Get in Front of Your Target Audience: BlogDash Connects Brands with Influencers to Implement Content Marketing Strategies That Work

TL; DR: More than a decade ago, BlogDash recognized the impact bloggers could have on content marketing and built a platform to connect them with relevant companies. Now, those influencers are becoming a critical part of brand imaging, and content marketing has surpassed most other advertising strategies. That’s why BlogDash helps businesses — including giants like Intel and Hewlett-Packard — develop forward-thinking campaigns that resonate with their audiences. BlogDash pairs its clients with influential voices who can drive SEO, social media buzz, and traffic based on quality content.

Advertising strategies have shifted dramatically over the last three decades as the internet has evolved. Offices full of marketing professionals creating catchy jingles or memorable TV commercials are not enough to help brands succeed in the modern landscape.

Today, more than 55% of marketers identify content marketing — which is content created with a product and purpose in mind — as their top inbound strategy. And popular bloggers, YouTubers, and social media influencers have emerged as the most coveted content marketers.

The strategy is no longer optional according to Steve Koulouris, Content Marketing Consultant for BlogDash, a platform that connects brands with those influential bloggers.

“If you’re a brand, you have to jump on the influencer bandwagon now,” he said. “Brands need to look at it as a key aspect of their marketing strategies.”

Steve pointed to Snow, a company that designed an innovative teeth-whitening system, as a powerful example of effective content marketing. In fact, Snow has quickly grown into a nearly $100-million business while solely relying on content marketing.

“Influencer marketing works, and the proof is there,” Steve said.

BlogDash has been in the content marketing business since 2008 when blogging was emerging as an advertising channel. The company recognized the power the format had to connect businesses with their target audiences through relevant content.

With its signature Campaign Complete Service package, BlogDash can control blogger outreach and finds influencers to generate content — and buzz — about a company to drive traffic and sales.

And BlogDash’s strategies — whether aimed at traffic, engagement, or SEO — are so effective that the company promises results from content within six months.

Bloggers may have niche audiences, but they also have a tremendous influence on how their readers or viewers perceive a brand. If a person views a content creator as credible, he or she is much more likely to purchase a product — or at least visit the company’s website to find out more about it.

Many companies don’t know where to begin, which is why BlogDash connects them with its blogger network. Steve said BlogDash has many strategies for pairing a business with the most relevant content creators.

“Our strategy depends on what they’re looking for. Some may have a brand awareness goal, an ROI goal, or a regeneration goal,” he said.

Once the company determines what a client is seeking, it explores the audiences of the influencers on its platform to see what demographic may be the best fit. For example, BlogDash wouldn’t pair a company specializing in clubwear with an influencer who has an audience of mostly older adults.

“We find the most relevant influencers and bloggers to pitch the brand to their audience,” Steve said.

BlogDash has built a network of more than 200,000 content creators, all of whom are willing to work with companies that fit into their niches. Some bloggers only pitch for companies that they trust and whose product offerings are highly relevant — not just loosely tied — to their audiences.

“Influencer marketing is one of the most popular marketing channels out there, and it’s still growing,” Steve said.

Finding the right audience is vital to a successful content marketing campaign, but the process of targeting those demographics has shifted dramatically. When BlogDash began 10 years ago, it could more easily guide its content to the preferred audience. But now that a Google search returns millions of articles on almost every topic imaginable, creating content that stands out from the crowd has become more difficult.

For one, search engine optimization (SEO) on Google has become more sophisticated. A decade ago, Google preferred shorter articles that were around 500 words in length, but now, longer articles perform better in search results.

The articles also need to be well-researched and valuable to readers. Strong content should never just advertise a product or service; instead, it should teach consumers something useful.

“With content marketing, fluff is out, and long-form is in — especially if you want to rank in Google,” Steven said.

“Exponentially more blog posts are written daily than were written 10 years ago. To stand out, you need to be unique. Google has so many articles to choose from on every topic, so you need to have an original angle.” — Steve Koulouris, Content Marketing Consultant for BlogDash

Further, the content should be unique, as a reader won’t be interested if they can find the same topic or information all over the Internet.

“Exponentially more blog posts are written daily than were written 10 years ago. To stand out, you need to be unique,” Steve said. “Google has so many articles to choose from on every topic, so you need to have an original angle.”

Another SEO benefit is that, if influencers are talking a lot about a company, more people are searching for it on Google and visiting its website. Those activities, in turn, can improve the company’s Google ranking.

Those SEO strategies and best practices can benefit companies of all sizes and types. BlogDash has successfully run campaigns for clients that range from small startups to Fortune 500 companies. Quality content that adds value for readers or viewers is what every company should be looking for in content creators.

Content marketing — and the advertising industry in general — has undoubtedly changed considerably since 2008. But despite the evolution of influencers, platforms, and expectations, many of the benefits of a successful campaign have remained the same.

BlogDash’s content marketing services can increase brand awareness and referral traffic for brands. When trusted influencers present relevant, quality products to their audiences, readers or viewers are more receptive.

“If they’re curious enough, audiences click on your website to read more about your brand,” said Steve. “ And the more bloggers and influencers write about you on social media channels, the more traffic you’ll see. It’s a cycle” said Steve.

Businesses can also benefit from the content in the long run. Marketing content that remains relative for a long time, also known as sticky marketing, can continue to impact a company’s bottom line.

“We see articles that send a company referral traffic three years down the road — either through Google or through a blogger’s personal archive,” Steve said.

Years ago, content marketing was a new approach that companies may not have known would become the standard. Today, companies can’t afford not to incorporate relevant influencers as part of their marketing portfolio.

“We’ve been doing this for 11 years, and we’re still chugging along,” Steve said.