The content you’ll focus on in your plan is going to be dictated by your primary business goals. The first step in creating a successful long-term content plan is to clarify these goals and how the content you produce will help you achieve them.

Start by looking at your business plan for the next year. Examples of yearly business goals might be something like:

• Launch a new product or service
• Increase sales of current products by 50%
• Double your list of prospects
• Increase customer or client retention rates by 20%
• Expand your reputation and attract at least one speaking engagement per month
• Build greater engagement on social media
• Get onto the first page of Google’s search results for a specific keyword

When thinking about your business goals, decide on what products, services or areas of expertise you’ll focus on with your content. For example, what topics do you want to be most associated with? Those are the topics on which you’ll create content. If there’s a specific product or service you want to sell, consider the topics you might write about.

The four core areas we discussed in the first module will have different impacts on various aspects of your business. Each will help with certain goals more than others.

Awareness Content

Awareness content gets your name out there and helps you build your reputation. However, it has to be your very best because it’s often the first impression people will have of your content. This is what encourages them to start following you, or click away.

Your awareness content has a direct impact on your reputation, credibility, and brand image. This is your most public content. It needs to cast a wide net to draw in the type of people you want to attract. It’s best for building prospects lists, SEO goals, and expanding your reputation.

Lead Generation Content

Lead generation content isn’t promotional. Its purpose is to build relationships and get people interested in what you have to offer. Once you get people intrigued and engaged with your content, you can then recommend paid solutions to them. 

An essential piece of lead generation content is the lead magnet. This is a free offer that entices people to provide their contact information and follow you. Once people have provided their email address or other contact information, such as their mobile number, you continue giving them high-value, relevant content that addresses their interests and needs. They’ll look forward to your content and gradually rely on you for information and recommendations. This qualifies people as prospects. If they follow you and interact with you, they’re likely to buy from you.

Lead generation content can help with goals that involve growing your followers, email list, contact list, or building relationships with existing customers.

Paid Content

As the name suggests, the goal for paid content is to earn income. But it also impacts goals such as:

• Increase revenue directly
• Add more products and services to sell
• Increase conversion rates
• Re-launch a product

This content is usually promotional. Its aim is to get people to buy. For this content to work, you need a product to sell (or an affiliate offer to recommend). The more products you have to offer at various price points, the more earnings you’ll see from this content.

Relationship Content

Relationship content should be very high quality and laser focused on your customers and their needs. This content should help your audience get quicker results, save money, make their lives easier, and so on. This leads to a high level of customer satisfaction, which leads to better customer retention.

Your relationship content creates opportunities to sell additional products and services. It also increases opportunities for feedback or testimonials if you have regular communication and engagement. This is usually exclusive content for your customers. It makes them feel special and helps build loyalty and trust.