Using Design Strategy to Make Content Marketing Easy

You probably don’t think your design choice is a “strategic” one. But it is.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is what drives Search Engine Optimization (SEO).  If you want to be higher on Google, the best way to get there is to provide a web page that people actually want to see.  Not one that you want people to see (one that sells something); one that is genuinely useful to people.  This is the the type of site which people link to, and having folks link to you is a big step in winning the SEO battle.

Design as an Enabler of Content Marketing

So what does that have to do with design?  If you run a small business, or are (just throwing darts here) some sort of sole proprietor, chances are you don’t have a ton of time to spend creating all this content that Google will love to index.  That’s where design comes in.

How can you build a design to help?

My suggestion is to blog.  Not just any blog, but a blog with two distinct components.

• Daily Short Form – The main blog should be Seth Godin-like.  Short, daily posts to nurture the relationship you have with your followers (the ones you gain through content marketing).    The daily short form might not bring new folks to the flock, but it is intended to keep your devotees interested and engaged. It also provides a vehicle for brand recognition repetition.
• Weekend Long Posts – Since you have another job (running your small business), every weekend you should write your articles.  This is the content part of the content marketing.  The content needs to have a must-read headline, yet pay a particular attention to keyword SEO.

The idea is this.  People search for topics related to your business.  They find your longer weekend-posts on your web site.  They begin to trust you.  Hopefully, they decide to follow you in some way (subscribe to feed, email, or twitter).  The daily posts are the repetition you need to market your business successfully.  When the reader finally does need your service, who do you think will pop into mind first?

Image: fdecomite