Content marketing is the hottest industry in SEO at the moment.

A lot of SEO companies already jump started their own blogger services to boost SERPs.

And loads of companies do their own content marketing. In fact, a full 94% of small businesses are doing it and 93% of B2Bs.

But the question that’s on everyone’s mind is “Is Content Marketing and Blog Writing Effective?”

This is the question we aim to answer today. And we hope you’ll come away inspired.

Why Are You Asking About Content Marketing And Blog Writing?

One of the first questions we learn in life is “why?” And it’s a great question.

But have you asked yourself, why you’re asking about the effectiveness of content marketing?

If you’re asking, it’s probably because it’s not been as effective for you as you thought. Did we nail it?

But the evidence we see right now is that businesses still agree: content marketing is still effective.

So why then are you not seeing results?

There are a few reasons. And there may be a few places you might shore up in your approach.

Promotion Is Queen

You can’t do nothing with your content once you create and post it. Once it’s up on the web, it has to actually connect to the rest of the web. And that happens through promotion.

This is the difference between mere blog writing and content marketing. The former is just great words with a few links. The latter is a content promotion strategy.

It’s a two-step process: create content, promote content.

You have to balance the two.

If you’re not seeing results, it’s probably because you’re focusing too much on one or the other. And you’ve probably let the promotion slip because that’s the hardest part sometimes.

Where do you promote your blog writing?

Social media is a great place to start. Places like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest. And email newsletters, LinkedIn profiles, and guest posts and mentions on other websites.

If you aren’t promoting, get promoting.

Your Content Is Rotten

You may have the absolute opposite problem. You might spend all your time and money on promotion and nothing on creating great content.

If your content is horrible, you’re wasting all your money on the promotion side.

The point of quality usable content is organic promotion. People will only share information they enjoy and find useful.

If they find thin or boring or useless content, they move on.

So, what can you do to make blog writing more effective for content marketing? Hire a better writer. And then make sure they understand your niche or industry well.

Remember, the content has to be useful as well as quality.

Hire A Digital Marketing Team

If you haven’t already, hire a team to help fine-tune your content marketing strategy.

Sometimes all you need to make your content marketing strategy take off is an extra set of eyes. The expertise of a company who’s primary work is content marketing will increase your ROI ten-fold or more.

So, check out our portfolio and see how we can turn your business into gold.

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Digital Marketing for Dentists: Is it Really Necessary?

Not too long ago, choosing a dentist was an simple process. People would ask their friends for recommendations or would check with their families and picked based on instinct. Today, the tech revolution has taken the guesswork out of finding the right dentist for their needs and budget. Digital marketing for dentists is more important now than ever before.

Unlike a few years ago, when the only sources they could trust were their friends and families, people now have access to a wealth of information right at their fingertips. They can use search engines like Google to look for dentists in their area, read reviews on Yelp or use social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube to seek medical answers. In fact, 40% of consumers say that the information they find online affects their health decisions. 93% of them claim that it’s more convenient to find answers online than to call a dentist’s office.

Digital marketing for dentists has become more important than ever before. This change in how consumers research and shop their services can mean either bad news or good news.  It all depends on how you react to the new rules of engagement. If you’re accustomed to getting new patients from referrals, it might be hard to adapt. Now that patients are flocking to the internet, dentists who don’t market themselves online will be at a real disadvantage. If your online presence is weak, you will get lost in a sea of dentists who understand that if they want to grow their practice, they need to conquer the digital world.

Because we know how overwhelming online marketing for dentists can be, we’ve put together this step-by-step guide to help you promote your practice.

Let’s dive in!

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) For Dentists.

In the past, people would have to visit their dentists for practically everything. Since they didn’t have access to specialized information, the only solution was to jump in their cars, drive to the dentist’s office and ask them about their medical issues. These days, due to the wealth of information online, people don’t necessarily have to book an appointment for a simple diagnostic.

Even when it comes to finding a dentist, people often turn to Google before they turn to friends and family recommendations or direct mail ads. So, if you want potential patients to find your business, you need a search engine optimization strategy.

Here’s what you need to do:

• Make Sure Your Website Contains NAP Information

The first thing you need to do is to check if your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) appear on the homepage of your website and preferably at the bottom of every page. Make sure the information is text and not an image. Google’s spiders cannot read images.

• Search Google for “Dentist + City/Zip Code.”

Pretend you’re a potential patient looking for a dentist in your area. Go to Google and enter the search term “Dentist” and your city or zip code (example: “dentist in Portland”) By analyzing the search results, you will get a better understanding of where your business is situated.

• Research Keyword Ideas

Most dentists think of the main keywords that are related to their business and use them to optimize their websites. But search habits can vary, and not everybody uses the same word or phrases.

For example, you might think that when people are looking for dental services, they type in “dentist in Portland, Oregon” or “dental office in Portland.” But what about variations of your main services? For instance, some people might search terms such as “dental implants” or “teeth whitening,” while others might search for more broad keywords like “dentist near me” or “dental care.”

To get a comprehensive list of keywords, go to Google’s Keyword Planner, type a keyword phrase (e.g.: “dental services”) and carefully examine the suggested ideas and ad groups.

If you are struggling to think of more keywords people might be searching for your dental practice, use Google Autocomplete. This tool is based on actual searches performed by users, so it can give you a valuable insight into what people are searching for on a particular subject.

Open Google and type in keywords like dental, toothache, root canal, implant, and so on. See what results you get.

Google Related Searches is another tool you can use to get related queries people might have used. Go to Google.com, type in your keywords and look at the related search terms suggested at the bottom of search results.

• Make a List of Relevant Keywords

After you’ve carefully researched all possibilities, it’s time to create a list of keywords that are truly relevant. Go through the list and remove everything that seems unrelated. Use keyword research tools to get valuable insights about how well your keywords will perform.

• Check for Both Head and Long Tail Keywords

Head keywords are typically just one to three words long and are very generic (example: “dentist”). Long-tail keywords, on the other hand, are made up of 3 or 5 words and are more specific (example: “affordable dentist in Portland, OR”). As a result, long-tails aren’t very competitive, but they can rank you higher than head terms.

It is important to have a balanced keywords strategy, so you should check for both head terms and long-tail terms. Although long-tail keywords don’t receive high search volumes, they are less competitive and, thus, convert better. Additionally, keeping a regular blog is a great way to improve ranking for long-tail keywords as you can build your blog strategy around specific terms!

• Use the Keywords in the Right Places

Now that you have a list of relevant keywords, it’s important to place them properly.

Website Backend: The critical places you need to put your keywords on your website backend are: the page title, meta description, meta keywords, alt tags for images, and the URL itself.

Website Frontend: The most important places you need to put your keywords on your website frontend are: page heading, subheads, main body, and image captions.

Search engines are becoming more “human” every day, so the best search strategy you can do is have a comprehensive website with a lot of useful information related to your key search terms.

• Avoid Keyword Stuffing

One of the biggest SEO mistakes you could make is using too many keywords. For example, don’t just throw everything you have on the homepage (dental services, dental implants, emergency dentist, toothache services, etc.) That will only confuse Google, and it won’t be able to identify what the page is about. Instead, create different landing pages that target a specific keyword. For example, create a specific page for “Dental Implants” where you can use keywords related to implants.

Now that we’ve covered the basics of SEO, it’s time to move to social media promotion.

Facebook Ads for Dentists

With 1.86 billion active users and the possibility to accurately target potential patients without draining your budget, Facebook advertising can generate significant business for your dental practice.

Why Facebook and not other social media networks?

Think about it this way. First of all, most of your audience is probably already on Facebook. The average American spends around 40 minutes a day on Facebook. Secondly, Facebook advertising provides extensive targeting options that include multiple variables, such as location, gender, age, demographics, behavior, and so on. You can use these factors to put your dental practice in front of specific, often motivated, potential patients.

Here’s how to increase your chances of getting more patients through Facebook ads:

• Write Compelling Headlines

One of the reasons people use Facebook is to unwind. Presenting them with your ads without being disruptive or intrusive can be a challenge. When your headline looks the same as your competitors’, people will ignore it. Spend enough time on your headline to ensure it communicates your message quickly and effectively. Use physiological triggers like curiosity, anticipation, or social proof to grab their attention. Don’t be afraid to be fun and conversational too!

• Make Your Ads Relevant

Relevancy is a crucial element when it comes to Facebook advertising for dentists. If your ads don’t target your audience needs effectively, then you are just wasting time and money.

• Make Them Visually Appealing

The human brain can process images 60,000 faster than text, so it should come as no surprise that visual ads get more engagement than text. Make sure to use compelling images that are relevant to your business. Most importantly, stay away from stock imagery if it looks too cliche.

• Include a Compelling Value Proposition

Tell your prospective patients why you are better than your competition. Describe how your services can solve their problems and improve their lives and explain the specific benefits they can expect.

• Include a Strong Call To Action & Offer
  

When writing your CTA, make sure to keep things simple and straightforward. Don’t make potential patients guess what they should do next – tell it to them in an easy-to-understand language. If possible, present new patients with an offer for coming in the door.

• Test Multiple Versions of the Ad

Test the headline, the ad text, the call-to-action, and so on. Make time to create multiple versions of the same ad and then test each one. Test different headlines with different ad texts, different call-to-actions and so on.

Pay Per Click Advertising (PPC) for Dentists

Before potential patients can find you on Google or like you on Facebook, they have to know that you exist. You can use SEO, content marketing, and social media marketing to grow organically and slowly get at the top of everybody’s mind. However, that takes time. In fact, it might take between three to six months to see any results from your SEO efforts. If you’re a small dental office struggling to stay afloat, you can’t afford to wait that long to increase your ranking and drive traffic to your website.

That is where Google AdWords comes into play.

Here’s what you need to know to get the most out of PPC:

• Set Specific Goals

The first step to any PPC campaign is to set measurable goals. Write down the results you are expecting to get and how much effort you are willing to invest. Example: “I will spend $500 on PPC advertising, and I will get 20% new leads in three months.”

It helps to have a good idea of your conversion rates and lifetime customer values before you engage in PPC advertising. That way you can easily know how well your campaign is performing, and if the ad spend is sustainable.

• Build a Comprehensive Keyword List

Research both your industry and your competition to come up with a list of keywords and key phrases that are relevant to your potential patients. Use the Keyword Planner to discover keywords you might not have considered.

• Select Your Target Audience

If you aren’t careful when targeting your ads, you might serve them to searchers who aren’t interested in your services. Best case scenario, they will ignore your ads; worse case scenario, they will click on them and then bounce without converting, costing you money.

Pay special attention to the targeting process. Target attributes like the geographic location; make sure it’s within driving distance from your dental office. Target the specific types of audiences based on age groups or income. Target the devices they are using and use other smart targeting strategies.

• Use Negative Keywords

One of the best features of Google AdWords is that it allows you to use negative keywords to let the search engine know which keywords it should exclude from searches. For instance, if you provide luxury dental services, you don’t want your ads to show up for “cheap dental services” or “affordable dental care.” So, you should add “cheap” and “affordable” as negative keywords.

• Test

A/B testing, or split testing, is a great way of measuring the effectiveness of your PPC campaigns. By creating a second version of your best performing ads, we can determine whether changing the ad text, the image, or the call to action can result in higher click-through rates or conversions.

Content Marketing for Dentists

Few dentists can take content marketing seriously. They can’t understand how posting a few articles every week or month can help them get patients.

But, here’s the thing: companies who blog regularly get up to 97% more links on their website than those who don’t (great for SEO). More than that, those who focus on blogging are 13 times more likely to enjoy positive ROI.

Here are other ways content marketing can help your dental practice grow:

• Content Marketing Can Help You Nurture Relationships with Your Prospects: Content marketing is a great way to target different audience segments and guide them through the sales funnel. Through how-to posts, FAQ pages, and infographics, you can answer their questions and motivate them to move to the next stage of the funnel.

• Content Marketing Can Establish You As an Industry Leader: Once you’ve proven your expertise as a trusted and reputable dentist, you can become the go-to source people turn to when they have a question. The authority you gain as an industry leader can make potential patients more likely to choose you over the competition, thus increasing your bottom line.
• Content Marketing Can Help You Rank in Search for Keywords: If you write a blog post on a specific search term and you have a good SEO strategy in place, there’s a good chance that post will rank well in Google and other search engines for that term.

Conclusion

The way people search and purchase dental services has changed. If not too long ago you could rely on referrals to grow your patient list, nowadays people use search engines, social media, and review sites to look for dental services. If you want to remain relevant in this digitally-driven age, you need to go where your customers are. Digital marketing for dentists is no longer negotiable for practices looking to grow.

Although online marketing is an effective way of increasing your practice, it requires your full attention. To keep your current patients engaged and attract prospective ones, you need strong SEO efforts, active social media profiles, and effective PPC strategies. And don’t forget, your dental website design is important too!

If you feel overwhelmed by the amount of time and effort you need to invest in putting your dental practice in front of the right people, then we can help you. Contact us today for more information on how we can collaborate to help you use online marketing to grow a successful dental practice – we have specific experience with digital marketing for dentists, just like the one above!

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Portland, OR Inbound Marketing

Marketing is one of the most important exercises for any business. From the Fortune 500 companies to young start-ups, every business engages in different kinds of marketing strategies. In the digital age where the Internet has turned into the biggest and most powerful marketing platform, every business is taking active interest in Inbound Marketing, where customers are attracted to your products and services rather than being bombarded with your outbound marketing messages. With the culture in a city like Portland, OR, where we are based, Inbound marketing holds an even greater opportunity than other cities. Here are a few of the reasons why engaging in Inbound marketing in Portland can boost your business’ success.

Why Portland?

The Changing Mindset

There has been a significant change in the mindset of our youth. “Hipsters” don’t like the idea of being sold to, and in the past, this was the aim of all marketing campaigns. The younger generations prefer instead to search for things they might want to buy and make informed decisions on their own. From reviews to alternate options, they are very good at understanding if a product or service is reputable independently of what the business itself may claim. Aggressive marketing campaigns with over-the-top messaging are often counterproductive and can leave young people with a negative experience of your brand. Inbound marketing in Portland communities is effective as it enables these younger markets to find your business on their terms.

Portland has plenty of opportunities for businesses looking to engage younger consumers — but you have to reach them effectively by offering great content for them to discover on their terms.

Creating Large Pool of Leads

Once your business is discovered through the inbound methodology, you have a chance to offer a PDF, discount code or other sort of promotion to the potential customer. This cements your brand a bit deeper in the mind of the visitor and enables your business to capture their email, phone and other information as a lead. Many young people in Portland understand their contact info is currency, and will happily exchange it for something of value that your business has to offer. In the old days, it was all about sales as relationships weren’t really developed and managed through the traditional advertising process. Now, smart business using Inbound marketing in Portland are understanding they can position themselves well for the long-run by capturing leads and automating the marketing process for cultivating those leads through email drips, social media engagement, and more.

Analytics & Scope for Improvement

Last but not least, Inbound marketing strategy captures crucial data points that enable you to scale and grow your business the right way. Rather than just measuring revenue, you are now capturing organic website traffic, conversion rates for visitors turning into leads and then for leads turning into customers, and overall value of your marketing efforts. If you set up your analytics platform the right way, you’ll be able to tell exactly how many web visitors turn into customers, what they are buying, how often they are buying it, and how often they are sharing their experience with their friends over social media. Once you get a handle on data like this, you are able to continue building your marketing plan in a way sure to bring you great results for the long run.

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Inbound Marketing for B2B Companies

The B2B world is often very familiar with bigger invoices and a more considered buying process. These principles make the industry a great fit for Inbound marketing. Inbound marketing for B2B companies offers many benefits over outbound marketing strategies, including the three highlighted in this article.

High-priced purchases are well researched, giving your business an opportunity to shine with good content.

Most of the B2B businesses are in the high price product/service spectrum, where buyers usually do a bit of homework before investing their money. For instance, if you were selling industrial products the business looking to purchase these products would consider all the specifications of your products. They would research to understand the features of your product, your asking price and your warranty. A well-strategized inbound campaign would help you increase your online visibility and improve your odds of being found when potential customers are carrying out product research before buying them. If a potential customer finds your site first after an online search, they will instantly connect your brand with trust and thought leadership. Offering them a content piece as a free download in exchange for their basic contact information is a good way to start moving them along the Inbound marketing sales funnel.

B2B purchasing decisions are generally more considered, meaning it’s less likely you will interrupt someone to close a deal on a whim, and more common that you’ll win a good lead by attracting interest with great content.

Engage pre-qualified leads with strategic content marketing.

Inbound marketing is all about having your customers find you, rather than the other way around. This is accomplished by creating valuable content that is then distributed through social media and discovered through online search. If done right, you are able to build your content strategy around the unique product or service your business offers. With Inbound marketing, every lead is pre-qualified in a sense, as they found you based on what your business can do for them. Make sure you leverage this strategy to tell your authentic brand story, and you’ll see conversion rates soar.

Improves Trust & Credibility

Marketing is as much about delivering the right message as it is about understanding the psychology of the target audience. Outbound marketing has lost its credibility as you are usually trying to push a product or a service that the customer may not be interested in. On the other hand, Inbound marketing is driven by the buyer. They would visit your page or social media accounts because they have chosen to do so and haven’t been forced to listen to your marketing pitch. They are equally as enthusiastic about your products or services as you are about selling it to them. Through this process, Inbound marketing improves trust and credibility for any B2B business. This is why we believe Inbound marketing for B2B companies can be so effective!

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What is Inbound Marketing?

You may have heard or read about the importance of Inbound marketing to promote your business. Inbound marketing principles are built on the idea of your customers finding you, rather than the other way around. Here is a breakdown of inbound marketing from an inbound marketing specialist where we take a look at the four important stages in this marketing technique.

• Appeal – This is the first and the most important stage for an inbound marketing campaign. This is all about catching the attention of absolute strangers who are actively looking for the products or services you offer. You can use your website, blog, or social media handles to offer them what they are looking for in the form of whitepapers, blog posts, or other forms of content. To maximize the impact, you need to align your content strategy and search engine optimization strategy with the search habits of your customers. The goal here is to turn this Stranger into your regular Visitor.

The goal of inbound marketing is to attract customers when they are looking for you, not constantly interrupting them with your advertising.

• Convert – Once you have a targeted Visitor, the goal is now to capture them as a Lead. Your visitor may have landed on your site looking for your product or service, but he or she may not be interested in buying it immediately. How do you ensure that he or she is converted into lead? Incorporate a landing page strategy into your website where visitors can exchange their name, phone, and email address in exchange for a piece of content that will be interesting to them. If your business sells sporting equipment, you might offer a downloadable PDF that highlights new sporting equipment trends. This gives the visitor a piece of content they are interested in, and your business now has a lead to begin nurturing.

• Sell – This is the action stage of an inbound marketing campaign where you convert the Lead into a sale or turn the individual into your Customer. This is where your sales process needs to kick into full gear. For higher value purchases and/or more considered buying processes, a personal contact should be made within 24-48 hours of getting a new lead. Otherwise, an automated marketing strategy should be in place to nurture leads through the sales process. Follow up emails, social media connection and other strategies all work towards turning a lead into a happy customer.

• Gratify – This is the last stage of an inbound marketing campaign. The idea in this stage of the process is to continue adding value to your customer in order to turn them into an evangelist or Promoter. Adding this high level of value will bring your business into the conversations your customer is having with others. You need to consistently engage with them though social media, and don’t forget to reward their loyalty with better deals so that they come back to you in the future (along with their friends and family).

Working with Inbound Marketing Specialist

Inbound marketing is fast-growing movement, and many B2B and online B2C companies are a great fit for these strategies. Contact us if you are curious about whether or not an inbound strategy can work for your business. We have helped clients with Inbound marketing in Portland, OR and beyond.

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Small Business Blogging: Introduction

Are you the owner of a small business looking for ways to spice up your blog to attract new customers? Or perhaps you’re a part-time blogger who is wondering how to best increase your web presence? Maybe you’ve heard bits and pieces about SEO and effective marketing strategies, but you’re not sure how to tie it all together? Well in that case, welcome to our how-to guide designed to help you create an effective blogging strategy to market your small business or campaign!

1. Make it Rain in Your Brain

Sit with a pen and paper and do some intense brainstorming. Try to answer the following or similar questions: What is the purpose of your blog? Who are your ideal customers? How can you maintain a customer-friendly relationship? Who are you main competitors? How will you ensure your blog remains unique? Come up with detailed answers and underline the important topics or keywords. Check with your friends and business partners. Reevaluate your answers. When you’re done, come up with simple, powerful statements that best summarize your business and your blog.

2. Do the Keyword Research

Small business blogging should start by carefully studying keyword data. Make a list of proper keywords and create composite keyword groups. Use keyword tools such as Google’s free AdWords Keyword Planner to come up with the best keywords to suit the occasion. Always run your blog with free keyword density checkers for the most SEO-ready content. Take advantage of Google Trends to search for keyword “hot topics.” Lastly, proofread eveyrthing. (See, we can be funny too!)

3. Fix a Schedule and a Budget

If it’s your first time, start small. Once you get used to it, build a core creative team with copywriters and graphic designers. Make a schedule, slot duties and see to it that your blog is properly updated from time to time. Keep your contributors happy by paying them on time. Keep a tab on your site’s web traffic by noticing when you have the most amount of visitors and time your posts accordingly. Overall, this one is especially important for small business owners who have to juggle a lot of things at once. Make a plan and stick to it!

4. Promote your Blog via Social Media

Maintain a powerful social media presence. Keep your Twitter handle up to date by tweeting about the trending hashtags. Have a Facebook page, and directly engage with the customers and clients. Request for their feedback and take criticism very seriously (but not personally). Send out monthly newsletters, host contests and give away surprise gifts to loyal followers. Be active and engaging, or else your social media and blogging strategy might actually backfire. By making your visitors feel like part of a friendly community, you stand to build a powerful and intimate relationship with your customers. If your blog is visuals/graphics-oriented, keep an Instagram account or a Youtube channel specially dedicated to it. Once again, incorporate important keywords in your posts but do not overdo it.

5. Make Sure Your Site Looks Professional

Use the free tools available online to know to what extent is your site search engine-friendly. Use XML sitemaps and double check the validity of web documents. Make sure your blog is not only aesthetically appealing but also easy to navigate with simplistic fonts and designs.

6. Keep an Eye on Your Competition with Backlinking Tools

If you want to know what your competitors are up to, use tools such as Backlinkwatch and Moonsearch to be updated with their latest strategies and tactics. Compare different websites using Open Site Explorer and keep a close tab on their domain stats as well. Use this information to assess the strengths and weaknesses of your own blog.

7. Content is King (especially for Small Business Blogging!)

High-quality content is always a must, and there will always be interest for easy readability and originality. Make sure your content is free of plagiarism by using Copyscape-like software or any other plagiarism checker. While JuicyStudio assess a website’s readability factor, it really pays to have an experienced copywriter if you aren’t doing the blog yourself as the small business owner.

Don’t forget: With the rise of the smartphone-addicted generation, do try and build a mobile-friendly site too for your blog.

Our Conclusion on Small Business Blogging

We hope this guide was a helpful one on small business blogging. Whether your brand new, or if you’ve been one of those SEO beginners who has a blog already but isn’t maximizing SEO benefits, you now know the exact steps to take. Good luck building a killer blogging strategy for your small business!

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