Most enterprises use multi-channel marketing. For example, they have a website, newsletter and social media accounts. In addition they may create videos, talk to journalists, go to events or advertise.
Creating an integrated, multi-channel writing strategy is a good idea and it will help you to achieve better results. It involves a number of steps:
- Define your goals and business objectives. Decide what you want to achieve through your writing. For example, increasing brand awareness, increasing the number of enquiries, boosting sales or building a community. Having clear goals will help you to focus your writing and measure the success of your copywriting strategy.
- Choose and get to know your market segments. Prior to creating content, it is important to understand your target audiences and what their needs and requirements are. This will help you to tailor your content to be more relevant and effective.
- Identify the channels that you are using / wish to use. Which channels do you plan to use to reach your market segments? There are several hundred options that you can choose from. Each channel has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it is important to select the ones that are most appropriate for your audience and goals.
- Create a content calendar. Plan out the content you will produce and when you will publish it. This will help you to ensure that you are creating and sharing content consistently. It will also help you to be able to promote any events or promotions effectively.
- Produce the content. Create content that is easy to read, engaging, informative and relevant to your market segments. Use a tone and writing style that is appropriate for each channel and audience.
- Use data to improve your results. Track the performance of your content using analytics and other metrics. Use this data to improve your content and adapt your strategy.
- Monitor & adapt. Keep an eye on industry trends, new technologies and competitor strategies. Modify your own strategy as required.
- Learn from your results. Continue testing different approaches. For example, short versus long body copy, use of social proof and different calls to action. Use the data from your tests to improve your strategy.
It is important to remember that a multi-channel writing strategy should be flexible, in order to adapt to the changing needs and preferences of your audience and the trends within your industry.
Also, when publishing the content on different channels, it’s better to avoid identical copies and rather adapt the format/style for each specific channel, tailoring the message accordingly.
Nigel Temple is a marketing consultant who also offers copywriting training.
