Creating content means more than writing a quick blog or social media caption. It’s all about making sure you reach your target audience in a precise way.
It’s no secret that content marketing has become the next hot thing over the last few years. Whether you’re just now jumping on the bandwagon or trying to keep consistent in your content creation, here are 6 pitfalls you should steer clear of with your content in 2022.
Keyword Stuffing
No one wants to sound like a robot, and if you overuse your keywords, it will be painfully obvious to your readers and sound less authentic than it should.
Keyword stuffing is reusing the same keyword or term and phrase over and over again. Now, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use keywords sparingly, but it should natural and organic, not repetitive.
Google penalizes websites for keyword stuffing. The experts at Forbes recommend you keep your keywords to 1% use in your content.
Quantity Over Quality
If you are trying to build your website or social media, the excitement and rush to quickly gain followers might make you itch to post and be “engaged” online constantly. Posting often with no real goal for your content can harm your SEO like keyword stuffing.
So, how do you know your content is high-quality? Before your fingers touch a keyboard or mouse, the first thing you should do is make sure you’re visioning your content for your audience.
Your content should be engaging and fun to read while giving your audience the answers they are after. If you are an eCommerce, SaaS, or DTC brand, your content should accurately tell your audience about your products and their benefits.
Readers like to consume content that is relevant to their position in life and gives them something they need.
Creating For Everyone
To piggyback off of the last point, your content should be specifically for your audience in mind. The trust is that your business is not for everyone. It’s for a specific group of people. Before you create any piece of content, you should thoroughly know who your audience is.
A great way to know what your audience needs and the problem they’re facing is to look for what they’re searching. Google has a lot of excellent tools to look for that, at the same time, can boost your SEO.
Google trends, analytics, and keyword planner can show you specifics into the minds of your consumers to make sure you include information in your content that increases the quality. If you notice your readers are searching for a specific phrase or word in the search bar, you’ve found your next keyword term for SEO.
Not Using Social Media
According to Forbes, 82% of businesses have realized the importance of having a social media presence for their audience and have another outlet for sharing their content.
If you haven’t expanded your social media engagement, now is the time to do so! Facebook is one you should definitely be on since it has millions upon millions of users. Facebook also has an ad feature that allows you to create custom ads for your business with built-in analytics.
Nowadays, every social media platform is beneficial for your business, even TikTok. You can promote your newest products, blog posts, engage with consumers, and build a unique experience with your readers that gains your reach.
Whether you’ve started on one platform, now is the time to expand.
Keeping The Same Old, Same Old
And speaking of expanding, it’s time to think about the type of content you’re creating. Are you stuck in a blog post rut? Try switching it up to video!
Over time, creating the same form of content can start to impact your analytics negatively. There’s a variety of content types to switch it up for your audience to get some new and fresh, but still relevant.
Infographics, videos, and social media posts are making their way to popularity in digital content marketing. You can use videos to thoroughly explain your products, introduce your team and your business, or use it to answer some of your consumers’ most frequently asked questions.
The Bottom Line
Content marketing is not as easy as it may seem. It requires careful consideration and writers who know how to write content avoiding these pitfalls.
After all, the main aspect of content is making sure we connect with our audience and rank high on search engines.
