HOW INVESTING IN CONTENT WILL KEEP YOUR BRAND RELEVANT IN A CHANGING MARKET

EPISODE 03 HIGHLIGHTS

If your business isn’t investing heavily in content marketing, the chances are high that your competition will leave you to pudder around in their wake. Content is the gateway to the customer’s sales journey. In the eCommerce world, your content is the equivalent of your storefront, and you’ve got to make sure that it’s grabbing people’s attention and drawing them in to purchase your products.

“[Everyone] should realize that over 50% of the technical buyer’s journey is conducted online before someone wants to engage with sales. And so, if you don’t invest in content, and you do have dated things on your website, you may never make it to have a sales conversation. Your competition is going to wipe the ground with you.” (7:44)

Wendy Covey, CEO of TREW Marketing, talked about the necessity of quality content with Derek Gerber on a recent episode of the Press Play Podcast. TREW Marketing is a marketing agency based in Austin, Texas, specializing in creating content for highly technical companies that work with highly technical buyers.

Derek and Wendy talked about why you can’t afford to ignore content marketing, what makes video content so important, and how you can effectively supplement your video content.

Marketing You Can’t Afford to Ignore

Your company’s content is likely the first thing that new customers see from your business – it’s a critical piece of criteria that modern shoppers use to measure one product or service against the next. These days, a brand’s content is a deciding force in the customer’s decision to purchase from or work with a company.

Producing quality content is an opportunity to pitch your product or service to potential customers in a casual way. It informs them of who you are, your expertise, and why you do what you do. In a sense, your content will prepare them for a sales call, lowering the number of cold calls you have to make.

The Content Your Business Should Focus On

TREW Marketing emphasizes the importance of video content, and here at Explainify, we concur. When your business operates in a highly technical field, or the products and services you sell are not always self-explanatory, video is the most effective way to communicate your point.

“97% of technical buyers watch video for work at least one hour weekly…If you compare that with how seldom technical companies are producing video and how few video assets they have on their websites, you can see there’s a really big disconnect.” (3:41)

Videos will not only help you stand out from the crowd but also allow you to put a face to your brand. They are more personal than blogs and articles because they offer a voice and face that your customers will recognize later.

“The power of video in particular is that you can personalize [it]. So you can hear the author talk about that material rather than just see their name on the white paper. And now you have a person behind it and a person behind your brand too.” (5:57)

Supplemental Content

While we believe video to be the future of effective content, we know that supplemental content is essential. Your brand needs to cater to your audience, and not everyone will jive with videos. Some people prefer to read long-form articles, while others prefer shorter, easier-to-digest blogs. You must meet your customers where they are and provide them with the content they like.

When you create different forms of content, you must remember to hold the same tone of voice and follow your brand guidelines. Every piece of content from your website, social media platforms, blogs, and videos needs to be in line with each other and your brand.

“When you message about your company, those same words, that same tone and voice, it should be carried out in every content asset downstream, you know, whether it be your webpages, your videos, or your case studies.” (25:56)

How will you choose to integrate video into your content marketing strategy today?