This document provides 21 tips for digital content marketing to build a business or personal brand. Some key tips include always analyzing digital marketing efforts using analytics to understand engagement and improve content, using images more than text as images get more engagement on social media, experimenting with hashtags to join larger conversations, and leveraging different platforms like Pinterest, Instagram and Houzz to expand reach. It also emphasizes the importance of organization, keywords and search engine optimization.

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
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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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