The importance of content design for marketing managers

As any marketing manager will champion, content is the key to a marketing funnel's success. Compelling and engaging content across all touchpoints has the power to guide customers from the awareness of a product or service to conversion.

And, each piece of content within the funnel makes up the overall user journey.

That's where content design can be applied.

What is content design?

Content design is a user-centred approach to creating content that aims to meet the needs of the audience.

Whether users are looking to buy a product, search for information, or connect with your team, effective content design guides users through the relevant content at each stage of the marketing funnel.

It involves understanding the user's journey and ensuring each piece of content is tailored to their specific needs at that stage. This means not only considering the content itself but also the format, structure and channel.

The role of content design in content marketing

Content design and content marketing are two distinct approaches to creating content.

Content design aims to produce user-centred and inclusive content, while content marketing aims to promote products or services to a specific target audience. Employing both techniques will ensure that your content:

• uses language that resonates with your customers
• targets the right audience through the right channels
• aligns with your mapped-out user journeys
• is accessible and inclusive so that everyone can benefit from your products or services

Creating digital content with the user's needs in mind should always be the top priority for any content creator. This approach incorporates best practices for readability, inclusivity, and accessibility, which can benefit your marketing efforts in the following ways:

1. Higher conversion rates

By designing well-crafted landing pages that offer clear calls-to-action and persuasive content, users are encouraged to proceed to the next stage of their journey.

2. Boost organic SEO

By adhering to content design principles, marketing teams can produce content that is well-organised, keyword-rich, and easy to navigate, resulting in improved search engine results, increased organic traffic, and enhanced brand visibility for their website.

3. Data-driven marketing

Analysing user behaviour through real data allows you to see how people interact with the content on your website or application. Combining these insights with content design thinking can lay the groundwork for your content marketing efforts.

4. Achieve consistency

Content creation should always prioritise the user, regardless of its format. By upskilling your team or partnering with a content design specialist, your marketing team will be equipped to approach content creation with the same flow, layout and tone every time.

Ready to make your content work harder for your marketing strategy?

Sometimes your content can convey all the necessary information but still fail to guide users through the customer journey effectively. Alternatively, it may feature outdated language that's no longer used by your audience. Maintaining good content hygiene is difficult when working in a fast-paced role, like marketing.

A finely-tuned content marketing strategy not only captivates your audience, it can propel your marketing KPIs to new heights — think enhanced engagement and conversion rates.

We'd recommend dedicating time to expert content design to better align your new and existing content to your users' exact needs.

Ready to redefine your content experience? Contact our content experts today or find out more about our content design work below.