A recent FB group survey completed by smart female entrepreneurs revealed an interesting question:
How do I get people to take action with my content?
This is a great question because not all content types are the same nor do they produce the same result.
In other words, different content types serve different purposes.
You see, some content pieces work best at the top of the funnel–pieces that educate, inspire, and inform. Content like blogs, social media posts, ebooks, and checklists are great examples.
They do a wonderful job of building awareness and creating conversations around your brand. They let people know you exist and it’s a great strategy for growing your followers, showcasing your brilliance, and nurturing relationships.
Middle & Bottom Funnel
Now, bottom of the funnel content is designed to move your people to the buying decision. People have identified that you are a solution but they’re determining whether you’re the right solution for them.
Catch that?!
Specific examples of bottom of the funnel pieces to come.
Then, of course, there’s the middle of the funnel content. It’s just that…people know about you but not enough to start whipping out their credit cards to spend money on you. But they do want to stay connected in a more intimate way. Hence, the action of opting into your email list.
The key is creating content for every stage of the funnel.
So, let’s talk about what these content types look like, for the middle and bottom funnel. This way, you’re super clear on the pieces you need to move people to your desired action.
Btw, get short and simple content nuggets sent straight to your inbox👇🏽
Samples Sell
Yes, samples and free trials! A middle of the bottom tactic (samples), or a bottom (free trials), getting users to try your product or service first hand allows them to have an immediate experience with your brand.
This reminds me of times at the mall in the food court. Restaurant vendors would stand in front of the cashier with a tray full of samples on toothpicks, extending their arm for you to taste. You immediately knew whether you were hopping in that line…or another. (I would get sold every time lol.)
Consumers and business owners who are on the fence can easily be swayed your way through free trial offers, consultations, or samples. To align a physical sample with content, couple it with a demonstration video or PDF.
Wanna See How I Did it?
Speaking of demonstrations, that’s a whole ‘nother content type you can leverage to get your community to take action.
Whether it’s a live demonstration or you’re showing people how you achieved a desired result through video, this bottom-of-the-funnel tactic is an excellent way to build belief and trust.
HubSpot uses a great example of test drives when buying a car as a live demonstration example.
Below is another from a different women’s entrepreneur Facebook group illustrating the power of demonstrations and results. Stacy’s audience is all over it!
Case Studies
People. Love. Stories. And this is why case studies are highly effective.
You see, case studies give you the opportunity to share your customer’s journey and experience with your brand, through storytelling.
It starts at the beginning, sharing the challenges and struggles your client had before finding your business–making it relatable to your reader’s pain points.
Then, viola, you show up, sharing how your client’s problems were solved through your products or services.
You present yourself as the solution, leader, and authority while giving a plug to your client. It’s a win-win.
With my dream and day job, Verblio–yes, I eat, sleep and breathe content marketing–we’ve successfully leveraged case studies to attract qualified leads that resulted in big sales.
In fact, here’s one I wrote about how our client went from 0 website traffic to over 15k visitors monthly leveraging content!
Case studies are strong content types to have in your arsenal. Aim to create a case study quarterly or twice a year. Then promote the heck out of it!
Email Campaign
Did you know that 98% of consumers do not buy the first time they visit a website?!
I mean, think about your own shopping habits. You’ll probably browse around, see what the brand is about, etc. and then perhaps make a decision later if you remember.
Your people need to see something multiple times before it registers or prompts them to take further action.
Hellooo email marketing!
Building an email campaign around your product is the smartest way to grow your sales.
In fact,
Email marketing has the highest return on investment for small businesses. (Campaign Monitor, 2019) Source: HubSpot
You can convert someone who simply wants more learnings from you into a lifelong fan of your brand through email.
So, use your email marketing tool like ConvertKit to begin automating your content by sharing tips, blogs, and happenings with your community. They’ll love you for it!
Btw, I’m a big fan of ConvertKit because they aim to keep your content out of your subscribers’ spam folder.
Talk about high deliverability!
Reviews
So we’re all familiar with consumer reviews left on sites like Google, Yelp, Angie’s List and so forth.
However, in this case, I’m referring to creating in-depth blog post reviews on products and tools you’ve personally used and your experience.
People crave these types of reviews. It provides a holistic approach by highlighting the good, bad and beautiful about a product.
They’re also consuming these pages when they’re about ready to make a buying decision.
Imagine showing up with a well-written review before that person is about to buy. Just think about your own buying experience. How often do you search for “X product review” before you buy?
Your client is doing the same thing.
Okay, but how do you generate income/review from reviews?
By becoming an affiliate of that product.
If there is a SaaS tool you use regularly as an entrepreneur or a physical product, consider becoming an affiliate of that tool.
In fact, I’m in the process of creating my own review for one of my favorite content automation tools. I’m aware of the power of reviews and comparison articles and how these pieces can impact my traffic and income over the long term🎉.
Writing reviews is a great long-term strategy if you desire to amplify your search engine optimization strategy over time.
Need some motivation or stimulation? Here are a few winning examples:
- The Five Minute Journal: Review of My Favorite Journal
- ClickUp Review 2021 – Is ClickUp Worth Paying For?
- Iconosquare Review – Features, Pricing, and Competitors
So, become an affiliate by checking out your favorite tool’s Referral Program. Contact them directly if you’re having trouble finding the deets in your account/billing settings.
Live Workshops and Masterclasses
This is actually one of my favorite content marketing types: hosting live workshops and masterclasses.
Live workshops and masterclasses are effective ways to give crazy value to your people, nurture your tribe, grow your audience, and generate income.
The key is centering your message around a topic that your audience wants to hear about. By doing surveys or simply documenting your FAQs, you can turn these nuggets–pain points–into solutions, using a live event for its delivery.
The standard charge for workshops and masterclasses are between $47-$197. It also provides you a chance to offer your attendees an opportunity to work with you further.
If you plan to leverage the latter, be sure you let your audience know in the beginning that you do plan to make an offer at some point during the live. This builds trust and doesn’t make it seem that you have an ulterior motive.
Your Next Steps
Decide on which content type resonates with you most where you are in your business and go for it. Each of these pieces takes time to plan and execute so use a project management tool like CoSchedule or ClickUp to map out the details.
Your audience will appreciate this!
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