Creating Impact through Content

Creating Impact through Content

Social media marketing has always been about embracing the future and serving internet users with what serves them the best.

Social media marketing has always been about embracing the future and serving internet users with what serves them the best; whether it is using the input from tools which give companies a better in sight about their target audience or understanding their needs and bringing changes in the content served. While the term social media marketing was introduced in the year 1980, the definition of it has drastically changed in today’s times.

Today, content is posted for understanding needs, enhancing customer’s experience, research and development of a product, and the same goes for changes which are incorporated by social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.

There are thousands of social media content companies which have surfaced in the last couple of years, and so the industry has witnessed enormous changes across various platforms. Briefly:

* Twitter which has over 310 million monthly active users around the world and more than 100 million using it daily, decided to increase its character limit to 280 from the former 140.

* Going back to the time when Instagram started with stories, it gave the ‘swipe-up’ feature to verified profiles and after a while, it was rolled out for all. The same goes for the recent addition of ‘highlights’.

* Facebook has always moved towards the goal of providing better user experiences; therefore, the regular policy was changed to reduce the reach of branded content which spoils a user’s feed.

* With an existing user base of over 30 million, LinkedIn has emerged as the preferred social networking site for professionals who want to interact with business professionals only instead of going through all other content when signing into another social media platform. Now, even LinkedIn users come across blog posts which improve an individual’s business acumen.

Content marketing has always been another name for data-driven marketing. The number of sessions on a website, the number of shares on a post or the number of reactions from people has been used to analyse the success of a content piece. Yet, changes are inevitable and assessment parameters have changed over the course of time.

Necessity is the mother of all inventions or re imagination in today’s respect. An optimum business model is one which not only adapts to changing times but also comes up with ways that are sustainable in the long run,no matter how disruptive the environment is. This brings us to initiatives that content marketing companies have taken and plan to implement in the near future to attract advertising and partnerships with brands.

Customer feedback

Customer retention has been one of the essential pivots of an industry after demand and supply. About 80% of Instagrammers today follow at least one brand from their handle; over 375 million communicate through Instagram Direct monthly and one out of every third internet user talks about a brand while posting about one’s life achievement. As per a survey conducted in 2016,89% of messages sent to brands were ignored. But how do you keep track of all conversations that millions of people are trying to make from all over the world?

Chat bots and social listening tools are new aids from the technology front which enable companies to be prompt, make their customers feel valued, analyse their comments (sentimental analysis), track the impact created at the same time and leave a lasting impression in the target audience’s mind.

All that a brand expects from a content marketing company is to improve its products and services according to user preferences, and make customers feel connected to the brand.

Customer engagement Tricks like referrals, discount coupons on a specific purchase, cashback on credit card purchases, etc have become old when the combination of online and offline marketing working in sync has become the new trend. Different forms of offline marketing activities such as QR code posters, standees, selfie contests and many more have been observed lately where the potential customer takes part in an event, and to reap benefits, shares the same on her/his social media handle. This helps brands to advertise their product on a broader level than just in the virtual world.

It creates an opportunity for content marketing firms to explore various creative ways in which they can reach out to a broader audience. This kind of activity proves beneficial for both types of brands, one which has a negligible presence on social media and the other, whose followers are unaware of the brand’s activity in the world of social media.

In a nutshell, it is about the survival of the fittest and choosing a best-suited business model. The amalgamation of technological aids with social media platforms, and marketing campaigns designed with a mix of both online and offline strategies are redefining the social media ecosystem. But with an uncertain future, you can be the next innovator who brings about a more optimum business model that decreases advertising cost and strengthens partnerships brands.

Source | Financial Express | 8th May 2018

Regards!

Librarian

Rizvi Institute of Management