Content Marketing is a buzzword that’s been around for quite a while and the companies that have transitioned to it can attest to the value that it adds to the business and to the customer experience.

Content Marketing Institute defines content marketing as 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.

The focus of content marketing is communicating with customers. It is about the stories that you want to tell. It is about delivering the answers to questions that customers want to ask.

Entrepreneurs to publishers

One of the most popular milestones in content marketing history is the launching of The Furrow, a publication released by John Deere in 1985. This has effectively elevated John Deere from a manufacturer of agricultural machinery into a company with its very own publishing company. The Michelin Guides and the Jell-O recipe books soon followed suit, providing their clients valuable information on how to interact with their products.

In modern times, the most admired content marketing companies include the likes of Red Bull and Coca-Cola. What do these companies have in common? These companies use content marketing to render an authentic voice for their brand and provide information and entertainment to their consumers.

How is it different from traditional marketing?

• Traditional marketing utilises a one-way form of communication. content marketing is interactive. It is in tune with what questions its target audience are asking through comments, forums, surveys, etc.
• With content marketing, your target audience comes to you. How? Customers search the web by typing in questions or keywords. These keywords then generate search results. By using industry relevant keywords and being aware of what your customers are looking for, you enable them to seek you out. Traditional marketing is also referred to as 'Interruption marketing' because it inserts itself into someone's flow of activity.
• One of the ways to distinguish content marketing is if a type of content provides value.
• Content marketing seek to entertain and educate while traditional marketing may be entertaining but it is rarely educational.
• Traditional marketing is about capturing attention through gimmicks. It's all about the bells and whistles. Content marketing captures and retains attention by thought leadership and genuine interactions.

Why small businesses should care

Content marketing is not just about keeping up with a trend or making a louder noise than your competitor. It is about being present at every step of your customer’s buying process and even beyond that.

When a customer is searching for a product or service, in this digital age, they are likely to use Google search. For example a customer may type the keywords: content marketing or content marketing Sydney. Google produces results based on the most relevant keywords and what other customers have found valuable as evidenced by engagement on the site itself and on social media channels. For the sample keywords, Content Marketing Institute is a clear leader in both searches. This is because, as their name suggests, they have mastered thought leadership and marketing using valuable, optimised content in this area.

Using the same keywords, a customer will find that there will be thousands of search results. It is normal for anyone to click through a handful of these results for comparison. This is true for any set of keywords no matter what industry you are in. What helps you differentiate your company over others offering a similar product? Optimised content that tells your story.

When an existing customer wants to know more about how to maximise the benefits of your products or learn about new ones that are coming, what keeps them on the in is informative and helpful content that provides value.

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About the Author

 

About Angelica Manlunas

Angelica lives off of coffee and pizza. She spends her time online tinkering on social media, watching short films and poetry slams. Her offline time is devoted to trips to the beach or spending lazy days indoors with a book in her hand. Also, she writes at least 1000 words every day. Email Angelica at angelica.manlunas@transeo.com.au and follow Angelica @ang_transeo.