If you’ve ever subscribed to a blog only to be let down continually by poor content, what did you do?
You unsubscribed.
With that said, useful content is the absolute best way to build the traffic you need for your website. People will share your content on social media, and your SEO power will rise as a result.
5 Types of Content That Builds Traffic
A winning website thrives on providing content its visitors find useful.
1. Educational Content
Teaching someone gives them even more of a thirst for knowledge. Their creativity is sparked, and their imagination flourishes. When people are inspired based on facts given they will revisit what inspired them initially looking for more educational motivation.
Educational content is the best kind of content for lead nurturing. How so? If someone is reading a dynamic blog post that you’ve written to educate a potential customer, you’ve nurtured a lead by continually educating them in your industry. In doing so, you’ve guided them to your company by given them a solution.
Educational content informs the reader on what they need to know to make the best decisions usually focuses on middle-of-the-funnel topics.
Don’t be afraid to give your reader free educational content. They will trust your product and will return for future or repeat purchases. They will refer your free content on social media, boosting your traffic as a result.
Examples of Educational Content:
Customer Google Search: What is the best way to budget effectively?
Write an article with tips on budgeting, and the common problems people face trying to budget. Then, provide them with a free printable PDF budget, as well as instructions on how to use it effectively.
Customer Google Search: How to play the trumpet?
Provide them with a few beginner video lessons, and some printouts of scales and easy-to-play songs they can learn quickly.
If you're providing content that teaches them how to solve a problem, they will come back again.
2. Thought-Leadership Content
Thought leadership is the least effective at building traffic, but the most effective at keeping traffic. Thought leadership comes from driving discussion with insights that no one else has. Thought leadership promotes trust, loyalty, and credibility.
You do so by continually showing that you are an industry expert by producing content through personal experience. Maybe your company is producing a product that, at one time, you needed for yourself. Who better to drive discussion than someone who has been in the shoes of the consumer.
Give your opinion on issues your customers, or your company faces. You can be the educated opinion leader and the go-to person in your specific field. Become the trusted source that motivates others with innovative ideas. Turn vision into reality and empower others to do the same. Think outside the box of the norm.
Here are a few examples of some thought-leadership topics:
Customer Question: Why Is a Solid State Drive So Expensive?
Thought Leadership: Solid State ROI - The Wise Choice for the Long-Term
Question: What's the best way to plant grass in my yard?
Thought Leadership: The Benefits of Planting Grass Flats Versus Grass Seed.
3. Q&A Content
If you lack organic blog traffic, this is the best type of content to focus on for an extended while. Take into consideration the problems and questions that your customers may have that apply to what you have to offer. Then, consider how they would search for those solutions that include your product on Google - notice, it’s how they would ask the question, not how your company would.
This is a great time to step away from the desk of the CEO or management leader and put yourself in the shoes of a potential customer. If you do, you should have no issues in creating valuable content to answer specific questions about your industry.
They may ask questions like:
- What is the best way to grow San Augustine grass?
- How to maintain a great tan in the winter?
- Can dry cleaning damage my clothes?
- How to paint and edge like a pro?
- Is getting a grant to go back to school hard?
Answer their questions and they will come back when another question arises.
Bonus Tip: Title your blog post to match how your target audience is searching on Google. Use Google Suggest to find potential articles.
4. Hints and Tips Content
Everyone is looking a more efficient way to get the job done effectively. Equip people with useful tips and tricks that apply to the general audience you target. The tips don’t have to associate directly with your primary product or service.
For instance, one of the most popular articles for a limousine company I worked for was a list of online productivity apps and tools for Executive Assistants. While it had nothing to do with the limousine service, it was a very popular resource with one of their largest groups of targeted personas, EA’s. We were able to introduce our service and brand to thousands of our target audience by providing them something helpful.
Think of resources that would enhance your customers’ efficiency and show them how.
5. Tutorial "How To" Content
The tutorial is more in-depth than a tip or trick. “Show me exactly how to do something” is the type of content that a tutorial offers. One of the best ways to generate leads is to demonstrate tutorials on how to effectively use a product. Whether in video or step-by-step photo form, tutorials open the eyes of potential customers to how your product enhances their lives and gives a solution to a problem they may not have been aware of before being introduced to what you offer.
I’m my opinion, a master at this is Home Depot. They sell TONS of products for practically everything imaginable. The make tutorials for almost everything that a homeowner could need. They show you how to use a skill that relates to a product they sell. By sharing an insightful video on how to build a deck and what materials they used causes someone looking to make to use them (the expert) to get the supplies for such a project.
Produce the Kind of Content Your Personas Like
There is a myriad of different mediums you can use: video, info-graphic, slide-decks, blog posts, eBooks, etc. One thing is true, all of these types of content are needed, but they will not produce sustained web traffic autonomously. They work well together keeping your audience interested and informed.
These 5 types of content will help attract an audience, convert them to your services, and nurture the consumer/provider relationship, resulting in sustained traffic and leads through your website.
