audience engagement – Editorial PR

11/Aug/2020

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Social media marketing will play a crucial role in the effectiveness of marketing campaigns during the next two years after more brands pivoted to connected channels amid the pandemic and the number of users soared to a record high in July, a new study by Econsultancy has found.

The ‘Future of Marketing’ report found that social media is now arguably the de facto outlet for content consumption for people of all ages as it is now embedded into the routines and habits of day-to-day life.

COVID-19 has accelerated this trend as new data shows that 3.96 billion people are now regularly using social media around the world, which is a 10% increase from a year ago.

The sheer scale of this number means that the fear of missing out is strong for companies of all sizes.

It is now easier than ever before to reach and engage with a wide audience regularly using content on social sites.

The social media boom, something that started more than 10 years ago with the rise of Facebook and Twitter, is set to continue during the rest of 2020 and into 2021.

Econsultancy found that two-thirds of marketers believe that social media will become intrinsically linked to the quality and effectiveness of marketing strategies and campaigns during the next two years.

Econsultancy also went into detail about a range of trends that it expects to see in social media marketing during the final five months of the year.

It noted that while organic social and content continues to take up greater shares of marketing budgets, ad campaigns have slowed since the start of the year, which is not wholly surprising considering the impact of the pandemic.

The lockdown also had an effect on influencer partnerships, something that could lead to a re-evaluation of relationships over the coming months.

UK social media users are still very much engaging with influencers regularly.

Fitness coach Joe Wicks was one of the most prominent content creators when stay-at-home measures were in place, but marketers are now taking a step back to consider the best way to use influencers moving forward.

Econsultancy noted that brands have been focusing on publishing ‘how-to’ style content recently as this allows them to provide vital information covering a range of topics from cooking to exercising at home.

Brands will also attempt to capitalise on the continued growth of TikTok in late 2020.

“Consumption on platforms such as TikTok and YouTube look set to continue,” Campfire’s CEO Joe Gradwell said.

On advice for marketers, he added: “There’s still time to build your presence across social networks you’re not yet operating on – build your TikTok strategy, begin the podcast series you often talk about.”

The onus will be on brands to experiment with new social media campaigns and management during the second half of the year.

After the disruption during the spring and early summer, brands now have an opportunity to try new things and optimise strategies to best suit the needs of followers.

Aimee

26/Feb/2018

Content production levels are steadily increasing, but consumers still desire accurate, informative and relevant blogs and videos more than anything else, according to an extensive new report on branded content published by computer software company Adobe.

When asked to rank six characteristics of content from the most important to the least important, “accurate” came out on top, with 38% saying it was a primary factor and two-thirds placing it into their top two. With the recent rise of fake news, it seems consumers are eager for brands to serve up content that is error-free. This notion is supported in other recent studies, which found that mistakes can lead to a loss of consumer trust.

“Informative” was next on the list, which isn’t surprising, but the fact that “simple” content was the third most important factor for respondents – ahead of “entertaining,” “interactive” and “beautifully designed” content – suggests many consumers prefer more basic written word blogs and articles over flashy and media-rich formats. However, the report found that Millennials do like to see more beautiful content when compared with baby boomers.

Adobe then asked consumers about the most annoying aspects of brand content. Four in ten said they didn’t like pieces that were not relevant to them or their life situation, while a similar number said any content that was poorly written or too wordy was a common pet peeve. This result ties into the notion of “simple” content identified earlier.

These annoyances are also potentially disastrous, as two-thirds of respondents said their presence would lead them to consider not purchasing from a brand in the future. Mobile-optimised content is also important, as almost half said they abandon content online if it takes more than a few seconds to load up. A further 45% said they leave a site if it is difficult to interact with on a smartphone.

Finally, the study found that most consumers do not share content on a regular basis, but a third said they would if it was raising awareness for a good cause. Content that offers an incentive, and is informative and not promotional, is also deemed more shareable. People are more cautious about sharing content compared to five years ago, but they still trust content served by online news sources and traditional publishers.

A separate study by GlobalWebIndex has found that content plays an increasingly bigger role in the lives of Gen-Z teens, with 45% claiming they use social platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, as a content consumption tool rather than to meet and talk with friends.

“Above all, social media serves as a content consumption tool for this young generation,” GlobalWebIndex’s report adds. “Our data shows an unexpected motivation for Gen Z – they are more likely to be using social media to fill up spare time and find entertainment, rather than to stay in touch with friends.”

Both studies indicate that marketers have a lot of work to do to deliver the right content and messages, but a common theme is that there is an ever-growing desire for engaging and relevant forms of content.

Annie

12/Sep/2016

In an era of high competition amongst brands, and some of the shortest time spans in history with which to grab people’s attention, it is vital for content marketing to make its mark on customers immediately. For the best strategies to work, there must be immediate impact so that target audiences remain engaged for long enough so that a piece of content’s messages can be conveyed. For advertisers trying to tackle bounce rates and boost interactions, there are numerous data-backed tactics to utilise.

One of the most important priorities for any content marketer is to ensure they have an accurate buyer persona. It’s useless targeting content towards uninterested parties, and keeping people engaged relies on customers actually wanting to hear what’s being broadcast. To do this, brands must focus on unique buyer personas that allow them to identify what people are looking for and, therefore, help shape content and increase engagement. On average, marketers have four defined ideal customers, though niche companies may have fewer. It’s vital, however, to stop treating any audience as a single entity if any improved interaction is to be noted.

Another tactic, though one that may have to be run past superiors, is to increase the content marketing budget. It’s a fact that real results often come from a boost in spend. Marketing strategies can be kicked off with little capital, but to keep the ball rolling and improve results requires more money. As such, marketing budgets should not solely be for the purpose of written content curation. Money should also be spent on increasing multimedia content, investing in eBooks and whitepapers, and paying for increased promotion and analytics opportunities.

There is also some importance in not overlooking potential platforms, even if a host of networks are already being used. For example, LinkedIn can be incredibly useful for conducting B2B content marketing. In recent studies, the platform was found to be the only truly effective place for B2B marketing. Creating an account and blog is relatively simple, and this allows for original content to be shared across the network. Even better results can be found by utilising LinkedIn’s niche groups.

Email marketing should also play a role in any content marketing strategy. Whilst disseminating material across social media networks can provide good results, any curated email list provides a direct link to consumers. A report from CMI found that 73 per cent of B2C firms still believe email marketing is extremely effective – even more so than producing video content. There are many automation tools on the market too, allowing strategists to easily add email advertising to their content plans. Even sending out a single monthly email can be a very good way of maintaining brand visibility and keeping customers involved.

The best content marketing efforts are not solely focussed on new prospects, but aim to boost relationships with current customers too. And, by using a variety of data-backed tactics to keep people engaged, brands can boost the effectiveness of advertising plans – not only to better the bottom line, but to nurture consumer relationships for the future as well.

Aimee

05/Sep/2016

For content marketers, there has to be an emphasis on syndication. Brands might be curating the best content in the world, but this is useless if no one sees it. Therefore, maximising the reach of promotional material is essential, helping content to make as large an impact as possible upon a target audience. One tool that campaign strategists might want to make use of is Flipboard – a content aggregation tool that displays material in a magazine format.

With so many websites, channels and social media opportunities, many consumers can become a little overwhelmed. It is places like Flipboard that can offer some relief, with topics and content drawn from across the web into a single place. However, not only does the tool provide free usage for consumers, it can also be utilised as a publishing platform for brands to get more eyes on their content, whilst nurturing and serving a community of followers.

There are multiple reasons why Flipboard can be a great content amplifier – one of which being that the entire application has been developed as a content discovery and curation platform. Used by millions of people, there are 34,000 topics for users to discover new content and indulge in their passions. This makes it the perfect place to share content. In addition, unlike places like Facebook, which are based on a social graph and, therefore, grounded in relationships, Flipboard uses a hive mentality to focus on interests. It means that instead of sharing content with a single individual in a target audience whose friends may have no interest, content could be delivered directly to a channel of interested users – all of whom could become potential leads.

Another bonus of Flipboard is that it’s a free marketing tool. There are no fees to publish a magazine, and a well-curated magazine can gain a strong following. Like with all campaign strategies, not all content should be promotional material. However, this can be added now and then if it’s well integrated, it can also be added with stories and news from third parties.

Luckily, Flipboard is very easily set up. In addition, it doesn’t require a lot of investment for on-going maintenance, meaning it can be easily added to a syndication arsenal that already includes places like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Initially, time will be required setting up a magazine and developing the style and tone of publications. Content can be added in a similar way to how content is ‘pinned’ to a board on Pinterest. On Flipboard strategists can add any story they see on the platform to their own magazine. In addition, brands should be adding their own content too – both soft-sell content and hard-sell material.

For marketing and content strategists, part of the role is getting as many eyes on material as possible. Adding yet another source might seem like a hassle, but due to Flipboard’s interest-based architecture, taking the time to utilise the platform could offer dividends – not only in helping to disseminate content, but finding new fans and followers too.

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EditorialPR Musings
Content Marketing Blog

Social media strongly linked to marketing results beyond 2020

Consumers prioritise ‘accurate’ and ‘simple’ content over design

Keep visitors engaged with data-backed tactics

Amplify content with Flipboard