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There are so many incredible examples of content marketing, but most center on big companies. What about small businesses? Here are some inspiring examples of small business content marketing done right. Whether you’re a mom and pop shop up to hundreds of employees – these examples of answers, guides, and infographics will likely hold some nuggets of inspiration for your content strategy.
1. Branch Basics - Useful, simple tips, and infographics
Branch basics created an infographic about ‘9 NASA-Approved Houseplants that Remove Formaldehyde’ - and other short, but useful and stylish infographics that speak to people like the founders who wanted natural alternatives to chemical laden housekeeping items. Without a lot of outreach or technical work, their traffic more than doubled year over year – even when they hadn’t created a lot of new content! Instead of ‘Search Engine Optimization’ – some might call this ‘accidental optimization.’
Takeaway - Stylish, infographic style guides that match your style are amazing for Pinterest, and common questions people are searching for on Google.
2. Lush - Cosmetics - How it's made series
Do you ever want to know how your favorite brands create their products? Lush banked on that premise with a ’how it’s made’ Youtube video series, and further endeared themselves to people who wanted simple, natural cosmetics by just showing the process they go through on a regular basis to make their top products.
Takeaway - Give your customers a peak behind the curtain into how it’s made or the process of your service, and what makes it special.
3. Moxie Pest Control - How to Check Your Hotel Room for Bedbugs Infographic
Empathy for your customer's common problems and creating useful graphics for them is an easy way to get started. By doing this for its customers – even when they’re traveling, Moxie created its Hotel Room Bedbug guide and put their content into the service of their clients without having a return on investment goal.
Takeaway - Create little handy guides to help your customers solve common problems!
4. Treasured Spaces - Deep Guide to Home Design Trends
When companies can speak to the broader market with an authoritative tone about what is currently stylish and where trends are headed – they bring in a new audience. They can even give a nod to their suppliers and competitors and still receive the majority of the benefit to their brand from an SEO perspective. Treasured Spaces ‘Deep Guide for 2018 Home Design Trends’ does exactly that, while still giving a soft pitch to their services at the end. Instead of going skin deep.
Takeaway - Going beyond the usual 700 words, and creating in-depth 1,500+ word content can drive serious website visitors. S
5. Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams – Publishing a Recipe Book
Some people hold their secrets to their chest – and for good reason! Of course you want to keep all that amazing-ness close…. Or do you? Jeni Bauer of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams decided to go a different route – give all of her best recipe’s out to the world in the form of a recipe book. Instead of backfiring – it helped market her to a much wider circle than she ever could have reached before.
Takeaway - Sometimes giving away your secrets, is the way to make people care. They will rarely be able to reproduce what makes your products or services so great, but it will increase loyalty and brand awareness!
6. Construction2Style - In-depth and personal how-to and process shots
Morgan Molitor of Construction2Style has used local media, giveaways and sponsored blog posts to draw more attention to her blog – but the most compelling content she does is by far her personal home revamping projects that are style goals for sure. She goes into detail and documents every shot on her new kitchen, and teamed up with tile company Mercury Mosaics to create a unique Diamond to Subway Tile backsplash.
Takeaway - Sometimes you just need to open up your life, and share the amazing things that you're doing. Case studies, in-depth process stories, and sharing your personality go a long way.
8. Old World Inn - Connect with people where they are at - even on Trip Advisor
When Old World Inn decided to get knee-deep in the content game, they decided to go where their ideal customers spent the most time – Trip Advisor. They are extremely active, answering as many questions as they can find related to their local area, Napa Valley.
Takeaway - It doesn't always have to be on your own blog - as long as you're helping people where they can see it, and related to your services - you're creating trust and loyalty, which is the point of content marketing.
9. Artful Living Magazine - City Guides and Best of Lists
When it comes to content marketing, two things will always win for local companies and publications – location specific seems to work for resource articles, and lists work pretty consistently. Even though the ‘listicle’ style post may seem like an overused format, there is still a place for it and promises a payoff and can be paired with a local area to create search engine and social media friendly content – like Artful Living magazine’s Five Restaurants to Try in Minneapolis Now.
Takeaway - Dive deep into what people are actually looking for related to your offering. If you offer a style and lifestyle product (or in this case, magazine) – speak to the people that would be interested in that, with high-end and luxury guides to the city and best of lists.
No matter what size of a business you are - if you strive to be useful to your audience, and push to do that even when it takes extra effort or is uncomfortable - you will win. Create infographics in your brand style, how-to guides that take work to do well – and in-depth resources, and a steady flow of listicles and location specific best of articles (as appropriate) and you will find what works for you and be on your way to content genius in time!
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