Creative Ways to Use Content to Close More Sales

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Businesses all over the world are prioritizing content marketing, utilizing the worldwide web like never before. But it is not enough to merely create content. If you really want to appeal to customers, and especially if you want to close more sales, you’ll need to get creative. Here are just a handful of interesting ways to use content to close sales.

1. Answer Questions Publicly

People will not buy your product if they are not convinced that it’s worth their time or money, and one of the best ways to convince them is by addressing their concerns. Having a FAQ section on your site is a great way to address common questions and even eliminate some of the most common sales objections. While FAQs are one way to handle common questions, answering more specific questions can be very helpful. For example, if your organization sells prescription medications or offers a call center one way is to provide a knowledge base of real-world questions and their answers. Not only can this be helpful but it can also provide insights into the front line needs of your customers and support teams.

2. Talk Trends

Consumers want to know that you are well-informed about the industry you’re in. Show them that you’re at the top of your game, not lagging behind the competition. Communicating your working knowledge of industry trends is a great way to earn a prospect’s trust. It shows that you want your business to continue evolving, maintaining relevance and effectiveness in an ever-changing market. Publishing your take on current trends will reassure your customers that you want to be a leading voice in your field. However, you don’t need to confine yourself to the trends of the moment. Forecasting can also be useful especially at the end of a year. Use your knowledge of the present to make some predictions about the future. Revealing your knowledge of the industry, and showing your confidence, will help convince clients that your product or service is worth their while.

3. Podcast and Webcasts

Technology these days allows audiences to generate content on-demand whether in audio (podcast) or video (webcast) formats. One of the ways you can use this technology is provide question and answer sessions by telebridge line and/or webinar technology. Another way is to prepare content, present it, record it and then allow viewers or listeners to comment on the content. This can be especially effective when introducing new products, addressing changes in the industry and so forth.

4. Share What’s Behind the Scenes

Some prospects are hesitant to close the deal because they don’t feel they know your company, or product, well enough. To reach these people, try giving a glimpse of what’s going on behind the scenes. Put together a video tour of your office or facility, walking through your creative process. Other idea is to highlight activities that align with your mission statement. For example if your mission is to provide healthier living, you could showcase how you applied that objective to business travel using green-friendly transportation. No matter what you decide to share, the better a prospect feels they know you, the more likely they are to close a deal. After all, people ultimately buy from people, not companies, so give your company some personality.

5. Collaborate

Collaboration can be a huge asset. Guest blogging, especially if the blogger already has influence in the audience you want to tap, can be very effective. You gain instant credibility just by associating with someone they already respect. But guest blogging isn’t the only want to collaborate. If you’re an auto manufacturer and you partner with a technology partner to add new features into your latest models, you have something to write about and can easily gain more visibility just through the collaboration. Or, perhaps you’ve just completed a large, corporate meeting and there was a lot of information that your audience might want to know. In this case, collaboration can also come between experts, internal teams as well as customers who are using your products or services.

Conclusion

Content marketing is an increasingly important strategy in today’s evolving business landscape. Add some creativity to the mix and you’ll be well on your way to increased sales. While our list is by no means exhaustive, these five tips should help get you started.

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Jim Bozzelli

With over 34 years of experience, Jim is fluent in the ins and outs of the meeting and event world. His tenacity and creativity as a strategist have ensured that incentive programs and corporate meetings are highly polished while simultaneously achieving big-picture goals and objectives. Before focusing exclusively on corporate events and incentive programs, he enjoyed over 10 years of success managing and directing national and international sales. During this time, he worked closely with hotels and convention bureaus. His expertise was recognized with rapid promotions along the way. Over 18 years ago he joined the Gavel International team where he works tirelessly with clients to make their events shine by analyzing data, setting goals, negotiating contracts, as well as setting and managing budgets. He is currently the Vice President of Gavel International.