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Content marketing has become very popular in the last few years, with 89 percent of marketers using content marketing. But why? Well, it’s simply because of the internet.
The move to online media, and more recently, to mobile, means that people are now pickier about getting their information and how to get it. This has led to many big and small businesses coming up with detailed content strategies for their marketing.
But before we get into the deep end of Content Marketing, let’s first define it.
What is Content Marketing?
If you want to develop authority in your field, content marketing is what you need.
Content marketing, in a nutshell, is all about making and distributing content that tells stories, solves problems, gives information, and tips and advice to prospects and consumers. This can be in blog posts, videos, podcasts, webinars, images, and other things. When done well, content marketing drives traffic, builds loyalty, and translates to sales.
People involved in content marketing are called Content Marketers.
What do Content Marketers do?
As a content marketer, their job is more than writing a compelling post with an eye-catching title every few weeks. It’s a lot more than that. They should always be up to date with the latest trends at the very least.
They should also be well equipped with topic information by reading case studies, researches, tweets, posts, and blogs. All these while making sure the content calendar stays on track.
Content marketers also handle different channels and platforms, like emails, Google, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and more.
Beyond that, they have to target their content to different groups of people at other points in the marketing process. They have to work with various teams to ensure the right people find their content on the site.
Why is Content Marketing Important?
Content marketing is essential because it helps you build trust, nurture relationships, improve conversions, and get more leads.
According to Marketing Insider Group, the number one reason why content marketing is important is that it can produce three times as many leads as outbound marketing. It can also get more conversions and 7.8 times more web traffic!
Additionally, content marketing is cheaper. All you need to make good content is imagination and skill.
Businesses (even small ones!) can get new customers by writing about things that their target audience would like.
Promotional content is no longer a good way to get people to buy your products. Today, marketers make original content to answer people’s questions, solve their problems, boost their website traffic, and make more sales.
How do you do Content Marketing?
Now that we’re in the nitty-gritty of content marketing let’s further discuss how it works.
Do it smartly rather than bombarding your target audience with marketing messages and data about your business. Start at the fundamentals.
Remember that content marketing only attracts prospects by giving them interesting and relevant material. And to draw them in, you need to do these three things first:
1. Get to Know Your Customer
Knowledge is power.
An effective content marketing approach begins with deep customer knowledge. So before you start creating content, genuinely listen to who your target audience is and what they want and need.
Getting to know your customers is the best way to give them good service, which leads to strong customer relationships and sales. However, it’s not always easy to figure out what your customers think.
That is why you need to pay attention to every customer interaction and ask yourself the following questions:
- How are they using the product or service?
- Are they satisfied using the product/service?
- What changes would they like to see in the product/service?
The more you do this, the more valuable customer information you build up. This information can be used to create and write targeted content.
2. Develop a Brand
North Arizona University defines branding as “the heart of marketing.” They say this because people are more likely to buy something from a brand if they recognize its color theme, logo, or other things. This is because they already know your brand and what it stands for. In essence, branding is equal to customer recognition.
A good brand can be simple and minimalistic or wild and eye-catching. Something that will always be able to be seen in a sea of other brands.
Branding is vital for Content Marketing since it helps you stand out in the crowd. To do this:
- Think about what you do best and who your ideal customers are.
- Use graphics and words that clearly show your business to your target audience.
- Use your branding to make your messages and advocacies clear.
If done correctly, your brand can assist you in getting a stronger foothold in your niche market.
Also, According to a study in 2010, Millennials place a lot of value on brand identification when describing themselves online. This is almost as important as ethnic background to them. This means that branding is powerful because it relies on personal identification and emotional connection.
3. Have a Marketing Strategy
In the most recent research by the Content Marketing Institute (CMI) and MarketingProfs, only 37% and 40% percent of B2B and B2C marketers said their company has a written content marketing plan.
Another study found that those with a written content marketing strategy are much more likely to meet their goals and achieve success with their marketing.
So why is it important to have a strategy?
It allows you to figure out growth opportunities and save valuable resources such as time and money. Strategy optimizes work. And SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis is the most popular method of getting started with it.
A SWOT analysis looks at internal and external factors affecting your business. Internal factors are your strengths and weaknesses, while external factors are the threats and opportunities. If an issue or situation would exist even if your business didn’t (such as changes in technology or a major flood), it is an external issue.
Identifying the strengths and weaknesses of a marketing plan makes it easier for a company to take advantage of any opportunities and figure out how to deal with any threats that might arise from the plan.
It’s also essential for key shareholders to stay involved in implementing their chosen strategy for a long time. Senior management must make sure they stay up to date and are open to new ideas that will help their brand grow.
Once you settle with these three things, you are ready to start creating your content. But what content should you focus on? Well, we have a few ideas.
Content Marketing Examples
There are plenty of amazing content marketing examples out there, and as time goes by, businesses find new ways to innovate them. But don’t stress too much. Remember that success comes in various forms. One viral video may be all it takes for your businesses to rise. The key here is consistency.
Anyways, no one strategy will fit it all in content marketing. Like all businesses, you need to mix and match content to gather enough data to assess the type of content that engages your audience. For some entrepreneurs, blog posts work. But others venture into video marketing and podcasting.
To help you understand these marketing strategies and to determine which one suits your branding, we’ve written down below the top 4 popular Content Marketing examples:
1. Blog Posting
This article is called a blog post.
Blogs are short or long, informal articles written by people who want to show their knowledge and thoughts on a particular subject. They are often a great way to add new content to a website and help with email marketing and social media promotion to get more people to visit your site.
Blogging is an excellent way to share information about your business and its services. It also lets you talk about your own opinions and thoughts about certain things.
To make your company more credible and friendly, you should start blogging about what you do. So, don’t be afraid to write about what you like on your blogs, comment on current news or market trends, or teach your readers about a certain subject. Always write your blog posts with your readers in mind, and don’t forget about them.
Remember that 77% of internet users read blogs, so don’t miss out on that figure.
2. Video Marketing
You can use videos to promote and market your product or service, teach your customers and consumers about what you do, and connect with your audience.
If that does not convince you, look at this video marketing statistic:
- Hubspot found out that 78% of people watch online videos every week, and 54% of people do it every day!
- Google says that 6 out of 10 people would rather watch online videos than TV!
- YouTube analytics indicates that its users watch more than 1 billion hours of video on the site every day!
Our hot take: video marketing is the future of marketing!
Furthermore, videos help people remember better. If your customers only hear something, they’re likely to remember about 10% of what they heard three days later. But if what they hear is accompanied by relevant imagery, they’ll remember about 50% to 65% of the information three days later.
3. Infographics
Venngage defines infographics as a collection of imagery, data visualizations like pie charts and bar graphs, and minimal text that gives an easy-to-understand overview of a topic.
They further add that infographics are a valuable tool for visual communication. The most visually unique, creative infographics are often the most effective because they grab our attention and don’t let go.
Using infographics can help you get more people to know about your business, improve your search marketing results, and even make your business go viral!
The numbers about infographics also indicate that this strategy works. In fact, in a study conducted by OneSpot, they found that infographics can increase website traffic by up to 12%.
According to Digital Information World, infographics are 30 times more likely to be read in their entirety than blog posts or news articles. So if you have the talent in graphic design, this content is a must-try!
4. Podcast
Podcasts can be a good way to grow your business. They can not only send traffic to other social media sites, but they can also get more loyal followers.
A post by Messiah University noted that podcast listeners tend to respond more positively to advertising than on TV. The reason for this is emotion. Because listeners start to trust their favorite podcast host and feel a connection to them, this increases ad approval rates so that 54% become more likely to consider the brand.
Additionally, Podcast Hosting writes that almost one-half of all listeners fall between the ages of 12 and 34, 25% have a four-year college degree, and 41% earn over $71,000. Podcasts attract young, educated, and successful professionals. If a company targets this demographic, it needs to enter the podcasting world to reach them.
In essence, podcasts can be used for other things and not just for marketing. They also help teach and connect with customers on a more personal level while also building a group of people. In this day and age, when brands want to be on social media, podcasts are not something that should be missed.
Looking for Great Content Ideas?
Content marketing can be one of the best ways to market your business, and it can also be one of the most difficult.
But as long as you know these basic things about content marketing, you can quickly develop a great campaign to double your reach and sales. Keep in mind that the best content marketing is when you send the right message to the right people at the right time.
If you need a marketing team to help you get it right, especially in conceptualizing and implementing great ideas, consider reaching out to a tried-and-tested marketing company.
Verafede is one of the most well-sought integrated marketing communications agencies in the Philippines!
We have been in business for more than eight years, and we have successfully helped small and big companies with their marketing campaigns! If you want the same in your business, contact us, and let’s turn ideas into a great experience!
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Miguel Edosma
Miguel Edosma has a bachelor degree in Banking and Finance at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. But because of his interest in writing, media, communication, research, film, and advertising, he changed his career trajectory to marketing. He currently writes for online news websites, BPOs, and various film groups, and is an intern at Verefede.