Al Gore created the internet to distribute content to all (*Disclaimer, Al Gore did not create the internet). Too often we see websites with too much or too little content and no clear strategy about what content they should have. An eMarketer article recently noted that many organizations are just pushing out content with no clear strategy, as evidenced by the chart on the right. We believe in data-backed decision making and content decisions are no different. Below are a few quick things that you could do next week in a white board session to make sure you’re presenting the right content to the right audience.

How to determine the right content for your website

• What is it ya do here? : Develop 5-10 competitive advantages & business goals. Involve EVERYONE; Sales, Upper Management, R&D…
• Who are your customers? : Develop about 5 target personas. What are their needs & wants? What do they do an a day-to-day basis online. Are they heavy social users? Are they mostly offline?
• Does your marketing match their needs? : Too often upper management forces messages or tactics on marketing departments. Take the time to review all of your marketing messages and see if they align with your goals as well as the customers.
• How do you deliver messages? : Evaluate the tactics you’re using and match them up with what you developed in bullet number two. Are there gaps and areas you might be missing?
• Are you delivering the right content? : Now back to that eMarketer article! If you’ve followed the steps above you should have a perfect guide for what you do, who to target, how to target them, and what to say to them. Now you need to evaluate the types of content you have on your site. Does it match customer expectations?

A few content type case studies;

PROBLEM: We once worked with a hospital who provided Harvard-level explanations on how they treated patients however their target audience were parents who leaned more towards having a high school education.
SOLUTION: We developed a shortened version that cut the content down by more than 75% and then provided links to the more in-depth sections for visitors to learn even more.

PROBLEM: One of our clients featured lengthy thought-leadership content when their audience targets were mostly ‘people on the go’ with little time to read.
SOLUTION: We helped them to develop infographics that showed their expertise on the subject matter but displayed it in bite-sized pieces so it was easily scannable.

PROBLEM: An upper-level manager forced the marketing team to take up a large amount of homepage real estate for logos of media sites that had mentioned the brand in the past. After talking with customers they told us these logos were either not seen nor useful in their purchase decision.
SOLUTION: We removed the logos which brought the Calls to Action front and center. Conversion subsequently increased!

In conclusion…

Follow the steps we bulleted above to make sure you’re delivering the content experience that meets your business goals but also matches your customers’ expectations. Give visitors what they want and conversion will climb higher and higher!