As you know, this month we are focusing on expanding our knowledge and learning new skills. What a better way to learn than observing what the best players in the industry are doing? Today's post features 5 brands in 5 different industries - technology, food&drinks, fashion, finance and tourism&travel - nominated for content marketing awards in 2017. Hope you are ready to take notes.
IBM - Technology
IBM have successfully utilised at least 2 of the most relevant content marketing trends for this and even next year. Their campaigns incorporate a significant use of influencers through a number of channels. Remember, influencer endorsements are a true winning formula for gaining more customers because they practically bring new audience just by their face value. However, I can't stress enough, how crucial it is to study your target market first and choose a figure who is in line with both, your consumers and your brand.
Another thing that IBM are doing great is video marketing. Follow them on social media and visit their website to study their approach first hand.
Zomato - Food&Drinks
Zomato is another brand that relies on visual content much more than it does on blogs and other types of written content. Furthermore, they are really good in market research, because they seem to have found their consumers' soft spot. Also, they are almost everywhere on the digital scene, which helps them deliver better, faster and more efficient customer service.
Rue La-La: Rue Now - Fashion
When talking about being relevant, in the here and now, and providing value, we just have to give it to Rue La-La and their relatively newly founded Content Hub: Rue Now. The number of followers they have on each of the 3 most popular social media platforms - Facebook, Twitter and Instagram - is simply impressive. Apart from these channels, they also use newsletters to promote their frequently updated content.
Santander - Finance
Millennials seem to be the most targeted group across markets and industries. That's not a surprise since they are the tech and the shoppers generation. Santander makes sure to reach them in the right way (through relevant distribution channels - SnapChat, Twitter, etc.) and with the right content. The articles published by the brand are carefully curated to fit the interests, language and attitudes of millennials. I mean, who doesn't want to know how to save more money on groceries so that they can spend them on new shoes or a fancy holiday abroad?
AirBnB - Tourism&Travel
Speaking of travelling to various places around the world, AirBnB has recently upgraded from an accommodation provider engine to a travel experience curator. In line with the news, came a refined and well structured new content marketing strategy. As most thriving brands they are also relying hugely on videos and visual content. Each advertised accommodation is to be presented with a video, which brings more personal feeling to the offered product and therefore, builds more trust in consumers.
Of course, that's not all. AirBnb has built quite a large Instagram community where content is shared from both accommodation providers and travellers.
Last but not least, the brand now has its own magazine, which showcases content from AirBnB hosts. More issues from the magazine are expected this and next year.
Have you been engaging your audience in a similar way? If you want to see the full list of brands nominated from content marketing awards and how they do their thing click here.
