3 Things Your SaaS Content Marketing Needs To Stand Out In 2022
It’s no secret that content marketing is here to stay. I see content marketing as being one of the biggest revenue drivers for SaaS businesses, especially B2B SaaS companies.
But with so much content out there, how do you make sure yours stands out?
Don’t worry, young grasshopper… That’s what we’re talking about today.
In this short article, I’m going to give you 3 actionable tips that you can use with your SaaS content marketing strategy.
Video
It’s 2022. If you’re not using video, you’re missing out. Screencasts, talking heads, and explainer videos are just some of the ways you can use video in your content strategy.
I think one company that does a great job of video content marketing is the company ahrefs. In each of their videos, they show you a new way to use their tool. This is smart because it does two things for the business.
The first thing this strategy does is it helps customers that are already using the product. If you’ve signed up to use their tool, you get new tips every single week. This reduces churn because the user is always being reminded how helpful the tool is and they continue getting value from it.
The second thing this strategy does is it captures search traffic.
If you’re looking for SEO tips on YouTube, chances are, you’re going to come across ahrefs’ YouTube channel. And when you do, you’ll discover all kinds of great SEO strategies that can be used… if you have their tool.
Here’s how you can start using video in your content strategy.
Create videos of you using your SaaS tool in new and different ways by using screencasts. The Chrome extension Loom is very useful for doing this. If you have a laptop with a decent microphone and camera, you can get started right away.
Record a tutorial using your tool and then have a copywriter turn that video into a blog article. Post this blog article on your website with the video at the top.
Make sure to also upload your video to YouTube and LinkedIn. Shorter videos may also work on Instagram and Twitter.
If you aren’t creating tutorials — you’re just creating informational posts or something similar — have someone that’s good at talking to a camera talk to a camera explaining what’s in that blog post.
You don’t want your talking head to read the article word-for-word. Instead, give them some index cards with bullets. Have them explain the topic on camera and then edit the video.
You’ll probably want to add some b-roll into your video along with some sound effects and images, but you can learn how to do all of this over the weekend.
If you’re using a Mac, I suggest you spend the money and get Final Cut Pro X. At the time of writing this, it’s $300, but the workflow is super fast and you’ll save a bunch of time instead of trying to figure out a more complicated software.
Notice that with both of these techniques, we are repurposing your content. If you’re not doing this in 2022, you are losing out on a ton of opportunities.
Content upgrade
A content upgrade is exactly what it sounds like — it’s an upgrade to a piece of your content.
Let me explain.
Let’s say your piece of content is about how to use your SaaS with Google Sheets. Maybe the reader must create and set up a Google Sheet to use the cool new technique you’re teaching them in the video you just created.
Instead of having the reader make the Google Sheet themselves, why not give them a copy?
You can tell your reader how to do everything themselves, but you can also send them it already done… for a price.
That price? Their email.
In exchange for your content upgrade, the reader must give you their email. You set up an email automation that sends the content upgrade to the reader and then puts them into your emailing list.
This is a great way to build your email list with traffic you’re already getting.
But here’s the thing…
Don’t overthink this. Your content upgrade doesn’t have to be something that takes a lot of time to put together.
I’ve seen content upgrades that are just the article, but it is a PDF version with a fancy title page.
To do this, all you have to do is take your article that was written in Google Docs or Word, export it as a PDF, create a cover in Canva, and then combine the pieces together.
Or maybe you just want to give away a spreadsheet as a content upgrade.
All you have to do is create a Google Sheet and set the permissions on it so anyone on the Internet can view it and make a copy.
When the reader signs up for the content upgrade, send them a link to the Google Sheet and you’re done.
Here’s how you can start using content upgrades in your content strategy.
Go to Google Analytics — or any other analytics tool that you use — and see which articles are your most popular articles.
Read through the articles and think about how you can “give a little extra” to the reader. Remember, this doesn’t have to be time-consuming — I’ve seen content upgrades that are just a list of links.
Yes, really.
Create your content upgrade, set up a form to capture email addresses, and then hook up everything to an autoresponder.
Do this with all the articles it makes sense to do this with.
You can also do the same thing with YouTube videos. At the end of the video, have a call to action to lead viewers to the written article version of your video where they can download the content upgrade.
Speaking of calls to action…
A clear call to action
I just audited a company’s blog and one of the first things I saw was there were no calls to action at the end of their articles.
If you don’t know what a call to action is, a call to action (CTA) tells the reader or viewer what to do after they read your article or view your video.
Many times, YouTubers tell their viewers to like and subscribe at the end of their videos. This is a CTA.
But CTAs are often absent with many pieces of written content.
And it makes no sense.
When a reader gets to the end of your article, you have their full attention. You already have their eyeballs, you just need to put something else in front of them.
Oftentimes, this can be to read another article, download a content upgrade, or sign up for a trial of your SaaS.
Whatever your CTA is, make sure you have one.
Here’s how you can start using CTAs in your content strategy.
Go through all of your articles, videos, and other content. This can include webinars, emails, tweet threads, whatever you have.
What is the reader or viewer supposed to do when they finish consuming the content? You need to directly tell them what to do.
Like with content upgrades, don’t overthink this. Your CTA can be as simple as reading a related article. Just make sure you have something.
And those are the three things your SaaS content marketing strategy must have in 2022 if you want to stand out.
In the comments below, tell what you’re going to focus on first: video, content upgrades, or adding CTAs.
