8 Tips to Write a Successful Content Plan for Your Project

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In the digital business world, content is king. So no matter whatever industry you work in and whatever projects you run, you should know how to develop an effective content plan.

The great news is that you don’t need to be an expert in content marketing to understand how to build a plan that works. Here are ten simple tips that will help you to craft a compelling content strategy.

Define your goals

First of all, you should answer a simple question: why have you decided to build a content plan? What specific goal do you want to achieve?

Probably, you’re launching a new product and want to create buzz online. Or, maybe you want to improve brand loyalty and boost sales within one chosen market.

Whatever goals you have, you should take them into account when building a content strategy for your project. That will allow you to maximize your efforts and avoid mistakes.

Know your audience

Depending on age, gender, marital status, and other demographic factors, users prefer different types of content. For instance, Millennials love podcasts. Generation Z is obsessed with Tik Tok videos. Baby Boomers prefer to read email newsletters.

So if you want to build an effective content, you should conduct research and learn more about your target audience and its preferences. That will help you to understand what type of content will work for your project. You will get to know how to optimize your strategy and produce content that is 100% relevant and relatable to your audience.

Learn more about your competitors

What do you know about the content plans that your key competitors use? What content do they produce? What marketing tricks do they use to engage the audience and promote their projects?

Find answers to these questions, and it will be easier for you to understand what content to create. When you have a good idea of what does and doesn’t work in your niche, you can build a remarkable content and avoid critical mistakes.

Let’s say you know that your rival has invested large sums of money in video content production, but achieved no marketing success. You will not make the same mistake when building your content plan. You will consider using another approach to video content production or decide to invest money in content other than videos.

Decide what content to produce

Once you collect enough information about your target audience and your competitors, you can decide what type of content to create:

● Textual content: blog posts, articles, how-to guides, checklists, reports, e-books, etc.

● Visual content: photos, images, infographics, graphic illustrations, memes, animated GIFs, videos, etc.

● Audio content: podcasts, audiobooks, etc.

● Interactive content: polls, quizzes, games, online calculators, etc.

In fact, you don’t have to focus on one type of content only. You can use different types of content as long as it benefits your business.

Consider using different channels of content distribution

When building a plan, you should decide not only what type of content to produce, but also what channels of content distribution to choose.

Let’s say you’ve written a fantastic article. Where will you post it: on your website, on a blogging platform, or maybe you will send it as an email newsletter? There are many ways to distribute content over there, and you should find out which ones fit your project the best:

● Owned content distribution: your website, blog, social media profiles, email newsletter, mobile app, etc.

● Earned content distribution: guest articles, roundups, product reviews, niche forums, etc.

● Paid content distribution: pay-per-click (PPC), paid social advertisements, paid influencer content, etc.

Pay attention to timing

When it comes to content marketing, timing is crucially important. Whether you want to add a post to your blog, publish a tweet, or send an email, you should choose the right moment to do it. By choosing a suitable time and date to release new content, you can double your reach and engagement.

However, you should understand that there is not such a thing as “the best time to send email” or “the best time to post Instagram Stories” that could be applicable to each and every company. “The perfect moment” always depends on your niche and your specific project.

Cover trending topics

And here is one more tip for you. If you want to create content that grabs attention, you should focus on the trending topics because they help to generate higher engagement.

What important events have recently happened in your niche? What subjects do your followers currently discuss on Facebook and Twitter? All these topics are worth your attention.

If your target audience is looking for a specific content online, you should create that content. Meet the expectation of the target audience, and your project will succeed.

Get professional assistance, if necessary

Do you think that content marketing is not your cup of tea? No worries. In today’s world, it’s not a problem. You can get professional help online if needed. There are dozens of freelance content marketing experts and specialized agencies on the internet, so feel free to contact them.

Don’t want to spend a ton on a good marketing copywriter? Check out one of the college writing services (yes, college). Despite the name, they offer all kinds of writing services, the quality is good and the price is often lower.

In conclusion

Content marketing is one of the most powerful tools that you can use to promote your project. For this reason, you should do your best to build a successful content plan.

And remember that if you want to avoid mistakes, you should apply the tips given in the article.

Author’s bio. Daniela McVicker is a blogger with rich experience writing about UX design, content planning and digital marketing. Currently, she is the chief contributor at Essayguard where she helps individuals and organizations improve their web content writing, design, and planning skills. Her posts are always packed with examples and actionable content that readers can put straight into the actio