How to Develop a Content Strategy for Your Business (& Why You Need It)

Content strategy is one of the most important building blocks for any website. It is the process of planning, creating, managing, and publishing content to achieve specific business and marketing objectives. In other words, content strategy is a way to make sure your content is working for you.

Today, it's not enough to just get a website domain and hosting and install a content management system (CMS) like WordPress. You also need original content to rank well on search engines and deliver value to your users. Writing content sporadically, with no real strategy, will therefore not be effective.

You need a solid content strategy for success. However, developing a content strategy for your business is not always easy as it requires good planning and careful considerations. That said, creating a solid content strategy is very benefitial and not so difficult either, if you know the basics and where to start.

Why You Need a Content Strategy

There are several reasons: First, it can help you save time by planning and knowing what kind of content you need to create. Second, it can help ensure that your content is high-quality and engaging. And third, it can help you better understand your audience and what they want to see from your website.

Also, without a content strategy, you're just shooting in the dark. Creating content without a plan is like setting out on a long journey without knowing where you're going or how you’ll get there. You might get lucky and end up somewhere interesting, but chances are you’ll waste a lot of time and energy and get nowhere. 

A good content strategy will help you save time and resources by:

• Giving you a clear direction to follow so you can focus your efforts on creating content that aligns with your business goals 
• Helping you understand your audience and what type of content they are looking for 
• Allowing you to repurpose and reuse existing content instead of starting from scratch every time 
• Enabling you to track and measure the performance of your content so you can optimize and improve over time.

So, how do you create a solid content strategy to reap the rewards and benefits of it?

Basics of Creating a Solid Content Strategy 

To run a successful website these days, you need a solid content strategy. And creating a content strategy doesn't have to be complicated. So how do you begin? 

Start by answering four fundamental questions. Answering these questions will give you a good starting point for creating your content strategy: 

i). Who is your target audience? 

ii). What kind of content do you want to create? 

iii). Where will you publish your content? 

Iv). How often will you publish new content? 

Remember, your strategy can be as simple or complex as you want it to be. The important thing is to have one in place to make the most of your website's content. 

Steps to Develop a Business' Content Strategy

Let's break down those four fundamental points into simple steps you can use to build a content strategy for your business: 

I. Define Your Target Audience 

The first step is to define your target audience by creating buyer personas, which are made up characters that represent your ideal customer. Once you know your target audience, you can then start thinking about what type of content they would be interested in. 

There are a few different ways to go about defining your target audience. One way is to look at your customer base and segment them into groups based on factors like age, location, gender, interests, etc. Another way is to create buyer personas, which are fictional characters that represent your ideal customers. 

Creating buyer personas can be a helpful exercise because it forces you to think about the specific needs and wants of your target audience. It also helps you understand how they make decisions and what kind of content they might be interested in. 

Once you know your target audience, you can start creating content tailored to them: blog posts, articles, infographics, videos, or any other type of content that you think would be valuable to them. 

If you take the time to define your target audience and create content that is relevant to them,  you will be well on your way to developing a successful content strategy.

II. Decide What Content to Create 

Any effective content strategy must take into account the various formats that are available for delivering content. Some common content formats include blog posts, infographics, eBooks, webinars, and videos. 

The most appropriate format will depend on the type of content, the audience, and the overall goals of the content strategy. For example, a video may be an effective format for delivering educational content to a wide audience, while a white paper might be more appropriate for delivering detailed information to a narrow group of decision-makers.  

Ultimately, the goal is to select content formats that will help to achieve the desired outcomes of the content strategy. 

III. Identify Where to Publish Your Content 

To create an effective content strategy for a website, select the right content channels. Some popular channels include social media, email newsletters, and blogs. When making this decision, there are many factors to consider, such as the goals of the website, target audience, and budget. 

Additionally, consider how to use each content channel to support the overall content strategy. For example, use a blog to drive traffic to the website, and social media to engage with potential customers. 

By selecting content channels, businesses can ensure that their content strategy is well-rounded and effective.

IV. Determine How Often to Publish New Content (And Publish It)

Once you have the aforementioned things in place, determine how often you will publish new content. Then start creating and publishing high-quality content regularly. 

You can organize your content production process using an editorial calendar, which is a schedule that outlines when and where to publish new content. An editorial calendar will also help you categorize content and show the corresponding timelines to ensure effective delivery on upcoming material. 

As you can see, managing your content doesn't have to be a daunting task. By following these simple tips, you can create a solid content strategy and ensure that your content works hard for you and helps you achieve your business goals.