Think it’s hard to make noise and get noticed in the federal marketplace? Well, you’re correct, it is. However, many successful government contractors have become very effective at making noise and generate interest in their solutions with government specific content generation on their Blogs. Target messaging is not a new concept. In fact, contractors in the DC area have been doing this for years by leveraging local radio stations like FederalNewRadio and WTOP. They’ve also been running content and ads in publications like GCN, FCW and GovExec, to name a few.

Marketing professionals live and die by the saying “content is king”. Government contractors must embrace this concept and learn how to modify their content to include “government speak”. So, how does this work? How do you create targeted content that convinces your prospects to engage?

Creating a Successful Government Blog

Content marketing, in this case Gov Blogs should be used to highlight your overall industry expertise and thought leadership. Providing your target audience with unique views and opinions on the topics that impact their daily jobs is a great way to peak their curiosity. Don’t just write about your solution’s features and benefits, appeal to their motivations. Why would someone be looking for what you provide? Does what you provide make their job easier?  Does it make them more productive? More secure? People don’t typically search based on a features and benefits. They search for solutions that will solve a need that they have. And, needs are typically expressed with emotions.

Here are 5 things to consider when writing your Gov Blogs:

Post often and keep the content fresh to stay top of mind. Consider using a “series” approach. Give them something to look forward to, so that they bookmark you and are compelled to comeback. Posting often will improve your search engine rankings and certainly help drive traffic to your website.

Put yourself in their shoes. Answer the questions they would ask. Again, understand your prospects “why”. Proactively answer the questions you think your prospects want to ask.

Learn to speak “Gov”. The language of “Gov” should be an official language of the US. There are entire websites dedicated to helping individuals understand government terms and abbreviations. Make sure to speak the language of government.

Keep it simple. Blog posts are not meant to be ten page papers with an academic tone and highlighting endless research. They should be simple in nature, relevant and easily digestible. As a nation, our attention spans are getting shorter and shorter.  Enough said.

Try to get some link juice. Sharing your content on relevant social media sites like LinkedIn and GovLoop is a no brainer. However, most people don’t realize that media outlets are constantly on the lookout for great content.  Find relevant publications and make getting your content in front of them a habit. Who knows, you may get picked up or featured.

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