You don’t need to be Nike or Apple to increase brand awareness and drive sales using content marketing. Even small businesses with limited resources can utilize this powerful and budget-friendly marketing strategy to build trust and boost revenue. Growing your brand with content marketing starts with knowing which trends are the best fit for your small business.
If you’re looking for ways to make the most of your marketing budget, capitalizing on current content marketing trends is the answer. From video to user-generated content, small business owners can learn from industry leaders and tweak trends to fit their needs. The beauty of content marketing is its malleability. You don’t have to invest large amounts of money or hire a huge team to make content marketing work for you.
But, as a small business owner, you likely already have a lot on your plate. Perhaps you’re not quite sold on participating in content marketing trends. If that’s the case, you need to, first, explore the reasons you should utilize content marketing and how it can benefit your small business. Then, you can dive into the top content marketing trends for small businesses plus tips for successful implementation.
Why Your Small Business Should Utilize Content Marketing
Especially for small business owners who manage their own marketing, the thought of participating in content marketing trends can feel overwhelming. You might worry that your small business is at a disadvantage. Before the idea of adding yet another task to your seemingly endless to-do list makes you stress-order your second Starbucks to-go of the day, take a look at why your small business should utilize content marketing.
As a refresher, content marketing is a marketing strategy that uses content to cultivate a relationship with your target audience. Where paid advertising is interruption marketing and generally focused on straight selling, content marketing is permission marketing. In exchange for the value you provide, prospective customers are agreeing to receive your marketing messages. The content itself can take a variety of formats, but the end goal is the same: build trust. When consumers trust your brand, they’re more likely to buy from you.
Not only is content marketing effective, but it’s also budget-friendly. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to see a positive ROI from adding content marketing to your small business strategy. On average, content marketing costs about 62% less than traditional marketing tactics. Even if you outsource your content marketing or hire a new team member to oversee it, it’s still much more affordable than other types of advertising. You stand to gain a lot from any investment you make in content marketing including increased organic search visibility, leads for new clients, and exposure to a larger audience.
Top Content Marketing Trends for Small Businesses
To get the most bang for your buck, it’s important to devote your resources to the content marketing trends that are best suited for small businesses. You can get inspiration from big businesses and industry leaders but then get creative for how these trends can be accomplished on a smaller scale. Two of the top marketing trends that can feasibly be adapted to fit your small business are video content and user-generated content.
If you’re in the business of giving customers what they want, then you need to be incorporating video into your marketing strategy. When asked how they prefer to learn about a new product, 79% of consumers said they would rather watch a video than read about it. Using just your smartphone and free editing software, you can create instructional videos, testimonials, product teasers, or short clips with tips and tricks to use on your website and social media channels.
Another easy content marketing trend your small business can participate in is user-generated content. Not only will this trend lighten your content creation load, but it uses social proof to showcase your brand’s authenticity. To incorporate user-generated content into your marketing plan, all you need to do is encourage your most loyal customers to make content about your products and services (a simple way is using a branded hashtag). Then, you can curate the images, videos, and reviews to use on your own social media channels.
Tips for Growing Your Business With Content Marketing
The key to growing your business with content marketing is understanding that people want to be educated. To effectively use this strategy, you must research your target audience and be able to pinpoint their most burning questions. Every industry and every niche has them. When you can provide answers to those questions with your content, you will win their trust.
For example, if your small business makes gym wear, you could create content about exercising and healthy living. Your target customer isn’t likely to buy new gym wear from you every day, but when you hold their attention with relevant and valuable content, you increase your chances of being first-in-mind when they need new clothes for working out. When you show your target audience that you understand their lifestyle, they are more likely to trust that your product or service will fit into their life.
Regardless of the size of your business, you can utilize content marketing trends to increase brand awareness, build trust, and drive sales. Video content and user-generated content are two trends that small businesses can easily participate in. Content marketing is a powerful, cost-effective strategy that you can use to grow your small business.
