OREANDA-NEWS. October 13, 2015. Business owners have only just begun to grasp the concept that content marketing is vital part in determining a company’s success, both online and off. Just because anyone can produce some type of content does not mean it’s always the right kind. It’s every businesses nightmare to be represented in a way that could potentially ruin their reputation. The risk remains that bombarding customers with inconsistent or non-engaging content, simply for the sake of maintaining an online presence, can do more harm than good.

The other challenge that businesses come up against is standing out from all the other noise. One has to create compelling content that attracts interest to your prospects. The aim of the game is to not blend in with the rest — so what can you do to stand out and get ahead?

We have put together 3 outstanding ways to help you create content that elevates your business and delivers results. Don’t limit yourself to just one, try mixing them into your content strategy and see the magic unfold.

1. Be Visual

If we have to look solely at the facts, they don’t lie: Sixty-five percent of the U.S. population classify themselves as ‘visual learners.’ Human beings are greatly affected by images, visuals and videos. All kinds of images on the web, such as infographics, diagrams, interactive images, quizzes, puzzles, and games win the race when put side by side to their text counterparts. As a brand, publishing information in a visual format helps to fill a user's void left by the web’s mostly text-based info.

Red Bull, is a perfect example of a brand excelling at content marketing. They have become much more than just an energy drink. Red Bull has claimed the throne of thrilling videos. When visiting their homepage, surprisingly, there’s not one mention of their product. Their homepage is every content marketer’s dream where you can read articles, watch videos or view images of extreme athletes. They post visual content that is valuable and relevant to their fans. The proof is in the pudding, just have a look at how often their content is shared.

2. Be informative

As cliché as this may sound, if your content is not beneficial to your customers then you’re wasting your time. Valuable content appears in many forms — it can be logical and explanatory, it can be informative data points or just simply entertaining.

As a business it should become your priority to educate your clientele. A great starting point is to include data, statistics or case stories within your content.

●      Data: People love to share data. From the number of calories in a meal to the average person’s shoe size, interesting data is contagious and spreads like crazy on the web. Polls and surveys are easy to use and find and they give you enough data that you can easily publish in form of a viral blog post, infographic or press release.

●      Statistics: One of the most effective ways to put a large number into context for your readers is to illustrate the impact of that number in the real world, and draw a parallel to your content. For example, the likelihood of being struck by lightning is higher than the odds of winning the lottery. There are many ways that you can tie news with statistics to your business.

●      Case Studies: Blogs that tend to grow like Jack’s Beanstalk have a secret ingredient — they publish useful content that actually gives people a solution to a problem. Case studies do just the trick. Identify the problems your target audience will face and provide them with a step-by-step solution to counter them. Including a case study will back up your solution in action.

3. Be Trendy

Keeping up to date with current trends is an excellent way to create compelling and engaging content. By piggybacking on buzzing topics you’ll be able to increase the reach of your content. Naturally, trends tend to go viral and your content can join in on the movement — getting your business noticed in an entertaining way.

The Ice Bucket Challenge raised millions for the ALS Association and is quite possibly the most successful viral charity drive of all time. Many brands took advantage of the craze, for instance when Pillsbury recruited its mascot, the Dough Boy, to attempt the Ice Bucket Challenge. Whether or not the video truly brought awareness to the ALS cause, they contributed a donation to the ALS Association and caught the attention of the public.

Now it’s your turn!

Businesses have the opportunity to optimize their approach to content as a result of the ever-changing nature of the digital landscape. This is exactly why it’s vital that you stay in tune with your industry, understand the behavior of your customer and make the plans to continue to evolve for the future.