How to Use Your Website to Increase Awareness and Engagement

Your website is the heart of your organization. It is the digital representation of the people, mission and structures that make up who you are. So it only makes sense that your website should be the heart of your brand awareness and engagement campaigns. 

Now, that doesn't mean that you can abandon social media and advertising and expect people to find you! All your marketing efforts should be driving traffic to your website to get the conversions you want. 

This is where content marketing comes in. 

Three Ways Your Website Can Raise Brand Awareness 

1. Blogging

Content marketing has been the gold standard in increasing web traffic for a reason. Blogging allows you to show off your expertise, provide valuable content, and up your SEO ante with each post. 

Writing regular blog posts—aim for at least once per week—will provide ample fodder for social media and prove that you are a thought leader and an expert in the field. They showcase your brand's personality and provide an opportunity for intimacy that traditional marketing and advertising copy lacks. 

By writing regular blog posts, you also create a reason for people to  stay on your site. The longer they stay, the more you gain their trust, and the easier it becomes to convert visitors into customers. 

Make sure to choose some of the best website builder available.

2. Infographics

Infographics communicate a lot of information in an easy-to-understand visual format. And, while they are great for breaking down complicated ideas into bite-sized pieces, they are also easily shared across platforms. 

To create infographics that will grab people's attention, make them colorful, visually exciting and take the reader on a journey. 

Most importantly, don't forget to include your brand information in your infographics, such as your logo and business name. That way, when someone stumbles across your infographic, they will know where to turn to for more information, no matter what platform they found you on. 

3. Downloadable Content

While people love to read fascinating blog posts, they appreciate having all of the information on a topic collected into a single file that they can refer back to. This is where downloadable content comes in. 

Downloadable content can be anything from an infographic to an ebook, whitepaper or case study. The main point is that you are providing valuable, possibly evergreen, information to your audience in a polished, visually appealing format.

While downloadable content isn't as shareable as infographics, it helps to establish your organization as an expert and an invaluable resource. And they have the power to cement your brand in your potential customer's mind.

Not All Content Is Created Equal

Content marketing isn't just about throwing some words together for a blog post or downloadable PDF. What makes it a marketing strategy is the plan behind it. 

Have an SEO Keyword Strategy

As you're brainstorming blog post ideas and planning infographics, it's essential to keep in mind how these things work in the bigger picture of brand awareness.

Research the relevant keywords in your industry. Incorporate keywords into blog posts, headings and other web pages to improve your search ranking and visibility. And stay up to date on the latest algorithms so that you are easy to find. 

In addition to SEO, learn more about how Search Engine Marketing (SEM) can boost your visibility and brand recognition. 

Bring it back to Your mission

Whenever you're creating content, consider how it relates to your organization's mission. What does it say about you and your values? 

And, today more than ever, it's no longer an option to sit on the sidelines of important issues. Know who you are and what you stand for, and share that with your community. 

Tell a Story

Think about what you want each piece of content to do and how you want people to react to it and engage with it. The best content is heartfelt, authentic and inspirational. And to bring that kind of emotionality, it has to tell a story. 

Even children's picture books have a story arc. They have a beginning, middle and end—a plot.

Think about how you can incorporate storytelling into your content. While it may seem challenging to tell an inspiring story about, say, a socket wrench, when you start to think about the problems that a socket wrench can help people solve, the stories begin to bubble to the surface. 

Make your Social Media a two-way street

Rather than thinking of social media as a tool for raising brand awareness, sending your message out into the internet like you're shouting into the wind, think of it as a tool to create two-way traffic. Use your social media platforms to share your website content and to drive visitors back to your website. 

Integrating social media into your website can create a loop that constantly engages your audience and drives them back to your site for conversion. 

Odds are, you've invested a lot of time, energy and marketing budget into your website, your heart. And just like the hearts in our bodies, if they stop moving, so do we. So, rather than resting on your laurels, keep it up! With consistent content creation, you can build a collection of invaluable information. That information can drive your social media and email campaigns. And, over time, it can be repurposed to create even more shareable and downloadable content. 

If your organization could use some help developing a content marketing strategy to get the most out of your website, ArcStone can help. To schedule a meeting with one of our digital strategists, contact us today.