It’s easy to see why so many small businesses integrate content creation into their online marketing efforts. After all, solid content can help boost your enterprise’s search ranking, thereby leading to an increase in website traffic and potential new business. However, as any seasoned marketing expert will tell you, not all web content is equally beneficial. While good content has the power to elevate your ranking and make more people aware of your business, lackluster content can have a negative impact on both your search ranking and professional reputation. With this in mind, take care to avoid the following mistakes when crafting engaging content for your small business.
Not Creating New Content on a Consistent Basis
In some respects, search engines can be very fickle. Given the seemingly endless array of available results for virtually any search criteria, it’s hardly surprising that search engines often show favorability to sites that are updated on a consistent basis. No matter how good the last blog post or feature article you posted is, it can’t be expected to influence search results long-term. So, if you and your team have gotten into the habit of posting new website content on an irregular basis, you’d do well to correct this behavior.
In the interest of getting a favorable search ranking, make a point of producing new content between once and thrice a week. (Of course, if you’re able to produce more, you’re certainly welcome to do so.) If this seems like too much work for a single team member, consider alternating content creation duties. Furthermore, when delegating which team members produce which pieces of content, make a point of matching subject matter with expertise. For example, if a blog post pertains directly to web design, make sure the piece is written – or at least supervised – by your company’s resident expert on the subject.
Overusing Keywords
Keyword integration can be an effective way to elicit attention from search engines and boost your site’s search ranking. In fact, plugging relevant keywords into blog posts and feature articles is among the most popular search engine optimization (SEO) practices under the sun. Unfortunately, far too many businesses have a habit of keyword stuffing. As the name suggests, this practice involves the flagrant overuse of keywords in web content. In many cases, this is done in an effort to fool search engines into picking up on popular search terms and giving your site a favorable ranking.
Although keyword stuffing may seem like an ingenious idea to people who are inexperienced with content creation, it can do a lot more harm than good. First of all, such content is unlikely to be of any practical use to readers. While it may initially prompt people to visit your website, they’re unlikely to stick around – and even less likely to give you their patronage – upon discovering that they’ve been duped. Worse yet, if search engines become aware of what you’re doing, your site’s search ranking is liable to take a nosedive. Needless to say, working your way back up to a favorable ranking will take a considerable amount of time and effort.
Failing to Consult Experts
Not every small business is well-versed in the dos and don’ts of content creation – and that’s okay! However, what isn’t okay is assuming that all the intricacies of content creation can be learned on the fly. Attempting to craft solid web content with little to no experience is unlikely to work out in your favor. That being the case, why not save yourself a tremendous amount of hassle by reaching out to an experienced web marketing company? The right company will be able to provide invaluable guidance with regard to content creation, SEO and a wide assortment of other digital marketing staples.
Content creation can do your small business a world of good. Solidly-crafted blog posts, feature articles and guest pieces can help drive traffic to your site and build awareness of your brand. Of course, it’s important to keep in mind that not all web content is created equal. While good content can prove tremendously beneficial, subpar content is likely to have the opposite effect. In the interest of crafting the best possible content for your hand, avoid the blunders discussed above.
