Understanding Organic Growth: The Importance of Quality Content
Say youâre a start-up with grand ambitions and a somewhat limited budget. Your business is relatively new, and for some reason your competitors seem to be everywhere you look. Itâs easy to get frustrated when you feel like you canât compete with other brands and their years of work gaining recognition and trust from both customers and Google.
You might think you need a shortcut to catch up and outrank them, but thatâs when things can go haywire. Paid growth can work, but it can eat into your pockets and doesnât always get the best results or conversions. Itâs about time we began to value organic growth for what it is.
Organically growing your brandâs digital presence comes with many benefits, including more recognition, improved customer retention, better conversion rates, credibility, trust, brand authority, brand awareness and more. So how do you earn these benefits. By creating high quality content that allows your visitors to keep coming back for more.
The constant need for well-written content means you must pay close attention to your content strategy. The difference between poor quality content and high quality content is that the latter offers value and answers queries effortlessly. It drives greater engagement while the former delivers low engagement, low retention, poor reach and eroding credibility for the brand. But what does high-quality content mean.
It must be original - plagiarised or duplicate content just wonât cut it anymore. You should try to write in your own voice that is different from everyone elseâs. For this, it helps to have expert content writers who know the subject.
More or less. High quality content is also informative and optimised for search engines without being too forceful or âsalesyâ. But most importantly. High-quality content is well-researched and helpful to the user/reader.
Itâs far better to prioritise quality over quantity.
The Role of Content Pillars in Link Building
We've all been there - staring at a blank content calendar, trying to whip up something that doesn't feel like we're picking random ideas out of thin air. It seems like at the same time, there's a subtle (or not so subtle) pressure in the background to make sure what goes up is link-worthy. That's where content pillars come in, and I have to say, if you're not building your strategy around them, you're making life harder for yourself than it needs to be.
Think of content pillars as the backbone of your content strategy. They're broad topics that you want your website to be known for. When you know exactly what your key topics are and why, everything else flows from there - from keeping your messaging on-brand, staying consistent with everything you put out there, and building topical authority. And we know how important authority is when you're looking to not only attract more links but get the right ones that truly add value to your website.
Sticking to your content pillars means there's a better chance someone will see you as the go-to source for what they're looking for. But here's the thing - sticking to your content pillars does help reinforce trust and credibility, but it also makes the most strategic sense. With content based on carefully chosen topics, which can be backed up by data you've uncovered during audience research, you have a much higher chance of getting attention from exactly the kind of people you want eyes from and need links from.
Being consistent with topics also means it helps give your link-building efforts more structure - you're not just shooting in the dark hoping one or two of your posts catch someone's eye. You're going after links with intent. One last thing before I wrap up - don't be afraid to rethink or rework a few content pillars if they aren't working as well as you'd hoped. Data is your friend here, so check if there are some tweaks or changes you can make that'll help land you higher quality links from more credible websites with just a little change in approach.
Pillar 1: Creating Comprehensive Guides and Resources
We have all had those moments where we frantically look for solutions to a particular problem - like figuring out how to get rid of cockroaches in your house, or what is sort of and isn't safe for your dog to eat. Reminds Me Of creating comprehensive guides and resources becomes invaluable at this point, especially because they allow you to reach a broad audience searching for information around a particular topic. And creating these guides requires the right approach too, I think. Rather than focusing on buzzwords or only creating this type of content when you have something to promote, a more authentic approach is to leverage expertise within your own business or brand.
Use the experiences and voices of team members who can add value and provide genuine insight into a specific topic for a much more human touch that really helps the reader understand what they need. Comprehensive guides must also be exactly that - comprehensive.
The larger scale of this style of content typically means long-form articles that can go over 2000 words and cover an issue from all angles. These articles are often broken up into chapters or sections with accompanying visual elements (images, graphs, infographics, even video) to support the writing and help illustrate certain points. Since comprehensive guides tend to function as 'evergreen' articles, one key step is apparently updating them regularly based on evolving news and perspectives on the covered topics.
This is particularly important in categories such as health, technology, finance, politics and current affairs - industries where regulations change often and new discoveries are made frequently. It would also be helpful if you create user-friendly ways for readers to share useful guides across their networks.
Pillar 2: Leveraging Data and Research for Credibility
You know whatâs weird. When youâre in one of those meandering conversations with colleagues who keep asking, âDo you have the data to back that up.
â Itâs almost like you canât rely on your experience and gut any more to carry a conversation, let alone a professional argument. So you become data driven because information does make for more solid footings. Thereâs nothing wrong with that. I say that as someone whose ideas are based on lived experiences, but I have been surprised by how useful research can be - for my clients, for me and for convincing the world at large about the value of what I do and say.
Itâs all about credibility and content (I think). And it doesnât need to be rocket science, but thoughtful research that benefits the user and the business makes for good growth opportunities.
There isnât a business person in their right minds today who doesnât turn to Google or Bing when trying to make decisions they donât know much about. Wouldnât it be great if your brand was where they landed. More or less.
Research can help you understand your customer better - yes, big yay. It seems like - but it also gives you insights into how to delight them so their engagement with your business is sticky and memorable. But it can also sometimes reflect numbers that donât always work in your favour and thatâs not always something everyone is comfortable with.
The way I see it, if there is a better way of presenting not-so-good findings, then working on creative storytelling might be useful because it helps highlight possible growth opportunities. Meaningful data can help develop content marketing strategies by focusing on topics that audiences are supposedly actively looking for. They also offer opportunities for education for both brands and audiences because they reflect shifts in behaviour - which can be so very interesting.
It seems like weâre often told content is king but if credible research shines a light where no one has looked beforeâŚthen whoever finds it first is definitely going to get some kind of crown, right.
Pillar 3: Engaging Storytelling to Foster Connections
You walk into a party. Thereâs a hum in the air, background music, people smiling and drinking champagne flutes filled with Prosecco. Someone walks up to you and tells you about their new product.
They go on and on about their product, using a script so they donât miss any of their talking points. At best, this scenario is uncomfortable for everyone involved. No matter how good your product is, how do you connect with people in such an environment.
While itâs great to tell your audience about your product or serviceâs features, advantages, pricing and availability, thatâs not how you really connect with them. If all you do is talk about the same thing over and over again, it gets boring. Instead, storytelling can help you connect with your audience on a human level.
And it doesn't have to be a fairy tale or something you've made up for the gram. It can be as simple as sharing customer testimonials or stories of how your business came to be. These stories will help humanise your brand and make you more relatable to people who are actively seeking out things like yours. To foster authentic connections with users through digital storytelling, make sure your content is honest and transparent.
The way I see it, this authenticity is sort of essential to forming a lasting relationship because once users trust you, they're more likely to convert as customers too.
Pillar 4: Utilizing Visual Content for Enhanced Engagement
Think about the last time you scrolled through your favourite social media account. Bet you stopped at that striking image or witty meme - more than a block of text. Feels a bit like visuals do a far better job at holding our attention and being memorable.
Itâs why content creators focus on sharing content that isnât words alone. And itâs because, not everyone reads every word and most people leave a page if they donât find what theyâre looking for. Thereâs a reason why almost every brand has been leaning into infographics, memes, videos, charts, e-books and templates - they want to be remembered by the viewer. Many creators also believe that using visuals reduces their bounce rate and gets them better rankings on search engines.
But, what is the visual content you could be making. Depends on your audience, really. Someone wanting fashion news will want to see trending styles and viral clothing pieces in image form, and someone looking up the best tips for glowing skin would prefer an infographic of actionable steps over a lengthy blog. Some studies show the same content with more pictures gets 2x the attention.
Safe to say youâll see a lot more pictures than words today. The truth is - people arenât reading as much as they used to online. Theyâre mostly skimming or browsing (especially during work hours - oops) and only spend time on things that stand out.
This is not always true for every type of content but it does make sense to add graphics to your blogs and posts so you donât miss out on readers who appreciate visuals more than text.