chris vaughn, lauren thomas, and lynda simonton, 21 useful tips for digital content marketing to...

21 Useful Tips for Digital Content Marketing to Build Your

Business and Personal BrandBlogs, Instagram, Pinterest

and Houzz

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Chris VaughnDirector of Marketing

DigitalSherpa@ChrisHVaughn

Lauren ThomasCampaign Manager

DigitalSherpa@HelloLT

Lynda SimontonClient Experience

Manager@LyndaSimonton

Tweet us! #GardenBlogConf

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Tweet us! #GardenBlogConf

Follow Along At:http://slideshare.net/DigitalSherpa

365 POSTS: 7 LESSONS LEARNEDOne Year. One Website.

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Tip 1: Always Be Analyzing

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The Lightbulb Problem

The blog post with over 1,000 visitors but no readers

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While Exploring Google Analytics…

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No Shares? No Comments?!?

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“Light Bulb” Related Keyword Visits in Google Analytics

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TIP 2: BE THOROUGH

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TIP 3: CONSIDER CONVERSION

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TIP 4: MEASURE RESULTS

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TIP 5: TEST. THEN TEST SOME MORE.

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Call To Action

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TIP 6: TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AVAILABLE (AND FREE) TOOLS

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Google Analytics

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Google Keyword Planner

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TIP 7: SEO IS AN ONGOING PRACTICE. NEVER STOP OPTIMIZING!

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VISUAL STORYTELLING 101

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Tip 8: Define Your Voice & Visuals

• What does your brand sound like?– “Tone” and personality– Key messages

• What does your brand look like?– Logos, colors, etc.

• Optimize your profile for each social network

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Visual Branding: The Home Depot

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Visual Branding: The Home Depot

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Tip 9: Images > Words

• Facebook posts with pictures generate more engagement

• 59% of top brands are on Instagram

• Create a visual content strategy• Share photos that are relevant to

your brand• Use images to tell your stories

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Image via iStockphoto, AleksandarNakic

Images Engage on Facebook

• Photo posts get 39% more interaction– 93% of the most

engaging posts on FB – 53% more likes– 104% more comments – 84% more click-throughs

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Tip 10: Think Themes

• Before & After• How-To• Inspiration Boards• Behind the Scenes• Holidays / Seasons • Pop Culture

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Images via Lifescape Associates and Digital Sherpa

Tip 11: Repurpose Content

• Cascade content across platforms

• Shoot once, use thrice• Create photo collages

– Tools: Pic Stitch, Diptic, Pixlr

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Image via Home Depot

Tip 12: Experiment with #Hashtags

• Use hashtags to join larger conversations– Industry, Geography,

Products/Services, Trends• Tools:

– Facebook Graph Search– Twitter Search– Tagboard (Beta)

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Facebook Post via Digital Sherpa

Tip 14: Take Advantage of Video

• Video marketing is a powerful way to communicate with your audience– Share brand culture/values– Showcase products/services– Share DIY/how-to tips– Highlight happy customers

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Tip 13: Leverage Analytics

• Track engagement – Demographics– Popular content– Best times to post

• Tools: – Facebook Insights– BlitzMetrics– Statigram

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Screenshot via BlitzMetrics

Ready? Let’s Do This!

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PUTTING IT ALL INTO ACTION

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Over 2,000,000 photos have been uploaded to Houzz and there are over 14,000,000 users every month.

Tip 15: Change the Conversation

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Client’s Cottage Garden

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More is More

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Listen and Learn

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Tip 16: Raise Your Ranking

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Get Reviews

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Tip 17: All About Organization (Key Words are Critical)

• Geography – How do people search your area?

• Style• Project scope

– What type of business do you want to attract?

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Under the Hood: Houzz Optimization

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Pinterest generates more referral traffic to business websites than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn COMBINED!

Tip 18: Create a Business Account

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Under the Hood: Pinterest Analytics

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Tip 19:Keep Thinking about Search

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130 million people enjoy this photo sharing app

Tip 20: Share a Variety of Content or Stick to a Clear Theme

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Tip 21: Tag People You Know

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Bonus Tip: Be a Good Community Member

• Share valuable information• Interact and help• Give credit where credit is due!

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Q + AQuestions? Ask away!

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• Download our presentation here: http://slideshare.net/DigitalSherpa

• Connect with us!– Chris Vaughn – chris@digitalsherpa.com– Lauren Thomas – lthomas@digitalsherpa.com– Lynda Simonton – lsimonton@digitalsherpa.com

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