News content marketing optimized using SEO helps brands enter industry-relevant conversations and win leads.

News content marketing helps businesses engage with audiences by providing readers with fodder that leads to online discussions and social chatter. Increasingly, Americans turn to the web for their news, whether in the form of video content or Twitter links, consumers rely on media sharing and third-party coverage to stay informed.

PresidentialBrafton reported that 37 percent of Americans dedicated fewer hours to cable TV news in 2013 than five years ago. In fact, approximately 39 percent of Americans read online news daily and more than half of the U.S. internet audience watches news-related video content online every day. The variety of visual media accessed by consumers ranges, from short clips (45 percent) to live story streams (19 percent) to full coverage (14 percent).

These trends were further supported by a recent survey conducted by Ask Your Target Market. According to the source, 19 percent of survey respondents said they watched the presidential inauguration, 22 percent indicated they viewed at least a portion of the broadcast and 60 percent reported not watching any of the event. Americans might wonder why such a high percentage of citizens chose not to watch their newly elected President take office, and the answer may be more complex than “they were at work.”

Mojiva, a mobile ad network, released figures showing that 42 percent of U.S. smartphone owners and 40 percent of tablet users consider their devices primary news sources. This complements AYTM’s research, which noted that an additional 18 percent of Americans read online news articles about the inauguration. Fifteen percent followed coverage on social media sites.

Businesses may not spark worthwhile conversations with prospects on topics like the presidential inauguration, but news trends can become avenues for greater exposure online. For example, a tech company publishing live coverage of the 2013 Consumer Electronics Association (CES) event will create an information hub for people attending the event and reading about newly introduced products. When brands publish SEO content that covers an event like CES, news articles will show up in areas like Google News, driving traffic back to corporate blogs.

Ted Karczewski is an Executive Communications Associate at Brafton. He works to develop his own voice and apply his passions to the evolving world of SEO and content marketing, but he doesn't shy away from writing for fun. After graduating from Suffolk University, Ted used his Communications degree to test out Sports Journalism before Marketing at Brafton.