We all know how content marketing should work. At the top of your online sales funnel, one sends traffic to your website via organic search engine results, paid search traffic, social media marketing, email, and other online strategies. . . .

Unfortunately, despite your best efforts, too few are entering your funnel. Today, we’ll discuss how to apply the 80/20 rule to your business, and bring a lot more attention to your business brand.

Imagine being around a person who only talks about himself. He talks about how much money he makes, how big his house is, and his expensive luxury car. He is always going on about the talent and intelligence of his children. Every time you try to talk about something great in your life, he has a story to top yours. Very quickly, most people will begin to either discount or ignore what this person says. Are you doing this to potential customers and clients?

The 80/20 rule for content marketing is basically an understanding that we are not as interesting as we think we are. If all we talk about is our company, our amazing new product or service, or just another sales pitch, people will quickly tune us out and discount what we are saying. We must temper our self-promotion by providing followers, fans, or site visitors with informative, useful, or entertaining content that is not specifically promotional.

Benefits of the 80/20 Rule:

• Attracts and drives traffic to your site and social accounts.
• Identifies one’s business or self as an influencer and thought leader.
• Content consumption builds brand identity and awareness.
• Content is more shareable, expanding your audience.
• Interest is established as followers and subscribers grow.
• There is a greater opportunity to educate and nurture.
• Followers and subscribers become potential customers as trust builds.
• Community and relationship building creates goodwill and audience feels valued.
• At the decision stage, trust and authority are firmly established.

Are you overwhelmed?… by all the different online and social media requirements for successfully promoting your business? We can help. Check out our website and social media marketing packages!

The 80/20 Rule on Your Blog 

The 80/20 rule would limit 20% of blog entries to self-promotion, and 80% of entries to include useful and informative content that is important to your ideal customers. This can include everything from commentary on industry news to how-to videos. If one is a ultra-local business, you can even include information of interest to the local community. Your blog becomes more about your customers than you.

The 80/20 Rule on Social Media 

The 80/20 is even more important on social media. You may have found talking about yourself all day, every day on Twitter has not built the following you were expecting. On social media, the 80/20 rule again would limit 20% of posts or tweets to self-promotion, and have 80% of one’s activity sharing and reposting the informative, useful, and entertaining content of others.

Your Inbound Sales Funnel

Yes, the goal of the 80/20 rule is to bring potential customers and clients into your sales funnel. The way this happens is by making your business interesting and authoritative. You and your brand will become an influencer and thought leader by sharing knowledge and recognizing the knowledge of others. You earn trust and, therefore, earn the right to sell to your followers and subscribers later.

As an example, many real estate agents realize people don’t want to think about buying and selling a home until they are thinking about actually buying and selling a home. As a result, their content will more heavily include information about home decor, remodeling ideas, and local interest in addition to real estate trends and current mortgage interest rates. They collect followers and subscribers and build authority and trust until leads are ready.

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This article is published by Will Sherwood | The Sherwood Group |Website Design | Graphic Design | Marketing Communications: The Sherwood Group has over 30 years of experience working with all sorts of companies, small and large. Our clients range from entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 firms, in nearly every business sector, from across the street to around the world (and yes, even Europe, China, and South America). Our goal is to create advertising,  graphic design, website design, and marketing communication that still looks fresh and relevant 10-15 years later. Our mission is to stir your imagination and leave your competition shaken and wondering,  Now what do we do?”  We are located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

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