When people hear “content marketing,” they most often think of blogs (or videos). Obviously, it’s much more than that! Content marketing is a diverse and robust strategy that can involve many different content types and formats.
As a social media marketer, my favourite aspect is the flexibility of content marketing. You can take a single piece of content and repurpose and reformat it to reach an even larger audience. This allows you to get the most out of your content while minimizing your efforts. Why make digital marketing harder than it needs to be?
With the knowledge I’ve gained from working at our digital marketing agency, We’ll discuss what the different types of content marketing are. But first, you need to understand it:
What Is Content Marketing?
Content marketing is a digital strategy focused on creating and sharing valuable content. The goal is to attract and draw in your intended audience online. The overall objective is to increase conversions, sign-ups, or complete a financial transaction.
What makes content marketing unique is that the intent is to educate customers to create interest in your brand, not to explicitly promote it. You provide relevant and helpful content to your customers and audience. Kinda like how this blog demonstrates the expertise of our digital marketing agency by sharing our experience.
Making your company look good isn’t the only reason to be helpful either. Ask yourself, what are people most likely to share online? The answer is simple:
- Content that helps others
- Content that infuriates them
*Our digital marketing agency doesn’t recommend offending people for publicity.
What Are the Types of Content Marketing?
As previously mentioned, the beauty of content marketing is you can take a single idea and create a plethora of content in a variety of formats. Here we will illustrate what you can create with one idea.
The idea: You are a local pool installation and service company looking to expand your reach. You want to communicate the importance of having a professional service and maintain your pool.
1. Blogging: This is one the most popular and effective ways to reach your audience and improve your search rankings. Action: Write a blog outlining why it is best to use a professional for pool maintenance and care.
2. Video: YouTube is one of the most popular platforms online. According to HubSpot, 54% of people want to see video content from brands they support. Action: Create a video showing people addressing some of the most common pool maintenance issues.
3. Podcasting: Podcasting has exploded. It is one of the fastest-growing marketing segments. Action: Talk about tips and tricks to make pool maintenance easier.
4. Infographics: This allows you to create eye-catching visual content you can share on your website, social media, and other platforms. Action: Create an infographic to visually represent why using a professional pool service is beneficial.
5. Case studies: Provide your customers with real-life examples of how they will benefit from your products/services. Action: Create case studies of how professional pool service has helped to better maintain and prolong the life of your pool equipment and systems.
6. Testimonials and reviews: Your customers want social proof and validation that your company is the right option. Reviews offer this information. Action: Share reviews and testimonials from customers who have used your company’s pool maintenance services.
7. Email marketing: Leverage your blog and other content to provide your customers with more value. Action: Send customers a series of tips for properly caring for your pool year-round.
8. How-to guides: Teach your customers. Provide professional insights. Action: Write a how-to guide for the weekly steps you need to take to care of your pool.
9. eBooks: Establish your brand as an authoritative source in your industry. Action: A comprehensive document for caring for your pool all year round, including how to open and close your pool.
10. Whitepapers: Provide users with the research and data they are looking for to support their decision-making process. Action: Create a whitepaper showing the financial benefit of proper pool maintenance by a professional compared to DIY.
11. Quizzes/tools: Create an engaging, fun, and interactive resource. Action: Create a quiz for pool owners to test their knowledge of pool maintenance.
12. Checklists: Provide users with a practical tool they can use. Action: Create a checklist of pool maintenance steps.
13. Webinars: Present on important topics and have an interactive conversation with users. Action: Host a webinar to explain how to maintain your pool and have a Q and A session.
14. Social media posts: Engage with your followers by providing valuable content on a regular basis. Action: Share tips and tricks for how to best care for your pool.
15. Visual content: Provide a visual representation of the key messaging you want to convey. Action: Share before and after photos of pools when serviced by a professional. Create a meme.
The goal is not to try to use every type of format on the list. Rather, you need to find the different formats that are most effective at reaching your target audience and helping you generate more revenue. If you need help determining which method will work best for your business, consider hiring a digital marketing agency. After all… this list will only continue to grow as marketers come up with more creative ways to share valuable content! (Keep your eye on augmented and virtual reality).
The Marketing Garage is an award-winning Toronto digital marketing company that has extensive experience in cultivating effective digital marketing strategies. We help businesses in many different sectors across North America fix their online marketing and branding. Our data-driven mix of SEO and digital marketing process is like no other.
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