Have you heard about Article 13 yet? This new directive that has been approved by the European Parliament is looking to form new laws across Europe within the next two years. Although aimed at Europe, it’s likely the directive will have an impact internationally too, so it’s essential to get up to speed with how this will impact marketing for all sorts of businesses, content and brands. You may have seen Article 13 being flagged as the Meme Ban or Link Tax but overall, it’s a move to protect copyrighted materials online. Ultimately, this copyright act it likely to aid larger companies first, but should be seen as a potentially positive thing from any original content creators big or small. However, there will be a large group of content categories that will be negatively impacted from the start, including fan art, independent news channels, popular culture commentators and video game streamers, read this article from Twitch to find out more on that one. In terms of brand marketing, this directive is likely to limit use of user generated content, memes and third party content, although the specifics of it all is to come. In the aftermath of the Article 13 announcement, many platforms and creators are joining forces to #SavetheInternet, you can get a great overview of everything on this YouTube video, direct from their Creator Academy.
We’re not going to go into massive detail about Article 13 right now, but it is something to be aware of before we go onto the focus of this post. You can get up to speed on this article on Wired and we’ll keep you updated when we know more. Regardless of the outcome of these new European Copyright Directives, it’s becoming increasingly clear that if you want success online, you need to be constantly creating your own original content to make an impact, relying on 3rd party or UCG isn’t enough. Social media isn’t what it used to be and getting cut through against big budget ad campaigns from huge international brands and all the noise on every platform from billions of new pieces of content everyday, it takes more than just stock images and salesy copy to succeed. In addition, we need to stay aware of changing algorithms and priorities of each individual platform and adapt to be both compliant and efficient when sharing content online.
Invest in Video Content and Stay Visible
It’s been common knowledge for a few years now that video content is currently King. As Facebook aims to compete with YouTube, the platform is continuously adapting to prioritise and streamline video sharing. This flows over into Facebook owned; Instagram, too with relatively new IGTV and the ability to share live video and short clips in the main timeline and Stories. In recent years, LinkedIn has also been following this trend as it morphs more and more into a Facebook for Careers and video seems to be staying relevant. Of course, adding content to Google owned; YouTube, will always help support SEO and social media performance.
You can’t just post any video content though, for an efficient content strategy you need quality, consistency and a regular publishing schedule. So, a lot of thought and planning is required to ensure you create the most valuable videos possible. Who is the audience? What is the format? Who will film and edit it? In addition, video files need to be optimised to suit various platforms in order for them to be most useful for organic and paid reach. Don’t get overwhelmed just yet, professional equipment isn’t always required, there are many cases in which mobile phone created videos go viral, you just need some brains and good timing to make it happen.
Milk Makeup create stunning video content for Instagram Stories and teaser campaigns that relate to their modern audience
Use Photography to Sell your Story
Sure, it’s not super convenient to be constantly filming everything, all the time, in fact, we don’t recommend it. Put down the camera for a minute and let’s ponder how much value an authentic, well composed photograph can add to your content strategy. Whether you’re selling a product, a restaurant or a song, illustrating this in a static image is powerful. Your photography is essential to selling yourself, illustrating your message and is a way to create shareable and engaging content. Not only should you be creating your own photographs, you should also be looking at ways to encourage fans or customers to want to share photos of your products too. Every time an individual shares user generated content that celebrates your brand or project, they are acting as a thumbs up or confirmation of your trustworthiness, which is always going to be helpful.
There are a million different ways you can choose to illustrate your project or brand in photographs, so you must understand your USP and target audience before you crack on. Create inspirational, quality visuals that entice viewers to want to be involved and present good reasons why your fans would want to post about you or share your content.
Fashion brand look books offer loads of content opportunities and can be applied to other brand types. We’re fans of Lazy Oafs photography.
Supercharge SEO with Regular Blog Posts
If you run a business that relies on website traffic, you need to know about SEO! As with all algorithms associated with social media, the world of SEO is constantly changing, so it’s a pretty tricky one to say on top of without an expert. One of the simplest ways you can add value to your website (as well as contributing useful content for social media) is to start publishing quality blog posts or articles on a regular basis. Write about your background, your brand story, your news and expand out into relevant topics to your niche to attract that ideal audience. For full impact, ensure your blog posts use quality photos, graphics or videos that illustrate your story and optimise the format and chosen links to tick the SEO boxes.
Collaborate with partners, like-minded folks and influencers to create guest blogs to increase the sharing possibilities and reach of your content. It takes a lot of time to build up a blog and you won’t necessarily see results instantly, but we’d recommend choosing a regular publishing schedule and sticking to it for as long as you can. Don’t forget to have a look at SEO changes regularly to ensure you’re not doing more harm than good! Plugins like Yoast SEO and the SEO Beginner’s Guide from Moz are great places to start if you’re an SEO newbie.
Create PR-worthy Moments and Stories
Launching a new product, hosting an event or sharing new research to your industry are all great ways to generate new original content. Ensure you optimise these opportunities to make the most of the assets that can be pulled from these often expensive activities. At the very start of your ideation time, consider the full scope of the marketing and PR support you can generate. Is it a story for the local press? Something that bloggers will want to know about? Is there a group of loyal fans you can call upon to push your message further? And how will you get all these people involved? There are many different strategy routes, but essentially you need to ensure that what you’re creating is interesting, relevant and shareable. We don’t need another red lipstick in a black tube, so why should anyone shout about that? What makes your story different?
Once you’ve nailed your message and story, spread the word and shout about it. Enhance the message with a great press pitch, stunning photography and a vibrant video, oh and don’t forget the hashtag! It’s one thing to be publishing content about yourself on your own platforms but if you can get other accounts to shout about you too, this will have massive value instantly and for the future of your project.
Heritage brand, Dr. Martens flawlessly blending content that covers art, music, style and subcultures. We love their illustration collaborations!
Collaborate with Artists and Relevant Influencers
Original content doesn’t always need to be created within the confines of your existing team. We’ve touched on partnerships in relation to blog posts, but this collaborative route can cover all categories of content creation. One of the wonders of the internet is the ability to efficiently discover and connect with a huge global network of incredibly talented creators, as well as being able to measure their reach and authenticity with the click of a button. Some of these content creators may be professionals, some hobbyists and some just starting out, whatever their level, you’re sure to find someone you vibe with. What you need to consider is the added value that can be captured when working with someone outside of your usual team. A fresh perspective, a social media audience of their own, the possibilities of word of mouth recommendations and skills that may well be stronger than your own are on offer when you collaborate.
Your collaborator could be a film maker, a blogger, an illustrator, a street artist or a pro skateboarder, the possibilities are endless. Find a collaborator that compliments your existing brand message, someone who may share your target audience and work together to create a content and promotional package that suits everyone involved. Sure, it may be possible to nail down some of these partnerships without a fee depending on your situation, however, if you can afford to pay content creators, we’d always recommend that you should. You wouldn’t invite a plumber round to fix the pipes and then offer to pay them with free cake, would you? So, why devalue great creativity when it has such a crucial role to play in the success of your marketing or PR?
Influencer product collaborations are HUGE right now, craft beer brand Stillwater Artisanal nail branding, design, content, product and creativity consistently.
Showcase your Niche with Podcasts
Podcasts are a newer addition to the world of digital marketing possibilities, although they are certainly not new in their format. No one is going to listen to a podcast that contains the same content as your blog, however, if you can conceive an interesting theme and nail down a few stellar guests, this could be the content type you’ve been looking. Podcasts can be placed on a huge variety of listening platforms including YouTube, acast and Apple Podcasts. They’re also great for adding content to your website, blog posts and social media which can have a positive impact on visibility and SEO.
Remember that talking about yourself has limited appeal when creating successful content, find a related topic that your audience will find engaging and flesh this out into a podcast format that both expresses your brand story whilst showing your audience that you are an expert in your niche.
A new eCommerce industry podcast produced by us with our client, Underwaterpistol.
Original content is king and it’s yours forever!
Including original content in your marketing and PR strategy should be an essential consideration from the very start. Content helps you tell your story on all your channels, it solidifies trust and interest from your audience and good content, created consistently will increase your organic reach and chances of going viral. The problem with relying on 3rd party content or user generated content are the copyright questions, right now it’s a grey area but as Article 13 progresses this could become an unsustainable and expensive option. Original content is yours, you design it, you own it and you’ve got it forever. If you want to thrive online, you’d be stupid to ignore the growing value of quality content. Just remember, these new strategies take time, dedication and ongoing efforts but if you deliver them correctly, they can win you marketing success and new audiences and customers.
Here’s a few things you should figure out before you go full steam ahead with content creation:
- Who is your target audience or ideal customer?
- What added value can you offer your audience beyond your main output or product?
- How much time or budget can you dedicate to content creation?
In an ideal scenario, your content strategy could include all of the above types or a mixture of a few that best suit your concept. Getting started is tough, so we’d recommend choosing one or two and doing them really well, rather than rushing and making a mess of too many different formats. Find collaborators and team members who understand your brand story and can be passionate about it, then go ahead and embrace the creative process knowing that the output will add immediate value to what you’re currently doing.
If you need help with your content creation, we can support with ideas, strategies and execution of all of the above. You can find out more about our experience in the pages of this website or get in touch for a copy of our latest portfolios and case studies. If we can’t help, we’ll likely know someone who can!
Co-Creator @wearefoodscouts & @KitschInc. Digital Marketing & Creative Direction. Illustration, writing, creativity & style. Fan of films, TV, cartoons, colourful hair & clean beauty. Blogger since 2009.
