The Internet has grown significantly over the past decade.
In 2015 previously successful web marketing tactics don’t necessarily yield the same results they did in 2010. It used to be that websites could get away with a static website that had very little changing content. But thanks to changes in the major search engines and the growth of social media, stale web content can be a deathblow to a business.
To get noticed and really grow a brand, fresh and original digital content is essential.
Buyers want originality
In August 2014 Mashable reported on a survey that showed that more than half of consumers are “more likely to buy” products or services from companies that publish custom content. Why might this be?
Originality may be perceived as better quality and consumers are likely to be more interested in a company that aims to display excellence in its content. In the past, differentiation of products (or services) has been an important part of business strategy; these days the same can be said for content. Why would consumers visit a company’s website that strives to be like everyone else? Chances are they will gravitate to a site that offers something different.
Content is rapidly growing to become as important as advertising, and both consumers and B2B decision makers are web-savvy. They will know originality when they see it. Firms serve their clients better if they aim for uniqueness when promoting or creating content for their clients.
Opportunity to grow web traffic
Major search engines, in other words Google, will penalize websites for content that appears on multiple websites. Even if the content is original but was subsequently posted somewhere else, it can result in a decreased prominence in search results — and declining traffic, says Neil Patel, a digital expert and entrepreneur, in an article from December 2014. This is a huge reason businesses and their marketing agencies should be focusing on originality when creating content.
Many marketing experts believe it is in a client’s best interest to post its content on more authoritative sites. Patel recommends making sure these websites use “rel-canonical” tags in the page’s source code. This tells Google to give credit to the original website. This way originality remains intact, but more brand recognition can potentially be acquired through wider exposure.
The bottom line is that better rankings in Google equate to getting more eyes on the client’s content. And Google rewards originality. While search is not the only way to get more visibility, it is important.
Original is more interesting
All other points aside, originality is simply more interesting. If a business is perceived as being original on the web, visitors will be more likely to come back and peruse the site on a routine basis to see what is new. Companies can aim to be first to report trends, share imaginative perspectives or discuss industry developments.
Additionally, as the web evolves, imagery has become an integral part of websites and, while this may pose some challenges, it can also create new content opportunities. Content can be presented in a variety of ways which can include text-based materials such as blog posts, informational articles, white papers and ebooks, but also can be augmented with video, photos, slide shows or infographics too.
In the end providing a mix of interesting content will eventually attract more traffic, leads and eventually, conversions.
Reasons to consider outsourcing content
With all the competition on the web, it can be challenging to come up with original content. It takes time and creativity to produce, and few businesses have the in-house resources needed to do it well. One solution many businesses turn to outsourcing to companies that specialize in producing original digital content.
According to statistics reported by Demand Metric, 62 percent of companies outsource their content marketing.
A specialist such as Tempesta Media can ensure that high quality original content is produced on an agreed-upon schedule. Tempesta Media manages all aspects of a content production — strategy development, idea generation, writing and editing.
We find writers with expertise in the industries you need and guide them through the creation process to ensure we meet your unique needs. And we do all of this at a fraction of the cost of an in-house team.
If you have a content marketing program, or are planning one, download our ebook: 100 mistakes businesses make when starting, optimizing and scaling content marketing programs. Learn from the mistakes of hundreds of other companies. 100 mistakes walks you through common and uncommon challenges that they faced with their content marketing programs.
