Imagine a marketing strategy that can attract, inform, and inspire a buyer to take action without needing to rely on expensive traditional marketing tactics.
That's exactly what Content Marketing does.
HubSpot reports that 82% of businesses are already investing in content marketing. So if you want to adopt a new marketing strategy, what better time to start than now?
However, we understand that diving into content marketing can be intimidating. After all, there's a whole plethora of content marketing types, from tried-and-true methods like blogs, white papers, and email marketing, to up-and-coming ones like webinars, podcasts, and eBooks. Since we can't make use of every method from the get-go, it's important to know which ones are the most useful.
This article shortlists the 5 most effective types of content marketing for your business. It will explain the benefits of each type, and elaborate on how you can create unique content for your business.
What is Content Marketing?
Content marketing is a marketing strategy that emphasises constant, steady communication with customers. Its goal is to provide readers with relatable content that doesn't feel like it's intended to sell something.
Why is Content Marketing Important?
Today, there are over 5 billion internet users in the world. Thanks to smartphones and computers, these users now rely on the internet as their go-to source for entertainment, shopping, self-learning, and so much more.
However, with an explosion of information online, there is an increasing need for businesses to differentiate how they portray themselves in the digital space. And content marketing does exactly that, by creating trust with customers and providing them with actually useful information, helping your business to stand out from the crowd.
What Are The 5 Types of Content Marketing? (Most Useful & Effective)
1. Blog articles
Blog articles are a great way to keep a company's website fresh and up-to-date. They drive traffic to what might otherwise be a site with static content.
Having informational blog posts on a website adds value to clients and establishes expertise and trust. In addition, blog posts give businesses more detailed content to link on their social media posts.
A 2022 study on content marketing suggested that 76% of businesses used blogs to market their brands in the past year. Blogs can be used to answer questions, form connections with customers, and boost search engine optimisation (SEO).
Example: Digitrio's SEO Blog Resources
2. Social media posts
Another strategy is to use social media marketing to connect with customers. In this digital age, most consumers are on social media anyway. Why not make use of that?
You can post summarised blog content on Facebook, create informational threads on Twitter, or share photos and videos of your products or services on Instagram.
Posting on social media platforms increases brand visibility and authenticity, keeps your company relevant, and helps you to engage with customers on a more personal level. It also allows you to connect with others in the same industry.
Example: Kinetic Singapore's Instagram post on Singapore Design Week 2022
3. Videos
Posting videos to your website, YouTube, Instagram Reels, or TikTok is a good way to get your company's message out there. With smartphones, filming and producing videos has become easier than ever.
These videos bring information to clients in an entertaining, accessible, and aesthetically pleasing format. Wyzowl found that 89% of businesses believe video marketing provides a positive return on investment. Videos are effective in increasing conversion rates and sales, boosting search engine rankings, and encouraging social shares.
Example: Slack's video on new coworking capabilities in their huddles
4. Infographics
Infographics are an excellent way of providing information to customers in a succinct, eye-catching, and easily shareable format.
Other companies can link back to your infographic in articles on a related topic, and this helps to establish your authority in the field and increase public awareness of your brand.
Business leaders agree that infographics are a great method of breaking complex topics down into easily digested and highly visual graphics.
Example: What is SEO and How It Works' infographic by Ourselves
5. eBooks
eBooks offer customers long-form content that contains in-depth information. Of course, it takes time, effort, and money to develop an eBook, but the resources put into eBooks are typically less than coming up with a full print media kit.
Not only does allowing customers to download a free eBook naturally garner goodwill, but it also involves customers providing the company with their contact details in exchange for the book. This adds value to both the company and the consumer.
Example: HubSpot's guide to email marketing
Ultimately, the most practical method is to start with blogs. It is the best and easiest way to help potential customers learn about your business. Other types of content, like videos or eBooks, may be more visually appealing, interesting, and innovative, but they will also take more time and effort.
What are the 3 Ways to Create Content?
Now that we've covered the 5 most useful content marketing formats, we'll go into the ways you can generate content.
1. Create Original Content
Creating original content is to provide information written by your company and is relevant to your company's expertise. It can take a variety of forms, from blog post to infographic, and it can be instructive or entertaining.
Creating original content shows your audience what you know and what you have to offer. The strategy in creation is to give generously while keeping a few things to yourself, ensuring your audience will come back for more.
Example: Digitrio's on-page SEO checklist
2. Use Other People’s Content
Don't worry, we're not asking you to plagiarise. Instead, we encourage you to curate and share other people's content with proper attribution. You want to make sure that the information you're sharing is consistent with the values and beliefs of your company.
An advantage of this is that it requires much less time than creating original content. Since you should be sharing valuable content frequently, this is a great way to keep your content marketing funnel filled.
You can build a solid foundation for your digital marketing efforts by combining original content production with carefully selected third-party content.
Example: Pubity's Instagram shares content they think their readers will enjoy
3. Share & Comment
You can also generate content by sharing someone else's content with your own comments added to it.
It's an intriguing opportunity for businesses that is frequently underutilised. Such user-generated content has the ease of curation while adding your brand's voice and personality into the mix.
Example: Izwanhs's makeup review on TikTok
What are the 4 Main Categories of Content Marketing?
Each type of content marketing we described can serve different purposes. To help you to better understand what your content can do, here are the 4 main categories of content marketing.
1. Attraction: Draw People to You
Attraction content brings potential customers to your website, laying the groundwork for your content strategy. The idea is to provide useful information for free. Readers will share this content, which will bring organic traffic to your site.
List posts, also known as "listicles," are a good example of attraction content. This kind of content is popular because it engages and informs readers, and it keeps them reading until the end. At that point, there's a call to action. This is where a visitor turns into a lead.
Example: SGMagazine's article on 21 Best Rooftop Bars in Singapore for Drinks with a View
2. Authority: Help People Discover You
Authority content establishes your brand as an authority on a specific topic. The most important aspect of authority content is that it requires you to demonstrate your expertise. This can be accomplished by providing content that is well-organised, understandable, and appropriate in tone.
You broaden your reach when you create exemplary authority content, because other brands will begin linking to your content.
Example: The Woke Salaryman's article on "The case for buying the most affordable home you can"
3. Affinity: Get People to Like You
Affinity content is extremely effective because it motivates prospects to favour you over the competition. The goal is to connect with the emotions of readers by creating personable and relatable content. This is where your brand's voice comes in handy.
Affinity content positions you as a brand that not only the reader trusts, but also one that shares their worldview.
Example: Cassey Ho, CEO of Blogilates, does an excellent job through her Instagram posts
4. Action: Spur People to Take Action
Action content aims to convert readers into paying customers. Create your content with a specific business objective in mind to guarantee the success of your action content.
You must ensure that your content makes a strong case for the action you want readers to take to increase the likelihood that they'll take it.
Apple publishes action content effortlessly with their #ShotOniPhone campaign.
What is the benefit of using Different Types of Content Marketing?
Each content type can serve a different purpose. Blog posts and videos can build affinity, while infographics and eBooks increase authority. Social media efforts are great for attraction. All 5 content marketing tools can be used as action content.
Therefore, diversifying your content can help your company to capture different segments of your target audience and branch out your outcomes so you can achieve different metrics such as impressions, traffic, and leads.
Do you need Different Types of Content Marketing in your Strategies?
While there are advantages to using the different types, it isn't strictly necessary. Just having one type of content can be very powerful—think full-time blogs like The Asian Parent or Seth Lui.
With that said, some companies prefer to use multiple formats to reach a broader audience. Seth Lui, for example, has expanded into video reviews, a Telegram channel, and short TikTok clips. So, explore the differences between the various formats and see which is most appropriate for your business and target audience.
Drive Actual Results with Content Marketing Services
If you're hoping to boost your site traffic, increase brand awareness, and generate leads, all 5 types of content marketing are useful and effective ways to provide your audience with valuable information.
Of the 5 types, writing blog posts is often the easiest to start with. Blog content marketing works well for the majority of businesses as long as they have a service to promote. At Digitrio, we combine SEO with blog content marketing to drive better results. We help businesses across Singapore attract people with useful content that is guaranteed to appear on search engines.
Learn more about our Content Marketing Services and reach out to us to get started on your content marketing journey today!
