Think content marketing is just a hip new fad designed by a hipster marketer, sipping at his latte while eating his overpriced breakfast? Well, I hate to say it, but you’re wrong.
Content marketing is nothing new, it’s been around since the caveman days. I know what you’re thinking…. How and What is it? Well put simply, it’s just marketing…marketing with a personality that people want to share, with the goal to capture the sales journey and keep you top of mind.
Why is it still such a big deal in 2018 and beyond? Don’t we have more revolutionary marketing strategies to talk about? Well, the thing is content marketing is the equivalent to the bread clip, a simple idea, invented years ago that despite multiple attempts, cannot be replaced.
It doesn’t matter how many whiz-bang new ways to market to the consumer come into play, content is always going to be king because at the end of the day nothing appeals to humans more than a great piece of content. In fact in it doesn’t matter how much new tech or things you try, content marketing will drive it. Content marketing has always driven great marketing.
What You Will Learn:
- Why content is not just an internet thing
- How offline content can be used to acquire new customers
- Where content fits in your customer’s journey
- A FREE download of our customer journey template to start planning your content
Why Content Is Not Just An Internet Thing
Where content marketing differs from the bread clip is that it has evolved. In 2017 we have hundreds, if not thousands, of ways to create and distribute content. The bread clip has peaked in usefulness.
In an era that can create elegant images and animations with the click of a mouse, use virtual reality to transport consumers to new worlds or even project extravagant QR codes onto the side of buildings which consumers can scan on their smartphone to receive a download.
With all these new and exciting ways to create content its very easy for time-poor retailers and business owners to take one look at it and say, ‘Holy moly, I don’t have the time or resources to compete with that. I’m not going to bother. NUP!’
But the thing is just because we have all these new ways to create and distribute, there is still a space in the market for the tried and tested methods, I mean people wouldn’t be paying to get their brand shown at bus-stops and billboards if it wasn’t working would they?
Content marketing exists inside & outside of the internet. In fact, because the internet is an absolute jungle of content where you are constantly being bombarded with something new, the first place to start isn’t in creating content, but knowing what content will influence a new customers heart.
Keep reading for an example of how you can use content at every stage of your customer journey and plan your own strategy using our Customer Journey Mapping Template.
Let’s take a look at some great examples of content that is used to engage the attention of potential customers.
3 Examples of Offline Traditional Content
Wall Street’s the Fearless Girl
A great piece of content will make a clear and punchy statement and that’s exactly what this statue of a young girl staring down the wall street bull did this year. Installed on the eve of National Women’s Day, the statue aimed to increase the representation of women on company boards.
(Photo by Volkan Furuncu/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
I almost didn’t include this example, as technically it’s wasn’t designed to advertise or sell anything, but it is a great example of how something physical can get people talking and promote a strong message. Which is exactly what good content does. It tells a story. The statue was written about by almost every major U.S publication and had millions of photos taken of it. Although it wasn’t published on the internet, it was so powerful it found its way there by sharing, traditionally known as ‘words of mouth’.
You see, it’s all the same thing as we’re used too. It just has a different name.
Movember Trams
Movember is a well-known charity initiative in Australia whereby men spend the month of November growing out their moustache (or at least attempting to do so) to raise funds for Men’s mental health. This month Victorian trams got in on the movement and donned moustache to help raise awareness.
Sometimes not saying much at all, says a lot. Movember, in fact a month long piece of content marketing for Beyondblue. It’s a great example of how something simple can draw attention to what is a fairly serious and stigmatised topic. Content marketing doesn’t need to be complicated, it just needs to be well thought-out and carefully considered, tell a story and not treated as not an individual piece of content, but part of several pieces throughout your customer’s journey.
Victorian iPads
You’re probably thinking, ‘Yeah building a bronze statue or sticking a moustache on a tram are great ideas in theory, but who’s got the budget for that?!’.
Well, it’s not all about money and something as simple as a comedic sign could really grab the consumers attention. ‘That’s not content marketing!’ you may be thinking. But yes it is! It can really be something as simple as scribbling a funny message on a chalkboard. If it can grab the attention of someone and hold it for a period of time, that’s great content!
These three examples of content marketing are all physical, they don’t need a device or the internet to communicate their message, but ultimately that’s exactly where they will end up. Great content marketing is designed to have an impact both online and offline and should lead to a greater campaign with a ultimate goal of a sale that will encourage referral.
One thing that differs from content marketing in the past compared to now is how important it is to use content at every stage is your customer’s journey.
For example, the Movember campaign used the trams to start a conversation that led people to ask friends and them ultimately led them online where it was followed-up by a range of valuable information about the initiative and encouraged people to get involved.
Once upon a time, it was a simple as you saw the billboard and then hopefully you would walk into the store to make a purchase. Today, because we are overexposed and bombarded with content every day the content marketing process needs to continue to nurture the customer from the first point of contact, through their research of the product, into the store and past the point of purchase.
Let’s look at an example how content is integrated online and offline throughout the customer’s journey
Step 1 Acquire: During the consumers morning commute they come across an advertorial in the paper that depicts a young child gifting an elderly grandparent with a watch. The advertorial includes the statement, ‘A Gift That Will Last a Lifetime’ alongside the brand and style name.
Step 2 Nurture: The person is intrigued and decides to type it into Google. First in the search results is a page that details all the features of the watch that make it sturdy and unbreakable. The page also details a 10-year warranty and provides images of customers with their raving testimonials. The call to action allows the individual to search by postcode for the closest retailer to stock the watch.
Step 3 Conversion: The individual comes in-store to try on the watch. The sturdiness of the watch is once again re-enforced by a display stand printed with the same information originally seen on the website. The person is convinced and purchases a watch from your shop. At the checkout, you hand them a leaflet with care instructions and advice on how to clean the watch and protect it from scratches.
Step 4 Retain: The leaflet provides value to the consumer who wants to ensure the longevity of their shiny new purchase and it also offers a 10% discount on watch bands through your online store. The consumer follows a short bitly-style link back to your website, which not only contains instructions on how to claim the discount but shows ways to style a range of popular watches that you stock.
Step 4 continued: The consumer decides to buy an alternative watch band so that they can style their watch differently but also likes the look of another watch face and thinks ‘while I’m here and paying for postage (or not paying if it was a free shipping discount) I may as well purchase a watch for my partner.
And hey presto you’ve got a returning customer who trusts your business! Now if you look back at this process you can see this consumer was exposed to valuable content at every point of their journey and the content was intertwined between offline and online.
Content marketing has its place in every business and should be carefully considered and included throughout your customer’s journey. To plan your content across all stages of your customer journey download our Customer Journey Mapping Template. Need help getting started? Check out our blog on Mapping Your Complete Customer Journey.