Producing content for content´s sake is quite obviously an unhealthy mindset to fall in to, but it´s a place many brands continue to find themselves. Readers react as you would expect: by failing to make it through to the end of the piece of content, leading to a negative impression of the brand in question.
Content should be all about adding value to the customer´s experience, showing them that there is worth in reading what your brand has to say, even when they´re not in the market for the goods or services you´re offering.
A fine piece of content may see them hit the “Share” button, putting your business into view of someone who is on the lookout for the products you´re selling. As such, it´s crucial that brands make sure their target audience has not grown numb to the content they´re producing.
It´s an issue that brands are not always willing to address, however, says David Martin, European online director at Coca-Cola. An article on the Marketing Magazine website presents some of the most striking quotes from his speech at the IGD online and digital conference last week, in which he called for marketers to “clean up, de-clutter their online content and treat their virtual presences like physical stores”.
Martin says brands must “live life” for their customers by remembering what customers´ needs are and trying to meet them. He adds that despite content existing in a virtual world, it´s crucial for firms to remember that customers are very much alive and kicking.
“I think sometimes we need to reflect on the fact that just because it´s a virtual world, doesn´t mean we need to fill it with rubbish,” he stresses. “By all means find ways of surfacing relevant content as and when customers are looking for it. What they want is easy and simple solutions.”
Is your content strategy in need of a fine tune? If so, please get in touch. We are a team of content generation specialists and would love to help.