2022 January 27 Archive - EXEIdeas – Let's Your Mind Rock

The world of content marketing has gone through quite radical changes in the recent past. Therefore, in 2022, following the same formula you have been might not cut it anymore. Content creation needs to be put in a wider context; it needs not only to satisfy the quantitative requirements of ever-changing algorithms in order to stay relevant, but it also needs to maintain a level of creativity and originality in order to stand out.The way people interact with content, as well as what they expect from it, has undeniably changed. What this means for businesses is that in order to maintain their online presence, they might need to update their content marketing strategy according to the latest trends and supplement their regular content with a few creative campaigns. Here are some of the areas worth exploring in the year 2022.Produce Video Content:As we have already observed throughout the past few years, user preference is moving towards video content. As if the impressive growth of YouTube would not be proof enough—with 500 hours of video being posted every minute on this massive platform—social media sites are also shifting focus to this medium one by one.The reason why video works so well lies in the fact that it uses sound and image simultaneously. This naturally appeals to a wider audience than only one of these components alone. Video content is more engaging, it communicates information more effectively, and it requires less effort from viewers to consume. A well-made video will be more likely to be shared than either an image or a text, so this is a golden opportunity for a brand to expand its reach.However, what kind of video you should focus on highly depends on your target audience. If your aim is to reach social media users, you will need to master short-form video. If your aim is to educate, you can go in-depth, but always stay concise. Long videos can easily deter viewers.Leverage Influencers:The next creative content marketing strategy to leverage in 2022 is influencer marketing. While some may not consider influencer marketing as “content marketing” per se, the fact of the matter is that it is definitely an indirect way of generating content around your brand and products, and a very potent one at that.Influencer content can range from a simple social media post accompanied by an image to a full-fledged 20-minute YouTube review, which means that it’s up to you what you get out of it. In either case, influencer marketing is not something you should ignore, considering that these people possess notable authority in certain niches and their presentation and possibly recommendation of a product or service is a sure way to grab the attention of a relevant body of the audience.In addition, another benefit of this content marketing strategy that we mustn’t fail to mention is that influencers will basically do the hard lifting for you. All you need to do is find the right people for the job and they will do the rest.Make It Interactive:One of the most important criteria that content needs to fulfil in order to perform well is to be engaging. Naturally, a well-written, immersive blog post has all the potential to engage the attention of your audience. However, attention spans are only getting shorter in the digital world where stimulation is received every moment from all sides. The remedy to this is taking your content to the next level by making it interactive.Gamifying content, creating quizzes and polls (whether independently or as a complement to written articles), infographics and virtual spaces your customers will be able to interact with are all great ways to make things more interesting. Naturally, graphic design will play an important role here.Besides these ideas, you can also simply encourage discussion and comments. People are eager to let their voices be heard, and additional engagement will never hurt.Let Users Take Over:As we have mentioned earlier, not all content used in your content marketing needs strictly to be made by you. Besides the help of influencers, you can actually involve your audience in content creation with amazing results.First of all, encouraging users to generate content through a contest or campaign is a great way to engage them fully and get them closer to your brand. It also results in content that will be closer to your audience and feel authentic, which can make it popular and encourage shares.For one, you can take a look at Spotify’s year-end campaigns. The massive amounts of posts users make when their yearly Wrapped becomes available all essentially promote the brand, and very effectively at that. Another good example is Bookdepository’s #READCreate campaign that curated user-made entries into a virtual gallery and a set of bookmarks. Similarly, Apple’s “Shot on iPhone” challenge turns photos people send in into billboards. In fact, you don’t even have to go this far; simply encouraging reviews and tagged photos will already give you something to work with.Enter The World Of Podcasts:While podcasts are nothing new in the grand scheme of things, we don’t have to travel too far back in time to see virtually no mention of them in popular circles. However, their listenership has been steadily growing with an expected number of 125 million people who will consume this form of media this year on a regular basis, according to Forbes.It’s not difficult to see the appeal of podcasts as they allow people to explore topics they are interested in and even learn while doing something else at the same time. Podcasts also build communities, which was ever so important in the times of lockdowns (it is no wonder that that was when the popularity of podcasts spiked.)With growing demand, streaming platforms were quick to react, and podcasts are ubiquitous today. This provides the perfect opportunity for professionals, such as yourself, to create valuable content and build authority in their field. If starting your own series is still out of your capacities, you can also guest on others’ programs and market your business that way.Content marketers need to step up their game in order to appeal to the growing expectations of the consumers of 2022. Make sure you aren’t afraid to change your approach for better results and give the abovementioned strategies some thought.About the Author:My name is Jacob Braun, a writer and a fan of most things online. I write about web design and development, digital and traditional marketing, small businesses, social media-related subjects and most things revolving around the entertainment industry. Currently for an SEO agency in Sydney to provide high-quality web and SEO services.Find Me On Twitter