[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Top skinny IC Logo Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off” transparent_background=”off” background_color=”#cc4315″ allow_player_pause=”off” inner_shadow=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” padding_mobile=”on” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” make_equal=”off” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_css_main_element=”@media only screen and (min-width: 1350px)||.page-id-25059 .et_pb_section_0, .page-id-25059 .et_pb_section_0 .et_pb_row_0 {||padding: 0 !important;||}” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” custom_padding_tablet=”0px||0px|” global_module=”26126″][et_pb_row global_parent=”26126″ make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” use_custom_gutter=”off” padding_mobile=”on” allow_player_pause=”off” parallax=”on” parallax_method=”off” make_equal=”off” parallax_1=”off” parallax_method_1=”off” padding_top_1=”0px” padding_right_1=”0px” padding_bottom_1=”0px” padding_left_1=”0px” column_padding_mobile=”on” custom_padding=”0px|0px|0px|0px” custom_margin=”0px||0px|” custom_css_main_element=”@media only screen and (min-width: 1350px)||.page-id-25059 .et_pb_section_0, .page-id-25059 .et_pb_section_0 .et_pb_row_0 {||padding: 0 !important;||}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_image admin_label=”IC logo Image” global_parent=”26126″ src=”https://iriscontent.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/IC-logo-horizontal-framed-e1468862028685.jpg” alt=”Iris Content logo” show_in_lightbox=”off” url_new_window=”off” use_overlay=”off” animation=”off” sticky=”off” align=”center” force_fullwidth=”off” always_center_on_mobile=”on” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” custom_margin=”0px|0px|0px|0px” custom_css_main_element=”@media only screen and (min-width: 1350px)||.page-id-25059 .et_pb_section_0, .page-id-25059 .et_pb_section_0 .et_pb_row_0 {||padding: 0 !important;||}” url=”https://iriscontent.com” /][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” background_image=”https://iriscontent.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/star-1919950_960_720.jpg” transparent_background=”off” background_color=”#ffffff” parallax_method=”off” padding_mobile=”off” _builder_version=”3.0.74″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_size=”initial”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_3″][et_pb_divider color=”#ffffff” show_divider=”off” height=”200″ divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” disabled_on=”on” /][et_pb_text admin_label=”Blog Post Title Text” background_layout=”light” max_width=”620px” text_font=”Cantata One||||” text_font_size=”72″ text_text_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” custom_margin=”0px||0px|” text_line_height=”1.1em” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” text_font_size_tablet=”52″ _builder_version=”3.0.74″]
A Content Marketing Christmas Carol
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Merry Christmas 2017!
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‘Twas the night before Christmas. And all through the city, no one was working save for Joanne on her blog. While her friends and family gathered on New Year’s Eve, Joanne was hunched on her laptop working. But her heart wasn’t in it. She was merely meeting a deadline, a way to pay her bills. As she slaved through the night, at some point, Joanne went to sleep on her desk.
At 10 o’clock, a spirit appeared in her dreams. It was the ghost of content marketing past. “Joanne, I am the Ghost of Content Marketing Past,” it said, “I’m here to show the error of your ways.” Immediately thereafter Joanne was taken to an office Christmas party a year ago where she was newly hired as a content marketer. “Don’t disappoint me Joanne,” said her boss, “prove to me that you can be a great content marketer and achieve our business goals.” And then she was taken to six months later when she didn’t achieve her targets. “Please Joanne, make your blogs interesting.” And then the ghost disappeared.
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][et_pb_row make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_padding=”50px|||” padding_mobile=”on” allow_player_pause=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” make_equal=”off” parallax_1=”off” parallax_method_1=”off” column_padding_mobile=”on” custom_padding_tablet=”17px|||” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_image src=”https://iriscontent.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/christmas.png” show_in_lightbox=”off” url_new_window=”off” use_overlay=”off” animation=”fade_in” sticky=”on” align=”left” force_fullwidth=”off” always_center_on_mobile=”on” border_style=”solid” custom_css_main_element=”max-height=600px” _builder_version=”3.0.74″ show_bottom_space=”on” animation_direction=”fade_in” /][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_padding=”0px|||” padding_mobile=”on” allow_player_pause=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” make_equal=”off” parallax_1=”off” parallax_method_1=”off” parallax_2=”off” parallax_method_2=”off” column_padding_mobile=”on” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_size=”initial”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_3″][et_pb_text background_layout=”light” max_width=”620px” text_font=”Montserrat||||” text_font_size=”20″ text_text_color=”#363636″ border_style=”solid” custom_margin=”30px||0px|” text_line_height=”1.5em” text_font_size_last_edited=”on|tablet” _builder_version=”3.0.74″]
Joanne felt sad. “Why didn’t I work harder? Why didn’t I make my blogs more interesting, emotional and relatable?”
When the clock struck 11, the ghost of content marketing present appeared. “You can do so much with content marketing,” it ventured, “Now more than ever people are reading blogs, watching YouTube videos on mobile phones, browsing Instagram posts and buying products online.” The ghost showed her the statistics on her laptop –YouTube gets more than 30 million visitors every day and content marketing, which is free, gets six times more conversion than other marketing method.
The ghost of content marketing present then left leaving Joanne with all these new facts and figures.
At midnight, another figure appeared: A final visitor. It was the ghost of content marketing to come. It didn’t say a word. It showed Joanne the future with her boss’ hands on his head, a defeated look on his face while he sat in a forlorn office. “I couldn’t get new customers and now I lost my business,” he said. “I should’ve never hired a content marketer!”
Joanna woke with a start. It was midnight but there was still time. She made sure her blog was interesting, emotional and relatable to her audience. She converted her blog into a short explainer video, an infographic and various social media posts so that they could reach a wide audience. After that, she rigorously marketed it in various online platforms.
Six hours later, she was at her office Christmas party. “Joanne,” her boss roared, “your latest blog, infographic and video are doing so well. 10,000 hits! I was starting to wonder whether content marketing was the right thing to do for my business but I see you proved me wrong. Merry Christmas!”
Joanne clinked her champagne glass with her boss’ glass and smiled knowingly. ‘Twas the night of Christmas.
It’s time we learned from Joanne’s story and implemented these content marketing strategies in 2018:
Create Content in Different Formats
Blogs are still useful but the average person’s attention span is dwindling. Some people don’t have time to read words and would prefer watching a video, reading a short Instagram post or listening to a podcast. Your content marketing in 2018 should focus on expanding your content’s format to include all types of audiences.
Voice Search Is In
Goodbye SEO, hello Siri. Content marketing in 2018 will be powered by voice search and not just typed search. With more and more people using voice search via digital assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri, your content must be voice search-friendly and not just SEO-friendly.
Content is Now Analyzed and Documented
Gone are the days when a blog was simply typed, published and left in the online sphere to permeate social media. Content is now documented and analyzed using Google Analytics and other similar paid tools. If you don’t analyze your content, how else will you improve your content marketing in 2018?
The Rise of Live video
Facebook and Instagram introduced the live video feature in 2016 but it was in 2017 that the feature gained immense popularity. Brands are now capitalizing on this emerging trend to reach millennials. Your content marketing in 2018 should use live videos to interact with your audience. You can show them how your product is made behind-the-scenes or introduce them to some of your trusted employees. It adds a human element to an otherwise faceless brand.
Conclusion
Learn from Joanne’s mistakes and use content marketing to your advantage in 2018. This Christmas, vow to utilize the numerous content marketing trends in 2018. Businesses that evolve with the times turn out to be more successful than their old-fashioned counterparts.
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