Jet2.com email marketing executive Darren Kunar told us it is important for brands to showcase their products and services in the best light by offering their audiences the most information in the clearest way. Tom Whitely, group marketing executive at UK General Insurance, believes certain industries are leading the way with this, with others now starting to look at their strategies. Companies that have not yet embraced content marketing are getting worried that they may get left behind.

Content marketing was a hot topic at TFMA Manchester

Jaze Zewska, a student at the University of Salford, described content marketing as “the way forward”. She believes brands should find the right balance of the various potentially relevant platforms and social media channels for them. Finding the right mix of content types for your strategy is important, and it is also the topic of our latest ContentPlus infographic: Content Strategy Pick ‘n’ Mix.

One solicitors firm which is currently leveraging the power of content marketing after a site relaunch is Pannone Solicitors. Digital marketing executive Rachel Nickless told us that they combine videos, blogs and infographics, which are then promoted via social media.

Check out some of the content types we provide and read how content marketing achieves success for our clients.

Publishers need to understand just how important it is to have a perfect link profile.

Google has been targeting businesses whose web practices are not up to scratch with its Penguin algorithm – a new version of which is set to be rolled out in the next few weeks – and this means some companies have seen their SERP profiles affected.

Webspamming will not be tolerated 

Matt Cutts, head of the webspam team at Google, has recorded a video and took to Twitter to warn businesses about the search giant’s practices, adding: “It’s safe to assume webspam will continue to tackle link networks that violate our guidelines”.

Cutts backed this statement up by revealing his company has taken legal action against several thousand link sellers on May 14th. This demonstrates how brands need to have a close look at their link profiles, as they do not want to fall foul of the system and compromise their web visibility.

Develop a strong content marketing plan

This is where content marketing can be useful, as it makes sure publishers are producing well written and optimised content for the web.

This is not the first time Cutts has warned brands about the quality of their output. Back in March, he made it clear Google is going to be penalising poor content and SEO practices and so this will impact on digital strategies in the future.

If brands want to avoid the wrath of Google, they should stick to creating engaging content in an effort to attract more customer to their portals.

A range of improvements have been rolled out for Google+ at the search giant's sixth annual Google I/O developer conference.

Thanks to the addition of a new responsive, multi-column layout for the Google+ Stream, users will be able to see up to three columns of content at a time – depending on the screen size and orientation of the device they are using.

According to the Google+ blog, improvements are also being made to the look of photos and videos, as an emphasis is placed on visuals – something brands can exploit by shifting more of their budget to producing videos for their pages. 

Improved design

Danny Sullivan, founding editor of Marketing Land, said that, according to Google, 40 per cent of people using Google+ Social Signon choose to download a site's mobile app.

Hashtags are also being enhanced. This means users will see related hashtags pop up when they post something, giving them the chance to explore other subjects. On top of this, posts with multiple hashtags will now get more than one hashtag button.

Google+ comes to the fore

Figures from GlobalWebIndex show that Google+ is now the second most popular social media network after Facebook with over 359 million active users. Part of the reason is options such as search, maps and YouTube have been tied-in to the channel. 

Because of its popularity, brands cannot avoid this medium if they want to boost their social media engagement levels. Regularly uploading relevant content means they can interact with their customer base and reach a much wider audience by forming new connections. 

Brands are continually trying to come up with the perfect content marketing mix in order to boost engagement levels.

While blog posts and features offer companies the opportunity to get their point across in a readable format, infographics can be equally as useful thanks to the quality and variety of information they offer in an aesthetically pleasing format. 

Using a range of content types

With research by the Content Marketing Institute and the Direct Marketing Association UK finding that marketers typically use 14 different tactics, it's clear to see how important it is to offer content in different formats. 

The benefits of infographics include improving lead generation, boosting brand awareness, swelling conversion rates and delivering a strong performance in search. As 90 per cent of information is transmitted in a visual manner, this measure cannot be overlooked.

Case Study: A successful infographic

The latest infographic from ContentPlus tackles the issue of choosing the perfect content strategy by showing brands how they can draw up their content marketing objectives and set about achieving them. 

Relevant statistics about the efficacy of whitepapers, newsletters, blogs, video, social media and infographics and many other content types are listed. Ultimately, if brands want to be successful, then they need to have a solid understanding of their target audience's needs.

ContentPlus will be showcasing its new infographic – as well as answering any content-related questions – at the TFMA Manchester event, which is running from 09:00 to 17:00 at the Manchester Central Convention Centre, Manchester.

What determines “compelling content” and “preferred formats” will vary from one organisation to the next, but there are a few things that all audiences expect from publisher brands.

Quality

In the “olden days” of digital marketing (maybe five years ago!), companies could “win” at SEO even if the content they published was very poor. Pre-Panda it was even possible for nonsensical content generated by programming software to help brands rank highly in search engine results pages. Those days are gone forever. Google’s algorithm continues to be fine-tuned to give greater prominence to sites that publish well-written content and to penalise those with low-quality content.

Variety

The cookie-cutter approach doesn’t work with content. If you serve up your information in exactly the same format to your audience every time, they will get bored. This is why you need to really understand what your audience is all about – and keep abreast of changes as their tastes evolve. What information do they like to read? Do they use a mobile device to consume the content you publish? Do they have the time to read through a 1,000-word feature, or would they prefer a 200-word blog post conveying the main points? Or perhaps they’d rather watch a video? Do they love infographics? What about white papers?

Research from the Content Marketing Institute and the Direct Marketing Association UK revealed that the best in class marketers they surveyed use around 14 different tactics in their strategies to get optimum results. At the top of this list are website articles, followed by social media and email newsletters. Podcasts and gamification lag at the bottom of the list of the 26 most-used tactics.

Content marketing objectives

When deciding about which content types to include, you need to start with the end in mind. What do you want to achieve? What do you want people to do once they are engaging with your content?

For many companies, a strong performance in search remains a top priority, which is why 90 per cent of marketers publish news on their websites. News keeps your site fresh and interesting, giving people a reason to return on a daily basis and impressing Google and other search engines.

But your SEO efforts will be hampered unless your website is set up in a way that is “friendly” towards both search engines and human users. You also need to ensure your landing pages are well-written, optimised and properly integrated, with relevant calls to action.

Lead generation is another top priority for marketers. The good news is that content marketing is a great lead generation tool. Nearly six in ten companies that blog have acquired customers in this way, while a third claims to have generated leads via Twitter.

Content is also powerful in helping to convert leads to customers. Video in particular is a compelling medium for conversion, and with UK internet users spending 45 per cent longer watching online videos now than a year ago, consumers’ appetite for video content is clear. Case studies, regarded by B2B marketers as the most effective content marketing tactic, are also growing in importance as a content type that helps with conversion.

Building brand awareness is the top marketing priority among both B2B and B2C marketers, according to the CMI and DMA UK, and publishing thought leadership content such as white papers is crucial in achieving this objective. Brands can also extend their reach very effectively if they harness the power of social media. Four in five Facebook users actively seek to connect with brands on the platform, while companies with between 51 and 100 Twitter followers generate 106 per cent more traffic to their sites than those with 25 or fewer. The highly shareable nature of infographics also increases traffic to the publishers’ sites by an average 12 per cent.

Too much choice?

There are many other content types employed by marketers, for example press releases and how-to guides, and the number of options available to them can sometimes feel overwhelming. According to the CMI and DMA UK, marketers’ top challenges are producing enough content, producing the kind of content that engages and producing a variety of content. It’s no surprise then that 55 per cent of marketers in the UK outsource at least some of their content creation activities.

However, regardless of whether you create your content in-house or work with an agency, it all comes back to understanding your target audience’s needs and meeting those with relevant and timely content. With a growing appetite among consumers for high-quality content, it may well be that they expect you to publish lots of content, but it’s no good giving them quantity at the cost of quality.

Talk to us about your content marketing needs. Reference this infographic to set the ball rolling with a free mini site health check.

Our new infographic explores the benefits of the most popular content types and how including the right mix in your content strategy can lead to great results. Read more about the research behind this infographic.

If you like this infographic, please share it using the social media buttons at the top of this page. You can also embed it on your site by using the code below. Find out more about ContentPlus infographics services and view more content marketing infographics.

Want to embed our infographic on your website? Link

 <a title="Content Strategy Pick 'n' Mix infographic" href="http://www.contentplus.co.uk/marketing-resources/infographics/content-strategy-pick-n-mix/" target="_blank">Content Strategy Pick 'n' Mix infographic by ContentPlus</a> 

Full size embed (595×2804)

 <a title="Content Strategy Pick 'n' Mix infographic" href="http://www.contentplus.co.uk/marketing-resources/infographics/content-strategy-pick-n-mix/" target="_blank">Content Strategy Pick 'n' Mix infographic by ContentPlus</a> <img alt="Content Strategy Pick 'n' Mix infographic" src="http://www.contentplus.co.uk/marketing-resources/infographics/content-strategy-pick-n-mix/" width="595" height="2804" /> 

Facebook Home has been downloaded nearly one million times since its unveiling slightly more than a month ago.  

The software overlay means people can receive a steady stream of posts and photos on the homescreen of their phone from individuals they follow and according to the social media giant, it puts "your friends at the heart of your phone".

Home is where the heart is

While the update has been labelled as unnecessary by some, it is undeniably a great opportunity for small businesses to interact with their customer base and reach a new audience. Indeed, Facebook Home could be viewed as a bridge between desktops and mobile thanks to the visibility it offers.

For example, brands posting relevant updates and links to their website can get much better exposure than ever before, which may in turn help to sway customers' preferences when it comes to purchasing decisions. 

Moving beyond early adopters 

According to Engadget, director of product at Facebook Adam Mosseri stated the user base is shifting to "more normal users" with each passing week, as it breaks past the early adopters stage and heads towards mass consumption. 

Marketers will always be looking to make the most of their budget and so focusing on mobile is sensible. With figures supplied by eMarketer showing that US ad spend on mobile video marketing will reach $2.1 billion (£1.36 billion) in 2016 – up from $518 million in 2013 – it is clear this tactic will continue to be popular. 

The latest update to the Google Penguin algorithm is expected in the next few weeks. 

Speculation has been rife over the past few days that the search giant is set to roll out a new version after some businesses complained of lost traffic and Google's distinguished engineer Matt Cutts has confirmed the impending change. 

Top quality content has never been more important 

Speaking on Twitter, Cutts revealed Penguin 2.0 is almost ready to be launched and this means brands need to focus more than ever before on producing relevant and original content.

If they do not draw up a content marketing strategy that focuses on quality and not quantity, their SEO performance is going to be affected both in the short and long-term. Google's Penguin launched in April 2012 and there have been two refreshes since – in May and October of last year.

Staying on the good side of Google 

Earlier this year, Cutts advised marketers not to upload too much content at once, as this is a good way to earn high search engine rankings. Brands should be spreading out their content throughout the day in the hope of attracting more customers to their site. 

In recent days. sites have also been punished for having too much exact match anchor text and link profiles that Google views as unnatural, so this is something they need to bear in mind.

Read more on this topic:
Worried about Penguin-hit sites linking to you?
Google Penguin cracking down on poor quality web content

Content writing: not a dog’s life

Content writing is something of an art, requiring the right mix of creativity, wordsmithery and wicked fast typing. After two years of writing everything from fashion blogs to B2B technology reports, there are a number of tricks I use to make sure my day runs as smoothly as possible, from beginning the day with a quick coffee, to debating the rules of good grammar with the rest of my desk. Following much deliberation, here are my top three things every content writer should know.

1. It’s good to talk

You’re perfectly welcome to sit at your desk in silence, being all mysterious. But, before you become a total office hermit, why not chat to those around you? This is not only better for workplace morale, but by discussing what you’re writing you could come up with new ideas, which will help to improve your writing and could also spark some more innovative content. Plus, it’s good to give your brain a little break from the computer screen every 20 to 30 minutes or so, even if it’s just to point out some silly cat pictures you’ve come across. Avoiding social interaction in the workplace certainly isn’t advisable: we’re not robots after all, so there’s no need to act like one.

2. Don’t try to be an overnight expert

You may not be all-knowing about the technical ins and outs of the latest product launch or the nuances of an industry you are trying to break into, but chances are your target audience will be. Therefore it’s worth doing plenty of research on a new area to ensure you can get the right tone of voice and write confidently on the subject.

If it’s a particularly complex or niche topic, don’t be afraid to ask questions – people will appreciate your honesty and the hard work you’re putting into writing quality content. It can also be wise to chat to other writers around you who may have far more knowledge about your subject area. They might be able to help explain tricky concepts and could point you in the direction of new places to source information from so you can reference what you’re writing.

3. Plan your day according to your mood

When are you at your most focused during the day? Which articles take the most concentration? Which ones do you enjoy writing the most? Use these questions to help you plan your day. Personally, I like to write bloggy content in the morning to ease me into the day, then move onto the trickier stuff in the middle when I’m more awake, before treating myself to some more light-hearted longer pieces late afternoon. It’s totally up to you how you structure your day, but having a schedule which suits your energy levels and your mood can help you be more productive and efficient with your time. Working this way will allow you to get a greater amount written and should save you some stress along the way. Before you know it you could be well on your way to boosting your daily word count without even realising.

Google+ is overcoming Twitter in the race to be the second biggest social network. 

Launched in 2011, the platform initially failed to generate the same level of interest seen in other channels such as Facebook and Pinterest, but it seems to have overcome any concerns potential users had. 

Google+ is making a charge

Figures from GlobalWebIndex – and reported in Business Insider – show that Google+ now has 359 million active users, which represents a 33 per cent hike from the 269 million users at the end of June 2012.

The reason the platform has fared so well is the decision to tie it into a number of different offerings, such as search, maps and YouTube. However, it is still trailing in the wake of Facebook, which now boasts 701 million active users. 

The new social media space

Key to Google+'s success has also been the fact it has constantly improved its social media offering. For example, last year a Communities section was added, which offers a virtual space for people to hang out and share videos.

Indeed, another survey carried out by SurveyMonkey last month points to the fact Google+ is becoming a major player in the social media arena, especially in terms of influencing consumption decisions.

This means small businesses need to focus on building up their Google+ profiles, as it offers them a platform for engaging with their customer base and boosting awareness. By gaining momentum in the social sphere, brands can also reach a much wider audience.