You know that you are an expert in your niche. You know you have the information and valuable experience that you can share with others and you are eager to get the word out. The downside? Algorithms don’t always match up with intent and you might find yourself lost in a sea of voices, some of which are far less qualified in your field than you are.
This is a point of frustration for many people in industries across the board. Getting your content viewed is often a matter of getting into the top spots of Google’s search results. Featured snippets and the evolving method that Google introduces content has made that more important than even… some people don’t even pay attention to link results and just focus on the drop down question feature, or the top text result offered at the top of the page.
Becoming an authority in your niche requires a breakthrough. That takes time, energy, persistence and top notch content that shines above all the rest. There is no way around it, you will have to put in some hard work to get up there in the top list of go-to sources.
The good news is that there are tools that can make it a bit easier and automate part of the process.
Here are six that you should have in your arsenal to make the rest of 2020 (and beyond) the most productive of your career.
The Tools
- Guest Posting – This isn’t a straight faced tool like some of the others on the list, but I maintain it is going to be one of your most important methods of getting your name out there. For a while, Google pushed hard against guest posting and even Matt Cutts came out stating it was dead. That was a bold proclamation and one that has proven to not be the case. Guest posting is thriving and a great way to start getting your name out and attracting a wider audience. Look for opportunities at websites you frequent yourself and reach out with solid pitches for articles you could provide for them. Most are happy for the free content and you will be glad for the free visibility.
- Email Subscriptions – Social media sort of drowned out email when it comes to popular topics and yet it remains even more relevant and effective. Let’s look at two important statistics. The first one comes from Hubspot, which found that 73% of marketers have seen an increase in their customer engagement in the past year, so email is still generating leads. Which means it is still a very valid way to reach an audience and become an influencer. The second stat comes from Email Monday, which found in a study that for every dollar you spend on email marketing, it generates $38 in profit. That shows not only the budget friendly nature but the level of reach email still holds.
- BuzzSumo – Our first app on the list is BuzzSumo, which most reading this will have heard of before. This is an ace in the whole research tool, specifically when it comes to their content analysis feature. When you search for relevant keywords, you will be able to select content analysis for the search. You will get the most relevant sites (this could be helpful for guest blogging opportunities, as well as scoping the competition). Most importantly, it will give you the most popular topics that are trending for those key phrases. Knowing what it is people are searching for and reading about lets you establish a baseline for what content will be most relevant to your target audience. You always want to be looking for the best possible topics that are going to capture the attention of searchers.
- StoryBlocks – I am a big believer in using media to help strengthen your content. Why? Because it helps solidify your message in the minds of users and depending on the style of content you will be utilizing, it may be more critical than for others. Storyblocks is a great premium royalty free media curator that lets you pick and choose from thousands of audio, video and image files that can be used to improve your content and make it more digestible for the viewer. I always suggest this one to video content creators in particular. Their all access pass also gives you backgrounds, after effects and more so you can get pretty creative without spending too much.
- Qwaya – Social media presence will always be important but so is utilizing the right platform for targeting ads (yes, ads are a great way to build niche authority!). Facebook remains the top contender and the most customizable thanks to their demographic capability, large number of daily users and the ability to narrow down your audience through exclusions. Qwaya is a tools specifically for analyzing Facebook ads, including their efficiency and what it is attracting users to click on them. Their A/B testing feature is the best I have seen for the task and gives you a measurable way of seeing what is and isn’t working. That will save you a lot of cash on ad reach and give you more data to further narrow that audience down for more clicks.
- Tweepi – Twitter is an important platform for one on one engagement with your demographic. It is also a great place to grow that audience and get seen. But how do you push through the noise and find valuable followers that are interested in what you have to say? Tweepi is an awesome tool for doing just that. It searches out people who are interested in your niche. From there, all you have to do is follow, engage and build a relationship. Since they are already interested in what you have to say, it is a fantastic method of getting follow backs that actually pay attention and take part in the conversation.
Do you have any tools that have helped you build your niche authority in the past? Any advice to share? Let us know in the comments!