Traditionally, legal, accounting and advisory firms haven’t had to spend a whole heap of time thinking about original content.
If they did produce newsletters or printed material for their clients, it was normally purchased content, which was rebranded and mailed out.
And when the digital age rolled around many thought they’d apply the same method to their websites and e-newsletters.
You could almost hear the collective gasp when they discovered their clients ignoring or unsubscribing from their emails, and their websites sinking way down in Google searches.
What on earth happened?
Duplicate content is what happened.
It sounds good in theory: Partner with a similar company, purchase or enter into a content sharing agreement. You’ll pack your website full of content that is particular to your industry, with very little effort.
Yet, all the content in the world is useless if no one comes to your site.
New content is rewarded
Statistically, most people will find your website through search – and few things will drop you down search results faster than duplicate content.
There are a couple of reasons for this.
Google is a complicated algorithm but, put simply, it rewards fresh and new content and punishes content that it has seen elsewhere.
Google deems websites that feature duplicated content to be less of an authority, and if business advisory, accountants and legal firms want to position themselves as authorities, they need original content.
Even if content, despite being duplicated, does make it into a search result, it’s still bad news.
Sure, your content will show up – but so will the other sites featuring that content, and the user will have to decide which one to click on. They may click on yours, but they may not.
The bottom line is: good content is extremely powerful.
Creating original content is an opportunity
Duplicate content can also really tarnish your reputation.
Just think of it from the user’s point of view: if they think your website has nothing new to show, or offers exactly the same as the next firm, good luck with getting them to come back.
Smart marketers, on the other hand, don’t look at producing content as a chore, they see it as an opportunity.
Original content is a chance to build your own voice; build on your brand.
It offers the opportunity to speak directly to your customers. It allows you to tell your audience exactly what you want them to hear; profile the products and services you want them to know about.
And the good news is that you don’t need to write technical blogs to be effective.
Think of creating original content as a way to set your readers on a course to do what you want them to do.
An article about how to approach a particular issue might end with a call to action that involves contacting your office.
An article about preventing a problem might lead to the selling page of one of your products.
These outcomes should be front of mind when planning the content you will produce.
Remember: a few pages of relevant, timely, unique and useful content will always trump pages and pages of duplicate copy.
Need help creating unique content for your business?
Whether you need written blogs, high-quality imagery or engaging videos, Assemblo can help.
With a team of qualified writers, photographers and videographers who are passionate about creating content, we’re well placed to breathe new life into your digital content.
To find out more, give us a call on (03) 9079 2555 or fill in the contact form below.