What tools can you use to refine your content strategy?

A content audit is a great tool that assesses the quality, relevance and effectiveness of your content. The output is areas for improvement. Content audit is conducted by combining SEO & data analytics tools. Data inventory yields an action plan for what to do with each landing page: 1. Keep the content as is. 2. Improve & udpdate content 3. Merge multiple relevant pages together 4. Remove content because it has no value Why cater an existing content? Search engines have indexed your content in the past. Changes you make may have better and faster impact within existing content. It's easier to get from page 2 back to page 1 than trying reach the same with brand new content that has never ranked before.

It can be easy to think of a content calendar is just a schedule. But it can be used to reflect the strategy if you have content pillars, or if you intend to have certain percentages of your content mix allocated to different things.

Don't just use tools. Talk to sales. Ask them what content they wish they had. Or about what questions customers ask them. These may not be the same questions they ask Google.

Content research is fundamental for creating meaningful content users will more likely find quality, relevant and engaging. A great basis for writing is a brief. A bulletproof basis for writing is the SEO brief providing information like: - URL slug - meta titles & descriptions - keyword analysis data incl. keyword clusters - competitive research - headline suggestions - internal link building recommendations - image alt text directions - purpose and goal of the landing page - other valuable hints and tips SEOs can simplify content research process for UX writers and copywriters. SEOs make sure the proposed content meets the overall content strategy and avoids duplicates.

Sometimes, you learn the best by doing. So, if your content strategy is not working out or you feel blocked/ stuck, it's best to sit and write anyway. Be critical of your writing and ask yourself, "Would I read it?" If the answer is no, ask again, "What would I need more from this tone to enjoy reading it?" It may be a different tone, a new perspective, a different opening sentence, whatever it may be. I often do this when I feel my posts are not in accordance with what I like to consume as a reader. The practice of writing or reflecting is a great way to build or redefine your content strategy. Hope it helps!

The thing about analytics is that you need to consider the big picture (i.e., all the numbers together), not just individual numbers. Because if you get fixated on optimizing certain numbers, sometimes this can hurt other numbers.

Measuring the efforts of content is a must. Without data it is difficult to make future decisions about content strategy and prioritization. Most content teams rely on metrics like traffic (visits, sessions), unique sessions, bounce rate, impressions, CTR, keyword ranking. These metrics have certain testimonial value, however connecting them with user actions is difficult. Setting goals for different types (formats) of content is key, as is defining exactly what it takes to meet the goal - outlining a specific user action, for example: - report, whitepaper, pdf download (gated or free) - newsletter, free trial sign up - CTA (call-to-action) button click - contact form fill - product purchase - demo booking - etc..

Cross-team cooperation is essential for content teams to create content that performs, from defining a content strategy, identifying new opportunities, covering gaps, setting measurable goals or for evaluating the success of content.