Not so long ago, using content to boost audience engagement was often only associated with businesses that were involved in industries that catered to the arts and culture.
But today, all that has changed, and even some of the biggest companies in the world are making content curation a central part of their marketing efforts.
Yet there continue to be companies that have yet to harness the power of content, as they still believe that content doesn’t matter in their industry. Luckily, developments in contemporary marketing have shown that no matter what type of business you are in, there are myriad reasons why content is still king in the marketing world. Here are 5 good ones:
1. It’s one of the best ways to create brand awareness
There are many things that go into creating a strong brand. Today consumers are more interested in the elements that create a brand more than ever before, with a growing number claiming that they would rather give money to a brand that is transparent embodies a philosophy that is aligned with their personal values. Because of this increase in the need for brands to be more than just a slick logo and a quality product in order to be successful, the art of content storytelling was born.
Companies can boost brand awareness by creating unique content that mirrors their personal mission statement, in addition to providing information about the business in a creative and engaging way.
2. It sets you apart from the competition
Even if you are new to content creation, each individual post, whether it’s an original infographic, or tools and tips article, is unique to your business. Even if the competition has an active blog, covering similar topics, one thing you can be certain is that it won’t be the same as yours as long as you focus on building what makes you stand out to your specific consumers.
Rather than sharing third party-content where you run the risk of looking unoriginal, the beauty of investing in original content means that readers will get a sense of your unique voice and company mission. If your business has little experience with content marketing, working with a data analyst to identify your target market’s needs will help you create content that is both personalized and engaging.
3. It can be a great teacher
While most content aims to provide new sources of knowledge and information to their readers, those writing the content can also learn a lot from their work. In a similar way, that data can help businesses track their growth, keeping a blog that follows the stages of your company’s development is a great way to keep a detailed record that you can share with your audience.
In addition, audience engagement with these posts can help assess what types of content is the most interesting to your specific audience. Businesses can learn a lot about themselves through the eyes of their users when they learn how to use content as a conduit for learning from your customers.
4. It’s a vehicle for lucrative collaborations
Collaborating with other companies is a great way to get your name out there. Before content marketing, businesses were heavily reliant on sponsorships and traditional advertisements, which are now becoming increasingly outdated. Companies that have a strong blog can promote other like-minded businesses by building a partnership through content marketing, through the interview formats, or by writing a collaborative piece together.
Not only good for sparking new ideas, collaborations can help your business organically grow their networks simply through exposure on a new network.
5. It’s one of the best ways to create a social media presence
Because of the power of social media can have on a company’s success, many businesses invest in social media management. While this isn’t a bad move, there are ways to cut back on marketing costs by developing a solid content marketing plan.
Companies that post original content tend to be viewed as more transparent and engaging, thus generating more likes and shares out of interest, rather than paying for them
Whether you are a freelancer, small business owner or a major corporation, no business is too big or small when to comes to benefit from content marketing. Understanding what makes content an effective part of your marketing strategy is the first step to making sure you harness power of content marketing to in order to benefit your company.
