Content marketing and its benefits are obvious; and to be precise, it is pretty much a strategy of a company to promote its brand, products, and services. Content marketing simply means you need to market your business using an online and offline medium. In other words, content is the vehicle that drives the conversation. Content marketing does not only help the business to stand out from the crowd but also to get noticed by potential customers.
We all know that content is king. It is the best way to make your website and app look attractive to your customers, and it can give you a competitive edge over others. While it is important to have eye-catching content, it is equally important to make sure that it is done right.
The audience wants to feel that your website and app are cool and cool people are reading it. This means that your content should be formatted in such a way that it makes the reader feel that they are among friends but during these hard times where everyone is under lockdown and a normal way of leading lives are disrupted, the marketing practices have also taken a hit. What used to previously work for marketers and companies don’t work anymore. But how content marketing was impacted that’s what we are going to find out today.
Covid-19 impact on content marketing
Before covid-19 many businesses and brands used to opt for traditional marketing but as people went to lock down their attention drifted from billboards, banners, and FM to their mobile screens. Consumer behavior has shifted from offline shopping to online shopping. Brands use more email marketing tools (Mailchimp, systeme.io…)“Attention” is the single most component in marketing that marketers want to grab. Where there is attention, there are marketers. Whether it is offline marketing or online marketing. In a recent Google article, they found out that more and more people are shopping online, and they predict that in 2040, 95% of shopping will be done online. That is a bold claim by google and we know if something comes off from google then it’s authentic.
Orbit Media Studios surveyed 122 communication agencies in the first month of the pandemic. The study highlights that only 36% reported slightly negative COVID-19 impacts on marketing while a minority of 25% said the effects of the pandemic to be “very negative”.
- 68% of top brands use content marketing for database and 83% for lead nurturing,
- 84% of the most successful content marketing strategies focus on content to increase customer loyalty and strengthen the relationship with the public.
- Almost all brands with good design and User-friendly UI are more successful in building brand reputation.
After all, it’s the very current restrictive situation of social distancing/isolation that makes content the best communication tool.
- internet usage grew by 50 to 70% and by 12% for streaming services.
Stats don’t lie, it is clear that there is very little impact on content marketing due to covid-19.
Top marketing agencies and marketers still leverage this strategy. And it is on the rise as attention shifted from offline to online. It means we need to direct consumer attention towards their services and products and the single most component that can achieve that online is content marketing.
Content marketing post-covid-19
As google predicted that in the year 2040, 95% of shopping will be done online which means the effects of this pandemic will change consumer behavior. People are now asking more questions and shop online. Traditional marketing was already on the decline before the pandemic, it just boosted online marketing. And we see how brands are already leveraging from this.
As more companies turn online by realizing their potential now it has become more competitive to rank for in search engines. You have got to be making consistent content to keep showing up for your customers or readers. But at the same time giving value to them in your content is going to set you apart from the competition because customers are now smart than ever before. They have more options at their disposal to choose from. And we need to make sure that we truly empathize with them in a way that speaks to them.
Gone are the days when you just need to put the content out there and let that work for you. Market dynamics have been changing a lot and it will keep on changing post covid, so we need to stay relevant and keep updating the content because no one likes to read year-old content these days. Research for trendy content ideas before you start writing one. Look for what people are searching for with content discovery and use a content planner to get you started.
Making content on the needs and expectations of customers, not the need of the company is the key. We must think in a way and use content marketing that makes customers chase your products and services and not the company chasing after its customers. Content must be informative enough to customers that it brings value to them and at the same time emphasizes how opting for their products and services is the best decision they will make.
Keep sharing content that generates value and demand can be challenging during these times. As brands are constantly updating and making new content. We sometimes get out of ideas to make more content and that phase hits every marketer out there. Using google trends, insights, writing apps for organizing ideas, social media management tools, and keyword tools for competitive analysis will help you find new topics that are relevant to your brands can give you an edge there.
COVID-19 has shaken up the KPI’s too much to measure the effectiveness that now we must look for other ways to measure the effectiveness of content. It’s obvious that consumer attention switched to online, hence your impression and reach metrics can spike up. But are they converting well? Are they getting the value out of your content is a tough question to ask. For that reason, we must also go for qualitative research. We can do that by
- Surveys
- request for feedback
- interviews with customers
- Methods for analyzing your reputation.
Reading their sentiments and engagements with content and how they overall think about our brand has become more than important. Having a listening ear post-COVID-19 times will set you apart and help you nurture new ideas when you hit a roadblock.
How Nike leveraged covid-19 lockdown to create brand equity…
Nike is the best example for that, they empathized with their customers and gave them premium features of the Nike app for free so that they can work out from home, using the #homeworkout keyword that was already in a boom. They leveraged the single most searched hashtag in content marketing to build brand equity via being socially responsible.
After all, it’s the very current restrictive situation of social distancing and isolation that imposes content as the best communication tool for brands. internet usage grew by 50 to 70% and by 12% for streaming services. The circumstances imposed by the pandemic, along with more time, are facilitating the success of Content Marketing. This has become the only way for companies to stay in touch with the public.
Many responsible brands are taking social responsibility and opening a premium subscription for their customers to encourage them to stay inside and give them extra value for free. That increases the brand credibility and loyalty which in return increases the brand equity. It is a perfect strategy to give the taste of your premium product till lockdown, so later, they buy it even when lockdown ends.
Some more Examples
- Harvard University offered several online courses to learn from when we are stuck at home.
- Microsoft also started offering online courses and virtual internship programs to help people upskill and get employed.
- Mango launched the “Mango Home Session” initiative, which is a series of acoustic concerts for its Instagram channel users to entertain the social network community and give visibility to new talents.
Conclusion
- Covid-19 has a very little impact on content marketing, rather more brands are adopting it.
- It is still effective and even more reachable to customers.
- Companies are realizing that attention has shifted to online hence there is more competition, and we have to consistently be making more content.
- Don’t just put content for the sake of it. Instead, give
- value
- empathize
- Provide solutions
- Look for sentiments also rather than just looking at metrics.
- It’s still an effective strategy and will remain post-covid-19.