High-quality content is essential for small schools and agencies in the international education industry looking to drive business growth. But without a carefully considered plan, it's hard to get effective results. Here we’ll be sharing Part 1 of our top tips to help you build a powerful content strategy that delivers long-lasting results. 

1. Lay the Groundwork First

Before rushing into content creation, it’s important to optimise key elements like your website, design assets, analytics tracking and conversion funnels. Content works best when integrated with a fully-functioning digital marketing strategy, so focus your initial efforts on getting high-priority pages right, such as your homepage and product/service category pages.

2. Document your Strategy Thoroughly

Take time to make a record of your target audience personas, content topics and formats, distribution channels, and success metrics. Formalising these elements will give you more focus and direction, as well as allow you to revisit your content strategy regularly to refine it as needed.

3. Spotlight your Brand Story

Make use of storytelling techniques to showcase your company's origins, values, and unique identity. Transport readers into your world and establish emotional connections by sharing behind-the-scenes moments and introducing your team. These compelling narratives will make you stand out from the crowd.

4. Organise your Production Pipeline

Determine the budget, skills and staff you have available to determine sustainable content output and scheduling. While developing content in-house has some benefits, partnering with specialists like Schools & Agents to handle your content creation can provide professional support and expertise.

5. Adopt a Customer-Centric Mindset

Truly valuable content directly answers your target audience's most pressing questions and solves their problems. Therefore, do your research and focus on creating useful, practical content instead of generic industry topics already covered extensively. 

By following these key steps, you can gain a good grounding in developing an effective, tailored content strategy that evolves with your business. Look out for more tips in Part 2 of this guide coming soon!

Written by Stephanie Clark