content marketing Archives - Corcoran Communications

Tag: content marketing

Content Marketing Ideas for Growth

Tuesday, May 14th, 2019

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard all of the hype about content marketing. It’s an important part of your overall marketing plan. For certain businesses, it may be the most important part. Diverse content can introduce new audiences to your brand and products. Keep your content fresh and varied to keep your audience from getting bored. There are so many opportunities for unique content beyond your typical social media post or email blast. If you’re not mixing it up you may find yourself stuck in a content rut. Read on for some some content marketing ideas. We want to help you incorporate different types of creative content in your marketing plan. You may have not even considered some of these ideas as content, but they are.

20 Content Marketing Ideas

  1. Infographics – Infographics provide an eye-catching mix of a design and copy. Analyze something quickly and concisely or show statistic using an infographic. It’s an ideal way to present data in a visual format that is interesting for your audience. Infographics are made for ease of reading and are often shared on social media. Best of all, they are a great way to show your expertise on a particular subject. Create your own infographics with software such as Befunky, Visme, Snappa or Canva.
  2. Short Video – We all love a good short video, there’s no denying it! Oh, and we share those shorts at an amazing rate. Don’t worry about buying expensive equipment for a quick video. Your smartphone can take a decent short video.
  3. Longer Videos (YouTube) – You just can’t ignore the statistics. YouTube has over a billion users, which is almost one-third of total internet users. 45% of people watch more than an hour of Facebook or YouTube videos a week. This is one of our most important content marketing ideas. Invest in video and do it now.  What types of content translate well into videos? Product demos and tutorials, testimonials and reviews. Presentations, interviews, behind the scenes, and vlogs (video blogs) work as well.
  4. Live Streams –Channels like Facebook Live and Periscope are enabling brands and individuals to go live whenever they’d like. Reach your audience immediately with live streaming. Content that is best for live streaming includes things such as new product announcements, grand openings and live behind the scenes looks. Similarly, Q & As, how to’s, special events, special announcements and breaking news make for great live streams.
  5. Podcast – Podcasts are becoming increasingly popular. Podcasting is a great way to build a strong and lasting relationship with your audience. To do a podcast right, you need to commit. It’s going to take some time and effort. Stay consistent once you get started. Begin by choosing your niche and your topic idea. Then come up with a catchy title for your podcast. You’ll also want to design a look for your podcast for advertising purposes. Write a podcast description and select music. You will also need some equipment to get started, including a quality microphone,  an audio interface (if you have an analog microphone), headphones and editing software. This will depend on the type of computer you are using. Finally, you need to pick a reliable podcast hosting provider. You can select your host based on your budget, the simplicity of use and integrations, and support. If you’re interested in looking more into podcasting, but are unfamiliar, we suggest some additional research.
  6. Webinar – Hosting a webinar can help position you as an expert in a particular field. With the right content, a webinar can help you to sell your products and services. Webinars can help to keep an audience engaged and generate leads. Just like podcasting, a webinar needs a commitment on your part to be successful.
  7. How to Guides – We’ve all Googled how to do this or that at some time or another. How to Guides are a popular way for consumers to learn how to do something free of charge. Therefore, a how to guide can be of great value to a consumer. Whether you’re a financial institution providing a guide on purchasing a new car or a retailer compiling a guide on putting together a new wardrobe on a budget, you’re sure to get many readers.
  8. Whitepapers – A whitepaper is an authoritative and informational document that contains very detailed information on a particular topic or product. They are typically data driven and pretty lengthy. While whitepapers can be labor-intensive to complete properly, they can be extremely influential in marketing. Although they are not for every business or brand, they can help the right business become a thought leader in an industry. 
  9. E-books – While a white paper has a more academic tone geared to a niche audience an E-book has a more casual vibe. E-books can be useful for various topics. They create greater awareness and enable you to go into greater detail. Depending on the topic, they often appeal to a wider audience that a whitepaper.
  10. Case Study – A well-written case study can be an invaluable asset when it comes to proving the value of your product or services. It’s a great way to tell a story. Case studies focus on a problem, a solution and an outcome. Once developed, a case study can be used in various formats, including blog posts, ads or even video.
  11. Blog – By now you know about the power of blogging. Blogging as a form of content marketing has tremendous SEO benefits. It also can bring in high quality leads via organic searching. A well-written blog can bring a more long-term ROI than many traditional marketing avenues. Once written, a blog can be used on your website, as well as all of your social media platforms. Businesses that publish regular content, such as regular blogs, receive much more web traffic. Not blogging? Contact Corcoran Communications to get started today. It’s the fastest way to improve your content marketing efforts.
  12. News Release/Newsletter –A well-written news release or newsletter can still help to spread the word about your company, products and services. When a press release gets editorial coverage, it can also help your business build links. Press releases can help to improve brand image, announce a new product or service, expand knowledge and more. It can be used on your website as well as all social media channels, giving you a big bang for your marketing buck. A newsletter is another great way to use content to create awareness. Additionally, a newsletter can provide useful information to your audience. Newsletters can be distributed via email, social media, website or good ole’ fashioned postal service. It’s just another method of using content to stay in touch with your audience.
  13. Checklists – The possibilities are endless when marketing with a checklist. 7 steps to follow when buying a new house, 5 ways to find the right preschool for your child, 10 ways to improve your diet. Just tie that list in to your brand and you’ve got a captive audience.
  14. Customer Testimonials/Success Stories –Nothing beats the value you get from an honest customer testimonial or success story. A satisfied client will usually be happy to give you a testimonial. The key is to ask immediately. Get them while they still remember just how satisfied they are. Make it as easy as possible for the customer to provide that testimonial. Ask the right questions to help them provide you with the information you’re looking for. One testimonial can be used in so many ways. It’s truly invaluable.
  15. Product Guides – If someone is on the fence about buying your product, an informative guide can go a long way in closing the sale. You can provide so much more information and detail in a product guide than in a simple ad.
  16. Photos & Images – Content created using visuals is more engaging than plain text and is important to overall success. Most importantly, people respond much more positively to images. Just be sure to select appropriate visuals for your piece of content.
  17. Emojis/Memes/ GIFs – People love them, so be sure to add them into your mix. Just keep in mind that they should enhance your content, not distract from it. Customize your own image for more reach.
  18. Animations – Animation is very stimulating to viewers. They can also be much more memorable and help you reach a larger audience. Again, they need to tie in well with your content. You can test out some animation software easily online, such as Animaker.
  19. Polls & Surveys – Getting feedback from your audience on questions can be a great way to keep them interacting with your brand. Use polls for serious feedback or just for fun. While Instagram limits its polling feature to Instagram Stories, Twitter lets you add a poll to any Tweet as you’re writing it. Facebook polls are the most in-depth social media polling option. Create polls easily with the “Create a Poll” button.
  20. Social Media Posts – Our advice as it relates to your social media posts is to stay consistent. Be authentic and share moments that matter. Enhance your social media marketing using the content marketing ideas we’ve mentioned above.

Creating and distributing valuable content can help you to build your brand and develop a loyal audience and large customer base. Take advantage of the content marketing ideas above to grow your business. Utilizing content in the creative ways we’ve mentioned can help you to achieve that goal. Keep your audience engaged and drive a greater ROI on your marketing efforts. When it comes to driving online traffic, content is skill king. Contact a digital marketing expert to learn more about content marketing

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Is influencer marketing worth the investment?

Wednesday, May 23rd, 2018

Influencers, or opinion leaders as they are also called, can generate excitement for your brand and help to sell products and services. They build relationships for your brand via social media, reaching customers thought targeted posts and blogs. Influencer marketing content is thought to deliver 10 times higher ROI than other forms of digital marketing. If influencers are successful in helping to build sales, and many are, then they are a worthwhile investment for your brand. They key is influencer content that converts to greater awareness or better yet, a sale.

Why are influencer posts more effective than yours?

Influencers have a great understanding of social media and relating to their fan base. They earn the trust of their followers and speak directly to your targeted buyers. Consumers crave authenticity. An influencer may have less followers than a large brand, but influencer followers are often much more loyal. Influencers also discuss their experience with brands and products. They may also review products, providing valuable firsthand insight to consumers. Most importantly, they accomplish this in creative ways.

A Nielson study found that 83 percent of online responders said they trust referrals from people they know. Simply put, influencer marketing generates referrals. Because of their experiences with a brand and its products, influencer posts and blogs are often much more engaging and authentic than brand posts.

Traditional advertising vs. Influencer Marketing

Many companies are spending less on traditional advertising mediums, such as TV, radio and newspaper. Instead, they are focusing their attention on social media and social media influencers to reach their target market. They are discovering it can better target their ideal consumer. Social media influencers are also perceived to be much more trustworthy than an ad. Influencer marketing content can provide a much grater return on investment than traditional advertising.

The best platforms for influencer marketing are Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Blogs are also a powerful way to influence the public. Your ideal influencer is one that shares your key messaging and is knowledgeable of your industry. You will need to help develop usable content and graphics to assist an influencer in providing the information necessary to his or her followers. They will couple this with their own insight, life experiences, photos and videos. It’s a much more personal way of indirect advertising.

Internet & Social media statistics

Statistics prove that people are online all the time. They are searching, logging on to social media platforms and browsing the worldwide web all day, every day. Social media influence is poised to grow and if you have a well-planned influencer program in place, your sales can grow with it. An influencer can aid in your SEO efforts and help boost rankings. Here are some statistics from WorldStream and internetstats that showcase the power of social online and social media influence.

  • Google processes over 40,000 search queries every second, which translates to 3.5 billion searches per day.
  • Approximately half of the world’s 7.5 billion people are Internet users.
  • 83% of female and 75% of male Internet users are on Facebook.
  • There are nearly 2 billion users on Facebook.
  • YouTube reaches more 18-34 and 18-49 year-olds than any cable network in the U.S.
  • 100 million hours of video content is watched on Facebook daily.

Start growing your social media interest now

Social media is the ideal spot for word of mouth marketing. Gain more interest in your brand and your products by building a greater social media presence. It will help you stay ahead of the competition and secure a loyal following. To be effective, brands need to begin authentic conversations. Media influencers are an excellent way to start these conversations and expand your social media presence in a meaningful way. They will help influence others in our target market to support your brand. Influencers will get your message out to the masses quickly and creatively. They are also an excellent value for your marketing dollar. Remember, the power of social media is in its ability to immediately reach the your target market. Exposure and awareness is imperative for a brand’s success. With the right social media influencer plan, you can achieve your sales goals starting today. If you’re interested in learning more about influencer marketing read another of our blogs. Have questions? Contact Corcoran Communications social media marketers today by emailing ruth@corcoranpr.com.

 

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

When family and business collide

Monday, December 18th, 2017

Since this blog is in its early stages with the launch of our new website, I wanted to write a bit about myself, my son and our crazy life as an introduction. It’s all about family and business. I recently welcomed my son, Greg Quinn, as a partner in my marketing business. It’s now a true family business and I’m excited to take this journey with him. There’s never been a dull moment in our mother son relationship and I’m sure that won’t change anytime soon. I started Corcoran Communications in 2000 when he was in junior high. I’m not sure he even knew what type of work I did at the time, because he was too busy driving me crazy. We butted heads about everything during his teen years. He thought it was my job to make his life miserable, so he made it his full time job to make sure my life was just as miserable.

The early years

Greg and I got along best when he was very young. We always had a special bond. I divorced his father (a real asshole) when he was in kindergarten. He quickly became the man of the house and helped to take care of his little sister, Katie. Greg never forgot the day his dad moved out. His dad said “see you later” as he left for a fellow kindergarten classmate’s birthday party at Buzzy’s Bazaar. When we got back from the party, his dad had packed up and left. I don’t think Greg ever really forgot that.

The Philadelphia Eagles helmet

I worked two and sometimes three jobs just to make ends meet when he was young, juggling family and business. I worked full time at a bank, part time as a waitress and usually had other odd jobs, such as babysitting just to earn extra money. That first Christmas without his dad was pretty sad. We were broke and I decided to make and sell holiday gift baskets just to have enough money to buy presents for Greg and Katie. Greg really wanted an official Philadelphia Eagles football helmet, and they were not cheap. I made enough money from the baskets to get him that helmet and he still has it today. It comes out for the really important games.

Greg learned from early on the importance of family and business. He saw firsthand that you need to work very hard to get anywhere in life. We never had much extra money, so we were creative with having fun. We’d pack a lunch and travel to every playground in the area for picnics. We’d make a day of walking to the public library and to Blockbuster to rent movies. We were short on money for his 5th birthday, so I built him a large pirate ship out of cardboard for the Captain Hook-themed party he wanted. The kids loved it. There was always laughter in our home. I can remember Greg, Katie and I dancing around the house to Disney songs, such as I Wanna Be Like You from the Jungle Book. We may not have had much money, but we did have a lot of fun.

The trouble begins!

Greg was a funny, smart, big hearted and very intense kid. He got into lots of mischief when he was younger and he kept me on my toes. Most of it was harmless. He went to parochial school through 6th grade and was always in trouble for something. He was banned from a class trip to the Franklin Institute in 6th grade. Why? Because he told one of his classmate’s mothers that she had sausage toes. Of all the things to get banned from an educational trip for, can you imagine it? Ironic thing is, she did have sausage toes! It was around this time that I got re-married and I left a full-time marketing & PR director position to start my own firm. We moved from Pittston to a nice neighborhood in Bear Creek.  I wanted to be able to work from home and be there when the kids got home from school.

Greg and his car

The following year, Greg transferred to public school for junior high. He was still mischievous and even more intense, especially in sports. He was extremely competitive and took sports very seriously, both at home and at school. If his favorite pro football team lost a game, he would run outside and fling that expensive Eagles helmet across the street or rip apart a team jersey.

Greg went though a lot of changes in a short time, so I tried to be patient. He and I certainly didn’t see eye to eye about much during his high school years, I’m just glad I survived them. His sister was a little angel compared to him. It seemed like every day, there was another Greg disaster, and many involved cars. Once, he snuck my car out while he was still too young to drive. He hit a railing backing out of the garage, denting and scraping the paint off the car door. The damage was on the passenger side of the vehicle, so it took me awhile to catch on. We came out of the mall one day and he looked at the car and said “Mom, it looks like someone hit you.” I eventually caught on when I saw that the railing was knocked off the porch and there were paint chips from the car all around.

The year he got his driver’s license, he drove his car through our closed garage door one day while I was grocery shopping. He called me on my cell and told me what he did. Greg then proceeded to hang up on me before I could say a word. By the time I got home, I wanted to kill him. We made him pay for the repairs to the door, but it didn’t stop his careless behavior.

Ruth, the police are on the phone for you

Later that same year, I got a call from the police one night telling me my car had been abandoned on a Wilkes-Barre street. Not only abandoned, but left in the middle of a one way street, going in the wrong direction. The car was still running with the doors wide open. Greg had borrowed my car earlier that night to go out with some of his friends. They were supposedly going to a football game, but instead they decided to drive around and egg houses. Oh, yes he did! I guess he egged the wrong person, because he ditched the car as the angry homeowner was chasing him. He did this and so much more. You never knew what the next day would bring with Greg. He was grounded a lot during those years as you can imagine. And, I felt like I was turning into a raging lunatic. I was more a prison warden than a mother. Why would I eventually decide to mix family and business you are probably wondering.

In the Navy..I can sail the seven seas

When he graduated high school, Greg had no idea what he wanted to do. He attended community college for a bit, but it’s not where he wanted to be. He had no direction and was angry at just about everybody and everything. Greg made the decision to join the Navy and it’s the best thing he ever did. He came out of boot camp a different person. A man with a real purpose. I remember going to see him graduate from boot camp. We went to Navy Pier in Chicago to celebrate. A little boy walked up to him, tugged on his uniform and said “thank you for your service.” My mom was with us and she had tears in her eyes. I was beyond proud of him.

Greg was eventually stationed on a guided-missile cruiser, the USS Chancellorsville, in the Pacific. It was part of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan strike group. He spent five years serving our country and he developed a wonderful appreciation for his life and for everyone around him. We kept in constant contact through letters (yes, letters), emails and an occasional phone call when he was able. He visited Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and Dubai. The ship also facilitated humanitarian missions to many countries in need. While he was enlisted, I had the opportunity to travel with Greg and his shipmates for seven days at sea aboard the cruiser, but that story is for a different blog. It’s an experience I will never forget. Greg’s final months in the Navy were spent off the coast of Japan to support disaster relief operations. They provided aid for the areas devastated by the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami in 2011.

A new chapter begins

During his Navy years, when his sister went off to college, I decided to follow my dream of opening a restaurant. For ten years, I operated both my marketing business and Cork Bar & Restaurant, a play on wine and also my name. During that time, I was probably working about 85 hours a week. I thrived on the fast-pace of the restaurant business and loved interacting with all of my customers. I also loved the challenge of the marketing and PR business. A full-time marketer and publicist by day and a restaurateur by night. That ten year period took family and business to a whole new level of chaos. The growth of my marketing business played a role in my decision to sell Cork earlier this year. We were expanding to provide our clients with digital marketing services, social media services, content marketing and more. I also missed seeing my husband, who was busy with his own business, Corcoran Printing. When I sold Cork, we went out on top, ranked number one on Trip Advisor and with a great following. I’m happy to report it is still locally owned and still has most of the staff that was with me.

When he left the Navy, Greg attended Temple University where he earned a bachelors degree in marketing in just three years. He came out with a real drive to build a successful career. Greg worked hard during his time in the Navy and was ready to work even harder back in civilian life. After graduating from Temple, he worked in sales and management for a couple of years. He then got the itch for mixing family and business and made the move to join us working in business development for our credit union marketing division, COR Strategic Group. Today, he gives everything he does 110 percent just like his mom.

Family and Business – Greg and I today

I’ve learned that Greg and I are a lot alike and I think we’re going to make very good business partners. This new journey combining family and business should be interesting to say the least. The intensity he had as a child stuck with him. It drives his passion for doing the best possible job for his clients. I share that passion. We also share a tenacity to succeed and never allow failure to be an option. Greg and I are fighters. We fight hard to ensure our clients succeed and we just don’t give up if we really believe in something.

We’re also both brutally honest. Ask us what you think and you’re going to get the truth. No filter. I think that’s a plus for our clients, they know they can trust us to be totally honest with them. We don’t just say what we think you want to hear. You always get the truth from us. We want to do the best possible job for each and every client. We get personally involved, because we feel our clients deserve it. Our partnership is a work in progress, growing and changing. One thing we can agree on. Besides our family and our rescue pups, our clients are our number one priority. Be sure to follow our social media pages for more blogs and to see how this mother and son duo is doing with family and business. We’ll also be blogging with marketing tips and other important topics to keep give you an edge in business. Visit us at www.corcoranpr.com anytime!

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,