The Basics of Content Marketing — Onsite vs. Offsite
March 9, 2023
As a small business owner, you’re always looking for ways to attract new customers and retain existing ones. One powerful tool that you may not have fully tapped into yet is content marketing.
What is content marketing?
Content marketing is a strategy that involves creating and sharing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience – and ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.
In order to drive results, you need to create content on a consistent basis. But, that can be easier said than done, especially since writing content takes time — the one thing most small business owners just don’t have.
Plus, even an incredibly consistent content marketing strategy won’t drive results overnight. It’s an organic, long-term strategy that can take weeks or even months to pay off. That can make content marketing seem like a losing investment for small businesses.
So why should you consider content marketing for your small business? Here are just a few of the many benefits:
It can help you build brand awareness – By creating content that speaks directly to your target audience, you can help people become more familiar with your brand and what you have to offer.
It can position you as an authority in your industry – By sharing your expertise and insights on topics related to your business, you can establish yourself as a go-to resource for your customers and prospects.
It can drive traffic to your website – By creating high-quality content that’s optimized for search engines, you can rank higher on search engines for relevant keywords, attract more visitors to your website and potentially generate more leads and sales.
It can help you engage with your audience – By creating content that’s interesting and valuable to your audience, you can encourage them to engage with you on social media, leave comments on your blog posts and more.
Onsite vs. offsite content marketing
Now that you understand some of the benefits of content marketing, let’s talk about the two main types: onsite and offsite.
Onsite content marketing refers to the content that you create and publish on your own website or blog. This can include things like blog posts, whitepapers, case studies, videos and infographics.
The goal of onsite content marketing is to attract visitors to your website, keep them there for longer and encourage them to take some kind of action (like filling out a contact form or making a purchase).
Offsite content marketing, on the other hand, refers to the content that you create and publish on other websites or platforms. This can include things like guest blog posts, social media updates and online reviews.
The goal of offsite content marketing is to reach new audiences, build backlinks to your website (which can improve your search engine rankings), and generally increase your online visibility.
Here are a few examples of each type of content marketing:
Onsite content marketing:
A blog post that provides tips and advice for using your product or service
A video that showcases your product in action
An infographic that visually illustrates some key statistics or data related to your industry
Offsite content marketing:
A guest blog post on a popular industry blog
A social media post that highlights a recent blog post on your website
A positive online review on a popular review site, like Top Rated Local® or Google
Modern small businesses need both onsite and offsite content marketing in order to create a strategy that drives results.
By creating and sharing high-quality content that’s relevant and valuable to your target audience, you can attract more visitors to your website, position yourself as an authority in your industry, and ultimately, drive more sales and revenue for your small business.