When it comes to content marketing, a lot of Australian businesses are wondering what the fuss is all about. But, for those businesses taking the plunge head first, the rewards speak for themselves.
Founder of online magazine, Brand Tales, Peter Gearin says that podcasting is a particularly effective form of content marketing because it’s so intimate.
“The voice is such a powerful instrument,” he says. “You get to know the people behind the voices in a much more effective way than just reading the words that people write.”
Peter says more trust is established from the spoken word than the written word.
“When it comes to content marketing, I really believe in the concept of sincerity rather than authenticity,” Peter says. “I know it’s a subtle difference but I think sincerity is about being honest and truthful in yourself and not trying to sound like what you think you should be and I think podcasts give people a much better idea of who you really are.
“Content marketing is something that demands a full-on approach”
“People want to know who you are. Would I want to work with that person? Are you someone I can trust? Podcasts give you a much greater sense of really understanding where someone comes from,” insists Peter.
So how does a company ensure it’s procuring quality content? First, it must fit in with the company’s strategy, Peter says: “Producing great content is about doing what you know you can do well.”
Peter points to GE as an example of a company producing great audio content, with its recent Australian-made branded podcast, Decoding Genius. But, he says, they could have done more with it.
“It was a fantastic series but it only went for six episodes. So effectively, they built this fantastic, engaged audience on the back of this great series and then they just let them wander the streets.
“I think businesses are missing a great opportunity to connect with target audiences using podcasts if they can actually build a podcast and then let their audience go quite as easily as that.”
At the end of the day, content marketing – like podcasting – is a long-term commitment; it’s something you can’t be half-hearted about.
“Content marketing is something that demands a full-on approach,” Peter says. “You either commit to it entirely or you shouldn’t bother at all.
“The ones who… have been burnt so far have been those companies that have tried a little bit to do it, have done a pilot study, done it for three months and then found that really it didn’t move the needle too much so let’s just move our marketing budget onto something else.
“When really, it is a long-haul game. It’s something that people need to commit to for a long time with a full strategy ahead of it.”
