Promoting content beyond your subscribers’ inbox: Reaching a wide-spread audience throughout the equine industry

In our recent article on driving quality traffic to your website, we discussed how to set-up an integrated blogging, email marketing and lead capture system that works together to grow your list of subscribers.  Now, you’ve written a fantastic article, targeted the content to your specific audience within the equine industry, posted it on your website’s blog and sent it to your subscribers, so your job is done, right?  Sorry. The most important work is just ahead. The level of promotion that you provide for your content will determine the amount of traffic that it will drive to your website.

Before you begin, be sure you have a compelling title, an eye-catching lead image and adequate keywords throughout the title and body of the article.  Then add a resource box at the bottom that includes a photo or logo, information about you as the author, your business and include your contact information. You might even consider including a link to your subscriber landing page.

Next, gather the following so that you can easily copy and paste each as needed:

1. the article’s direct URL
   
   
2. the title of the article or blog post
   
   
3. a shortened version of the url (using a service like bitly)
   
   
4. the lead image
   
   
5. a descriptive line or two about the article (you should create several variations on this to share across different platforms)
   
   
6. a quote from an influencer: (Before you begin promoting your content, ask an influencer to read it and provide an opinion or quote that you can publish as part of your promotion.)
   
   

With those items in place, you’re ready to promote your article by creating strategic backlinks. Here are some suggested ways that you can begin to spread your content far and wide:

SHARE A LINK ON THE MAIN SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS
Post a link to your Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ and Twitter accounts.

SHARE IN EQUINE SPECIFIC SOCIAL MEDIA GROUPS
This is where your audience spends time socializing. Be aware of the group’s policies. Many do not appreciate direct promotion.

POST THE ARTICLE TO LINKEDIN’S PUBLISHING PLATFORM
Any posts you publish on LinkedIn are displayed near the top of your profile. Well received posts have the power to grow your followers, subscribers, profile views and leads. To share on LinkedIn’s Publishing Platform, just go to your home page and look for the pencil icon where you would normally share a new post. Then copy and past your article there. Be sure all links are active and remember to include your lead image and resource box.

SHARE ON PINTEREST
Your audience is already on Pinterest, searching for all kinds of equine related products and information. That’s why it’s always beneficial to share all kinds of images there, especially rich pins that will lead them directly back to your website. Try it and watch your traffic grow.

PROMOTE ON SLIDESHARE
Turn the article’s key points into a series of visually appealing slides. Especially in this era of shortened attention spans, people rarely take the time to read lengthy text. Therefore, it helps to use bullets, keywords and phrases to get your message across.   

POST TO REDDIT, SCOOP.IT, DIGG AND OTHER
These sites are where people go to research topics and generally scan for interesting content.  Using the right keywords will help your article be found.

DISTRIBUTE A PRESS RELEASE
Every business wants the attention of the media, and most media publications and websites are hungry for new content. Why not make it easy for them by providing an enticing, descriptive notice about your new content?

EMAIL THE SOURCES OF THE LINKS YOU’VE USED
Invite them to read, share and link to the content as well. They will most likely be more than happy to spread the word that they’ve been mentioned.

SHARE WITH KEY EQUINE INDUSTRY INFLUENCERS
Equine professionals with a large following can help spread your content far and wide!


This all doesn’t have to happen at one time. (Whew, that’s a relief!) In fact, spreading your promotion out will give your content a longer lifespan. I recommend, working diligently, one platform at a time to assure you’ve thoroughly promoted the content before moving on to the next platform. Be sure to vary the introduction a bit for each promotion so your audience isn’t seeing the same post over and over again. If you take the time to do this with each article and blog post, your website’s SEO rankings will steadily increase, as will the traffic to your site. Practicing these key, fundamental strategies of successful inbound marketing will consistently draw qualified, targeted leads and prospective customers to your equine business.

---

---

Carol Aldridge is an Administrative Consultant and Support Specialist serving the equine industry for over 25 years. Her clients across the United States and Canada enjoy customized business support services designed to relieve workload pressure, streamline office procedures and maximize marketing results. Learn more at www.EquineOfficeSolutions.com.

If you haven’t yet subscribed, you can do so HERE. You’ll also receive our Zero-Budget Marketing Plan For Equine Business Owners. And please, feel free to share your thoughts and ideas by commenting below - we can all help each other succeed!

---