What Neil and Eric Do for Content Promotion | Ep. #411

Stuck on how to find content for your marketing?  Check out Neil and Eric's content strategy.

Shares Don’t Equal Successful Content

Whenever you create content, you probably want it to get shared with a lot of people. After all, shares mean that people have engaged and that your content must be amazing. Actually, this isn’t the case.

While, yes, good content gets shared, shares aren’t the only indicator of powerful content and engagement. There are a whole slew of other factors that influence the power of your content on social media.

Ideally, your content gains both shares and links. That makes your content valuable and boosts your authority on search engines and social networks. This is called amplification.

A good amplification strategy makes the difference between a good digital marketer and a great digital marketer. This article will help you develop the tools to create a great amplification strategy to take your content to the next level.

Why have an amplification strategy

Having a good amplification strategy means that your content will be seen by a large number of people who will perform the action you want them to. Social platform shares don’t mean anything unless people are performing the type of engagement with your content that you want.

Now it takes more than just publishing your content to get people to react to it and act on it. You have to have an amplification strategy to take it to the next level. A good amplification strategy will get your content to the right people at the right time who will perform the right action with it.

A social sharing doesn’t equal amplification strategy

If you want to build an amplification strategy, you need to go beyond social shares. Social platforms are powerful discovery tools but their amplification strategy benefits are minimal. There are too many amplification limitations to social sharing to make it a proper amplification strategy.

This is because, more often than not, shared links aren’t clicked, shared content is frequently not read by the sharer, social shares have a short shelf life, and sharing goes down after a few days. This makes social sharing minimally beneficial when it comes to amplification. Sure, it can work sometimes, but it often doesn’t work.

Lots of shares doesn’t mean lots of likes

People share and like content for different reasons. For example, people share content when they find something entertaining, when they want to foster a personal relationship, when they want to show that they support a cause, when they want to share helpful content, and when they want to show that they are part of the tribe.

People like content when they view it as an authority, they support the content, the content is unlikely to change, and/or the content serves as a helpful guide. Something is shared and liked when the content is valuable and helpful. That’s the area you want your content to live.

Getting shares and likes

There are a few ways that you can get your content to get shares and likes:

• Answer a common question that people have regarding your area of expertise
• State strong and/or controversial opinions
• Post original research and data you have collected yourself
• Develop a real amplification strategy

That last point is where you, as a digital marketer, need to focus. You need to develop an amplification strategy and here is how you do it.

Developing an amplification strategy

A good amplification strategy uses five main tactics: manual promotion, target mailings, influencer advocacy, link building and SEO, and paid promotion. Each of these tactics helps you build a real amplification strategy.

Each business uses these differently, so it is best to get together with your web and marketing team and come up with a way to make all those tactics work for you.

If you are looking for a way to build and amplification strategy for your business, take a look at my done-for-you system today.

6 Tips for Writing a Call to Action That Converts

Content is the foundation that you use for online marketing. While quality content is essential, a well-written blog post or email is less likely to convert if you have a poorly worded call to action.

A call to action needs to grab the reader’s attention. It spurs them to take action. If you’ve noticed that your online marketing content is under-performing, then you should take a look at your call to action.

If you need help creating an effective call to action, then use the following 6 tips. Learn how to write a call to action that converts.

Keep Your Call to Action Short

The very first step to writing an effective call to action is to keep it short. You should try to keep your call to action to less than 150 characters. Essentially, your call to action is an “act now” button or link. It should be short while still conveying a specific message.

For example, instead of simply stating “call today”, you may state “call us today and get a free quote”. Always check the total character count of your call to action. Don’t be afraid to trim a word or two.

Use Actionable Verbs

Use action words to get your reader to complete the desired action. Actionable verbs are words that can actually be performed by a person.

For example, when you include the word “Call” in your call to action, you’re encouraging your reader to call you. Other examples of actionable verbs and phrases include:

• Click
• Download
• Try
• Sign up
• Join
• Start
• Talk
• Reply
• Place your order

Create Urgency in Your Call to Action

In addition to actionable verbs, you should try to create a sense of urgency. You want to create an emotional trigger to give the sense that they need to “act now” in order to take advantage of your offer.

For example, you wouldn’t state “call us anytime to learn more”. Instead, you would state “call us today to learn more”. Here are a few examples of words that you can use to achieve this:

• Now
• Today
• Limited time
• Act now
• Don’t delay
• Last chance

Provide a Value in Your Call to Action

Another solution for boosting your conversion rates is to provide a value in your call to action. Including an offer or special promotion in your call to action lets your readers know that they’re getting a deal.

When writing your call to action, you may mention “call today for a free quote”, “call now to get a 50% discount”, “click here to receive your special gift”. This is a simple way to convert skeptical readers.

Make Sure Visitors Can Read Your Call to Action

Along with the actual words that you use, you need to make sure your call to action is readable. This means avoiding small fonts or intricate designs.

You can use graphics and interesting designs in your copy. But, your call to action needs to be highly visible and readable.

Keep Your Action Simple

Once a reader clicks on your call to action, they shouldn’t have any problem completing the next action. If the action is filling out a form, the form should be simple. If the action is giving you call, they shouldn’t have any problem finding the phone number.

Use these tips to start writing calls to action that actually convert. You should also consider using A/B split testing to test the effectiveness of your calls to action.

For even more online marketing tips, including the ultimate solution for conversion-ready internet marketing prospects, click here to learn more about my done-for-you system.