The power of content in driving sales is significant. It can significantly boost trust in your brand, attract new consumers, and foster loyalty. However, in the current landscape, there are numerous content formats. So, which types of content can increase sales for e-commerce businesses?
“People don’t buy products and services. They buy relationships, stories, and magic.”
Marketing guru Seth Godin
Interesting content helps businesses build relationships, create captivating stories, and work wonders. But before telling your story, it’s essential to choose the right type of content. So, what formats can help you increase sales?
User-generated content, or UGC, is content created by users and shared by brands. UGC is perhaps one of the most potent tools in the content marketing arsenal.
For example, take a look at how GoPro and Starbucks do it:
GoPro, for instance, relies on its users for 90% of its content. The company encourages people to submit their videos from all around the world and share their experiences.
UGC helps convey the brand’s reliability through the reviews of other users. It becomes a reliable source of information for new customers.
Additionally, word-of-mouth marketing comes into play as information about the brand spreads from mouth to mouth.
By leveraging UGC, you can create a loyal community of followers for your brand.
You can utilize user-generated content in email marketing, product/service reviews on your website, social media, and other channels.
Tip. Actively encourage users to share their experiences with you, such as videos for social media or text reviews, etc. UGC is a cost-effective and efficient content strategy that boosts profits and attracts new customers.
Today, customers don’t just want to buy a product; they thoroughly evaluate your product or services before making a purchase. They spend hours researching reviews and feedback before deciding to buy. So, why not provide them with what they’re looking for? For instance, a guide to your flagship product?
By viewing reviews or reading guides, customers can choose your brand as the best solution for their needs. Of course, much depends on how the review is written and whether it addresses the questions and needs of the target audience. By providing people with a product guide, you increase its value.
Tip. Don’t focus solely on technical aspects in the reviews. Make them interesting and appealing to your customers. They won’t spend a lot of time reading technical specifications. Use video reviews as they are the most engaging format, showcasing the product, its features, capabilities, and most importantly, visually.
Don’t hesitate to showcase the humane side of your e-commerce business. It helps create a positive association with your brand. Customers prefer socially responsible brands. They are willing to pay more for brands that have a social mission or work towards social, ethical, and environmental goals.
For example, take a look at Nike’s efforts in this direction: https://www.instagram.com/nike/
But remember, engage in sponsorship, charity, and other socially responsible initiatives only if you genuinely care about them. Creating a facade of social responsibility just to attract customers won’t work. People can see through it, and such an approach might lead to negative reactions.
Create ethical content that aligns well with your brand’s voice and personality.
Having a humane side to your brand’s image creates a sense of authenticity that most people appreciate. This approach attracts and retains an audience.
Tip. You don’t always need to host grand events. You can continually maximize socially responsible marketing as your business grows. For example, organize charity events, marathons, city runs, etc. Encourage people to participate and contribute to the social causes you support.
Undoubtedly, content marketing relies heavily on social media marketing (SMM), especially through stories. You can use this popular format to sell your products on social platforms.
Think about exclusive promotions, new services, product previews, new launches, contests, limited-time offers, or sales – all these are options for using stories on social media.
Many social media platforms allow you to attach links to products or services in stories.
It’s essential to remember that stories are short-lived and last for only 24 hours. However, they increase brand visibility and user engagement because they evoke the fear of missing out (FOMO) on a good deal in your audience. Hence, stories often have higher conversion rates compared to other traditional content formats.
Moreover, creating stories is easy. There are plenty of applications available for crafting stories, such as Insta Story, StoryArt, Smoozly, Instories, and others.
Tip. To track user clicks on the links, you can use link tracking services like Bitly, Cuttly. This way, you obtain measurable results without investing a significant amount of time, effort, or money.
An excellent way to boost sales is by making your posts interactive. Instead of having a one-way conversation, utilize interactivity that allows your target audience to engage with you.
This can involve live streaming on Instagram or Facebook, hosting a simple quiz, having a widget on your website, and more.
In a time when consumers are bombarded with diverse information from competitors, interactive content can become the differentiating factor for your brand.
Interactive formats always work because they engage people on a personal level. Buyers feel that you are interested in what you have to say, and, as a result, they stay on your page longer. That’s the essence of it.
The primary goal of content marketing is to generate content that helps build a community of loyal customers around your brand. A community that grows with each passing day. So, make use of the content formats listed above and convert online traffic into potential customers.
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