The ability for businesses to remain competitive and profitable within the modern marketplace is a challenge that all businesses are faced with. In trying to achieve this goal it is vital that these companies utilize existing tools within the marketing space to stay up to date with the latest trends. As it currently stands, there are four trends within content marketing that can allow your business to better connect with your customer base.
1. Chatbots
There are many groundbreaking methods that can be utilized by marketing agencies to effectively communicate their message and of the many mediums they can use, one of the most innovative is a technology known as chatbots. Chatbots have quietly and discretely established itself as an incredibly viable way for marketing firms and companies alike to engage in more personalized exchanges with consumers. It has been shown that a large number of consumers are beginning to expect big companies to have chatbot accessibility. This desire by consumers has been reflected by companies’ plans for future innovation, a recent study by Spiceworks shows that 40% of large companies will be using chatbots in 2019. Clearly, the use of chatbots has quietly permeated the marketing sphere and the use of this method will only continue to increase as consumers seek a more personal encounter when shopping.
2. Long Form Content
This marketing method involves content that contains over 2000 words to explain or highlight the benefits of a particular product or service. This method has been shown to be incredibly successful for many reasons. By having such dense content it allows consumers to gain a comprehensive understanding of a company’s services, products, and messages. Furthermore, this method while simplistic has a huge technological upside, it has been demonstrated that long-form content is more likely to be shown by search engines making it an inexpensive and accessible way for marketing firms to communicate their message.
3. Voice Search
While some marketing techniques rely on simple methods, this is the age of technological breakthroughs which presents a host of new and fertile methods, such as Voice Search engine marketing, for businesses to smash the glass separating businesses from consumers. Voice search is a relatively new technology that is quickly being integrated into many new devices such as Siri with Apple, Alexa with Amazon, and Google with Android. These operating systems are becoming the center for how consumers navigate not only their phone or television but also the marketplace. There is more than sufficient evidence to suggest that this technology will only continue to proliferate, some predicting the half of all online searches will be voice searches in 2020. This shows the incessant need for companies to acknowledge the rising supremacy and popularity of this marketing medium, and also to tailor marketing strategies to optimize existing voice search engine demands and queries.
4. Video, Webinars and Webcast
In examining what methods are more effective at breaking the barrier between consumers and companies it is abundantly clear that videos, webinars, and webcasts are indisputably valuable to marketing firms and companies alike. To get a clearer understanding of the effectiveness of video marketing it should be noted that research conducted by Aberdeen showed, “marketers who use video increase their revenue 49% faster than those who don’t.” Video marketing comprises a large sector of the marketing sphere and its popularity will continue to rise. The continued use of video marketing is, “predicted to account for 82% of global internet traffic by 2021”. This boggling statistic demonstrates not only the opportunity for marketing firms but the necessity to get ahead of the curve to stay relevant in an ever-changing marketplace.
We teamed up once again with our clients over atDTZ and Cushman & Wakefield, for a property shoot in and around Montgomery County, Maryland. Our purpose for this shoot was to showcase 9 (nine) different property listings available to be used for various marketing materials aimed toward future tenants.
Over three days, we made stops all over the Rockville, Bethesda, and the Downtown Silver Spring area, capturing beautiful shots of each of the properties, various floors that include the lobby, tenant spaces, and aerial views from the property rooftops. In addition to this, we captured several surrounding amenities that capture the desirable features available for each properties in the heart of each city (restaurants, shopping, etc).
Below are some behind the scenes images of the shoot.
Instagram, the platform used every day by users to share their stories visually with images, has become a powerful force in social media. With an average of 55 million photos uploaded each day on this vast and fast-growing social network, it’s a tool that, if used correctly, can benefit brands and grow their audience.
Why should your brand use Instagram?
While it can’t be said for all social media, Instagram is a platform for everyone. Whether you’re a small business starting up in the world or a well established brand, Instagram is a visual force to be reckoned with, allowing just about anyone the option to tell (and sell) their story. Coming up with content for your feed can be challenging, especially with seeing what works and what doesn’t on the platform. But that doesn’t mean potential users shouldn’t try and keep at it. In the last couple years, mobile media has surpassed online media consumption and will continue in that direction. So take advantage!
Don’t have thousands, or in some cases, millions of followers? Don’t sweat it. Instagram users are eager to connect with brands on a personal and inspirational level, and finding the right visual vision for your brand can make all the difference. Here are three points to get your going:
Audience: Target the right demographic, using proper hashtags for your brand.
Looking to get your brand on Instagram? Take a look at our monthly marketing package that takes your brand and provides it with a steady online presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more.
Please feel free to contact us with any questions about successfully marketing your brand across the different social media platforms.
We recently teamed up with Keller Williams Capital Properties (KWCP) for a video shoot in honor of their RED Day event. RED Day, which stands for Renew, Energize, and Donate, is an annual event where the KWCP associates take a break from the office and serve worthy organizations and causes in their community.
We visited two locations for our shoot: Woodbridge, VA and Anacostia in South East Washington, DC. Our shoot consisted of interviews with four members of the KWCP team, going in depth about the importance of RED Day and what it means to the company and the communities that surround them. Along with the interviews, we shot the KWCP members at task with assigned service duties at each location. It’s always a great experience to see worthy communities being helped and RED Day was a great example of that.
In today’s market, consumers have the mindset of I want it now and I want it fast that it only makes sense that they’d rather watch a 1-3 minute video containing the important information that sums up the ins and outs of your business in a creative, visual manner instead of reading paragraphs of visually-unappealing text. Successful businesses all have videos that market their company, and the longer a business waits to produce one is another day their competitors stay ahead of the game. Customers watch more video. Plain and simple.
Stats to Consider:
78% of people watch at least one video on Youtube
More than 500 years’ worth of Youtube videos are watching daily on Facebook
700 YouTube videos are shared on Twitter every minute
50% of mobile traffic is due to online video
75% of executives watch work-related videos on business-related websites at least weekly
70% of the top 100 search listings on Google are video results
We worked with OE Custom a few months back on a new responsive website and company video. Most recently, we shot a commercial spot for one of their sub companies, Maryland Wood Countertops. The commercial gives customers a behind the scenes look into the process of creating some of their products as well as highlighting their offerings as a company. Take a look at some photos from the shoot below.
