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The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.How do I distribute the content?Now you have a whole library of content, don’t just wait for someone to stumble across it. You need toget it out there.Your websiteWith content promotion, a good place to start is on your own website, so if your site has a blog andnews page this is where initial content should be placed. You could even go one step further andcreate a resource library, categorised by topic and content type.The trick then is to get as much traffic as possible travelling from various places on the web back toyour site, reading the content you’ve produced. So, where does this traffic magically appear from ?Social mediaSocial media has become one of the most popular methods of broadcasting messages to a wideaudience, and simply through growing your following on platforms such as Twitter, LinkedIn, Google ,Instagram and Facebook, you can ensure that people are engaging with your content.Set up a schedule to share your content rather than posting as and when. Use a scheduling tool suchas Hootsuite in order to monitor your efforts so that you can refine your sharing frequency and timingsfor maximum return.Take this strategy one step further and look at how you can ensure that the ‘right’ people are readingyour content. Consider using social ads to target specific groups and user types using demographicsto get your content in front of your target audience.Top tip:Make your headlines and images as powerful and informative as possible. This is the first thing thatthe reader sees and it only takes a second to scroll down to the next postThe trick is to get asmuch traffic as possible.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.compage 9

page 10The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.Using Instagram foryour training businessUsing Instagram to make a more human and relatableconnection with your clients and prospects can really addan edge to your marketing strategy. There are already morethan 25 million businesses using Instagram every day, sodon’t miss out - embrace new technology to drive yourbusiness!1. Make it differentInstagram is a very different animal to Facebook, Twitterand LinkedIn. It’s a chance to show your followers thatthere’s a human behind the screen. Making sure your postson Instagram are not the same regurgitated content asyour other social networks is important. Instagram is allabout the visual side of your business, so try not to makeit too wordy. An image with a link (see ‘Create Stories’) willdo nicely.2. Make it personalInstagram is all about connecting and the best way todo this is through championing your customers andemployees. Ask your trainers to use a specific hashtagwhen posting pictures- this is an excellent source ofcontent for you! Show people what goes on behind thescenes in your office or workspace, or post pictures of theteam day out- make your content personal and digestible.3. Encourage interactionInteracting with your followers shows them that you’reresponsive and makes it more likely that others will seeyour post. Ask your clients and employees to tag you inimages of their training day, then add them to your page.Start conversations and ask questions.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.com4. Using HashtagsDon’t hold back when using hashtags on Instagram. Peoplefollow them, so the more you use, the more visible youare. The standard order in a post is to have your snippet atthe top, then use dots or lines to create space betweenthat and your hashtags. Don’t just go for the most obvioushashtags, throw in a few obscure (but related) hashtags toreach a wider net of people.Top tip:Create your own hashtag and encourage your employeesand clients to use it when posting their training pictures orvideos. That way, you can see what people are posting aboutyou and share or comment where appropriate.5. Create storiesThe best way to push your content on Instagram is toutilise their ‘Instagram Stories’ aspect. Instagram doesn’tallow links on regular posts but If you have a businessaccount, you can add a link to your stories. This means thatbusinesses are able to push specific content through linkson their ‘stories’. The finite nature of Instagram Stories (24hours) adds a sense of urgency to the posts, encouragingpeople to look before it’s gone.6. Use Video“63% of marketers use video content in their social mediamarketing.” So get filming! It is a great tool for grabbingattention and followers, especially if you are able to uselive videos in your feed. Use Boomerang to create loopingvideos within the App, for an added fun element.

page 11The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.How do I distribute thecontent? (cont)Email MarketingIt is suggested that onlyEmail marketing software allows content producers to send their content totargeted email addresses and then track who opened the article and when. It iscommon to run a weekly or monthly email newsletter to a database of emails,but content is king here once again. Don’t just spam inboxes with impersonalsales messages – that way leads to emails getting deleted, or worse, peopleunsubscribing. Always add value, every time an email is sent.should be spent creatingcontent with 80% spentpromoting it.The best way to do this is by writing new content and sending links to it withinthe email campaign. This not only drives engagement with your target market, italso channels traffic back to your website.Oh, and don’t forget to optimise your emails for all devices, to engage everyone– especially since the use of mobiles and tablets for primary communicationcontinues to increase.Top tip:Rather than using purchased email lists, make use of your business analytics andsegment clients and courses. Offer content relevant to courses delegates havepreviously attended for maximum open and click rate.Industry SitesA technique also growing in popularity, and while your content might not besuitable for The Times, it could well be of interest to an industry B2B websiteor magazine. This is where your target market is congregating, and building arelationship with the site’s editorial team, through sending quality content, willhelp bridge that gap between trainer and potential customer.product and servicecontent are the most common.Top tip:If you’re appearing on an industry site, remember you’re gainingauthority by proxy – so really show off your expertise while adaptingyour usual writing style to fit the intended site. Your contentshould feel like a natural extension of the site, not a weird add-on.Editorial guidelines will help here.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.com20% ofyour time(Derek Halpern of Social Triggers)

The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.How do I distribute the content?(cont)Paid searchGot awesome – and awesomely relevant – content but not sure where to place it? Then paid searchmay be the way to go here. Those are the little ads that appear above organic search results on searchengines. This is a lot quicker than SEOing (carry on reading for more information) the heck out of yourcontent, but on the flip side, it’s going to cost you too.All of the top three search engines (Google, Bing and Yahoo) offer some form of advertising, and it’sworth looking into all of them. True, Google dominates, but Bing and Yahoo combined power around athird of all online searches; that’s a vast audience not to be dismissed.If you’re opting for paid search, you’re not going to be spending out to promote your latest blog,however brilliant it is – there’s got to be a sales benefit here or, at the very least, content that helpspush an agenda that will lead to future sales. Maybe you’re showcasing a product or service, offeringindustry leadership, or providing resources like infographics, which you hope others will feature ontheir site – and thus offer a boost to your SEO. All of these are perfectly acceptable ways to use paidsearch, although product and service content are the most common.Top tip:Keep your content titles as clear as possible (take the Ronseal approach and think concise, headlinestyle titles that do what they say on the tin; don’t try to be clever). Since every click costs, you wantto make sure you’re driving relevant traffic to that piece of content.Influencer PostsWho is the biggest influencer in your industry? Having that person share or even feature your contenton their website is a great way to increase visibility. This may involve a fee or they may find a pieceof your content of interest. Don’t just wait for the latter to happen, get in touch with themwith the relevant pieces.Top tip:Get on your influencer’s radar beforehand by responding to their tweetsand commenting on their articles, and – when you write a piece thatfeatures them – tag them on social media .enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.compage 12

The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.Great content ties into aneffective SEO strategyPaid searchGoogle and other search engine websites have become instrumental when it comes to digitalmarketing, and it’s important for training companies to tie in their content production with an SEOstrategy.SEO refers to Search Engine Optimisation, and is the process by which marketers improve the ‘ranking’of their website on specific key terms. If you train in sales, type in ‘sales training’ to Google and seewhere your website is; does your site appear on page 1, 2, or 62?The benefit is obvious. A great deal of people search ‘sales training’ and the companies on page 1benefit from the traffic and enquiries that come through the website. So how can content tie into thisstrategy? There will be certain key terms that different training companies will want to get ‘ranked’ onpage 1 of Google, and these are the terms that should be naturally embedded into the content that isbeing produced. This type of ‘optimised content’ will help Google to recognise that the content beingproduced is related to those key words, and this puts the content featured on the website a betterchance of rising up the Google rankings and collecting some of that valuable traffic.For instance, if you want people to discover you for ‘leadership training’, then your website will benefitby including this phrase in the copy, with a link to the relevant page of your website. These sorts ofphrases should appear natural in their usage – remember, you’re writing for both Google and for youractual readers, who can spot an awkwardly deployed keyword or phrase at twenty paces.Develop a content strategy checklistUnderstand your customers –who are you aiming the content at?Research how to find these customers – which channels are the most appropriate?Create an editorial calendar –know what you’re talking about and when andwhy, rather than panicking because you haven’t got a topic in mind.Extend the life of your content by repurposing – break it up andreuse it across your channels.Evaluate capabilities and resources then develop a processfor measuring and reporting.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.compage 13

page 14The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.FAQsFor some, the journey from thinking up content ideas, allthe way through to posting and marketing online, is totallyalien. For other training businesses, it may be somethingthat they have thought about before but never had thetools or time to develop a strategy. Either way, these FAQsmay help to move your digital marketing effort to reality Q) What would I write about?A) Well, this may take a bit of creative thinking because theblogs and articles that get the best response will be thosethat hit a nerve for your target market. Think about the keychallenges that your market is facing, and ask yourselfwhat value you can offer to support the work that they do.Value and content go hand-in-hand.Q) Is it just Facebook and Twitterthat I should be using?A) They are a great start, but LinkedIn is a useful businesssocial media channel. Importantly you should be buildingyour profile and following on whichever channel you areusing. Again, this is about being open and adding value foryour audience.Other social channels that could be of real use to trainersinclude Google , SlideShare, Instagram and YouTube(where you can set up your own channel).Q) How do I find the timefor a content strategy?A) Essentially, businesses can free up more of their timeby automating other parts of the business. One of thekey reasons training companies and course providers useaccessplanit software is because administrative workis clogging up their week. It doesn’t have to; softwarecan reduce the burden and free up time for high-impactmarketing.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.comQ) Page 1 for the keyword I want to useis full of huge training companies, howcan I compete with them and collectsome of that page 1 traffic?A) If this is the case, and you want a key phrase or termthat you can rank on page 1 in a shorter time, try lookingfor a less competitive key term. Use Google’s keywordtool to identify a variation of your keyword, or discover aless competitive one that would still give you good quality,relevant traffic.Q) Is there email marketing softwarethat will allow me to report on who hasopened my emails and clicked articles?A) Yes, accessplanit software has email marketing withanalytics as one of their many features on offer.Q) How often should I be writingoptimised content?A) The more the better really, but if you can work it out sothat you are writing at least one blog a week, you will be wellon your way to having a strong content strategy.Q) How do we measure success?A) The good thing about online marketing is that the vastmajority of work can be tracked and reported on. So, simplyby using a resource like Google Analytics, which will measurewebsite visits or social media to collect ‘likes’, ‘retweets’and comments, online booking will show uplifts in salesgiving you an idea of how popular the content is that yousend out.

The Beginner’s Guide to: Content Marketing for Training Companies.FAQs (cont)Q) Does content marketing replace traditional marketing?A) Marketing encompasses so many different forms, and content is one part of a huge area. Onecomponent of marketing cannot replace marketing itself. However, it should be noted that right now,content is a crucial tool in the battle for traffic because it utilises the power of social media channelsas well as the internet as a whole – allowing individuals and companies to meet marketing objectivessuch as growing profile and spreading messages to targeted audiences.Content marketing may well evolve in the future, adapting alongside technological developments.If new ways of communicating and broadcasting information are developed, content marketing willundoubtedly move with it.What’s your next contentmarketing move?Content marketing is one of the most effective forms of marketing out there. There’s a good reasonwhy the most successful B2B content marketers invest more into their content – done right and donewell, it yields a real return. It’s not a substitute for all other marketing (they each have their place andpurpose), or to be used instead of face-to-face meetings, of course. But content needs to form anintegral part of your marketing strategy.And the added bonus is that you’re the expert in your field, and content marketing is the best way toshowcase that. You know the topics inside-out, rattling out facts and stats like it’s second nature, andyou can pinpoint precisely what your customers are discussing and asking. Now is the time to addressthose questions.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.compage 15

About accessplanitAt accessplanit, training is in our DNA. We know runninga training business is tough. We know software andimplementation is hard, its not something you do every day.Our team of experts use their knowledge of working withhundreds of training companies to deliver the tools and supportyou need to achieve the results you want. Automate repetitive tasks and processes to maketime for managing what matters. Your entire training operation managed in onecentral platform. Training management made easy with our mixand match modules. Supporting our customers at every step of their journey.enquiries@accessplanit.com 44 (0)1524 389 841accessplanit.com

success – but let’s check out why content marketing is fast becoming a must for training companies. Content is the prime component of inbound marketing, from creating that stunningly well-researched article to promoting it across the right channels. Inbound marketing is a strategic way to