Why You Need a Content Marketing Strategy for COVID-19
Back in 1998, Bill Gates said, ”content is king.” The saying has become a cliché for many marketers. But, in a world where we’re all spending more time online and consuming more content digitally, the saying holds true. In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the amount of content has gone into overdrive, but there is a fine line between providing helpful content and trying to capitalize on the conversation without a defined strategy.
As many of us experienced content fatigue from countless emails with near-identical subject lines, marketers were struggling to shift messaging and pivot strategies to respond. Some marketers may have decided to go silent, while others have shifted to only write about topics related to COVID-19.
Both options make sense for the short term, but what does a good content strategy look like as the pandemic continues? And what should it look like when we start shifting back to the new normal?
What is content marketing?
Content marketing is a strategic method for creating, publishing, and distributing content that is useful, relevant, and consistent and is targeted towards a specific audience. Effective content marketing comes from a clear understanding of your target audience—who they are, what they want, and what influences their decisions. It also takes into account the different stages of your sales funnel—from awareness to conversion to advocacy.
Content marketing is not a one-size fits all approach. The content that is useful and relevant to your audience—or to segments within your audience—will be different from another company or industry. Having a firm grasp on your audience’s wants and needs helps brands know what content to create and where it fits in the sales funnel.
In the current climate, it can be tempting to wedge coronavirus-related content into your content plan, but before you do, take a step back. Is this content consistent with your brand? Is it providing value to your customers? If it’s not, it will probably do more harm than good and could damage your relationship with your customers. Any content you create that references COVID-19 must align with your business goals and provide information that is relevant and useful to your audience.
Creating a content marketing strategy
Generating content is a great way to drive traffic to your site, boost awareness, and help grow your business. But, it’s not enough to churn out tons of content without a clear purpose. You need a solid content strategy that fits into your overall marketing plan and helps meet your goals.
First, you need to know who the target audience is for your content and if you have multiple segments. If your business has more than one type of customer (i.e. individuals vs. enterprises), you’ll need different content depending on the reader. Knowing your customers helps you decide what type(s) of content to deliver, what channels to use, and how to engage most effectively with each segment.
The next step is telling your audience why they need you. Your product or service addresses a problem that your audience has. Effective content marketing will help educate the audience on their problem and showcase how your product or service provides a solution. This content doesn’t stop after a purchase. Whether you’re teaching potential customers how your product can make their lives easier or helping current customers become power users, your content needs to continually reinforce that you are the solution.
Your content marketing strategy helps your product shine. What makes you different from the other options out there? How is it unique? These questions should be clearly answered in your content to let customers know why you’re the best choice.
Once you know your audience and the questions your content needs to answer, you’ll need to decide what formats to focus on. Figure out when to use blog posts, eBooks, webinars, and video. Remember that the content will change based on the different stages of the funnel and customer segments.
The same goes for channels—if your audience isn’t on Instagram, don’t spend time and money pushing out content on that platform. Find out where your customers are spending time and where they’re interacting with your brand and brands like yours. That’s where you need to focus your time and budget.
With budgets becoming leaner and many marketers facing projects that are cancelled or paused indefinitely, strategies have to change. But, that doesn’t mean abandoning your content strategy or completely starting over.
Content in the time of COVID
We’re all spending more time online and many of us are feeling overwhelmed by the amount of information that’s coming into our lives from every direction. There’s a lot of noise in the marketplace and it can be hard for marketers to cut through it. So, what can you do?
First, take a deep breath. Don’t throw your strategy in the trash or cancel everything that’s not directly related to the coronavirus. For some industries, such as travel and hospitality, thinking about using any of your planned content might seem impossible. It’s not! Will you be able to send out content as-is? Probably not. Will some ads need to be pulled and content shelved for a later date? Yes. But good marketers are adaptable and know how to reframe and reshape content when needed.
Take Smirnoff’s new seltzer commercial. Initially planned as an over-the-top, outrageous, party-themed ad featuring sports stars and celebrities, Smirnoff shifted their messaging to encourage people to be patriotic while staying home. Of course, not everyone has the budget of a company like Smirnoff. However, smaller companies across industries have shifted online events into virtual sessions, updated ads to showcase how they can help clients and customers, and more.
Look at your content strategy and you may find projects slated for later in the year that are more relevant now—whether it’s copy related to remote work, staying home, or social good. Projects that you planned for the beginning half of the year can be tailored to use later in the year or once things shift back to something resembling normality. Above all, make sure that your content is thoughtful, relevant, and useful to your audience.
There’s no denying that our day-to-day lives have been upended and impacted in innumerable ways by the coronavirus. But don’t tear up your content strategy just yet. In a time characterized by rapid change and uncertainty, your customers want transparency and consistency. Adjusting content marketing plans and strategies is necessary but, at the end of the day, brands need to stay authentic and continue providing relevant and useful content.
Take some time to assess (or reassess) your content marketing strategy for the upcoming week and months and look for opportunities to rearrange content or pivot to provide your customers what they need.