Content Marketing in Nigeria: Ultimate Beginner’s Guide

Content marketing in Nigeria is a powerful approach that allows businesses in Nigeria to connect with their target audience, build trust, and drive profitable customer actions. 

By consistently delivering valuable content, businesses can establish their brand, attract and engage customers, and ultimately achieve their marketing objectives. 

When it comes to Content Marketing in Nigeria, is not very different from Content marketing in other parts of the world because they all have some similarities, and they all function as a middleman between a customer, and a purchase. 

We will get into the in-depth aspect of content marketing, I will tell you all you need to know about content marketing as a Nigerian. I will tell you how to create profitable and engaging content, and how to make sure it ranks in search results like Google, Bing, YouTube, etc. 

What is Content Marketing in Nigeria? 

Content marketing in Nigeria is simply a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage a specific target audience in the Nigerian business environment. 

It revolves around the idea of providing valuable information, entertainment, or education to potential customers, rather than explicitly promoting a product or service. It is one of the two main types of marketing, which are Traditional and Digital Marketing also known as inbound marketing. 

Importance of Content Marketing in Nigeria in Today’s Digital age

Content marketing is very important in today’s Nigerian economy because people are now going digital compared to the 80s and 90s when people did not have access to the internet, digital products, and services.  

Content marketing builds customer awareness, generates leads, and increases conversions. With the advancement of the digital age, content has become an essential part of any marketing strategy.

Understanding Content Marketing as a Nigerian

To succeed in content marketing as a Nigerian, there are things you have to consider due to how businesses are run here. There are general rules of thumb and there are things that are Nigeria-specific.

You must be able to answer questions like; 

• Who
• What 
• Why and
• How 

Since Content marketing is not just putting content out there and hoping someone sees it. But it’s intentional content writing that focuses on a particular group of people, solving their problems by educating them on the right product purchase and services best suitable for them. 

You must know who your customer will be, what they want, why they want that thing, and how you can give a solution to their problem. 

Since content marketing focuses on attracting and engaging your audience to take action, our purpose should align with our target audience by satisfying the need and search intent. 

You must have a clear goal in mind, what you want to achieve in your content should be clear and concise, and that will increase your engagement because you can understand what the need. 

Content marketing comes in various forms; 

• Blogs and Articles 
• Social media posts
• Video and Podcast
• Brochure or Product Description 
• Email Newsletter 
• Press release
• Ebooks etc. 

Blogs and articles: This is the most intensive written form of content marketing. You use blog posts and articles to sell products and services to your target audience. Check out how to start your content marketing blog today. 

In this case, your website visitors who searched for those products and services online and you were able to guide them through, and they feel comfortable and satisfied to buy what you suggest for them.

According to Koko.ng bloggers earn about 4 million Naira every single month. So you see why this business model is so lucrative. 

The catch here is that you must own a blog to get this type of customer. So if you are interested in starting your blog today, you can do your research to know how to start a content marketing blog today in Nigeria.

Social media posts: This is also a powerful way to sell online. If you are an influencer that has a large number of followers. You can promote products and services on your page by making content that resonates with your audience about the product or services you are promoting. 

According to the Hootsuite blog, some influencers make up to $35,000 and more.

Videos and podcasts: I don’t want to over-emphasize this aspect because as a Nigerian you probably have watched a lot of videos online (YouTube, Tiktok, Instagram, you name it).

There, people are educated, entertained, informed, and create awareness of one kind or the other.

Influencers encourage their audience to purchase products and services through their affiliate links and they also sometimes sell their digital product to them. 

According to Bizvestor YouTubers in Nigeria earn more than 5 million Naira every month. 

There are differences between Content Marketing and Traditional Advertising, I will mention 5 of them briefly in the table below. 

Content Marketing	Traditional Advertising
This is a two-sided communication with customers in content creation (inbound).	This is a one-sided communication with customers in content creation (outbound).
Here content is created for specific groups of people.	Here content is created for a broad audience.
Long-term strategies are implemented.	Short-term strategies are implemented.
Strategies are low cost.	Strategies are costly
Focuses on technology.	Does not focus on technology.

As I told you earlier, content marketing is not just putting out content and hoping people will see it. But you must have a targeted group of people you want to market to, you must also understand them and be able to satisfy their pain points. 

Importance of Defining a Target Audience

Successful content marketing depends on finding a targeted audience for your content, and your products and services.

The more tightly defined your audience, the more successful your SEO efforts can be and the more you will make more money because more views mean more people are likely to buy from you. 

For example, there is a lot of competition for people looking for information on “how to make money online”. 

So if you niche down your content to “how to make money online through writing” you will get some specific audience who are interested in writing and you can get more views and engagement because it resonates with them. 

Another example is for people who are in the affiliate niche, buyers may search for watches to buy online. 

If you create content focusing on “gold wristwatch” you will reach those buyers who are interested in it.

And you stand a better chance than another person who writes about all the wristwatches. 

Now you know that to sell you must know your audience, but how will you find the right audience to market to? 

It all boils down to conducting market research (feasibility study). Here you will get to find out where your potential clients are hanging out. 

You can join communities, forums, and groups where you can help answer questions and share your thoughts on a topic.

By doing so you are creating awareness among your clients and they will want more from you. 

Boom! That’s a great opportunity to bring your product and services to them because you now know that it’s viable. 

Creating Buyer Persona

Here you will have to vision your buyers/audience as one person, find their spending habits, and get to know them as an individual.

If you want to know how to create a buyer persona, check out the link to see a detailed guide on how to create it.

Creating Compelling Content

As a content marketer or a content writer, you must create contents that resonate with your audience and that will compel them to buy what you are selling to them. 

9 Steps on How to Create Compelling Content

• Define your Target Audience: Consider who you are writing to and what their needs and interests are. This will help you to create content that is relevant and engaging for them.
• Choose a Topic: Select a topic that is relevant to your audience and aligns with your business or organization. 

• Conduct Research: Gather information about your topic from reliable sources to ensure that your content is accurate and well-informed. 

• Create an Outline: Organize your ideas and decide on the structure of your content. An outline can help you to stay focused and ensure that your content flows logically. 

• Write a Compelling Headline: A headline is the first thing that a reader will see, so it should be attention-grabbing and descriptive of the content that follows. 

• Use short Paragraphs and Bullet points: Break up your content into short paragraphs and use bullet points to make it easier to read and scan. 

• Use Subheadings: Subheadings help organize your content and make it easier for readers to find the information they seek. 

• Use Text Formatting: Bolding, italicizing, and underlining can help to highlight important points and make your content more visually appealing. 

• Edit and Proofread: Make sure to proofread your content for spelling and grammar errors. It can also be helpful to have someone else review your content for clarity and concision.

Extra Tips in Content Writing

• Know your purpose
• Keep it simple
• Use active voice
• Use images and media
• Use formatting to your advantage 
• Use Storytelling 
• Use strong call-to-action
• Be Consistent
• Keep it up to date
• Use examples and Illustrations

• Study the competition: check on your competitor’s websites, forums, and communities and look for what you can do better than them and help your audience. 
• Ask people: This is also called finding fresh eyes, here you ask your team members to come up with something unique to the table, or you ask your friends for suggestions. 
• Consider your audience: Pay close attention to your analytics and insights about your previous post to find out what your audience is more interested in.
• 3Rs: This is my acronym for Refresh, Reuse, and Recycle. Check your old and dead content, try to repurpose it, and make it come to life again. 

When it comes to developing your content calendar, you need to have the following crucial components;

• Brainstorming content ideas
• Have written down topics to write in advance 
• Have branding that tells your audience that it’s your content
• Plan content around holidays, special events, or trending topics

When it comes to content marketing, SEO is very important. Let’s say you write a blog post and no one is seeing it, what’s the essence? 

Importance of SEO in Content Marketing

The importance of SEO is that it allows potential customers to see you, meaning that the process of engagement can begin.

SEO is a pathway for visibility, which, depending on your purpose, can impact the buying cycle. Knowing what people are looking for by conducting thorough keyword research. 

Keyword and keyword research has a crucial role to play in content marketing. 

You can use tools like; 

1. SemRush
2. ahref
3. h-supertools changed to Promoter kit

To improve your keyword research. These tools will help you know the monthly search volume, domain rating for the top-ranking site, keyword difficulty, and other factors to consider while finding keywords. 

On-page SEO

On-page SEO has to do with optimizing your blog archive page with the accurate description with your keyword in mind, it also includes adding internal and external links to your content (blog post, article, etc). 

Best On-page SEO Tools 

1. Yoast SEO
2. Rank math
3. All in one SEO 

Techniques that are used in on-page SEO

• Publish high-quality content
• Optimize page titles and meta descriptions
• Optimize page content
• Headings and content formatting
• SEO Images and other multimedia elements
• URL optimization
• Internal links
• External links

Off-page SEO

Off-page SEO includes link building, increasing link popularity, search engine, link exchange, etc.

Techniques that are used in off-page SEO

• Influencer Outreach
• Contribute as a Guest Author
• Social Media Engagement
• Social Bookmarking Sites
• Forum Submission
• Blog Directory Submission
• Article Submission

Building an audience is important because your content will be useless if no one is viewing it. 

But you must know that to build an audience you must create engaging content, if your content is visible, you must convert your viewers into returning audience and when people like your content, it will be promoted to more people. 

The following tips will help you on how to engage your audience. Design an effective and efficient introduction

• Gear your content to your listeners’ knowledge, experience, and interests
• Guide your listeners on the right track
• Use language that is clear to the ear
• Design an effective conclusion

Importance of Building a Loyal Audience

• By building a strong, engaged audience, you’ll be more likely to attract sponsors, advertisers, and other opportunities that can help you monetize your content and turn your passion into a career.
• You will have a consistent traffic
• You will have better engagement with your content
• Your audience will give you valuable feedback
• You will build a trusted community
• You will have the opportunity to make more money

Always encourage your audience to take action. They will do it because they trust you. 

Utilizing feedback and comments is very important because they will mention their problems and suggestions, and that’s a great opportunity for you to produce more helpful content. 

Case Studies of Successful Content Marketing Examples

In this article, I have given you the ultimate guide to content marketing in Nigeria. 

I want you to take the bold step and start your content marketing career as a Nigerian, also you must understand that this is not a get-rich-quick scheme or a scheme that you bring two people that will bring two people. 

It’s a lifetime investment that can make you a millionaire if you are ready to put in the right effort and strategy. As you can see, people (Nigerians) are making millions and thousands of Naira every single month, and I want you to join the online money-making gang and believe in yourself.