This article would be covering the following information about Content Marketing ;

What Is Content Marketing ?

Types of Content Marketing

Benefits of Content Marketing

Tools for Content Marketing

What is Content Marketing ?

Looking at the formal definition of the term content marketing it says;

“Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action”

Let us try to make this simpler,

• Content Marketing is a method of marketing in which relevant content is created and shared to attract the target audience. After all Content is the King nowadays.
• Creating this attractive content is one of the important factor to get success for converting the potential buyers. Content should be valuable and it should be consistent.
• Content marketing and management is therefore an important aspect because it keeps the audience engaging.
• Creating an interest for our product or service is necessary when we reach the potential buyer through Content Marketing. Content should itself be addressing or resolving customer’s queries or issues.
• Comparing to traditional marketing this strategy is always on the heavier side as it targets specific audience with particular content.
• In conclusion Content Marketing is a strategy in which interesting and attractive content is distributed to targeted audience which keep them engaging with our content. As a result adding more profit to the business.

How to do content marketing ? /Types with Examples of Content Marketing

The below mentioned ways should be used by everyone for content marketing

1. How to’s : This strategy gives our audience the exact answer about their particular queries. Creating a content that answers How to ? is the strategy here. Its more of informative strategy. We create content  in such a way that it gives answers to audience specific topic. This method is one of the effective in content marketing for engaging the audience and create interest.

For example : When you will type How To in Google search engine you will find a list of suggestions there like How to lose weight , How to create YouTube video , how to gain weight and may more suggestions. Those are perfect examples of How to’s strategy .

• Content Curation : Basically in this strategy value is added to particular topic after gathering all the relevant information. People who uses this strategy are called Curators. If you are tired of collecting and creating content from Zero then Content Curation is the best strategy for you. For better examples look at few examples regarding the same ;

 ZESTis one of the best example of content curation. Zest is chrome extension which permits marketers to share and find industry content. Variety  of content can be found on ZEST such as articles,  videos, whitepapers and infographics. In conclusion Zest exist not only because of the curating the content in the industry but also it allows other people to curate content for ZEST.

Brain Pickings another example of content curation. The Site curates all the content related to entertainment. The articles on the website are attractive and entertaining. Just have a look at the link for collection of quotes, poems, songs and more.

Hootsuite

If you are looking for statistics heavy content then Hootsuite is great site which focuses on research curation in some of their posts. One of the example is their article on best time to post on facebook. You can visit their website and find more such examples.

• Case studies : Case studies is a method of recording the research of a particular topic over a period of time. You can say it is a particular incident which is put in words together and is being  analyzed to illustrate a principle or thesis. Case studies is one of the important strategy of content marketing as it focuses on a particular instance in detail. Many businesses uses case studies to highlight special applications or benefits for their products or services.

You can find the examples of case studies for different industries by following the below linkhttps://www.docsend.com/blog/best-b2b-case-study-examples/

• Charts/Graphics : Charts and graphs are used to make the huge data simpler. You can understand the complex data and its relationship with other factor easily. Alone content in the paragraph form is not so attractive while we read. The content having graphs and charts creates more interest to the users.

Look at the examples in below link https://visme.co/blog/types-of-graphs/

• EBooks : You can provide paid or  free eBooks to the users.  EBooks are like regular books in digital form which you can read online. In content marketing this strategy is to used to generate leads or sell that eBook to earn profit. Its always easier to make eBooks rather than a regular book. Based on your industry you can provide the relevant content in the form of eBook to the users.

Look at few examples of eBook here  https://www.getfreeebooks.com

• Email Newsletters

Best strategy to build strong relationships with audience. Email marketing is cost effective and used by top brands today. Newsletters are the reports including news of the company. Mainly it contains the activities of the company that is regularly mailed to the current customers, employees, members and potential customers who are interested in.

Most of the top brands today uses Newsletters Marketing to keep there brand in the top position in consumers mind. Also, numbers of audience who clicked the newsletters can be traced. This report gives business and idea to make further strategy as per consumers interest.

Look at the 10 best examples of newsletter https://www.lyfemarketing.com/blog/best-email-newsletter-examples/

•  Cartoons/Illustrations  : Cartoon illustrations makes the content interesting for the readers. Studies have found that the content in which these elements are used are more valuable and are more liked by audience. Look at the examples of top agencies using this element correctly. Here is the link https://www.lyfemarketing.com/blog/best-email-newsletter-examples/

• Book Summaries : You can write book summaries on the bestsellers book which best describes your industry. That summary will provide the exact review and critical evaluation of the book. This strategy is best for the target audience who loves to read books. We can engage qualified customers by this strategy.

You can have a look on popular book summaries here https://www.mediamasala.in/career-in-digital-marketing/

•  White Papers : EBooks and White papers are alike in many ways. White paper is just another form of huge content which work effectively. Comparing to eBooks white paper are having more detailed information and a deep research on the particular topic. This is the key strength of White Papers and are one of the best format of content marketing. White Papers are more effective for B2B  and other small businesses that wants to build strong relationships with customers and beat the competition.

White Paper is great for generating qualified leads as according to Intercom report 2019, 76% of the buyers are willing to share their information in exchange of a White Paper. Look at the example of White Paper Below;

1. Videos : Videos are great form of content marketing nowadays. Because most of the people due to their busy schedule prefer listening over reading. Also, many free platforms are available today to create short Videos. Video content are proved more powerful to grab target audience attention quickly. In addition due to easy availability of Internet today video content is viewed more than ever before. As per some research and studies one-third of all the online activities is spent viewing video contents. So we can say Video marketing is one of the best types in content marketing.

Video content provides higher ROI. Organic traffic on the website can also be increased with the help of video content. The best part about video content is that audience spent more time engaging on the content. Due to which chances are more for increasing sales.

Study done  by Insivia states that landing pages having video content has higher rate of conversion which is believed to be 80%

Look at the famous examples of video marketing here https://www.skeletonproductions.com/insights/video-content-marketing-examples#targetText=Saddleback%20Leather,is%20disabled%20in%20your%20browser.

Infographics : Infographics is another great form of content marketing where you give a quick highlights of the content that you are providing. You can use some tools such as Canva, Infogram or Piktochart for the same. Infographics is the best option for educating the target audience that will add value for leads and consumers. This visual marketing format helps audience to visualize the idea and can better understand what value is the company providing.

Look at one of the example for infographics

1. Checklists : Checklists are a type of sheet which gives the things to do list stepwise for achieving a specific target. It’s a list which will be helpful in getting the desired outcomes. Checklists are best content assets for any company. It is easy to create a checklist.

For better understanding look at the example of  checklist used by HVAC Co

1. Interviews / Webinars or live stream : Interviews done with customers or industry experts create a great impact on our target audience. They are best form of content marketing and performs well in terms of conversions. Best part of interview is that real life experience is shared in it which can be very practical as well as inspirational for the audience. Audience can understand their challenges and need in a better way through interviews.

You can conduct an interview with experts through a webinar or live stream like Facebook live. It provides some value to the viewers.

Look at one of the example where company is using an interview with an expert as a content marketing strategy.

1. QUIZZES, QUESTIONNAIRES, & SURVEYS: Nowadays people like this type of contents. You will get more engagements on this content marketing strategy. You can create questionnaires to know audience interest. Quiz will help you to analyze exactly what are the customers need. You will be getting clear ideas from surveys that how your product or services is liked by the audience. It is also helpful in analyzing how are you competing in the market.

According to research and studies customers love to engage in these types of contents in their free time. Some of the audience also consider it as a stress booster as their mind is diverted from their regular work to solve the puzzles.

Look at the examples of few tools for this strategy Jotform, SurveyMonkey or a paid version like QZZR.

• Social Media Posts : Social media is almost used by all the ages today. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and twitter are some of the popular sites on which large number of actives users are found today. According to the recent statics Facebook has more than 2 billion active users followed by Instagram and twitter having 500 million in terms of daily users.    

Looking at above statics it can be said that social media is great platform for all the content marketing activities and is highly effective in connecting with the target audience. Almost all the top brands and small business uses social media for promoting their business.

Different types of post such as “Day in the life of” Post, Polls or opinion Post can be used for better engagements

Look at some of the examples https://youtu.be/N3NQt6jn8hY

• PINTEREST :  Pinterest is an online platform which is social media network used to save images, small scale videos and GIFs. One of the popular site today for gathering all type of images having different categories . Pinterest is considered to be a visual search engine finding images or videos with respect to related content.

Pinterest helps in gathering more traffic. You can also share videos, articles, free guides, webinars, images, magazine and other content related to your brand on Pinterest.

              Visit Website for detailed information https://business.pinterest.com/en/Pinterest-content-tips

 GIFS , MEMES and Online Games : Nowadays majority of people shares their favourite memes. As memes have become one of the popular content amongst the audience they have become important part of content marketing.

Some of the website also provides free trials of online games which are very attractive and engaging large number of audience.

PODCASTS : If you look at the formal definition , Podcasts are described as audio or video file in the form of series which can be downloaded  for listening . Today Podcasts are used by many businesses to get continuous engagement of their audiences. As they are posted in series number of engagements are likely to be more.

Slideshares : Presentations helps in improving focus of the audience and get attention. You can share your presentations to the sites like Slideshare to target new audience. Here point to point information is provided in slides form. Slideshare allows you to upload content in the form of presentations, documents, info graphics and videos.

You will find many examples here  https://www.slideshare.net

Vlog : Vlog is short form for Video Blog or Video Log. It is considered as a form of Blog in video format. Vlog is also combined with relating text, images and other data.

Q and A session /FAQ’s  :  It is one of the most effective form of content. Simply  ask to throw questions to your audience about your product, services or any  improvements. After that give content in answers for addressing each and every specific question.

Also, Frequently Asked Questions strategy can be used in the content form to answer on a specific topic which is asked often by the audience

Templates : Sample document which has some main highlights about the content. You can say it is a file created with an overall format and layout used as generic document.

Quotes : Quotes are majorly used to influence audience. Many types of quotes content are available today inspirational, motivational, educational tips or entertaining used by influencers marketers today. Quotes available in image form are eye catching and gathers attention of the audience.

Predictions : Collecting the data for something that is going to happen in future and using that data for predictions . Predictions are always made about all industries so that company can make their strategy accordingly.

Press Releases : Some exciting event happening at your business ? Some new product launch ? Press releases is best option for garbing media coverage and audience attention.

Dictionary : Also called Wikis. Almost all of us have visited Wikipedia by now. It contains user-created content and some editing. Wikis provides opportunity to share the knowledge and content among their peers. Your brand will become competitive by providing such niche information.

Original Research :  Doing original research about a specific topic is great content which is helpful for solving the common questions that audience have.

Tool Reviews/ Helpful application tool

Resources

Benefits of Content Marketing

Now as we have understood what content marketing is ? Let us look at its key benefits :

• For increasing brand’s awareness and visibility.
• For building strong relationships with your target audience.
• For establishing brand’s credibility amongst current and potential customers hence enhancing loyalty.
• For achieving a better position in your industry by beating competition.
• Some of the studies and researches have found that content marketing is best for driving more sales.
• Content marketing raise your followers on social media.
• It opens a channel so that you can communicate and engage via social shares and comments
• Helps customer to take their decision quickly.

Different Tools for Content Marketing :

• Hubspot
• Google Docs
• WordPress
• Buzzsumo
• Yoast
• Grammarly
• Airstory
• Google Analytics
• Airtable
• Canva
• Adobe Photoshop
• Google optimize
• Loom
• Vidyard

Conclusion :

So this was all about Content Marketing. Hope majority of your questions regarding same have been answered. Do let us know how to you like the article. We are always open up to any suggestion and recommendations.