Content Isn’t Converting? Try This

These days it seems like everyone has something to sell. 

This makes motivating people to take action on what you have to offer harder than avoiding the beckoning cookie aisle when you're on a diet.

With that being said, if someone agrees to give you five minutes of their time, you can't afford to fill it with anything other than helpful, actionable information. 

But how? Where do you start? How does this "helpful, actionable information" I speak of take shape?

I had a feeling you'd have some questions, which is why I've detailed four tips on how to use your business' content to help you inspire your potential customers to take action. 

Educate them  

Today, we turn to Google for everything from a recipe for dinner to a proper diagnosis of our scratchy throat to a solution to our business' dried up sales funnel. 

In fact, in the span of a single month, Google is busy answering 100 billion of our searches for answers. The answers we're looking to find before we make a trip to the grocery store, purchase brand XYZ's cough syrup, or invest in marketing software. 

Nowadays, we want to know what were buying, why we're buying it, and where we can get the most bang for our buck before we go anywhere or talk to anyone. 

So in an effort to adapt to the average consumer's thirst for information, it's important that your business is producing the type of educational content necessary to move them towards a purchase. 

Educating potential customers will help them better understand the benefit of the solution your product or service is capable of providing. It isn't until a lead understands the benefit that they will see the need to carry out a purchase.  

Focus on being conversational

Quick, which one of these excerpts fuels your interest more?

A) "Want to know the truth about search engine optimization? You’re being misled. Maybe not in a sleazy, Wall Street kind of way. But there are many bloggers and SEO “gurus” who are guilty-by-omission in that they’re portraying search engine optimization through rose-tinted glasses."

or B) "Search optimization is a difficult concept for business owners to master. When it comes to best practices, the lines are blurred as a result of conflicting content."

What's that I hear? A resounding "A"?

I thought so. 

The reason being that being people enjoy reading content that takes a personal, relaxed approach. It makes them feel like the writer is talking to them, not talking at them (or everyone for that matter.)

The more connected they feel, the more interested they become, which ultimately improves the odds that they'll want to know more about your business.

Create urgency

Consumers have a natural tendency to put off purchases. Depending on the nature of the investment, they often rest on their laurels thinking that "it can wait."

Incorporating a sense of urgency into your marketing strategy helps to expedite the decision making process to avoid this type of standstill. 

However, the key is to learn how to leverage urgency in marketing without soiling it with gimmicky content. While slapping a "buy now" starburst on a crappy landing page probably won't improve your odds, taking the time to understand what is holding the consumer back from making the purchase right now will. 

If you provide people with a valid reason why they should buy now rather than later, they'll be more likely to take the desired action. 

Provide next steps

If you want a website visitor to take a desired next step, don't beat around the bush. 

If you're writing compelling content it's likely that you're walking readers through to the end of your blog post, but for what reason? What happens when they reach the end?

Without a clear, well-aligned call-to-action at the end of your blog post, you're missing out on an opportunity to drive action. 

The right CTA here serves as the difference between a reader who bookmarks your article at best, and a reader who sticks around to convert on another piece of your content. 

The key here is to make sure that the offer you present is relevant to the reader you were looking to attract with the original article. If you're a HubSpot user, you can further tailor this experience with a smart CTA that adapts to the specific reader to ensure that they are presented with a fresh offer every time.