Easy ways to promote your content for free

by Mike Smith Marketing

There are long term strategies for content promotion and then there are quick hacks. Both are important for obvious reasons and ignoring one for the other can be disastrous for any business.

As part of our ongoing series on content promotion, we compiled a list of some tried and tested “quick” methods that work like a charm. Every single time.

Claim branded online Real Estate on SERPs:

Most people don’t bother with free listings. They think their website and social profiles are enough and miss out on the greatest content promotion trick ever!

Creating 10-20 listings means 10-20 additional urls or real estate pegs for your brand in the online marketplace. Urls that would show up in addition to your website and profiles and help you “own” more of Page #1 for branded search. Needless to add, this also helps “similarly named competitors” from showing up instead of your brand.

In addition to claiming your listings, be sure to ask customers to populate with a few good reviews and comments. While this requires people typing in your brand keyword to show up, seeing your company brand show up with a whole bunch of stars can only be good for you.

List on aggregator websites and directories:

Take a few hours or get some help in researching the most relevant content promotion websites in your business and submit your details. Standard listings are usually free and provide you with extra eyeballs at no extra cost. I prefer content focused websites like the one featured here as they also offer the opportunity for featured posts, which helps position your service/product better. While standard listings are free of cost, even the most basic paid listing pays for itself many times over in the free content these sites allow you to post.

Ride keyword trends:

Just tap into ongoing controversies or fads to create a more relatable context for your next post, comment, or campaign. See how the clothing brand Wildfang turned FLOTUS’s jacket choice into a promotion opportunity. You may not always be able to design and sell a product but you can create interest hashtags, posts, and other content around the topic/theme of interest.

Creative and informative Email Signatures

If your company has won an award for the fastest growth in its category or your CEO’s interview has been published in the New York Times, be sure to include that in your team’s email signature for a few days. Add a link to your latest tweet or post but make sure to update it regularly. And, as a default, make sure to include all important information as regards your business within the signature, including:

•    Logo and clickable URL
•    Full Name, Designation and Contact Information
•    Link to Social Media Channels and/or news links

For more idea on content promotion, download the “Content Promotion Manifesto” here.