INSIGHT: Use content marketing to bring value, build loyalty

Content marketing has surfaced in the past few years as one of the next big things in marketing.

Funny thing is, it really isn’t a new approach at all. When John Deere first published its agricultural lifestyle magazine “The Furrow” in 1895, it was content marketing. When Jell-O developed a free recipe book in 1904 to inspire its customers to use its product in new ways, it was content marketing. And when Lego released its first magazine “Brick Kicks” filled with creative ways to build with Legos in the 1980s, it was content marketing.

While the term “content marketing” was coined years later, these brands were delivering information that educated customers instead of pitching products or services. Even decades ago, these brands understood that if you deliver valuable content to buyers on a consistent basis, they ultimately reward you with their business and loyalty.

According to Amanda Maksymiw of the Content Marketing Institute: “Your customers don’t care about you, your products or your services. They care about themselves, their wants and their needs. Content marketing is about creating interesting information your customers are passionate about so they actually pay attention to you.”

As you consider starting or enhancing your content marketing program, here are a few keys to finding success:

•This is your unique content, created by your organization and shared with your audiences. Make sure you have a team in place or work with a partner that can create relevant content consistently while remaining in your brand voice.

•Your audience should want to consume your content rather than avoid it. Learn about what makes your key audience tick and what would be helpful to their lives relative to your brand.

•Keep in mind that your content can take on many forms, including blog posts, articles, videos, infographics, podcasts, books, magazines, white papers or presentation decks.

•Make your content available on a regular basis. One of the biggest mistakes is not committing to creating and releasing it regularly. This will require planning ahead and mapping out your content calendar well in advance.

•The center for this content is on your “owned mediums,” such as your website. Social networks, email and advertising are vital to success but are best used primarily as distributors of the content and driving visitors to your website.

•Your content should be collected and organized into a library. When published and curated on your website, this content can become a driver in reaching your search engine optimization goals.

Content marketing has come a long way since the turn of the century. Today, content is available for consumption in many forms beyond print. And as consumers, we have become accustomed to receiving tips, tricks, advice and inspiration from the brands we love and trust.

So what can be learned from Jell-O, John Deere and Lego? You don’t always have to tell audiences that you’re great. Instead, you can show them.

Natalie Eisenberg is director of client service and account supervisor at Lawrence & Schiller

Natalie.Eisenberg@l-s.com; 338-8000