In today’s competitive online marketing world, there is very stiff competition for the customer’s attention. This means that there is a great need to come up with different and innovative ways to reach customers. There are many brands whose content marketing strategies involve developing content that will appeal to a wider audience, and go viral.
We agree that there are some basics to follow when we are creating content. However there are basically no limits to what we can do with content. Let us delve into some ways in which we can create innovative content, based on what some companies have done:
1. Using creative formats
a) Pixel art
This is a strategy that was first used by eBoy, a graphic design firm. They are usually referred to as the 'godfathers' of pixel art. They have been able to use pixels to create impressive backgrounds and images with some moving elements. As you scroll down the page, the pixel background seems to zoom in. This graphic design company uses "the HTML Canvas tag", a HTML element used to draw graphics via scripting. You can use it to make simple animations, draw graphs or even make photo composition. Pixel art is used to complement the well written content on the website. To see this, here is the URL: (http://www.theverge.com/2014/6/17/5803850/pixel-perfect-the-story-of-eboy)b) WebGL
webGL is a JavaScript API used to render interactive 3D and 2D graphics within compatible browsers without using plug-ins. One of Chrome’s experiments used webGL. The experiment is called 'globe'. It is a visualization of the population growth in the earth, based on a set range of dates. Other webGL experiments include: Hello Racer, Twitter’s Tweetopia and Chrome Experiments. This approach can be incorporated into content marketing, if you want to explore a highly interactive and simulated environment.c) SVG
SVG refers to vector based graphics in XML format. Unlike other image files, for instance, .jpg, .png, and .gif, it is light on file size, adjusts to responsive browser widths, and loads quickly. SVG can be manipulated to create simple but stunning effects. A company that uses this technique is Polygon. It used this method in a review of Playstation 4. As a content marketer, you can also think of a way that you can use this style to communicate and engage your clients.One aspect of SVG is path animation. This captures your audience’s attention and engages them. Another good example of the use of SVG is Gridlocks and Bottlenecks by Lewis Lehe. It imitates gridlocks and bottlenecks in traffic.
2. Using popular appeal
Another innovative content marketing strategy for the creation of innovative content is using popular appeal. This entails using an already popular concept or product and creating content around it. One good example is Hootsuite’s video, 'A Game of Social Thrones'. It is based on the popularity of the movie 'Game of Thrones'3. Using Stories
According to a Business Review article, stories make the body to produce oxytocin, a neurochemical that makes people feel good. Another study by Berkeley scientists showed that the body produced this hormone when it was exposed to stories driven by characters. This means that every content marketing strategy needs to aim at producing some oxytocin.One of the biggest companies that has mastered this art is Microsoft. They run a blog called Stories. Here, they use different stories to introduce products, for instance, Cortana, the search engine that is highly useful in Windows 10. They also tell personalized stories to introduce 'Independence Day' a pilot program that aims at helping visually impaired people to restore their sight. Generally, the blog tells real, personal stories, increasing some oxytocin.
While this approach does not directly sell the product, it raises good feelings, which subconsciously become associated with the product in question. To leverage this as a content marketer, you need to speak to humans about other humans, be humble, and remain relevant.
4. Transparency
This is a strategy that McDonalds has learned to leverage. It entails asking the customers to ask any question about the brand or the product, whether positive or not. McDonalds then goes ahead to answer most, if not all of them. As a content marketer, this method could be a great way to know the areas to focus content creation on. It would also help to improve your customer service or any other issues the customers may raise.5. Inbound Marketing
This term was coined by Hubspot, and they have spearheaded the implementation of this strategy. It entails creating of numerous high quality content. You can create ebooks, guides, templates, case studies, worksheets, marketing kits, and webinars. These need to be very high quality for your visitors to find value in them.6. Using platforms
A crucial part of strategic marketing is utilizing as many platforms as possible. Some of the forums you can use include:a) Forbes BrandVoice
This forum enables marketers to share their content with the audience on Forbes.b) Chambers of Commerce
These forums will help you in distribution of information. They will also promote the information to the relevant audience. Look out for the free submission calendar.c) Reddit
On this social platform, the audience will affect your reach either positively or negatively using the downvote feature. This site may result in a higher ROI when compared to other social channels.d) Contently
This forum helps you to connect with mainstream media journalists. It works via sponsorship, distribution, and publication.e) LinkedIn Sponsored Updates
This helps in reaching the right audience, via appearing the news stream.f) Outbrain & Taboola
These 2 platforms advertise content across a broad range of publications. Your content will appear at the end of other articles as related articles.g) Onespot
This platform provides analytics and a detailed conversion tunnel. It will do an in-depth analysis of your content helping you to identify your target audience and the person it is most likely to engage.h) Influitive
This is a recruiting platform. It will help you to develop and engage a brand advocate community. It does so by presenting a challenge and then rewarding the customers who participate. Incorporating CRM (content Relationship Management) and social media enables you to reach and recognize brand advocates.Conclusion
As we have seen, there are no limits to what we can do with content. We need to embrace innovative ways of coming up with content in our content marketing strategies, and this way, we can grab our customer’s attention easily.
Advertisement
