Speaker 1: What's that? Oh, you want to learn about what content marketing is? Well, I'm glad you're in this video then because today's video is all about how content marketing works, what it is, and guess what? It's already happening right now. That's right. This content is content marketing. A little sleight of hand. So strap in and we're going to get going. Be sure to subscribe to this channel to get all the latest digital marketing tips and tricks. What's up? It's Jamal from HubSpot. Content marketing is defined as the process of creating, distributing, sharing, and publishing content to reach your target audience and increase brand awareness, sales, engagement, and loyalty. But what does that meaning mean? What is the meaning of meaning? Any guesses? No? All right. In simple terms, content marketing is making stuff like blogs, social media, podcasts, video, apps, memes that draw customers to your brand by informing them of something they already want to know. It's part of a framework called inbound marketing where you create something that the audience seeks out as opposed to creating something that you force on your audience. You wanted to know about content marketing, so you searched and found this video that HubSpot made to teach you about content marketing. So why would we do that? Do we just not know how to sell a product? Well, maybe watching this video is interesting enough that you download the free content marketing training workbook we have linked in the description. And maybe that ebook will inspire you to try out HubSpot's free marketing hub software. And maybe, just maybe, our free marketing software will be so beneficial to your business that you sign up for one of our subscriptions. Now your brand is really growing. And that's the truth. Another truth is that there are a lot of maybes in that equation. And it's also true that content marketing takes a lot of work. So what's the alternative? The truth is that for most businesses, the alternative is worse. You see, before content marketing, there was this thing called advertising, otherwise known as outbound marketing. Outbound marketing was the thing that interrupted your audience, popping up in the middle of TV shows or while reading a magazine or scrolling a web page. Nobody really liked outbound marketing because it was disruptive. Like that one kid in class who thought he was funny, but it wasn't really working out for him. And you're just like, hmm, maybe you should just let the teacher continue with what they're doing here. You know what I'm saying? Jerry. But it was the only way for brands to reach potential customers. And it was the only way for customers to find out about a brand's products and services. But they still had to remember those brands when it came time to actually make a purchase. And if you're anything like me, you forget everything. Where am I? So yeah, not a particularly efficient system. Then came streaming and ad blockers and the balkanization of media into millions of individual channels. Suddenly, it became really, really hard to deliver an outbound marketing message, even one that was memorable. Fortunately, the same tools that allow everyone to choose their own media diet also gave rise to highly personalized marketing messages that would only pop up when the audience was looking for it. This is called inbound marketing. And content marketing is an essential piece of that equation. It's there when customers want it to be and invisible when they don't. And when done right, inbound marketing doesn't feel like marketing at all. It feels like a seamless part of the customer's experience in discovering your brand, like this video you're watching right now. Want to see more examples of content marketing to grow your business? Let's go back to that list from earlier. Blogs are a great content marketing platform for brands because they're relatively easy to set up, easy for the audience to discover via search, and have a long tail in terms of remaining viable for future customers. One of my favorite brand blogs is Bark Post by pet supply company Bark. The blog is full of the type of content that dog lovers would love to search for. There's doggy health and doggy travel and doggy training. Wait a second. You're not a dog. Get out of here. I miss him. Another easy to activate content marketing method is social media. But because it seems so easy, a lot of brands do it wrong, treating social like outbound marketing that interrupts the user's experience when scrolling. What's an example of good social media marketing? How about the GE Insawa campaign that invited select Instagram photographers to visit one of their massive facilities and photograph some of the mammoth machines that make General Electric one of the most important engineering firms in the world. There's no denying that these sorts of mechanical marvels are really popular on Instagram. So GE was able to educate their audience about the brand without interrupting the photographic experience users are seeking when using the app. Dedicated brand apps have become an increasingly popular form of content marketing. Now apps can be complicated and expensive, and you don't want to just replicate the online shopping experience. But if you can create something truly useful for your audience, then they could end up opening the app every day. And you can't beat that sort of inbound brand exposure. We looked at a lot of branded apps in the App Store. And of course, the one that stood out came from one of the best brands in the world. The Nike Training Club app takes users through daily fitness routines, nutrition tips and wellness habits prescribed by some of the top trainers in the world. It's the sort of app that demands repeated use to get results. In fact, one of the best things about the app is that they can remind users to open them several times a day. And we welcome those sort of reminders. You know what I'm saying? A little dopamine with the notification. You know what I'm talking about. Now might be a good time to remind you to hit that little bell icon next to the subscribe button so you get that every time HubSpot posts a new video. But back to Nike. The app is constantly updated with new fitness courses and content. This demonstrates an important lesson for all content marketing. Yes, quality content can deliver an audience long after it's been published. But you need to post new content and update old content consistently for it to be truly effective. The island of abandoned blogs is the saddest place on the Internet. So before you begin a content marketing project, make sure you have the resources to commit to it over the long term. One of the most often abandoned forms of content marketing is podcasting. And this is too bad because it's one of the most effective and exciting forms of content marketing out there. Sometimes I like to block out the world for an hour and listen to the Unqua Bank podcast and get inspired by the emotional stories of the entrepreneurs who work with this community bank. By the end, I'm ready to move to Oregon and take out a loan. It's that powerful. All of the best content marketing impacts your audience in a powerful way. So how do you get started? Well, start by deciding what you want to accomplish with your content marketing. Are you looking for brand awareness or to stimulate customer loyalty? Set clear goals and KPIs that can be accomplished. Next, decide which channels will allow you to accomplish your goals. Do you want to build your own blog or can you rely on social media platforms that already exist? Can you effectively tell your story using texts and photos or should you invest in creating videos? Whatever you decide, you then have to start creating the content and publishing it at a regular frequency. The exact pace of publishing can vary, but remember that consistency is key. You know, like baby bears porch. You want your consistency to be just right. And finally, measure and analyze your results to maximize the return you're going to get on your content marketing investment. That doesn't mean refreshing your stats every hour, but you do want to review the overall success of your content marketing every month or every quarter. To learn more about how to create and execute your own content marketing strategy, you can download our free content marketing workbook that will take you step-by-step through the process. You can also take the free content marketing certification course available online at HubSpot Academy. Links to both are in the description below. I can't wait to see the content that you come up with. Now, if you'll excuse me, me and Leon have some dog blogs to look at. I'll catch you next time. Peace out. Now, if you'll excuse me, me and... Now, if you'll excuse me, me and...