If you have happy customers and a good product, you might think that’s enough to have an effective marketing campaign. However, in order to be truly effective, you also need to have customers reviewing and recommending your products or services.
The early 2000s brought about the beginning of the “mommy blogging” trend, a time when online conversation between new mothers provided much-needed support and advice. Before I founded my agency, I had my own blog, as did the women who eventually went on to become my business partners. We relied on this relatively new platform to share our daily ups and downs and forge important relationships that, in many cases, have lasted to this day.
If there’s a topic that attracts nearly as much buzz as influencer marketing, it’s user-generated content (UGC). Wikipedia defines UGC as “any form of content, such as images, videos, text and audio, that have been posted by users on online platforms.” But when we’re viewing this topic through a marketing lens, we can think of UGC as any content related to a brand that is voluntarily produced by its customers.
According to a recent study by Hubspot, when it comes to getting information from and about the companies they’re interested in, consumers prefer videos over every other type of content. In addition to its popularity with consumers, video offers flexibility: Companies can choose scripted videos or livestreaming, can post to multiple channels, and can repurpose video content depending on the venue or target audience.
A study has shown that significantly more than half of consumers will patronize—or avoid—businesses that share their social and political viewpoints. In addition to wanting to attract “values-based” consumers, many business leaders want to join the conversations around causes they believe in.
“Content marketing” is a buzzword-sounding term that unfortunately is being used interchangeably with influencer marketing, native advertising and audience-centric marketing. At my agency, we often hear from clients who are confused about what content marketing is all about.
Once a bleeding-edge tactic, influencer marketing is now widely accepted as an extremely effective method for spreading brand awareness, building relationships and driving action online. As companies look to partner with influencers to reach their highly engaged audiences, questions often arise about best practices for recruitment, targeting and campaign activation.
There’s no shortage of cautionary tales when it comes to influencer marketing; speculation and myths run rampant throughout the industry. In the years since I founded Sway Group, I’ve seen misconceptions come and go in the influencer and content marketing space. And I’ve learned that the trick to avoiding strategy speedbumps is to stay informed.
The business of influencer marketing is estimated to reach $10 billion by 2020, and more marketers than ever seem ready to jump on board. In fact, a recent survey from the ANA (Association of National Advertisers) revealed that 75% of advertisers are currently using influencer marketing, with 43% planning to increase their spend on it in the next 12 months.
Content is king for a reason. Standing out from the crowd and building a brand is a challenge in today’s saturated market. What people experience when they encounter your brand for the first time not only needs to be attention-getting, but also what they should expect to find going forward. When it works well, marketing content can drive consumers to seek out more information about your company by heading to your website.
The marketing landscape is ever-changing, and it can be difficult to keep up. Even if you’ve been in the industry for years, there are always new trends emerging and methods evolving. Those who continue learning and growing will never fall too far behind, but that doesn’t mean they won’t face obstacles along the way.
Some of the biggest sports events of the year are already upon us, with families and friends eagerly donning their jerseys, setting up snacks and getting ready to watch the games and ads. In fact, particularly on Super Bowl Sunday, some people tune in just to see the special, spectacular ads.