Why you need to understand the Importance of Content Marketing

It’s no secret, in today’s widely fragmented and competitive market, several brands around the world are looking for the most creative ways of conveying their message and telling their story. Whether it’s through sharing compelling images to social media or writing blogs to humanise their brand, many businesses operating in various industries are seeking fresh ways for effectively engaging with their desired target audience – through content marketing.

Before diving right into it, however, you’ll need to learn a little bit more about the topic. Ask yourself the following questions: What is content marketing? Why content marketing? And most of all, what are the benefits of content marketing? In this blog, we shall outline the true importance of content marketing, and how each and every brand out there should utilise it to build meaningful connections and capture the interest of potential consumers.

Here at Growth Gurus, the importance of content marketing is valued so much that we’ve even written a free white paper on the subject. This includes the main contents of this blog, the benefits of content marketing, and how to develop and execute an effective content marketing strategy for your business.

What and why content marketing

So, let’s go back to square one. What and why content marketing? A question pondered by many marketers who are looking to enhance the results of their current digital marketing efforts. Well, the answer is simple. Content marketing is the implementation of creating, sharing and distributing quality content that is informative, entertaining and valuable to prospective clients.

Therefore, it’s the perfect deliverable for creatively displaying any message about your products or services. Be it text, imagery, gifs or video – the importance of content marketing cannot be stressed enough and should be a vital part of every brands modern digital strategy. Here’s what the Content Marketing Institute (an online source for all things content related) had to say about the importance of content marketing:

A strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience.

The above statement pretty much sums it up. All major brands across the globe use content marketing to humanise their brand and act as the intermediary of communication with customers before actually converting – this is better known as brand storytelling.

Why content marketing is important and which content to use

The importance of content marketing is something that every brand must understand and effectively implement into their daily digital grind. So, why is content marketing important? Let’s break it down to the basics. When purchasing a product or service, customers generally prefer buying from a credible brand rather than from one that they have never heard of before. Trust plays a major part of every consumer’s final purchase decision, and content marketing is the perfect means for creating a signature style that builds recognition and conveys your brand’s personality.

Nowadays, more and more brands are recognising the importance of content marketing, which means that those who choose to ignore it will be significantly left behind. The beauty of content marketing is that there are so many ways of displaying and sharing content. That said, here are some of the greatest forms of content which many brands use to communicate their message:

• Video marketing: A great video marketing strategy not only produces a storytelling message but also develops brand identity among your target audience. To help you understand the importance of content marketing with video, we’ve written a blog discussing the top 5 tips for video marketing success.
• Video animation: through online presentation software like Moovly, one is able to transform complicated topics into meaningful visuals by focusing on representing the interested content which creates greater value for the end viewer.
• Lists: We as individuals have a tendency to put everything into numerical groups, with anything outside seen as inferior. Lists that produce evergreen content can improve lead generation. Don’t believe us? Look no further than Forbes rich list.
• Memes: Yep, a meme is another incredible content form, as they are hilarious and have the potential to go viral instantly. As stated by the Content Marketing Institute; measure value through creativity, not just resources! Here are some all-inclusive examples to help add entertaining value to your business’ marketing with memes.
• Infographics: represent a powerful presentation of valuable information or data in a visual way. To ensure that your infographic produces relevant content, think about ways to repurpose this content in the future to generate further leads.
• Live Video Streaming: 2017 has seen its fair share of live video streaming, and that’s a fact. Many brands choose to implement live video streaming into their content marketing strategy to connect with potential customers on a human-to-human level which enhances their overall customer experience.

From podcasts and press releases to gifs and reviews, the never ending forms of content truly confirms the importance of content marketing for every business. What’s your take on any of the above content? Are there any other types that interest you? We’d love to know!

Create an effective content marketing strategy

There’s no point in creating outstanding content without having a concrete content marketing strategy in place. Not having a devised plan and strategy is just as dangerous as having no content at all, which is why we have created the below content marketing checklist to assist you during your planning process.

• Checklist for Content Marketing Success: When creating a content marketing checklist, the first thing that you should always do is to identify your client’s interests. This will allow you to create content that is relevant and valuable to your audience. After all, there’s no point in creating content which potential consumers do not find interesting.
• High-quality content: As like everything else in life, the essence of quality is another fundamental factor which adds value to the importance of content marketing. Well-written, visually appealing and meaningful content is key when devising a content marketing strategy for your brand.
• Unique content: Distinguish your brand from your competitors by creating unique content that portrays your true colours. Having unique content not only helps instill brand recognition, but also boosts search engine rankings.
• Search Engine Optimisation: Create content that is recognised by both potential consumers and search engine robots. Having SEO optimised content is a key element behind every winning content marketing strategy since it makes room for new customer markets who are searching for keywords relating to your industry.

What are the benefits of content marketing?

A great deal of digital marketers have come to identify the importance of content marketing and the many benefits associated with it. From lead generation and increased reach to image development and customer retention, content marketing is without a doubt one of the greatest online marketing techniques for connecting with your audience.

Here are some of the benefits of content marketing:

• Builds brand recognition and credibility.
• Enhances customer loyalty with both current consumers and prospective ones.
• Incorporates brand authority and trust.
• Increases brand awareness and visibility.
• Positions your brand as an industry leader and influencer.
• Generates traffic to your website.
• Creates new channels for communication with potential consumers.
• Assists the consumer during their purchase decision.
• Provides added value without being intrusive.
• Gives your brand a recognisable personality.
• Develops long-term and valuable relationships with your audience.
• Improves lead generation and conversion.