With the advent of social media and sky-high internet adoption rates, traditional advertisements have found a worthy competitor in content marketing.
When used well, content can engage people better, build trust, and accelerate the selling process. However, not every brand can manage to succeed with content marketing.
Getting engagement and results through your content channels can be tricky. Further, managing multiple channels and creating a cohesive strategy can easily overwhelm a brand.
Therefore, if you're just starting or struggling to generate leads, here are the top 5 ways to supercharge your eCommerce content strategy and boost your sales.
1. Think about what channels you really need
A fundamental aspect of running a successful content marketing campaign is identifying a channel where your brand is comfortable. These are channels where your brand can engage immediately without drastic changes to business operations. Further, these channels are easier to manage and have a sense of familiarity with the team, allowing creators to deliver high-quality content consistently.
While it may be tempting to tap into every popular content channel, you must refrain from it. Managing too many delivery channels can strain a growing team, and the results end up being harder to track as well. Instead, pick one channel that you like being on, and your audience usually is on, and build content there.
For example, if you’re an apparel brand for young people and most of your clients are millennials and Gen-Z kids, stick to a popular social media platform and generate content in small bites to get faster and better engagement. This helps you reach your audience where they are and helps you focus your efforts on a high-yielding channel.
2. Use video content well
Content with visual cues delivers some of the most successful results. Because videos involve more of our senses than a written piece would, they help consumers retain a bit more than usual of what you’re trying to communicate. One of the best ways to achieve this is by generating video content.
Research has shown that the average user spends 88% more time on a website with video than without. Further, 70% of the surveyed marketing professionals reported that video content converts customers better than any other medium.
Consuming content through a video channel allows your customer to feel more connected with your brand. Owing to the potential of video content, it can also garner more engagement from customers.
Videos such as “How-to” and “Dos and Don’ts” help customers better understand how your product behaves. Engaging Reels that showcase your product will gain good traction on Instagram.
3. Use photos when you include customer reviews
Another great way to use visual cues in your content is to include photos when you include customer reviews on your preferred channel. Photos allow customers to view responses from others with proof of product quality and features.
Moreover, photos allow customers to see how products look in a natural, candid setting. Such content allows customers to engage better with reviews and trust the product more owing to the genuine responses of common buyers. There’s nothing better than social proof to help people buy more.
One aspect to bear in mind is this- every piece of content can and should be converted into several other formats. For example, customer photos (with due permissions), can be used on the website, on social media, and even in newsletters. By re-purposing what you already have, you get to reduce the amount of content you produce in-house.
4. Feature user-generated content (UGC) on social media
Although brands have lesser control over user-generated content, you can still leverage it to further brand reputation and engagement. Since user-generated content is free from brand interference, customers are more likely to trust. Companies that engage with their customers through social media channels can leverage such UGC by featuring it on their channels.
Several retail brands, particularly direct-to-consumer brands, are building their entire content strategy around user engagement. Brands like Tipsyfly, for example, encourage people to post pictures with their products, and in several different contexts. Likewise, Aadya, a jewelry brand, showcases people and celebrities wearing their jewelry pieces. They then go on to tag these posts back to their Instagram Shop, so that others can easily share in the same experience, by using the same product. Brands that are confident in showcasing user-generated content stand to gain from the creation of viral loops- people making the product their own, sharing it with their circles, and bringing back more potential customers to the sales channel.
5. Include a keyword-driven FAQ section on your website
An FAQ section is an efficient way to clear any confusions that customers may have. However, it is critical that brands know what questions they need to answer. It is a good approach to simply answer questions that you come across throughout the course of business. However, here’s something that most brands don’t do- optimizing their FAQs to rank for relevant keywords.
Keyword optimization for the FAQs section allows companies to rank better for searches, resulting in increased traffic on the website.
Final thoughts
Content can help brands retain and convert customers at a fraction of the cost of traditional marketing practices, however, it is key that companies understand their capacity without spreading their resources too thin.
Content as a marketing domain offers a large number of options for brands. However, it is important to identify the strengths and weaknesses and focus on capitalizing on a channel where your brand can deliver high-quality content consistently.
Typically, for eCommerce brands, new content formats like short videos and Reels work very well, because these features enjoy massive reach on social media platforms while also being extremely engaging.
By thinking of content as a way to nurture your customers through their entire buying process and beyond, you will be able to build more loyalty, and a strong organic channel that does the sales job for you.