UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONTENT MARKETING AND SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING
In the digital world, it’s easy to see everything a company creates as part of that company’s brand.
From the logo, to website design, to how a company tweets, how a company acts and communicates in a digital space IS technically their brand.
But to creating an unforgettable digital brand experience, you need to understand the key differences between social media marketing and content marketing, their unique roles, and ultimately, how they work together to create a brand that is truly memorable.
SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING IS COMMUNICATION
Social media marketing consists of your brand’s Twitter account, Facebook page, Instagram photos, Google+ Page…the personality that comes through from a social network.
That’s easy – we know that already. But what is the role of a Twitter account, or a Facebook page? What is the “end goal” of posting a picture on Instagram?
The end goal for social media marketing is conversation and communication. This is largely taking advantage of the features of the immediacy of social media platforms.
This conversation CAN lead to sales or leads, but it is unorganized, and the steps are unconventional.
But with communication being such a key part of a customer’s experience with your brand, it is still very necessarily even if there is no direct path to a sale.
Lastly, do not buy into the myth that you can’t “measure” your social media campaign. You can – but first, you have to create your own metrics for success.
CONTENT MARKETING IS YOUR BUSINESS
Content marketing is your brand’s path to generate leads and sales.
Content marketing is your company’s website, web copy, user experience, blog – any content that is on your web page that you control. This content leads to you educating users about your brand.
And since you control your user’s experience in this setting, content marketing features a direct path to business. This is where details like having an engaging call to action comes into play.
The other key difference in content marketing is that you control the length of your content. In social media marketing, you must abide by a social networks 140 character, or one photo per post limits.
With content marketing, you can release a 20 page eBook that aligns with your brand.
LEARN HOW TO COMBINE CONTENT AND SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING
You might be asking yourself which marketing strategy you want your brand to focus on.
The right answer, is to do both. Content marketing feeds your social media marketing, and vice versa. The most engaging digital brands create a loop that feeds into each other.
Your engaging, value filled onsite content should make customers want to follow your brand on social platforms. And your funny tweets, or Facebook posts should direct customers back to your website – where content marketing, and a direct lead to sales, come into play.
Whether through conversation, or content, the end goal is creating a behavior or action from your online customer.
Creating content to engage audiences and improve your SEO ranking is a marketing strategy that companies have adopted in recent years. If social networks were digital marketing 1.0, then content marketing is version 2.0. And together, they make up your digital brand
