Why is Content Marketing Important in Today’s World?
Do you remember how easy social media used to be? Back when Facebook first opened up for businesses it was realistic to get 85%-100% of your followers to see your content. In today’s world, we’re lucky if we get a fraction of that.
Do you remember what people could share in the past and get traction? In the past, many brands could get away with sharing almost 100% third party content and get great engagement. However, today, companies need to infuse some original thoughts and ideas into the mix. If all you do is share third party content, you really narrow your focus and lose a huge segment of your audience.
That’s why content marketing is important in social media. You NEED some original content to help set your brand apart from the crowd. If you want to get noticed on social media, it’s just part of the equation. However, many brands haven’t quite picked up on this quite yet. Or, if they have, they don’t know where to start.
What is content marketing?
Content marketing is a strategy in which a brand creates some digital content that showcases their thought leadership and expertise. Usually the goal with this content is to be educational and helpful to an audience, building trust in the brand with every piece of content. Sometimes the content mentions a call to action and is directly correlated with a sales process. Other times, the piece is designed simply to build trust, loyalty, and engagement with the brand, with the goal of selling later. Even more, content can be used as a lead magnet that helps attract potential leads/prospects and hook them into a sales funnel.
There are a lot of ways to leverage original content and ultimately, it’s up to each brand to get creative with how they use it. There are simply infinite possibilities of how to use original content.
What are some possible types of content you could create for your content marketing strategy?
You can do a lot to create content in today’s world and the possibilities only become more and more accessible and affordable to create/produce. Here are just a few to get you started so you can understand what we’re talking about when we say original content:
- Blogs
- Podcasts
- Pre-recorded video
- Live Video
- Stories Sequences
- Branded original quotes
- Ebooks
- Checklists
- White Papers
- Case Studies
Why is content marketing important in social media?
Good question! We’re so glad you asked. Once you create this amazing original content, you have to have a plan to get it OUT to the world. Social media provides you a great channel to drip this content out to others. While it’s really fun to write amazing blogs, create stellar videos, and produce wonderful podcasts, it’s even more fun to have a place to talk about these pieces of content.
However, content isn’t the only side that benefits. Your social media strategy will benefit greatly when you incorporate content marketing into the mix. Social media platforms have shifted to favor new, original content, rather than simply resharing other brands’ content. Consider how Stories, live video, and even pre-recorded videos have all become more popular and pronounced. You can’t just hit a “share” button on all these latest new features; you have to produce something that is unique to your brand.
Also, social media users have seen a lot over the years. What makes your business’ profile different from everyone else in their feed? You need to share some unique thoughts and content to stay interesting, stay unique, and stand out. This isn’t to say you can’t reshare others’ content from time to time, but the more you throw in your own ideas, the more you stand out and stay memorable.
Social media needs content marketing and content marketing needs social media. You really can’t do one well without the other. Smart brands will invest strategically in both types of marketing to build up long-term brand authority and growth.
