What 2019 Content Marketing Trends Will Look Like

Content marketing has been rapidly becoming a staple in all serious marketing strategies, across all industries. But today, it’s safe to say, that content marketing is more than a pillar of marketing, it’s the central pillar upon which solid marketing plans are based. Proper content marketing requires you to stay on top of trends. Including 2019 content marketing trends.

As we head into 2019, it’s important to reevaluate how you look at content marketing. If you haven’t taken content marketing seriously in the past, that needs to change. There’s no doubt the winners in 2019 will be those companies that double down on content marketing and take their content creation to the next level.

Here are five 2019 content marketing trends to watch:

1. Hyper-personalization
2. Authenticity
3. Go beyond marketing
4. Sophisticated strategies
5. Technology

2019 Content marketing trends to watch

Hyper-personalization

Hyper-personalization is the future of content marketing. It’s the future of all marketing, for that matter. Buyers don’t want to be told what to do or think, they want to be part of the conversation. You will not satisfy their needs with generic content. Personal connections are more important than ever in a social media world – and content is no different.

While personalized marketing has been around for some time, hyper-personalization is relatively new. Hyper-personalization goes beyond a customer’s name, location and even purchase history. Hyper-personalization takes into account a customer’s browsing behavior and real-time data to change marketing messages instantly.

When creating content, think about precision. Plugging generic content that’s “good enough” into various holes no longer works. Precise, hyper-personalized content creates higher output. Much higher.

Authenticity

Authenticity is driving a content marketing revolution. More and more consumers are starting to judge a brand based on the authenticity of its content. While the internet a breathed new life into content marketing, it’s not a new tactic. But it has become much more affordable over the past decade, and that means more and more companies are doing it.

So why does authenticity matter? A recent survey found that only 18 percent of consumers trust business leaders to be truthful. We are, after all, human, right?  And as humans, we want to do business with businesses that have values that align with ours. We want to buy from companies that seem honest, genuine and faithful. This all boils down to authenticity.

Consider these three quotes:

“Stop thinking like a salesman and start acting like your reader’s mentor. A salesman wonders how to get his next sale. A mentor cares about his students. He wants to help them get ahead and live a more fulfilled life. By providing solid advice on a regular basis, you build authority and trust; and that’s how you win new customers.” — Henneke Duisermaat, Kissmetrics

“The language of marketing is notorious for feeling artificial…no one really cares about ‘quality manufacturing’ or ‘industry-leading service levels’ unless they know exactly how that feels. When using stories as a vehicle for content marketing, take this advice…stand in front of a mirror, look yourself in the eye, and tell your brand story out loud. Do you believe it?” — Carol Barash, Content Marketing Institute

“Authenticity is being human. It’s that simple. It has nothing to do with being original or unique. Professional content marketing is selling the human in your business to the humans who buy from your business.” — Ryan Hanley, TrustedChoice.com

Go Beyond Marketing

Content should not be solely a marketing endeavor. Good content can improve every aspect of an organization. Expanding content into recruiting and hiring, sales enablement and even customer retention just make sense. Nothing helps push the profit needle like a fully aligned business.

Communicating with customers doesn’t stop when the sale is finalized. Customer success should be a top priority to stave off churn and keep customers wanting more. Word-of-mouth marketing is a powerful referral source and content plays into that nicely.

That goes for creating content as well. Reach out to other departments within the organization and even to customers to help create content that sells. Content isn’t and shouldn’t be viewed as solely a lead generation tool. Including the entire organization in your content creation can add a touch of expertise that’s hard for competitors to match.

At the very least, including other departments in the review and approval process can add a lot to your content strategy.

Sophisticated strategies

As marketing gets more complicated, content strategies need to be more sophisticated. Content is more than just the core of a successful marketing strategy, it’s the core of a successful brand. And successful companies understand that.

With buy-in from the entire organization, you can add a touch of sophistication to your content strategy that will help you turn from just producing quality content to producing the right content … at the right time. The true power of content marketing lies in the ability of a brand to have a thoughtful, honest conversation with its customers.

To start, you need to understand every touch point a customer (and potential customer) will have with your business. Write them down. You should be creating multiple pieces of content for each of these touch points. Next, keep tabs on how your content is performing and measure everything you can in order to refine that content.

Stop creating content for content’s sake. It’s no longer about which pieces of content make sense for your various distribution channels (website, blog, social media, email, etc.). It’s all about creating persona-based content for each stage of the buyer’s journey.

Technology

As technology continues to advance, so do content marketing strategies. For example, in 2019, voice search is expected to grow considerably. Internet searches via digital assistants, such as Alexa, Siri and Google Home, are skyrocketing. How does that play into your content strategy?

To get (or stay) ahead of the game, write headlines in the form of questions that someone would ask their smart device. Focus heavily on the consumer utility of your product, or craft articles that can help your shopper use or care for their new purchase. For example, if you sell boots, write posts about how to waterproof them or remove water and salt stains, instead of writing a roundup of your best sellers which people are less likely to ask Alexa about.

These 2019 content marketing trends are just scratching the surface of where this effective marketing medium is headed. For more information about your business can step up its content marketing efforts, contact us today.