| Whether you are a first-time publisher or a seasoned veteran, you've heard buzz that "content is king." Not quite sure
what this means or how to apply it to your site even through everyone says relevant content is crucial to successful online
marketing? How do you identify and establish quality content? Answering this question will require some homework, so grab
your notebook and sack lunch and get ready to do some digging.
Relevance
Having a landing page with multiple product links or banner ads, but without a theme or relevant information will prevent
return visits from consumers. The value-add of your site needs to be immediately recognized at arrival. For example, if your
site promotes digital cameras, you might have detailed listings about the specifications different consumers consider; for
instance, hobbyists check out mega-pixels and portability, while professionals evaluate the best resolution and multiple lenses.
Consumers convert when you surround your promoted products and services with relevant data.
Writing
Before we talk about creating quality content, it's important to note that any and all content should be written with the
search engines in mind. Every single thing you write - a press release, a newsletter, or site information - must be geared
towards the keywords of the industry or the product/service you promote. What are the search terms that consumers are using
within the search engines? When you know the keywords associated with your industry and integrate them into your site content,
you will receive a higher ranking - organically - and have more effective, less expensive, paid-search campaigns. For example,
"Five mega-pixel camera" is much cheaper than "digital camera." You can have all the content in the world, but if it fails
to contain relevant data or popular search terms, you will never be found and if you are, it's likely you won't get a return
visit.
Research
How do you practically apply these concepts to your site? First, you need to pick a vertical or two to focus your efforts.
A glance around the CJ Account Manager will reveal many types of products and services. Feasibly, you will not be able to
address them all, so identify those in which you have a personal interest. Then, to identify the most-effective keywords from
which to build your content, ask yourself the following questions:
- Who are the major players in the industry and what distinguishes them from one another?
- What are the trends in the overall market? Digital cameras, for example, are surging in popularity compared to film cameras.
Also, hobbyists are buying more sophisticated cameras as prices decrease.
- How do advertisers market themselves? Some promotions might be industry-specific, and can be included in your keyword
lists. For instance, image-processing companies find that consumers are responsive to "two-for-one" processing specials.
- What are the product attributes consumers look for? Digital camera consumers make buying decisions in terms of price,
mega-pixels and lens type.
- What are the price points and different product levels? Offering all things to all people might leave you no one at all.
For example, a site targeting the casual, vacation photographer looking for an affordable camera will be very different than
one for studio photographers. Drill down your vertical to a consumer sub-category level and shape content around that group.
- Are there any complimentary goods or services available? Don't miss the opportunity to suggest a camera bag or tri-pod
with that fancy new camera.
There are many sources to find the information above: message board postings; related blogs; your local library where subscription-based
information services are often accessible for free; the Internet; the CJ Account Manager; trade and industry magazines; consumer
magazines; newspaper articles; and competitor Web sites.
Rewards
We've looked at how becoming a vertical expert is necessary to identify keywords and ultimately content, but there are
other benefits as well. Familiarity with a vertical will help you identify a good promotion, where the lowest prices are found
and what products to promote seasonally - all of these contribute to high value content and ultimately, to higher customer
conversions. In addition, if you expand from basic links to product detail pages, other Webmasters will link to you as a reference
for their visitors, increasing your search engine ranking.
Revenue
So get started. You've educated yourself. You know your industry and product. Now use the CJ Account Manager to find the
advertisers that best align with your desired vertical, develop your quality content, place your advertiser creative and get
ready for some serious revenue!
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