Build Brand Authority With Content Marketing

An organization’s brand authority indicates how well consumers trust its brand, products, or services. There are varying degrees of brand authority, ranging from simply having encountered a brand’s product to knowing and remembering a brand by name. For new brands, the simple act of stepping foot in the door is a starting point for acquiring more customers and increasing their visibility over time.

Becoming an authoritative brand is no easy feat, but the huge benefits are worth it. When you’ve gained authority, potential customers begin to rely on you and trust you – and it’s hard to imagine that trust won’t lead to a sale.

“Authority” is a buzzword in SEO and content marketing. Everyone wants it, but not everyone knows how to get it and keep it. In particular, Google rewards site and brand authority and is more likely to rank content that oozes.

Brand authority is the holy grail you achieve after months of hard work and consistency in building your online reputation. There is no overnight “person in authority” story. Instead, you need to have patience and maintain a well-formed strategy to earn your title as a cemented expert in your industry.

Well, as you understand the importance now of having authority in the market. You might be thinking how can a brand begin to build or strengthen its authority? Content Marketing is a great way, and in this article, we’ll go over our tips for doing just that.

It takes a lot of work to become an authoritative brand, but the rewards are well worth the effort. When you establish authority, potential consumers and clients come to rely on and trust you, and it’s difficult to see that trust not translating to a sale (at some point).

But how does a brand begin to establish, or build upon, its authority?

Content marketing is a great method to do that, and in this article, I’ll show you how.

1. Respond to the questions posed by your audience.

There’s almost no way you’ll become an authority if you don’t do this. People come to trust brands when they get the information they need, so if you don’t include those answers in your content marketing, you’re not showing your audience why they should trust you.

You may establish authority while also increasing brand awareness by creating on-site material that gives this kind of value. In other words, you can establish yourself as an authority figure for individuals who are unfamiliar with you.

The success of this content strategy is mostly due to search. Google undertakes a lot of curating for its customers, selecting what it feels are the most relevant results for a given query. Users assume you made it through the system for a reason and know what you’re talking about if you’re ranking at the top for a particular keyword or topic.

For example, I looked up the “shoe size chart,” which receives 49,500 monthly searches in the United States alone, according to Keyword Surfer.

People are probably looking for this because they want to buy shoes but don’t know what size to get. If consumers click this link, they will not only be taken to the website, but they will also be aware that this brand offered the solution they were looking for. While they’re on the site, they might even look for shoes.

How to put this plan into action: Talk to your customer service reps, do keyword research, and use tools like Answer the Public and BuzzSumo’s Discover Questions feature to figure out what your target audience is interested in. Then look at what’s already out there and see if you can improve on it. If you’re able, start creating!

2. Write reports and research that are newsworthy.

Showing your constant interest in finding fresh knowledge and insights is one of the best ways to showcase your expertise. You can accomplish this by putting original research first.

When you generate your own studies, polls, and reports based on new data or reveal new insights (also known as data journalism), you not only provide value to readers, but you also have something to pitch to the media.

This gives you a two-fold benefit: media coverage (which increases your brand authority) and high-quality backlinks, which tell Google that you’re an expert.

How to put this plan into action: After you’ve completed the first tip and analyzed your questions, take a step back and think about what common questions in your sector still need to be answered. What data can you use to respond to them? Use digital PR to pitch writers when you’ve generated a report that contains new information. 

3. Make use of in-house experts’ expertise.

Some brands, such as Apple’s Steve Jobs, are developed wholly around a single character, yet these instances can be intimidating. If they have subject matter experts (or SMEs) who can demonstrate their expertise, small and fledgling businesses can benefit from a similar technique.

Headspace and how it features its founder, Andy Puddicombe, is a perfect illustration of this. On their website, they have a page dedicated to him that not only explains his qualifications but also provides what are known as authority signals (which I’ll cover in more detail in the following section) and embeds his Ted Talk so you can see for yourself what he knows.

Why is this so clever? Andy began to create trust with audiences as the literal voice behind Headspace (Andy does much of the meditation audio himself). It’s only natural to build on that trust by allowing people to learn more about him and having him explain even more concepts directly through Radio Headspace and their YouTube channel. People are more inclined to trust the Headspace app if they trust Andy.

If your internal specialists have never shared anything with the public before, ask them if they’d be willing to contribute blog pieces or quotes to your website. Pitch them for a spot on a podcast or as a source for relevant news items using Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Assist them in demonstrating their expertise in ways that are beneficial to the audience.

4. Draw attention to reviews, case studies, and other evidence of expertise.

From testimonies to reviews to social media share numbers, there are dozens of different sorts of authority signals. The key is to figure out which ones make sense to promote for your products or services, and where they should go.

Using third-party validation, you want to show individuals you know what you’re talking about. Your audience doesn’t have to take your word for it that you know what you’re doing; they may hear it from others as well.

How to put this plan into action: If you don’t already have this type of content, think about how you can get it. Make contact with your finest clients and request a quote. Take a look at the best product reviews you’ve ever gotten. Mention any media references you’ve gotten. Then, not only on your homepage but also on conversion pages, include this information to create confidence when and where it matters.

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5. Collaborate with other well-known brands

“Show me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are,” as the saying goes. This is also true in marketing.

If you identify with other brands you respect that is doing the right thing by their customers/users, it’s feasible that part of that trust will be transferred to you if the respect is reciprocated. In addition, when you collaborate, you’re exposing your brand to a new audience.

So, consider which businesses might be a good fit for a collaboration. There are non-content marketing ways to do this, such as referral schemes, but there are also content-specific ways to collaborate.

How to put this plan into action: Consider which brands you have a natural affinity for in terms of goals or ideals. How can you collaborate to offer something useful to both of your audiences?

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6. Give away some of your secrets

Many marketers, especially those in the C-suite, are concerned about this. Why should you give up the qualities that make you unique?

It’s a good question, and the answer isn’t always yes. Sharing information and breaking down exactly how you achieve greatness can actually increase trust in some circumstances, especially for service-based organizations.

When you’re straightforward and honest, people appreciate that. Clients frequently collaborate with you, even if they are aware of your approach since they lack the bandwidth to execute it at scale, which takes a lot of time and resources. They can trust you to manage it for them because they know how you work.

How to put this idea into practice: Think about what information you have that you can give, even if (or especially if) your competitors haven’t. You can make a strong impression by being transparent about your field in a way that others aren’t. Of course, don’t do anything that would put your firm in jeopardy, but think about the situation and see what makes sense.

Conclusion

Investing in content marketing is a huge step in increasing your brand’s authority. You’re showcasing your own knowledge and employing your experience by providing material that’s valuable to your audience.

By incorporating the following strategies into your approach, you can considerably increase the likelihood that your audience will not only remember but also trust your brand. Furthermore, the Google algorithm is likely to acknowledge your authority, especially if you’ve built an excellent link portfolio, and your results will improve in the SERP rankings.

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