Content marketers know that their strategies and digital expertise are just one part of the puzzle. To master the art of content marketing, you have to have many tools at your disposal.
But in the ever-evolving tech world, what are the latest and greatest must-use apps and resources that can help you up your marketing game?
That’s what we’ll look at in this 10 Top Content Marketing Tools guide. From grammar assistance to idea generators, image catalogs to content management applications, here are our content team’s picks for the 10 best content marketing tools.
Grammarly.com
For anyone tasked with not only writing, but publishing copy for a client, Grammarly is essential. Beyond just offering basic spelling corrections, the robust site also helps writers find just the right words they’re looking for.
Better yet, the app double-checks for plagiarism so you can rest assured that your work (or the work of the writer you’re editing) is 100% original every time.
For content marketers working in a second language, there’s the added benefit of cross-checking translations. Plus, Grammarly helps you tailor your tone. Think of it as an AI editor by your side to help guide your copy from draft to final piece.
Another critical benefit is for content writers who work within social media. Spelling and grammar mistakes can come at an enormous cost online where tweets and Facebook posts seem to exist forever. Spare yourself the agony of a typo with Grammarly by your side to cross-check copy even for short Instagram captions.
Pexels.com
While many content marketing teams work with professional photographers to build assets for clients, sometimes you need a stock image in a pinch. For that, there’s Pexels.
Like other stock photo options, Pexels contains a large body of professional images, but unlike other sites, Pexels images are all free. Yes, free.
Add to that the fact that this site requires no attribution AND allows modification of any videos or photos contained therein and you have one of the most convenient image services on the web.
An amazing resource for small budget projects, Pexels lets content marketers keep costs down while still offering professional quality imagery.
CoSchedule’s Headline Analyzer
Just as newspaper editors obsess over headlines, so too do content marketers live or die by what they put at the top of their blogs, newsletters, and subject lines. But how do you know if your headline is hitting the right notes?
Rather than merely play the guessing game, CoSchedule Headline Analyzer gives content creators actionable ideas to update their headlines and improve interest. Plus, did we mention it’s free?
ShareThis
One of the main goals of the work of content marketers is to encourage people to share information — tweets, blogs, earned media, etc. — about a client. To do this, we want to make the sharing process as easy as possible.
What’s the natural solution? Put share buttons on a site. But, all too often, a DIY attempt can look, well wonky. And, trust us, readers notice.
To make a client’s site look as professional as possible, ShareThis helps content marketers amplify their work by creating professional looking (and customizable) share buttons you can then place where you want on your posts.
Followerwonk
Need to build out a client’s Twitter following fast? Check out Followerwonk. This site is all about helping brands grow and engage their followers by finding other relevant Twitter followers to follow, analyzing the demographics of your Twitter followers and your competitors’ followers, tallying your gains and losses, and analyzing your competitors’ tweets and followers.
Why does all of that matter? Because to build a vibrant following you need to be aware of all of the above. Rather than tracking it with spreadsheets or exhausting counts, this tool can do the heavy lifting for you.
Mailchimp
As any content marketer will tell you, a great newsletter can be an essential part of a brand’s identity. But delivering a quality newsletter requires more than pithy copy. You need a well-designed format with easy-to-use subscriber tools, and that’s why so many marketers trust Mailchimp with this job.
A leader in the e-newsletter world, Mailchimp serves all kinds of businesses from podcasts to corporate entities. There are a variety of plans and prices so you can select what’s right for your client based on their size and subscriber list.
Simple to use, this is a tool that an entire marketing team can easily manage, a win/win for client and brand expert.
Related post: 50 Incredible Examples of B2B Email Marketing
Content King app
Hang out with a content marketer long enough and you’re going to hear the acronym SEO one or twice (or a million times). As we all know, those three letters stand for Search Engine Optimization and it is the magic glue that makes marketing decisions win or lose online.
But even the most adept at SEO could use some help, and that’s where Content King is a great tool to have. This SEO auditing tool can take a deep dive into a website, then provide suggestions for how to improve performance.
Better yet? It runs in the cloud so you don’t have to install a thing.
Survey Monkey
Research firms aren’t the only ones who use thoughtful data to drive decision making. Content marketers can gain useful insight from surveys too. But putting together a smart looking survey is harder than it looks.
That’s why Survey Monkey is so helpful. Get the real deal on how an audience feels direct from the source by, of course, asking them via Survey Monkey.
With custom report options, you can easily cull data into insightful information to use on everything from ad copy to branding decisions.
BuzzSumo
Need to whip up some smart copy fast? On your own, that could mean hours of research finding the most relevant posts, tweets, and pages on the topic of interest. But BuzzSumo promises to cut that time in half.
With this clever site, you can type in your topic and instantly get results for top performing content. Using that information, you can tailor your own copy to perform well.
Most people are already very familiar with Reddit, the online chat site with thousands of topics. But have you considered it a place to come up with content ideas?
Tap into this wealth of conversation to get some clues on what will interest readers. You can use it to get feedback to inform your brand strategy or adjust a direction accordingly.
As you might imagine, the above tools are just a smattering of the many, many digital options available to content marketers. Tech teams are constantly launching new platforms to make content marketing easier so staying ahead of the curb is of utmost importance.
But if keeping tabs on the latest tricks and tools to promote your content sounds exhausting, rest easy knowing there’s a team that can do it all for you. Zen Media is a PR agency and content marketing company well versed in the many marketing tools out there and the best ways to use them. If you’d rather let someone else manage your content strategy, give Zen a call.
