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Inbound marketing is all about reaching viewers in a variety of ways

It’s never too early to start planning next year’s marketing strategy. Producing great content is one of the best ways to use inbound marketing to promote your website. The following are the best content tactics I recommend implementing into your inbound marketing plan today, tomorrow and beyond!

Blogging

Most people think of blogging as it applies to content marketing. They are partly correct. Running a blog on your website is a great way to feature your content in an informal and familiar format. Even traditional corporate websites are slowly replacing old-school “company news” sections and “press releases” with friendlier blog posts. Effective blogs are designed to attract, interact with and engage visitors by providing the content people want in a casual and welcoming format. In fact, with proper inbound marketing tactics, your website’s blog could be the most visited section of your website. Good content will eventually bring visitors to your website, and new content published on a regular basis will keep them coming back for more.

Regardless of the purpose of your website, you should consider running a blog. It will act as a starting platform for your content and will be tightly integrated with your inbound marketing campaigns.

Guest blogging

Guest blogging means contributing your content to third-party blogs and websites that are willing to publish it in exchange for credit or a link to your website. It’s a great way to build an audience, especially when very few people are aware of your blog. When your content is well liked and appreciated, readers will naturally travel from your guest post back to your blog. Guest blogging also allows you to build partnerships and affiliations with other blogs and websites to exchange good content on a regular basis.

Also Read: How to set up a content marketing plan for your new business

Infographics

Infographics are fun. People love them because they make even the most technical and complex information visually attractive and easy to digest. Incorporate them into blog posts or use them on their own. Their visual nature makes them great for sharing on social media as well.

E-books

An e-book is an electronic version of a book designed to be viewed on a computer or an electronic reader. E-books may be the length of a book or just a few pages focusing on a particular topic for busy readers. Unlike whitepapers, e-books are generally more casual and visual, often containing images, interactive presentations and even videos. Content marketing often utilises e-books as an offer that can be downloaded in exchange for a visitor’s information. That information (such as an email address) can then be used for lead nurturing. Hubspot.com makes great use of e-books in a wide range of marketing topics you can download once you submit your information. Every company, including yours, has similar material that can be converted into an e-book.

Also Read: 5 apps to make killer content marketing campaigns, and how to use them

Whitepapers

Whitepapers are slowly being replaced with more casual, visual e-books in content marketing. However, they still have many applications. They are generally technical documents or reports focusing on a particular topic. They are more academic and formal than e-books and typically consist of mostly text and minimal graphics.

Consider using whitepapers to share any information that is data-centric, technical or based on quantifiable research. Whitepapers are often PDFs that can be downloaded, just as e-books, in exchange for a visitor’s contact information.

LinkedIn SlideShare presentations

LinkedIn SlideShare is a great way to deliver lengthy, in-depth content in an easily accessible format to millions of people. Many of the world’s best content producers use SlideShare. Visitors regularly use the site to look for information, to learn about new topics and to research products and services. It’s also easy to use. If you have already created presentations, videos, infographics or documents, uploading them is a breeze.

Also Read: 5 critical steps of your first content marketing campaign (in GIFs)

Videos

Videos are a great communication tool for your website. The same concept applies to marketing as videos can be effectively used on your blog as well. People love sharing videos on social media. Google includes videos in its search results that create yet another avenue. Finally, there are entire communities such as YouTube or Vimeo where you can get even more exposure by uploading your videos. Videos are great for educating and entertaining. Think about how you can use videos to help your customers: video tutorials, screencasts, product demonstrations, interviews and more.

Podcasts

A podcast helps you deliver your content on the go. Thanks to mobile devices, people have quick access to their favorite content in their car, on the train commute to work or while travelling. It may seem like a lot of work, but podcasts can actually use the same recycled content that you and your team record and release on a regular basis. Some of the best podcasts are informal and conversational.

Webinars

Of all content marketing tactics, the webinar is probably the most immersive. Attendees invest all their attention in the webinar for as long as an hour. Unlike a static video, the webinar format allows for interaction with others, including Q&A. This makes the webinar an incredibly effective tool.

Ready to put these content ideas to use in your inbound marketing strategy? Jump in! Have fun and good luck.

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A version of this post originally appeared on the author’s site here.

Andrew Kucheriavy is the Founder and CEO of Intechnic, a leading web design agency with locations and clientele in North America, Europe and Australia. He is also a published author, blogger and a recognised visionary with functional expertise in web development, marketing, e-commerce and business development. The ROI or “Results on Internet” approach Andrew pioneered helped many companies worldwide reach their full potential. “ROI – Results on Internet” also happens to be the title of his book.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organisation comprising the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship programme that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

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