Content marketing has become a proven way to reach customers, earn trust, and impact the bottom line. The challenge for many is identifying the right tactics and channels that work for their business and within their budget. It seems like everyone is competing for attention or popular keywords, and artificial intelligence is changing content creation. Text marketing remains a fantastic way to bring in new business for restaurants and hospitality businesses. In this article, we’ll explain how you can use content marketing to move the needle on profit and attract new customers.
1. Take time to truly understand your audience.
The first step in developing an effective content marketing strategy is to understand your target audience. If you want your content to resonate with potential customers, you need to know who they are and what they’re looking for. This ensures you develop content that addresses their specific needs and interests rather than simply guessing.
2. Make sure your content is aligned with your overall business goals.
What are you hoping to achieve this year? Are you launching a new menu item or hoping to increase your customer base? If so, you should incorporate those goals as you develop your content strategy. One key factor in this approach is giving yourself plenty of runway to educate and inspire your audience to take action. As the old saying goes, the moment you’re tired of talking about it is likely the time your customers are starting to hear the message. Give your top-of-the-funnel content marketing plenty of time to work before you start expecting results.
3. Be strategic as you diversify your content.
In addition to creating high-quality content that resonates with your audience, it’s important to diversify the format in which you share it. Today’s digital landscape offers a variety of channels that allow you to get more out of your content marketing. Text marketing, social media, and email newsletters are all ways of connecting with your customers. As you explore ways to diversify your content, remember which formats your audience prefers. The good news is that diversifying your content allows you to meet the different preferences and consumption habits of your target audience.
4. Don’t forget to promote your content.
Ensure your content reaches your content audience by promoting it through a variety of channels. This includes strategically thinking about how to promote content on social media, email marketing, or through paid advertising and influencer marketing. Promoting your content is essential for amplifying your reach and increasing the ROI of your content marketing efforts.
5. Let data inform your decisions.
Measuring the effectiveness of your efforts is an essential part of marketing. But often, evaluating content marketing becomes anecdotal and causes you to question how to adapt your strategy. This is why evaluating the data and adopting a more agile approach to content marketing is key. Which content pieces are most popular with your audience? What promotional tactics were most effective? How can you use these insights to plan your content marketing and areas such as product development or customer solutions? These are all helpful questions that provide valuable insights for your business.
Need Help with Content Marketing?
At Olive + Leo, we’ve used these principles to help dozens of businesses develop a content marketing strategy that creates a pipeline for business development. Explore our plans and packages to discover our wide range of effective, affordable customer engagement tools. You can choose between DIY options and fully managed marketing campaigns based on your capacity and needs.
