What started out as just a marketing tactic and then succeeded to become a marketing model - is now something that most brands invest in.
We’re talking about content marketing. About 6-7 years ago, content marketing wasn’t as competitive as it is now. Now, every brand from small boutique shops to large corporates are heavily entrenched in content marketing. The competition is real and this is one of the major reasons why brands have chosen to be less hard selling and more relevant instead. If you attempt to offer your audience more than just products and services, if you make it relevant for them, if you make them interested in your brand story through clever means; you will be able to acquire customers and loyalists. Content marketing really does work! Here are two questions that will help you with the basics of content marketing.
Quantity or quality?
Your gut hinted at the quality, and you are absolutely right. You will need quality work to help you stand out from the crowd. If you blog every single day, but your content is boring and not beneficial, it can be a complete waste of your time. As opposed to posting twice or thrice a week with valuable content that people are looking forward to.
What should your content marketing be based on?
Your content strategy should be in line with your organization’s core objectives. If the content you put out has contradicting opinions, it may create confusion in the minds of your audience. Be clear, simple and understand your audience to cater to their needs.
Now it is quite clear that content marketing should lean towards creating quality and engaging content, rather than just selling a brand. But what are the factors that lead to this huge shift, let’s take a look.
Content marketing is evolving.
There will never be a dull moment in the history of content marketing. You will always have to be on your toes and adapt to new circumstances. From new content production techniques to new ways of consuming it, from blogs to social media, you need to seize the moment and make it count.
Video is slowly taking over.
Content marketing is now also having to compete with the video era. Most users would rather watch a 3- minute video clip rather than read a 10-minute article detailing out the exact same content. This is also due to our deteriorating attention span, but the only way to tackle it is – talk less brand, build more relevance and value.
How SEO is dependent on content.
Earlier SEO played an important role on its own, but now without the right kind of content, it can fall flat. For SEO to work its charm, you need to pair it with the right content – relevant, compelling and engaging.
Promoting your content is as important as creating it.
Gone are the days when you thought promoting your content was like cheating your way to the top. Now, even though gaining an organic reach is considered great, if you have spent money and effort in creating valuable content, it is in your best interest to promote it as well. This way you will be able to reach a wider audience too.
Content needs to be more creative.
The need of the hour is quite simple, content marketing has to up its game further and become more creative. Especially to drive engagement and beat the competition. This will affect the style of content marketing, the technique, and story-telling aspect. Content marketing experts are already embracing these changes and improving their skills, so take note too! And remember marketing is absolutely impossible without great content.
This article first appeared online on AdAge India, and features Yellow Seed | The Content Company