Content marketing is one of the best ways to get your brand noticed on the web. But the most important thing is that content has to be relevant to the intended audience if it is to succeed.
The last couple of years has seen the role of content become a pivotal one in marketing, and reaching the right audience is only half the story - it is engagement that leads to all-important conversions which is key to success for businesses.
So with that in mind, we’ve identified the key content marketing trends that will help your brand grow in 2015:
Valuable Content
Consumers want unique, exciting content that is shareable - so putting your name to content that meets their needs is the first step in growing your online presence, and making that first connection with them.
This has, of course, always been the case - but we have already seen savvier consumers demanding more from content, as they are swamped by it and more switched on to the techniques of online marketers.
This means content must be aimed at their interests and be completely focused on the story first and foremost, putting the consumer‘s enjoyment before the sale.
Take, for example, the infographic Yoma created for Eureka Cycle Sports. It took a lot of time, research and specialist knowledge into the Tour de France that was a clear point of interest to the clients target audience, but it wasn’t about selling to them - it was about selling the concept that the brand were interested in the same things as they were, so they would think of Eureka as a brand that they could connect with.
Distribution is Equal to Creation
All too often, the biggest pitfall in any content marketing campaign is placing too much focus on creation alone. Identifying your audience, and distributing your content effectively - and also at the right time - so that they see it and respond, is equally important to make sure it gets in front of the right eyes.
That can mean reaching out to branded publications, seeding content in various sites you know your audience will be, tailoring content for different audiences as and when it is trending, and, as ever, harnessing social media to reach relevant communities.
Visual Storytelling
The human brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than text - which is why using imagery has been proven to be a more effective way of brands getting their message across to consumers. It’s more likely to click with them, and therefore, convert.
We’ve already touched on the power of infographics for grabbing users’ attention but images and video are also powerful tools for achieving increased sharing on social media channels, and can add fun, colour and engagement into a content marketing campaign. We’ve already seen how visual-led platforms like Vine, SnapChat and Instagram have proven to be hugely successful.
For that very reason, the popularity of visual storyteling in communicating multiple messages has been rapidly growing in recent years. And we can expect this to continue in 2015.
We’ve picked out 5 of our favourite infographics researched and designed by the creative teams here at YOMA.
Function 18 - Masters Infographic/
Peldon Rose - Life of and Average Office Worker
Eureka Cycle Sports - Tour de France infographic/
Pauls Hair World - Oscars Beauty and Fashion History
Anchor Pumps - Saving Money on Heating and Water Bills
Embrace Content Marketing to Improve SEO
Search engines like Google are increasingly showing their aim to be delivering the best quality, relevant content to consumers - and so more links, shares and social signals are likely to be on the cards to reward businesses that deliver these to their audience with better rankings.
This focus on the relevance to the audience means SEO content will also use tried and tested techniques, sure as working with leading industry bloggers - but using a fresher, content-led approach.
Back in 2013, conscientious content marketers suffered on behalf of those using blogging purely as a link-building strategy. However, the reputation of guest posts looks set to be slowly repaired in 2015, as done in the right way, contributing high quality content to respected publishers can expand your reach, create better brand awareness and exposure.
So carefully-placed blogging is likely to be retargeted by marketers with a cautious approach, but still recognising the benefit it can bring.
Click here to find out more about the creative content marketing services available at YOMA and the range of leading brands our teams are currently working with.
