(Originally published June 6, 2012.)
If you want your business to be seen on the Internet – you need to write. A lot.
Why all the content? Here are four reasons.
1 – To spread branded messaging. People love to share interesting blog posts and columns. They pass them on to their friends and they go viral. Here is a column I wrote about Lights Out Hong Kong that got over 13,000 views. Anthea’s blog post Vancouver real estate has 3818 page views. Through Facebook, you can share a post of a picture and have thousands of people attached to your name in only a few hours.
2- To improve your position on Google. SEO and social media are closely linked. It’s one thing to have a well-optimized site, but another to bolster your search rankings with fresh material. For example, I made Simmons Mattress Gallery the #1 Vancouver mattress store through a steady online campaign. Mattress Choice is the #1 Victoria mattress store for the same reason. I am currently the #2 Vancouver advertising agency. (I was #1, I slip to 2 or 3 when I don’t have time to produce content!) And Anthea Poon is your Chinese realtor in Vancouver. I also have the top spots for English copywriter, Native English teacher and about a dozen more – all through consistent content.
3 – Online real estate. It’s one thing to have your website on the first page of Google. It’s another to dominate the whole front page. Every blog post, Twitter link or LinkedIn account you have taking up space for a keyword is a link back to you and a space your competition isn’t occupying. For instance if you search for mountain bike leg armour, you will see that Iron Mountainwear (and posts about IMW) they take up 3 spots on the first page alone. That’s a lot of prime, beachfront property.
4 – To catch unexpected keywords. When you go to a hockey game, the last thing on your mind is probably your Rogers cell phone. But that doesn’t mean that sponsoring the stadium is a bad idea. Same goes for the businesses that sponsor the news – it’s a little hit of branding that frames a wildly popular event. When we create content, we often build it around things that people are searching for online. For instance, every Daylight Savings people get confused, and look it up on Google. We capture some of that search by writing about the event on that day. Same goes for the exact dates of Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and other current events in the city. For a while, we were writing about all the popular things to do in Vancouver on Simmons’ blog.  It’s like having your own local magazine, without having to buy ink by the barrel.
Creating consistent content is one thing. Having it done by professional, local writers is another issue altogether. Immersion Creative employs only educated, professional writers (most of the writing is done by me, actually). And unlike content farms overseas, we understand our local market.
To find out more about our social media advertising campaigns – click here.
