, you can hire an in-house copywriter to manage your content marketing strategy as well.
Make it searchable
SEO is a really important aspect of content marketing for your PR strategy. Every piece of content you produce should have a focus on SEO keywords that people are searching for, as well as being high quality copy.
Without this, Google won’t pick up your article and few people will actually find it. A good content marketer will know that Google is one of the best PR machines around. If you produce high quality content on a regular basis, you’ll see your search rankings in Google improve.
Bear in mind that Google ranks websites based on how credible and trustworthy they are. So the better and more helpful your content is, the more likely Google will rank it highly in the search results. This in turn means more people will see it and engage with your brand.
Best content marketing channels
So, once you’ve created fantastic content to raise your company’s profile, where should you publish it?
The most obvious place is a company blog. This should ideally be connected to your corporate website and you should aim to post at least two blogs per month. Google prioritises websites that publish regular, fresh content, so the more blogs you publish the better – provided they contain useful, relevant content for readers.
If you don’t have a company blog (or website for that matter) you needn’t wait for that to start pushing out content to your audience. Initially, you could set up an account on a free blogging platform like Medium or post articles on Linkedin.
It’s also important to consider the tone of your content – whilst you’ll want to keep it professional, you certainly don’t want it to be stuffy and dull. This can be a tricky balance to nail down.
If you can cultivate a tone of voice that’s professional, friendly, helpful and genuinely interesting, you’ll connect with your audience in a powerful way. Effective PR is all about telling your story as a brand, and content marketing can help you do that through measurable and responsive digital channels.
How we can help
At Origin Comms, we know how to cut through the noise to tell your story and reach prospective clients.
Our copywriters will craft PR and content marketing pieces that absolutely nail the tone of voice that best reflects your brand. We’ll help you get the right message, to the right people at the perfect time.
Get in touch today to find out how we can support your content marketing plan and boost your brand’s image.