Setting goals for content marketing

Creating content for your website is a great way to improve the visibility of your company on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP), and to take your Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) to the next level. But when it comes to setting goals for content marketing, it can be difficult to know where to start. So what are the common goals for content marketing? And how can you make sure that your content elevates your website and branding online?

What are the effective options when setting goals for content marketing?

Content marketing, and all content creation for your company should be driven by a goal. Starting your content creation with something to work towards, and a reason for this, can keep your content on track. The goal you set should be determined by the overall SEO strategy, or business growth strategy, and will differ between businesses in different industries. But what are the most common content goals set by businesses and companies? Well there are several, and these include:

• ranking on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP)
• educating your audience
• increasing social engagement

Ranking on the SERP

Search engines rank their results, with the quality of the information being a key contender for ranking position. So by aiming to get each piece of content you produce, to rank highly on the SERP for a relevant search term, you will work harder to produce quality content. That’s because you will be focused on providing a relevant and informative answer to a potential search query. And this will provide the real underlying purpose of the content.

Getting to number one on the SERP for a blog or article that is relevant to your company or business, is also a great way to drive more organic traffic to your website. Blog content can cover a range of keywords and search terms, and this can dramatically increase the opportunity for organic traffic from the SERP. And more traffic means more opportunity for conversions and sales.

However, ranking in the top spot is only part of your SERP success. You need to ensure that descriptions and meta-data are used to provide potential users with more information about the details on your page, and encourage more click throughs from the SERP to your website. You also need to consider the range of different types of search engine result including map entries linked to Google My Business, and Rich Results.

Educating your audience

Alternatively, your purpose for producing quality content might be more audience focused. As it should be, if you really want to make an impact. After all, once a visitor lands on your blog, if the content is not educational, informative, or relevant, they will simply bounce, instead of being drawn into your website further, and finding out more about what your company can offer. In essence, when it comes to setting goals for your web content, educating the audience is a great place to start.

Increasing social engagement

For some companies, the purpose of the blog or article content is to increase social engagement. Producing thought-provoking pieces of content can really help to spark a debate on social media platforms. And this increases the amount of social engagement your company receives. As well as raising awareness of your company, and helping to build a brand. So when setting goals for your web content, don’t forget to think about how this content can be re-purposed, to help grow the social aspect of your business.

For more information or advice about web marketing and content development, get in touch with the experts today, here at Pumpkin Web Design. We are Preston’s leading web design and web marketing professionals. We provide a wide range of website solutions and SEO services across Preston and the North West, from Southport to Wigan, and even Manchester, and we work with a wide range of companies and  businesses, in a variety of sectors