Having a strong online content strategy is integral to the success of any web company or a website. Your content is what keeps people coming back. It’s what gets people to tell their friends about you. It’s the reason they link to you. It’s the reason they “share” or “like” or “retweet” you on social media.
That’s why getting your content strategy right is so important. If you’re making any one of these five mistakes, chances are you’re destroying your website’s chances at success.
Mistake #1 – Not Owning Your Content 
It’s very common for people to publish content on websites other than their own. For example, you might publish content on other people’s sites through guest blogging or article marketing.
There’s nothing wrong with this. The mistake comes in when you don’t own any of your best content.
The majority of your top notch content should be on your own website. It shouldn’t be out on the internet. Your best content should be used to build your brand, not someone else’s.
Mistake #2 – Not Knowing Your Target Audience
Who are you talking to? What are their needs? What have they already heard before and what are they dying to hear? What kind of words and language do they use?
If you don’t have a crystal clear sense of who your target audience is, you aren’t going to be able to speak to them in a way that has them feel understood.
Try to get a solid sense of who your target audience is by asking them as many questions as possible. Browse internet forums to see what kind of questions they tend to ask.
Mistake #3 – Relying on Content with No Link Strategy
It’s true that high quality content is important. Yet, webmasters who focus only on the quality of their content and not on SEO are invariably disappointed.
Your content won’t spread virally on its own. You won’t get ranked just on the merits of your content. As great as your content may be, you still need to understand the basics of SEO.
It’s like the parable of the inventor who didn’t know how to sell his invention. It doesn’t matter how great your invention (your content) is, if you can’t sell it, it won’t make an ounce of difference.
Come up with a great linkbuilding strategy to help get your high quality content in front of your readers.
Mistake #4 – Too Much Sales
Your website’s job should first and foremost be about providing high quality content. This is what will attract people to your website.
Webmasters who spend the majority of their web space on promotions end up shooting themselves in the foot by alienating their audience.
Don’t lock your content. Don’t put it behind newsletter walls and squeeze pages. Don’t make your customers work to view the quality of your content.
Put your best content right upfront, so people can see that you’re the real deal. This builds credibility and increases reader loyalty.
Mistake #5 – Not Using Multi-Media
The internet isn’t a text-based universe. Perhaps ten years ago it was, but today if you’re only getting your message out by text, you’re going to get left behind.
Take a look at your Facebook feed. How many articles are being shared? And how many YouTube videos are being shared?
Multi-media is getting more and more prevalent and it’s only going to get more so in the future.
Develop the right content strategy by taking your existing content and concepts and packaging them into different forms of content. Take your blog posts and turn them into audio podcasts that people can listen to on their iPods and iPhones. Take your comedic or controversial ideas and turn them into videos that can spread virally.
Brainstorm new ideas to express your opinions and your brands that wouldn’t have been possible in text. Take full advantage of the power of new media that’s available today.
Getting into media production today is cheaper than it has ever been before. A high definition camera costs under $200. Professional grade video editing can be done at bargain prices. The level of investment simply shouldn’t be a barrier for taking your company’s content into the digital age.
These are five of the most common and fatal content strategy mistakes that people make. Avoid these mistakes at all costs.
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