1. 21 Useful Tips for Digital
Content Marketing to Build Your
Business and Personal Brand
Blogs, Instagram, Pinterest
and Houzz
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Chris Vaughn
Director of Marketing
DigitalSherpa
@ChrisHVaughn
Lauren Thomas
Campaign Manager
DigitalSherpa
@HelloLT
Lynda Simonton
Client Experience
Manager
@LyndaSimonton
Tweet us! #GardenBlogConf

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Tweet us! #GardenBlogConf
Follow Along At:
http://slideshare.net/DigitalSherpa

4. 365 POSTS: 7 LESSONS LEARNED
One Year. One Website.
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5. Tip 1: Always Be Analyzing
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6. The Lightbulb
Problem
The blog post with
over 1,000 visitors
but no readers
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7. While Exploring Google Analytics…
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8. No Shares? No Comments?!?
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9. “Light Bulb” Related Keyword Visits
in Google Analytics
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11. TIP 2: BE THOROUGH
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13. TIP 3: CONSIDER CONVERSION
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16. TIP 4: MEASURE RESULTS
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18. TIP 5: TEST. THEN TEST SOME MORE.
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19. Call To Action
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21. TIP 6: TAKE ADVANTAGE OF
AVAILABLE (AND FREE) TOOLS
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23. Google Analytics
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24. Google Keyword Planner
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25. TIP 7: SEO IS AN ONGOING PRACTICE.
NEVER STOP OPTIMIZING!
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28. VISUAL STORYTELLING 101
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29. Tip 8: Define Your Voice & Visuals
• What does your brand sound like?
– “Tone” and personality
– Key messages
• What does your brand look like?
– Logos, colors, etc.
• Optimize your profile for each social network
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30. Visual Branding: The Home Depot
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31. Visual Branding: The Home Depot
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32. Tip 9: Images > Words
• Facebook posts with pictures
generate more engagement
• 59% of top brands are on
Instagram
• Create a visual content strategy
• Share photos that are relevant to
your brand
• Use images to tell your stories
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Image via iStockphoto, AleksandarNakic

33. Images Engage on Facebook
• Photo posts get 39%
more interaction
– 93% of the most
engaging posts on FB
– 53% more likes
– 104% more comments
– 84% more click-throughs
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34. Tip 10: Think Themes
• Before & After
• How-To
• Inspiration Boards
• Behind the Scenes
• Holidays / Seasons
• Pop Culture
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Images via Lifescape Associates and Digital Sherpa

35. Tip 11: Repurpose Content
• Cascade content across
platforms
• Shoot once, use thrice
• Create photo collages
– Tools: Pic Stitch, Diptic,
Pixlr
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Image via Home Depot

36. Tip 12: Experiment with #Hashtags
• Use hashtags to join larger
conversations
– Industry, Geography,
Products/Services, Trends
• Tools:
– Facebook Graph Search
– Twitter Search
– Tagboard (Beta)
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Facebook Post via Digital Sherpa

37. Tip 14: Take Advantage of Video
• Video marketing is a powerful way to
communicate with your audience
– Share brand culture/values
– Showcase products/services
– Share DIY/how-to tips
– Highlight happy customers
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38. Tip 13: Leverage Analytics
• Track engagement
– Demographics
– Popular content
– Best times to post
• Tools:
– Facebook Insights
– BlitzMetrics
– Statigram
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Screenshot via BlitzMetrics

39. Ready? Let’s Do This!
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PUTTING IT ALL INTO ACTION

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Over 2,000,000 photos have been uploaded to Houzz and there are
over 14,000,000 users every month.

41. Tip 15: Change the Conversation
Martha Hickey and Associates 41

42. Client’s Cottage Garden
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43. More is More
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44. Listen and Learn
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45. Tip 16: Raise Your Ranking
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46. Get Reviews
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47. Tip 17: All About Organization
(Key Words are Critical)
• Geography
– How do people search your area?
• Style
• Project scope
– What type of business do you want to attract?
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48. Under the Hood: Houzz Optimization
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Pinterest generates more referral traffic to business websites
than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn COMBINED!

50. Tip 18: Create a Business Account
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51. Under the Hood: Pinterest Analytics
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52. Tip 19:Keep Thinking about Search
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130 million people enjoy this photo sharing app

54. Tip 20: Share a Variety of Content
or Stick to a Clear Theme
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55. Tip 21: Tag People You Know
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56. Bonus Tip: Be a Good Community Member
• Share valuable information
• Interact and help
• Give credit where credit is due!
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57. Q + A
Questions? Ask away!
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58. • Download our presentation here:
http://slideshare.net/DigitalSherpa
• Connect with us!
– Chris Vaughn – chris@digitalsherpa.com
– Lauren Thomas – lthomas@digitalsherpa.com
– Lynda Simonton – lsimonton@digitalsherpa.com
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