One of Brafton's clients saw the impact of a content marketing strategy when it started getting more qualified traffic that was converting faster.

Industry: Food service
Content: 2 to 3 blog posts per week
Highlights: Blog readers convert twice as often as all visitors

If you’re still not sure how content marketing works, take a look at the results this company in the foodservice industry saw while publishing multiple blog posts every week:

  • 42 percent increase in blog traffic quarter over quarter
  • Blog readers viewed 11.5 pages per session (3.5 more than site average)
  • Average visit duration for blog readers was over 7 minutes, compared to the 2:50 site average

Not just more visitors – more qualified visitors

These metrics are evidence of an effective content strategy, but not just because the posts got more traffic flowing to the company’s website. (Although traffic is a key performance indicator for 63 percent of marketers, according to the Content Marketing Institute’s 2014 B2B Trends report.)

Articles were certainly catching clicks, but they weren’t just clickbait designed to draw in lots of visitors who may or may not be interested in buying.

The content engaged readers and captured the attention of a qualified audience. It was effectively targeting foodservice professionals with articles about how certain products can help them run more efficient, compliant and successful operations. The blog posts attracted readers who were most interested in those industry-specific topics and were therefore more likely to become customers.

Blog conversions TriMark

A qualified audience means more conversions

Narrowing a content strategy to appeal to a niche audience can be a scary move for marketers. It means potentially sacrificing traffic to get the right kind of visits, but as demonstrated by the conversion rate for this client, it can bring in blog readers who are twice as likely to complete a goal.

At the end of the day, marketers need to decide what’s right for their businesses’ goals and adjust their content strategies appropriately. The beauty of content is that it can be tailored to serve every stage in the purchase funnel, from the first point of contact to the last touch before a transaction.

Here are some of the other marketing goals content can serve:

Lauren Kaye is a Marketing Editor at Brafton Inc. She studied creative and technical writing at Virginia Tech before pursuing the digital frontier and finding content marketing was the best place to put her passions to work. Lauren also writes creative short fiction, hikes in New England and appreciates a good book recommendation.