10 Content Marketing Myths That Are Holding Back Your Small Business
brand direction & styling by us for Dana Jo | photo by Comeplum
Most small business owners and entrepreneurs have a love-hate relationship with content marketing. Some people think they don’t need it, and some people don’t feel like they know enough to use it.
But did you know that content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and generates about 3 times as many leads? (DemandMetric)
No wonder 82% of marketers actively use content marketing. (HubSpot State of Marketing Report, 2021)
Now, if you’re still on the fence about using content to grow your business, you’re probably holding onto one or more of these 10 biggest content marketing myths.
It’s time we debunk these major content marketing myths so they aren’t holding you back from growing online and getting in front of your customers!
1. Content marketing is not for my industry
Some people assume content marketing is for industries that sell to younger audiences that enjoy dance videos, while some people think content marketing is all about blogging and is only for businesses that provide information and expert knowledge on specific topics.
Neither is correct.
If you run a business today, you’re probably using some form of content to market your business so people know about what you do and sell. This may be anything from posting on social media and having a website, to handing out printed brochures and catalogs.
(Check out the top 10 types of high-performing content marketing to generate more leads & boost conversion.)
As a business, to sell anything, you need to build and gain trust from people. How do you gain trust? You have to earn it. And that’s where content marketing comes into play.
Content is any information you put out there on behalf of your business. And if you use it to add value and provide information and knowledge that your target customers are interested in, it is a powerful tool to help you attract and engage with your target customers.
So, if you want to grow your small business, you need content marketing in your marketing arsenal.
2. I need to be on every social media platform to do content marketing successfully
Most entrepreneurs start their business without a strategy and get on different social media platforms thinking that they will get results by being “present” everywhere. And they end up spreading themselves thin because they are trying to grow an audience on every platform they are on all at once.
With time, energy, and focus all split up across different platforms and tactics, it becomes difficult to gain traction in any one area and they see little or no result. (If you’re starting your business, make sure you don't make this huge mistake that most people make).
On the contrary, you can be successful at using content to grow your business by focusing on a few online platforms and channels that work for your business and your customers. Once you’ve gained traction and built an audience of high quality, highly engaging people who are your target customers, you can expand to other marketing channels and platforms more easily.
Not sure what to prioritize for your marketing? Try this simple 3-step formula to find out what to focus on next.
3. Content marketing is about producing more content
Most video how-tos and blogs for small businesses and entrepreneurs focus on how to create content and produce more of it. This is why many people are making content, but none of it actually creates desires and makes people want to buy their products or services, which defeats the purpose of making any content.
To apply content marketing to grow your business, you need two things:
content strategy to give you systems to efficiently create content
marketing funnel strategy to map out how to use content to grow brand awareness, get your content in front of the right people, a.k.a. your target customers, attract them, build trust, guide people through the purchase process, and finally turn them into customers.
If you need some tips to create your content strategy, check out this fail-proof system to cure your content creation headaches once and for all.
Looking to get your marketing funnel strategy started? Start here and unveil the 5-part framework to build a killer marketing funnel that works every time
4. Because I run a business, all content should be about my business
Many business owners think that they only need to make content about their business and the products or services they sell. Plus, they worry that it may not seem professional to share anything else.
To use content to build trust, you need to connect with people. But people connect with people, not with businesses. This is why you need to consider your brand strategy when you strategize your content marketing. Read this blog post to get the complete checklist to build your brand from scratch.
Don’t limit your content to only selling your products or services, share your brand mission, how you started, your brand story, your team, how you create what you sell, how people are using your products or services, etc. And deliver your content in your brand voice, a voice that resonates with your target customers.
Learn the difference between brand vs. product marketing and find out which one you need now.
5. Content marketing is for large corporations, not small businesses
Many professionals specialize in different parts of content marketing, and large corporations who have the resources usually invest a lot in hiring the right people and agencies to handle their content marketing operations.
But this doesn’t mean that small businesses and entrepreneurs who don’t have huge marketing budgets shouldn’t take advantage of content marketing. Because your operations are smaller compared to large corporations, you don’t need a complicated content marketing operation to use content to get customers. Like what we mentioned in myth #2 before, you don’t and shouldn’t do everything. Focus on the tools, platforms, and tactics that bring you results and work on repeating and scaling your success.
Click here to download the FREE Complete Marketing Map and start building your own repeatable marketing system.
Speaking of marketing budget, if you’re confused about how much to spend on your marketing, here’s a foolproof method to budget marketing effectively and keep growing your business.
6. I need to be a copywriter to do content marketing well
Many people think that because they are not “writers,” they can’t effectively use content marketing to grow their businesses. Writing content is different from traditional copywriting. While there are basic techniques, templates, and systems you should know to create a good copy, the tone of content writing is usually much more human and natural to connect better with people. This means you can write like how you talk, and not with big words and complicated sentences.
If you want to learn the fundamentals of copywriting, there are lots of classes on Udemy and Coursera. And we also recommend Stories That Stick by Kindra Hall, which is one of the best books we recommend when starting your business.
If you’re a non-writer and want simple ways to take your writing to the next level, check out the post - Learn the 3 Most Common Copywriting Mistakes & How to Fix Them With These Foolproof Tricks to Up-Level Your Copy.
7. Content marketing shows fast results
If you’ve tried making any type of content to market your business online in the past, and stopped because you didn’t see immediate results, it’s time to think again.
Think of it this way. How long will it take you to trust someone? Gaining trust is exactly what you’re doing through content, so, yes, it takes time and persistence. The businesses that consistently show up with content that is relevant and valuable to their target audience and customers are the ones that gain loyal customers and raving fans, who will help bring them even more success! (Check out these eye-opening ways happy customers can put your business on steroids.)
Now, if you have the marketing budget set aside to run ads, you can see results faster when done well. Click here to check out 5 highly-effective pro tips you should try on your next Facebook ad.
But if you don’t have the ad budget, you can also drive traffic without paying for ads. Try these 3 foolproof ideas instead to triple your brand awareness & exposure.
8. Content marketing can’t be measured
Yes, content marketing is a long-term game, but this doesn’t mean that it can’t be measured. Besides sales conversion, you can also measure how well your content marketing is doing by metrics like traffic, social shares, link licks, email opt-in rates, bounce rate, webinar sign-ups, etc.
Depending on your goals and how you set up your marketing funnel strategy (mentioned in Myth #3 above), choose the relevant key metrics to track and measure your performance.
9. Running social media is everything you need for content marketing
Because of how common social media has been, most small businesses only use social media for online marketing and entrepreneurs spend most of their time trying to find hacks and tips to gain a following on different social media platforms.
When you run each social media separately without figuring out how all the platforms should work together and how each of them helps bring potential customers to you and guide them through the purchase process, you end up being trapped on the content creation hamster wheel.
To make sure you are making content that actually brings you growth, instead of running each social media separately, you need an overall plan on how they all piece together, the goal of using each platform, and how to get a more direct and personal way to communicate with them and keep them engaged through tactics like email newsletters or direct mail.
If you’re getting started on email marketing, here’s a simple 3-email welcome sequence to engage your subscribers & make people feel excited about getting your emails
10. Every piece of content needs to be perfect
Perfectionism is one of the biggest traps that hold back small businesses and entrepreneurs from growing, and it’s a mindset that stops many business owners from getting the most value from content marketing.
The important thing to remember is that when you are using content to get customers’ attention online, people care much more about the value you bring them with your content and they care less about if everything is “perfect.” To put it simply, you don’t get people to trust you or see you when your content is “perfect,” but you gain trust and attention when your content is relevant.
So, stop trying to perfect your content, and start focusing on making relevant content that your audience and customers want.
Out of content ideas? I bet one of the ideas covered in this post will help - 12 Ways To Find The Next Content Ideas Your Audience Craves In 3 Minutes.
Still not seeing results from your content? Make sure you avoid & fix these biggest content mistakes business owners make, so you can stop wasting time on making content that doesn’t bring results!
If you’re holding back on creating content because you don’t have an audience, here are 6 Tips to Grow Your Audience Fast From Scratch With $0.
In the middle of planning your big upcoming launch, but not sure what content to share? Here's how to create pre-launch content that converts.
Click here to uncover the step-by-step framework for building a powerful marketing machine that gets you noticed by customers – even while you sleep!