What is a Content Marketing Strategy (CMS)?
Think of this as a business plan for content.
What is your why behind your company?
What is your target audience?
What is your unique selling proposition?
What is your overall impact you'd like to make with your content when someone reads it?
Our version of Content Marketing Strategy or CMS is a much more simplified version. I do encourage you to take this further, but the purpose of using this simplified version is mostly to keep your content organized, make your marketing more efficient and hold you accountable to make sure your marketing is consistent.
Let’s face it you are a busy small business owner and you may not have the time to keep a fullscale CMS up to date and even develop it in the first place.
In our 6 Month ROI you’ll have the chance to create a simplified version of a CMS.
Download our Simple CMS
We’ve saved our Simple CMS in a Google Sheet.
DOWNLOAD 6-Month ROI - Content Marketing Strategy Spreadsheet
You’ll want to download and make your own by filling in all the area’s that you’d like to use. Then follow along with our procedures below to stay organized.
How to use the CMS
This CMS is designed for 1 blog post per month. You can easily expand on this. Although, don’t over commit to trying to do too much and then not being consistent with it. Consistency is the key. Commit to what you for can do realistically. Start with one blog post a month for this program. If you complete the 6-month program and are successful at writing an article per month then you can upgrade from there.
You can navigate through the CMS by using the bottom tabs within the Google Sheet.
- Procedures: Shown here is a reminder of what you should be doing with your content to get the most exposure possible. These procedures will be covered in later chapters.
- Goals & Overall Impact: This is meant for you to read through each time you are about to make a post on your website. This is a quick reminder to stay on brand with your content writing and make sure you are staying focused with what impact you'd like to make with your content.
- CMS (By Priority): This is where you can input your content based on a priority sequence. I prefer this method over the "By Date" method as sometimes your content can be timely or industry or company news being announced on an as needed basis.
- CMS (By Date): Same as By Priority mentioned above. Although, this is where you can input by date a more organized version if you are able to plan out each month. Use either By Priority or By Date.
- Ideas: This is an optional area for potential future ideas that aren't fully developed yet or to be used an as archive.
- Promos/Offers: This is an area just like the ideas area where you can input your ideas for future campaigns, promotions or special offers that you'd like to do in the future.
Feel free to customize your CMS as you see fit.
Content Ideas for Your CMS
In order to write effective content for your blog think about what your customer wants to learn or hear about.
Frequently asked questions, any objection a customer has had in the past about ordering from you can also be a post. The idea here with the content is to peak their interest. The topics should be something your readers want to know or learn about.
For example:
- Case studies or testimonials
- Educational posts. Answer common questions.
- Promotional posts: what’s on special? Any current offers?
- Feature a product or service: educate your audience by giving more information about a service or product you are offering already that they may not know all the details about.
- Video posts: video engages audiences and can build trust with your audience. The ease of creating videos is getting easier and easier. It just depends on whether you are a video person ;)
- Company changes or enhancements: what’s changed recently for you. Tell the world about it starting with a blog post.
- Something fun or inspirational: keep it positive. Positivity breeds success. By motivating or inspiring your audience you are building trust and creating connection.
More articles on content writing:
Procedures & Commitment
Your CMS will help you stay organized with what you can write each month. Have the mindset that this is an evolving document. Think of this document as a location to store those great ideas that pop into your head about a great article you’d like to write. :)
When you have an update you’d like to tell the world about there’s space to add that in or move posts around. Keep it simple and don’t over think it. Remember, marketing is all about being consistent.
