Is Content Marketing Worth it?

With all the different types of social media advertising available now a days, it’s hard to decide which type is best suited for campaigns within the different industries. Content marketing is one of the newest forms of digital marketing and is sometimes over looked. Companies are wondering if content marketing is worth putting a budget into, and if it is an effective way to reach consumers. Not only does it reach consumers on a personal level, it turns browsers into buyers and buyers into influencers. What is better then having someone who loves your product or service be the ones to sell/market it for you? This makes it seem less like marketing and more personable or real. Every company should have an online presence.

As written in Ann Handley’s book “Content Rules”, content marketing gives businesses a chance to “converse” with their consumers, to know what they like or don’t like about the product/service. Knowing your customer better then they know themselves is the best way to reach them and be on their level. Making sure the content is related to them in either: a problem solving way, a helpful way, or a knowledgeable way can help to keep customers engaged. This conversational feel is what makes the customer feel safe and wanted. Consumers in this age can look up the answers they want on the Internet, making sure your content is creative and relative will make them come back to you.

“Boasting cannot ignite a real conversation the ‘look at my product’ approach also fails because it leaves nothing to talk about.”-This is known as interruption marketing. This approach doesn’t work anymore. People expect more and are learning that marketing sometimes isn’t always true.

One of the main cornerstones of content marketing is to tell a story with the content. Telling a significant, creative story will then build buzz and can then create a fan base. Look at what Snickers accomplished. They launched a global campaign that Mars wanted to give Snickers “more of an emotional appeal by taking a ‘storytelling’ approach.” This campaign was the “you are not you when your hungry” involving Betty White the famous actress. The Betty White spot went viral and gave a lot of free media to the candy. This type of story telling places Snickers as the hero and solution. When you are hungry and become ‘grumpy’ or ‘snappy’ eating a Snickers bar can help cure that feeling, bringing you back to how you usually are when you are not hungry. It helps to crave the hunger until you can eat properly. Snickers candy bar was inventive and insightful to the wanted target audience. They used tone, message and tactics to reach consumers in a different way. Competitors of the brand now want similar ads. Snickers would say it was worth it.

According to marketing interactions blog post on September 22 2013, the top five priorities for B2B marketing are as follows:

1.     Lead Generation

2.     Brand Awareness

3.     Customer Retention

4.    Content Strategy

5.     Lead Nurturing

As it states content marketing and achieving performance outcomes is more than just publishing it also requires intent. A big part of content marketing is to help customers learn how to be more involved with a business. The two top things talked about in this blog post are customer engagement and personalization. Engagement helps to determine what each type of interaction they want to achieve with the customers. The goal of each content type will show where the customer should go next or what to do with the content. Without personalization it is hard to engage effectively. Knowing your audience or consumers is what will make the content relevant and valuable. “Content strategy based on personalization is what results in customer engagement that drives business relationships.”

In Mitch Joel’s blog post “The end of privacy…the beginning of personalization” he acknowledges knowing people can help to create better content and an overall experience for them. One of his examples is Amazon. They have a great ability to create very high quality personalized content, which is key to their success. Knowing their consumer made the content relevant and impressive. “The ability to generate, distribute and engage in much more personalized advertising as a way to compliment the user's experience.” This can bring the true benefit of online marketing to the surface.

93 percent of marketer’s use content marketing this year compared to 91 percent last year as said within Joe Pulizzi’s blog post. He also says that business-to-business marketers are using social media to display and distribute content more frequently as well. SlideShare, Google +, and Instagram have all seen increases in usage. 58 percent of B2B marketers are planning to make their content marketing budget increased in the next 12 months. More B2B marketers are creating more content then ever.

In conclusion, is content marketing worth it? If I haven’t convinced you after reading this blog post its time to do some extra research and see the results for yourself! Not only can you tell the difference with brands and the weight put into content but you can see positive results when there is good, creative, quality content to be shared.

Popular content sharing sites: Blogs, videos, websites, social media mediums, forums and so on.

Does Pinterest have your interest?

Pinterest...

What is Pinterest anyway? It's one of the newest social media platforms to take off in the business marketing industry. It's a photo sharing site that allows users to upload, save, share, create and manage images. Pinboards are the themes that organize the pictures on ones profile. Re-pinning is when you take someone else's image and pin it to one of your own boards. Like Facebook, there is the option to "like" someones pin. A person's main page will be reflective on what they have posted, re-pinned, liked or shared. For example on my Pinterest account it shows a lot of fashion products, food items and, things that the people I follow have pinned or liked.

Businesses can create pages to target their main audience online directly. A great example are the clothing companies that have Pinterest. Aritzia has links to their main page along with where you can purchase products online! Once seeing something you like on their Pinterest account theres no need to browse their website but click right on the link to purchase it.

Looking at a 2012 article about Pinterest vs. Facebook , it shows how Pinterest surpasses Facebook in regards to shopping and inspiration. "69% of online consumers who visit Pinterest have found an item they’ve purchased or wanted to purchase as compared to only 40% of online consumers who visit Facebook." Pinterest was significantly greater then Facebook when asked where consumers get inspiration on what to buy.

Has Pinterest gained your interest yet?

If so, here is a great idea to increase awareness and interaction with online consumers: as Cynthia Sanchez suggests, create a Pinterest contest to engage consumers in a fun way! Not only is this an interesting concept but it can benefit your social media marketing in multiple ways. Creating a contest can bring more traffic to your website, blog, or other social media channels. If your contest relates to another source it can drive traffic to both parties. Not only will it drive traffic but others will be able to see the interaction your consumers are having. Pinterest is a place where people show their love for a product and by asking your consumers for feedback or to participate will give them the opportunity to show what they love about you! Of course in a contest there is always a winner, gaining access to the people who participate is going to give you information to contact the winner (like an email address etc).

Pin to Win Sweepstakes Example Taken From Cynthia Sanchez "Oh So Pinteresting" Blog

Pinterest has specific rules about contests that are not to be ignored. Not to worry, using other social media sites to access your Pinterest contest can help you to get around those rules. For example: Pin it to win it!.

Check out episode 33 from Cynthia Sanchez on more about Contests on Pinterest.

Social Media Journal Entry One

        What does 2014 bring for Social Media Marketing?

The addition of online marketing has changed the way companies spend their marketing budget. Digital marketing has increased in importance and is therefore gaining more budget. Not only is there Facebook or Twitter to advertise on but Google, Websites, Blogs, YouTube, Tumblr and more. The social media world is forever evolving. Can companies keep up? What does the upcoming new year, 2014, bring for social media marketing?

According to Forbes, there are 7 things we all should prepare and look out for. They are as follows:
1. Content Marketing will increase
2. Social Media will need to be more diverse
3. Emphasis on images
4. Simplistic is the way to go
5. Must be Mobile
6. Higher use of Ad Retargeting
7. Social and SEO intertwine more

Social Media has become this complicated thing that can be simplified to those 7 things to look for. If your content is relative to your consumer, if it is constantly updated to maintain interest, if there are pictures to grab attention, if it is accessible in the right formats for your target, then your social media marketing will show you results. Companies should already be doing all these things. Think of social as an on going campaign. It needs to be accessible, creative, captivating and constantly updated to ensure repeat browsers.

The predictions that Forbes had all make sense when you look at the results of social media this year. There has been an increase in content marketing. Content marketing has become more important. This is a way for a company to really relate and understand its consumers. Trust and rapport can be built using content marketing. It gives the opportunity to address issues and answer questions while showing that they are worthwhile and honest. Having proper, engaging content can lead to browsers becoming buyers or activists for your company.

Spreading your content on multiple platforms increases awareness and gives diversity to your content approach. Not everyone uses the same channels. The more mediums your content shows up on the more the consumer sees it and responds too. A negative side to this is that if businesses try to be on all platforms they can, the content can loos its creativity and effectiveness. I suggest you pick the top three that your target use most and have the best content for those channels.

Images are a great eye catchers. The first thing I notice on a new website or blog is the picture related with it. Having image based content is an interesting, alternative way to grab the consumers attention. Images can be quick and easy which is going to gain attention faster.

People are being exposed to more media, ads and content then before. Having simple marketing can be just as effective as in-depth marketing. As Forbes article looks at, take a look at a top company like Apple. The marketing strategy is very simple.

Majority of people have either a phone, tablet, computer or multiple of each. Making sure that advertisements and content is mobile friendly will be very important coming into 2014. People are constantly on their phones. Those who do not adapt will loose out on the opportunity to reach consumers that their competitors may be able too.

Retargeting lets your consumers see your content once they have already seen it. It narrows down the people who may not want to access it. The more they see it, the more they will remember!

Social signals help consumers to see that a company is trustworthy. Sharing content, liking pages, and so on will be able to increase the organic ranking. Google will notice that more people are visiting one site over others. Having SEO and social intertwine is going to help target customers more efficiently.

Although these things are in effect right now, some are in the trial process and as time goes on and results increase they will be modified in the hopes to be perfect. Those were some tips to look out for if your not already heavy into social media marketing!