The A to Z Guide to Content marketing for E-Commerce Brands

It is there. You know exactly what your audience wants.

Are you tired of waiting for people to discover YOU and the DIFFERENCE that your company can make?

Do not worry dear friend. We have laid out the steps to rekindle your love for Jack Dawson. If you aren't already, Jack is your target audience.

This is not the Titanic. No one's gotta drown. This ultimate guide will make it easy for you to navigate the waters.

We will show you real examples of content marketing from well-known brands and give you some tips to help you build a better brand strategy for your ecommerce business in the coming year.

Quick Takeaways:

• Content marketing builds brand authority, trust, and leads.
• Successful content marketing campaigns are only possible if you plan.
• There are many ways to get involved, but you only need one idea.
• It is possible to repurpose content or tap into resources that have existed for a long time.

How content marketing works for E-Commerce

Content marketing involves publishing content that is relevant to your audience and encouraging them to consume it. It allows you to reach, engage, and convert new customers. Here are just a few of the many benefits that it offers:

SEO and brand authority

Your SEO and Google authority will increase if you create useful content and pages. This opens up the possibility of compounding your results over time.

Building relationships and trust

At every stage of the buyer's journey, you want to be there for your customers. Consider your buying habits and brand loyalty.

Sometimes trust alone is enough to drive repeat business and sales. You can make your content marketing machine work while you're asleep if you go an extra mile.

Conversions and leads are increased

It is important to start a content marketing strategy. You'll soon be sharing your success with customers.

This 5-step strategy will help you build your content marketing plan to promote your E-Commerce brand.

Step 1: Identify your target market (and reassess).

Even if your buyer personas are somewhat familiar, make sure to get to know them. Get to know their needs and expectations.

For example, take Lowe's. An amateur handyman visits the store to repair a bathroom leak. A contractor arrives shortly to repair the pipes in a commercial building. The same store, but with completely different needs.

Your customer will always turn to you.

Step 2: Find out how your audience consumes content

Are you sure either handyman is looking for expert advice on Facebook? There is too much Chris Rock and Will Smith drama and not enough time.

They might be looking for how-to videos on Youtube or Google to quickly find the supplies they need.

Be there for your audience.

Step 3: Research your topic and create an idea

To brainstorm with your team, you can go DIY. Keep in mind that it is one thing to have a great idea and another to actually execute it.

There will be pages and pages of gold in your book. But make sure you have a plan for content.

Step 4: Take into account the stage of the buyer’s journey

Learn the difference between a warm and cold lead. Take care of them! Learn more about the stages of the buyer's journey and the recommended methods to secure each one.

Step 5: Measure the results

Compare your past results. Be sure to use the correct metric for each type of content

SEMRush is used to measure our results. You can find a cheat sheet that will help you determine which metrics are important for your particular situation.

Image source: SEMRush

Later, we'll discuss content types! You don't need to be everywhere at the same time.

Four ways to bring your plan into action

It's possible that you aren't ready to invest in content marketing. There are still many ways you can take action.

1. Content hub

Although blogs are often the beginning point of a content hub or website, there is no limit to their potential. Every piece of content that you have ever created can be repurposed.

You need to have a plan in place to promote your ecommerce business through content marketing.

Why is it important to build a content hub for e-commerce?

• You should emphasize thought leadership in key areas within your business
• Site visitors will find it easy to navigate and engage with you.
• Use your content

Here's a quick guide for building your content hub.

• Set goals
• Know your audience and what works
• Audit existing content
• Define architecture
• Ideate
• Make a Content Roadmap.
• Write well and optimize
• Promote
• Take a look at your home and make improvements.

We love these E-Commerce content hubs:

• West Elm is a luxury furniture brand that uses their content hub as a way to inspire its customers.

West Elm is an excellent example of a company who knows their customers well. Everyone who shops on their website is willing to invest in beautiful furniture. They make it easy for you to buy different versions of your space, so you're tempted.

• Kiehl's is a skincare brand that uses content pillars for organizing their content.

Content pillars, also known as topic clusters, are a great way to organize your site/blog to make it visible to Google. It's something we do ourselves. It's even more useful for e-commerce companies like yours.

Kiehl's blog features categories like skincare, hair, and gifting guides. To help them determine the needs of future customers, they used customer buying patterns.

2. Photography of products

You already know that appearance is important in your industry. You might be wondering why your competitors outperform you. Pay attention to the entire visual experience of other brands in e-commerce.

Notice the seamlessness and consistency you experience when you shop online. You can also take note of the inconveniences and pitfalls.

For example, take a clothing shop. Beautiful product images are something we all can appreciate. The image of a model wearing the jeans you like gives you an idea about how they might look on you.

Ladies, how about these videos of a woman in a dress moving with her body.

Customers want to see your product in their own homes and in their daily lives.

3. Subject matter expertise

There are many ways to show your expertise. There are many ways to prove your expertise, even fun ones. We'll show you some and you can find the rest .

Videos

• How to use your product
• How to make your product stand out
• Customer success stories or rave reviews
• Tips and tricks to maximize the benefits of your membership
• Story of the Founding
• Behind-the-scenes

Landing pages

• Glossary terms and articles (for technical terminology)
• Questions frequently asked
• Materials or ingredients used
• Guides to gift giving
• Ebooks
• Infographics

4. Content created by users

Your customers will love to spread the word about you product. You don't need to spend a lot of money on an influencer marketing campaign. However, your loyal customers can help spread the word about your product.

User-generated content (UGC), which combines the words of your company with social proof, is also known as user-generated content. We are more likely to trust real people's experiences with products than we are companies' advertising.

Terakeet offers a useful list of ways to encourage UGC.

This is what Airbnb does well with a commercial featuring an elderly couple on vacation.

They are a huge company, so I'm sure they could sponsor their trip and share their photos.

Your customer's post may leave an impression on just one person, even if it is smaller in scale. That would be a great success.

9 Content Marketing Tips to Help You Be Successful in E-Commerce

Now you have an idea of how your content strategy should look beyond 2022. You have seen examples of brands that go above and beyond. Now you may be wondering, “How can I ensure I do this right the first and last time?”

These 9 tips will help you stay sharp and make you stand out.

Tip 1: Determine the type of stories that you are able to collect, package, and share

In 2022 and beyond, content will be heavily focused upon storytelling. It's your responsibility as an e-commerce owner to determine what stories you can gather and share with your customers.

These questions will help you find the perfect storytelling angle.

• Who are my customers?
• What are they doing with their spare time?
• What do our products do for them?
• Why are we doing what we do?
• Why should anyone care?
• Which message do we want to convey through the stories we tell about ourselves?

You and your customers should be able to lean into the categories that are most important. Keep your eyes open for meaningful stories to share.

Tip #2: Create a list with potential partners to work together

Consider who you already know and who you would like to meet. You can make a list of people and partners that you could use to reach new audiences, grow your business, and increase sales.

You could partner with other partners to promote your content or collaborate on products.

Once you have your list, you can create another list of dream partners with whom you would love to work at some point. You admire celebrities, industry leaders and other brands.

Take both lists with you and spend the next few weeks reaching out to people and building relationships. With confidence and purpose, approach each person. It should make sense!

Tip #3: Embrace a movement

Social entrepreneurship is a hot topic with consumers. They look for companies and brands that support causes they care about.

Find a cause, non-profit, or movement that you can align yourself with. Make content that promotes your cause and spreads your mission.

Be sure to relate your statements to your company. This will not help you appear performative.

Tip #4: Find content marketing agencies who know what they're doing

Begin by looking at the results that the content marketing agency can show you. Are they ranked #1 for key search terms? Do they come from a marketing professional?

Tip #5 – Let your product pages sell

Your blog should be used to nurture and educate your customers and prospects. It shouldn't be used as a selling platform.

Site visitors will be able to locate the products easily – if that's what they desire. Your goal is to help them reach their goals. Their goal is to not *try this incredible product that will transform lives. * Yawn. This is tacky, and you are better than it.

Tip #6 – Create one piece of amazing content and watch how your audience reacts

Start small. Start small. This project will require more effort and time than any other. Let your audience respond.

Consider creating more content similar to it if you receive strong feedback and engagement.

Here are some examples of incredible content that you can produce (that tells a story).

• A professionally produced video
• Interview with an influencer or customer
• A photo series
• An ebook
• An email series
• A landing page with actionable tips and best practice suggestions

Tip #7 – Stop doing things that don't work

Blog posts should not be created just because you have done it before. Consider how much time, effort and money you invest in your content marketing efforts. Try something different if you don't see traction with the content you are creating.

Tip #8 – Keep an eye on other brands

Look out for brands that are doing great content. Keep track of what you enjoy and dislike. Take inspirations and strategies and use them in your content strategy.

Tip #9 – Set goals and measure everything

It's high time you started paying more attention to how your content performs. While engagement metrics such as shares, likes, and comments are useful to track, they don't tell all the story.

It is important to understand how many people are seeing your content, from what country they come from, and where they will go next. Set aggressive goals. Your successes and failures should be evaluated. Make adjustments to your strategy on a regular basis.

Do not reinvent the wheel. Look at what other companies are doing.

How do content marketing efforts translate into real-world results?

It is helpful to look at what innovative brands are doing now to stand out.

These 5 examples will show you how content marketing should look for ecommerce today.

1. YETI goes beyond the blog post

YETI was determined to tell compelling stories that were in line with their target audience's values and interests. Instead of boring, generic content about coolers they produce amazing packages that are filled with journalism-style writing, rich visuals and compelling stories.

They have thrown out the idea of writing a mainstream e-commerce blog. They create content that their audience loves. If you have binoculars, you won't notice product placements in these videos.

2. S'well supports causes and builds partnerships

S'well operates in a highly competitive product category: trendy, reusable water bottles. They have been able to gain momentum by creating mutually-beneficial partnerships and working with designers. They have teamed up to support the causes that their audience is passionate about.

Source: Images

3. Beardbrand works with influential people

Beardbrand, another e-commerce site, aims to appeal to beard growers. They have been focusing on education since the beginning to connect with their target audience. They're not creating the content, but they are collaborating with other beard influencers to share their tips on beard growth.

They are the sole owners of the products they use in their styling and grooming videos, but spend very little time promoting them. They are focused on providing value, not promoting products. Beardbrand uses email to increase loyalty and promote content among its customers.

Image Source

4. Harry's has launched an editorial magazine

Harry's has a similar target audience as Beardbrand but approaches their content in a different way. Five O'Clock is a digital magazine that offers tips on grooming, wellness and productivity. The majority of content tells stories, as shown in the example below from Harry's cofounders.

5. Herschel Supply connects through experiences

Herschel doesn't just focus on creating content about backpacks. They also sell their audience on adventure and experience.

Their blog features rich photo features that take visitors to different places around the globe. As you can see, you can only find one product in each feature.

This feature took visitors on a Montreal exploration and tour. You'll notice the Herschel bag in the second photograph. If you look closer, you will see the link to the product page. It's very discreet and not overtly forceful.

Content marketing isn't meant to be simple

It would be easy for everyone to do it.

Content marketing success today includes:

• Sharing stories, sharing experiences and being transparent
• Prioritizing quality and real value over quantity and output
• Hire skilled agencies to produce compelling stories and incredible content resources
• All about building authentic relationships
• Building relationships with potential customers
• We should be focusing less on product promotion and more on helping people.
• Focusing on performance and success is key to being successful

You might have thought that publishing 500-word articles every week on your blog was enough to generate real ROI in the past. But it is no longer sufficient. You have to be more creative in your content marketing for ecommerce.

This is mainly in the form of being more intelligent upfront and analyzing what worked on the other side.

Do you want to increase traffic and sales?

You must be open to changing your strategy and challenging old ways of thinking.

More to you

You have all the tools and knowledge you need. Now it's time for your company to create a winning content marketing strategy. Are you looking for real-world inspirations? These content marketing case studies will show you how successful companies are.

Marketing Insider Group has the resources and experience to support you. Our SEO and writer experts can provide you with optimized content that is ready to publish every week for a year or more. ).

To learn more, check out our SEO Blog Writing Service.