Being in a start-up is exhilarating, scary and overwhelming all at the same time. There is so much to cover, but one thing you should never, ever overlook is a content marketing strategy.
You might think “why bother with content marketing? I’ve already made a plan for regular marketing.” But here’s the thing: content marketing is an amazing tool, for both established brands and those starting out. In fact, if you have a start-up, you may be in an even better position. You might not have a huge budget but you can craft the perfect message from scratch and make it your own without previous content weighing you down. Start-ups are also usually pretty flexible when it comes to rules and run by passionate people excited about sharing their product. This kind of enthusiasm sparkles in a sea of so-so information.
Here are just a few reasons why your start-up should jump on the content marketing bandwagon:
Content marketing builds trust and authority
In an age where we seem to be in a crisis of trust (although we trust celebrities, as this poll revealed) many businesses are also doing exceedingly well.
How do you build trust with content? Sarah Mitchell, Lush’s former director of content strategy, said it best: “Creating valuable, relevant and consistent content is a building block in building trust with your clients and prospective customers. Providing your information and expertise willingly with a view to building trust goes a long way towards future commercial return.”
There are so many options to choose from
There are a huge range of content types. Which one works for your brand depends on your business offering, your audience and their needs. It could be social, blogging, a podcast, videos, case studies, white papers, infographics, quizzes, e-newsletters, or a combination of these. It all depends on what your content marketing strategy reveals. We strongly recommend you create a strategy before producing any content because you need a road map to where you want to go rather than flying blind. If you need help with this, contact us at Lush.
Recent research from the Content Marketing Institute’s 2018 Benchmarks, Budget and Trends report found that, in Australia, the five most effective content marketing techniques are:
- Social media
- Case studies
- Videos (not live)
- Ebooks and white papers, and
- Infographics.
This is helpful to know, but remember that your strategy might be completely different. Instead you may find blogging or a podcast grabs the most attention and engagement for your start-up. A content marketing strategy is not one size fits all and, again, should fit your business needs and audience needs. For example, some businesses thrive on a podcast because their audience is on-the-run types who like information delivered while they’re preoccupied with something else, such as driving.
Content is a ‘hot’ area
Consumers are devouring information like there’s no tomorrow. There is no better time to get into content marketing. People thought that with the rise of the internet, we would have less use for text and the written word. Funnily enough, we need more than ever before, so give the people what they want.
If you’ve been producing content for a little while now, and you’re not sure where to go next, let’s look at what the Content Marketing Institute has to say: “it’s about building your audience now. With this, you need to be consistent, be fully committed, focus on what your audience needs and meet those needs.” There is also a lot of wariness around ‘fake news’, so focus on fact-based and credible content.
It’s measureable
It isn’t just about putting some messages out there willy-nilly and hoping they work. Content marketing needs a good, strong measurement process behind it to decide what is working and what needs tweaking. There are multiple platforms and analytics sites that can help in this regard.
Content marketing may seem confusing at first, but it really isn’t. Yes, there are many tips and tricks floating around, telling you what you should and shouldn’t do in content marketing, but we can simplify it for you. We at Lush are content experts and we are more than happy to help new start-ups find their content feet.
If you want to learn more about creating content for your start-up business, or to find out more about a content marketing strategy, email us or give the office a call on (08) 9228 3380.
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