Everyone seems to be buzzing about content marketing. But what is “content marketing?” It sounds so obvious, yet when asked about it a lot
of people still scratch their heads and reply, “the marketing of content” or “I’m not sure.”
Content marketing has a history. It has been used by corporations for branding purposes for many years now; just think Madison Avenue style advertising. I still have musical branding songs going through my head from 30 years ago! Watch it wiggle, see it shimmer… Oh I wish I were an Oscar Mayer wiener… A is for apple, J is for Jacks, oh the list goes on and I must admit they were pretty good at the game.
But now, we have survived the cycling of the Mayan calendar and we are in the year 2013 and content marketing has come a long way. As we watch Madison Avenue reeling and shocked by the power and popularity of Internet marketing, where we see real ROI and accountability for investments and a World Wide Web that is powered by social media, we realize this change is real and here to stay and that we need to make adjustments to our strategies to thrive in business rather than fail.
Content marketing is still here and it is more powerful than ever and for now it, it is looking like the best content marketing boils down to one main factor. Is it Shareworthy? You know the sites I am referring too the ones that have share buttons enabled. And not just Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Making your content on your own site shareable helps a lot. Every time someone shares your content, they introduce you’re brand to their own communities and networks and then when people from those new audiences share it again, this is the beginning of viral marketing.
People like to share great content. People are sharing audio files, videos, articles, pictures, info-graphics, anecdotes, humor, controversy, how too files, top 10 lists, news, announcements and more. Once you create the core material, most great content can then be re-purposed for cross-channel marketing, but this is the subject of another post that is coming. So, for now, start brainstorming content, and as you do this, keep in the forefront of your mind, is this something people will want to share with others? When the answer proves to be yes, then you are well on your way to doing the right things to address your businesses content marketing needs.
I hope you’ve found this explanation helpful and if so, would you kindly leave a comment or consider sharing this post with your friends?
Thanks,
Robert
Randall
Excellent article, and right on the money, Robert. Brands are just beginning to realize that the kind of “interruptive” advertising that has worked for so long on captive audiences for TV, isn’t effective on the Web. The Internet is about sharing and people aren’t inclined to share standard “sales pitch” content.
Our new video marketing company, “Native Light Video” addresses this issue with marketing videos that are designed to be shared. The advertising message is kept low-key and is not the sole purpose of the content, so viewers are not turned off by the message. The result, as you point out in your post, is that people willingly share the videos with friends, and the marketer’s message goes along for the ride!