It is common knowledge that content creation is extremely effective in positively influencing the marketing success of a company. But it isn’t easy to come up with high-quality creative content just like that since more is needed than just publishing a few sentences on a topic or a post.

Companies must manage to spark emotions with their messages, because this is the only way to establish a connection to their target group and achieve real recognition value. Good content marketing is always the basis for long-term and sustainable customer loyalty and requires a data-based content strategy.

The process of content creation ranges from target group analysis through the first draft to the measurement of key figures and makes the following considerations necessary for successful content marketing.

Fact finding and analysis, clarifying basic questions before the actual content creation, such as which previously communicated content can be kept and which must be updated. With their findings, companies can then categorize the content according to relevance for the target group and determine which content has so far been successful on which channel. At the same time, companies should be clear about the goals they want to achieve with their contributions: e.g., find answers to their questions if the content should support the corporate and communication goals, if it is about a better ranking, a higher interaction or an increase in traffic, if building an expert image plays a role, or if the intent is to boost sales of a product or a solution. Certainly, it is also important to take a close look at the competitors and analyze their content. In any case, this inventory is the basis for all further steps in content creation.

Inspiration and content discovery with the aim of creating high-quality content is crucial. To get a feel for possible content, it makes sense to take a close look at the trends on the different channels, such as the topics that concern the community. The contribution itself must be authentic and convincing and shouldn’t look like an advertisement otherwise users won’t build trust. Product placement no longer works today unless you want to promote an offer or a discount, rather, creative and courageous ideas are rewarded. If companies manage to stand out from the crowd and deliver relevant content for their target group, users will want to consume more of it and, for example, subscribe to a newsletter.

Choice of media and marketing measures depends on the content that you want to convey. Whether it's a blog post or an explanatory video, to ensure an authentic appearance and gain credibility, companies should only use purchased images in an emergency, because users generally reward a company’s own content more. The content itself can be played organically, without further support, but it is usually more effective to use the various marketing options or to work with influencers to benefit from their reach.

Continuous review of the measures is important, because even after content distribution the work is far from finished. On the contrary, with the help of a regular content audit, all published content should be extensively analyzed. Companies can only take further optimization measures if they continuously monitor the achievement of the set goals. The findability in search engines, the engagement rate, or the development of sales after the implementation of the content strategy are possible key performance indicators (KPIs). This data-based approach also forms the heart for future content, otherwise contributions are published at random. Many brands live in a kind of art bubble and forget that the community outside often thinks differently.

All that remains to be said is that there is obviously no perfect content strategy and that every company must define its own processes, because the production of content is simply indispensable within corporate communication, whether it is conducted internally or externally.

By Daniela La Marca