Major brands like Geico, Under Armour, and Coca-Cola are able to experiment with different content marketing strategies because they have the kinds of budgets that help mitigate risks. Your business may not be sitting on a billion-dollar cushion, but there are still a few important lessons to be learned from these big brands doing everything right when it comes to content marketing.
Go beyond your brand
From its iconic mascot to surprise celebrity cameos in high production value commercials, original content posted on its Youtube channel to its informative blog, Geico has mastered the art of providing value to customers beyond just the core business of the brand.
Every Geico offering promotes the company’s insurance products and services, of course, yet that often seems secondary. In a saturated market, Geico has used entertainment, clever humour, and useful information to burn its brand image into consumer consciousness in order to stand out from the competition.
Offer free content
Study upon study has shown that modern consumers tend to do a fair amount of research before buying a product or paying for a service. One strategy athletic clothing and equipment brand Under Armour has mastered is to offer curious consumers totally free content that speaks to their purchasing goals, no strings attached.
The company maintains an impressive health-focused blog and has introduced a range of wildly popular free mobile apps to help consumers track health and fitness goals. Rather than luring consumers with generic content only to require a purchase to gain access to more valuable information, Under Armour has chosen instead to make free content a core component of their marketing strategy, knowing it can help build consumer confidence and generate sales.
Make your brand memorable
Soft drink giant Coca-Cola does not shy away from its identity as a global brand. The company uses its online presence to remind consumers of its iconic status – every post to Coca-Cola’s social media accounts somehow directs consumers to one of its own products, promotions, or special offers.
Every click, every like, every share, retweet, link back, or favourite connects consumers to a Coca-Cola platform where the company can then sell products, promote its brand, or collect data. But it is the data that’s really the key. Collect enough user information and you can tailor an even more targeted approach to attracting new customers and improving sales.
