Google makes substantial changes to its search algorithms several times a year. The most recent was the helpful content update in August. According to Google, the update will “ensure people see more original, helpful content written by people, for people, in search results.”
While these Google core updates are supposed to improve the quality of searches, they can also devastate your website rankings. So, how can accounting firms continue to rank in searches despite continual updates to the Google algorithm?
Leveraging an “integrated marketing communications” approach offers resilience and success when coaxing clients to the top of Google search rankings — even in the midst of continual algorithm changes. The strategy relies on balancing the four media cornerstones of integrated marketing communications: (1) owned media, (2) earned media, (3) paid media, and (4) shared media.
This article offers an overview of the four media cornerstones of IMC and how to use them best.
What is IMC and how does it improve Google rankings?
Integrated marketing communications blends multiple marketing techniques and media channels into a cohesive, multipronged strategy. The cornerstones of this strategy include the four types of media — owned, earned, paid and shared.
By publishing media across all of these channels, IMC campaigns reach the largest and broadest range of potential accounting clients. They also reach the influencers that these accounting clients organically respond to. Most importantly, they skyrocket marketing efficacy while lowering costs.
When traditional media, internet blog posts and influencers across the internet begin to reference your content as a primary source of truth (and when web searchers spend time on your website and share its content), Google perceives your website as providing “helpful content.” This supports the rise in the ranking of your content and websites in Google searches.
4 cornerstones of integrated marketing communications
Let’s look at the four cornerstones of an IMC strategy in detail so you can ensure your content marketing efforts stand firmly on all four pillars: