Writing one killer article that gets people thinking and talking is great. But once you’ve written it, shared it and discussed it, what next? If people like one article from you, they’ll probably remember your name and be looking for more. Give them what they want at that stage, and you are on your way to building a strong relationship that will keep people reading your content.
Building relationships
Any relationship – whether between individuals, or between a business and its customers, is a two way process in which both sides get something that they want. That’s what we mean when we talk about engagement: a quality relationship that has importance for both sides.
Building a good relationship with your readers means that you need to understand what they are looking for from you. Show your readers that you are an expert, and become their go-to place for information or entertainment on whatever your area is. At the same time, don’t be afraid to branch out a little. To build a strong following you need to be predictable enough that people will get what they expect from you, while still being original enough to keep them interested.
How to do it
Consider what you have that others do not, and use that to begin your content marketing campaign. This could be one of many things. Emily Hartridge keeps people coming back to watch and read her ’10 Reasons Why’ series because she offers them entertaining content that is familiar in format, but with a different subject every time. She produces memorable content that allows people to feel that they are getting to know her the more they read and watch. Another approach could be to keep the content on a similar subject, but to keep on changing the approach. Find a specialist niche and produce blogs, infographics, videos and interviews.
Once you have an approach to producing good content, you need to build loyalty by making sure people know about it. People will begin to seek you out once they know about you, but you have to make sure they know about you. Share your content on social media and contribute to online debates about your content and other people’s. Make it easy for people to follow you and help others to with sharing buttons and a visible presence.
Finally, don’t sit back and relax. With so much competition out there for your potential readers’ eyes, you need to keep on keeping it interesting, and keep on talking about it. Elephants may never forget, but people need to be reminded.