The days of marketers hoisting up a brand campaign once every few months are over. Marketing is now approached as a constant effort that needs to be consistently maintained. This means ongoing data capture and analytics due to the constant stream of engagement with the customer.Content marketing creates and distributes value to the customer through various online channels.
To attract an audience and keep them in the loop, the content must be perceived as relevant to the target audience. Resonance with the content marketing of the brand then converts to sales of the product or service.
Customer Engagement Through Content
Content marketers will not have one static customer type. They will identify sub- groups within a larger group for engagement targets. Maybe the large customer group is concerned with healthy eating, but the group could be divided into moms, fitness enthusiasts, and vegetarians.
The goal is to engage with each target customer group through custom content, then get the engagement to convert to customer action. Gone are the days of instant customer conversion. Instead of just collecting and analyzing data on sales, content marketing is additionally concerned with data about who is engaging with their brand.
Content needs to be created that will be not only relevant to the customer, but have value as information that they can use. Consistent content that meets the targeted consumers’ needs is key to creating a following.
Content Creates an Interactive Experience
Interactive content is a two-way street. Social media, blogs, and tweets are some of the ways that content marketers distribute their messages to invite interaction. It also provides a playing field for the marketer to see what especially resonates with their customer. The Instagram feed for Hampton Creek does just that.
The makers of Just Mayo pitch a fresh, visually appealing message that is on trend and can then gauge their audiences’ response.
Do not dismiss the power of email in the crafting of interactive content. Placing a priority on timely and consistent responses that stay on brand and really help the consumer creates a positive feeling of goodwill. Think of it as messaging with an acquaintance that is about to become a friend. Message board participation is another way to interact more intimately with your audience.
Frankonia Sculpture Gardens Twitter feed crafts their content to create an experience even before arriving to visit them in person. They have blended relevant information that is valuable to their audience with original content from users to create an entertaining brand that draws their audience in.
As much as possible, content marketers frame their brand message with trending topics that are relevant to them. The Food Network tackles picky eaters with recipe content to help parents who desperately want to solve their child’s eating issues.
Consumers for an intense need for the content that you are producing will seek out and actively engage with that content. If it deeply resonates with them they will share that content. They will also retweet and comment on it in social media.
Content Marketing Educates the Customer
Enlightenment should be embedded in all interactions with the potential customer. What does your product or service have that can solve a problem that they have? Education is not a lecture at the consumer. Good content marketers will find out the whole picture of the customer and empathize by developing content around all of their concerns.
Entertaining Content Gets Attention
The internet is the hub of more and more of the consumer’s time and energy. They do business, go shopping, relax, and get entertained online. The way you show up on your customer’s radar is just as or even more important than how often they see your message online.
It is important to be clear about the brand message from the beginning and present it in an entertaining way to generate positive attention.
When you promote your brand message through entertaining content, you transmit value to the customer. You have given them something of worth that puts a smile on their face or makes them laugh. Instead of being perceived as a company only concerned with sales, your marketing message is viewed as something enjoyable as well as shareable.
Rather than needing quarterly campaign data, content marketers with their eyes focused on constant contact and engagement with the customer will want analytics that incorporate more real-time data to make marketing decisions. As a continuous process, content marketing relies on analyzing the ongoing engagement with the customer.