Content marketing is getting redefined and how!

What is the role of a content creator today? Other than effectively communicating a brand’s ethos, a content creator needs to mobilise new audiences and keep the old ones engaged. In such a scenario, content marketing holds more promise than ever. More importantly, it’s a tool that can be successfully experimented with at a time when consumers have diverse priorities and an even more diverse buying power.

“The role of a content creator can be looked at like a Venn diagram: one circle involves telling stories, the second is to listen to stories and unearth those unexpected connections, and the third is all about developing strategies to understand what story to tell and where,” said Bianca Ghose, Chief Storyteller, Wipro.

Ghose was speaking at the 12th edition of HT Brand Studio Live, Season 2, which looked at how brands are tackling an ever-evolving market with the help of meaningful content.

HT Brand Studio Live is a series that gets the brains behind India’s top brands to decode marketing innovations and more. It is anchored by Rameet Arora, Chief Operating Officer, HT Digital Streams, and co-hosted by HT Brand Studio and DMAasia.

Needless to say, most of the conversation is happening on social media. Be it reviews or just simple product tagging, the world of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram offers the much-coveted opportunity of interacting with consumers, real time.

Ramin Saherwala, Chief Marketing Officer, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited, said, “When consumers share their experiences on social media, it’s more authentic. It doesn’t look manufactured; most importantly, the content isn’t from a brand to a consumer, it’s from a consumer to a consumer and also a prospective consumer. When such content gets shared, brands can get actionable insights.”

Data is the crux of all such insights. With millions of online interactions happening between a brand and a consumer, marketers can comprehend audience profiles by mining and analysing data. This information can then be utilised to customise consumer journeys and retain existing brand loyalists.

Shubhodip Pal, Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer, Revolt Intellicorp Pvt. Ltd., said, “We use data points to try and create customer experiences that actually compel users to experience our offerings. As a part of our communication, we make sure to never alienate a customer with jargon and technology. For best results, it’s important to let them understand and play with what they have.”

In order to create a seamless consumer journey, it’s important to understand the different consumer sensibilities and preferences and their reasons for trust in a product.

As Jayati Singh, Global Head-Marketing, Tally Solutions Pvt Ltd., highlighted, “Consumer segments are diverse; defining the customer journey itself is a process. There are bound to be many customer journeys. The segmentation happens according to the sources of information like a web-browsing behaviour or technographics. Digital has provided us the platform to really target the specific profiles of companies, and position and customise communication based on their requirements.”