No one can say that content marketing does not play a vital role in proper search engine optimization, marketing and link building strategies. Unfortunately, we can sometimes become so focused on the aspect of simple content creation that we overlook key blunders that can spell disaster for our content marketing on our blogs, websites and via social media. While the inclusion of various types of marketing in each piece of content can be valuable, it is not always to your advantage to do so. If you currently have a blog or site that attempts to balance various elements of proper site promotion and utilize these tactics in your content creation methods, then you may be at risk of some spectacular content marketing failures.

When Content Marketing Becomes Simple Marketing

The best way that your content can gain exposure within key audiences is to create a desirable piece of content that is fun, engaging, informative and creative. This is why it can be so frustrating to see some bloggers and webmasters pinging links and building up a number of social shares for their content, as opposed to creating excellent content that is desirable and worthy of said audience. You can attract all the visitors you like, but a failure to create attractive content will lead these people to flee from your website as quickly as they arrived. Content marketing should always be about the production of excellent content. When that objective is achieved, you can then focus on spamming the daylights out of various venues with it.

When Goals Are Ill-Defined or Lack Tracking

Some people believe that you can simply create vast amounts of content and expect huge results to manifest in little to no time at all. The truth is that content marketing requires a planned approach and ways in which you can measure your progress. How do you know if you are meeting your goals if you have not set any goals in the first place? You will need to use some form of analytics program to keep track of views, conversions and other metrics of your outlined goals in order to gain value from your content marketing strategy. If you fail to do so, then the aspirations for your blog or website will fail as well.

When Your Audience’s Needs Are Not Met

If you are doing as you should and are using an analytics program to monitor engagement, then you should have a fairly good idea of who is visiting your website and who is pinging links to their social media accounts. It is through this information that you can determine what your audience is receptive to and how to better adapt your content strategy to this approach. When you create quality content, it must also serve a purpose that is relevant to your audience. If you fall short on this, then your readers will leave your website and most likely will not feel compelled to check back in later to see if more relevant content is available. If you do not custom-tailor your content to reflect the desires of your audience as seen via metrics, then your quality content will be pearls before swine.