There are, essentially, two kinds of people: those who admit that they use AI and those who pretend that they don’t. From a content marketing perspective, AI may be seen as a sort of magic wand, with its ability to churn out something from next to nothing. Chances are, however, that it will not be a magic wand, but rather a snag that companies risk stumbling over. Let’s look at what content marketing today is all about, and the possibilities it presents to your company and organization.
Does your content marketing reflect what your customers are looking for?
What are your customers looking for online, regardless of industry, background, or working title? First and foremost: trust, sincerity, expertise, openness, and a cooperative attitude.
Not exactly new terms, but increasingly critical ones. With uncertainty spreading and deepening in new ways and new contexts, your customers want to look to reliable authorities to help them with what they need, including what they need to know.
Content marketing is about much more than separating you from your competitors; it’s increasingly about setting what you know, and what you do, apart from all the noise and falsehoods out there – AI-generated or not.
So, how do you earn your customers’ trust through your content marketing? How can you
maintain it, and balance continuity with creativity over time?
Content marketing in the age of AI
Content marketing is about showing up (without showing off) in Google search results and relevant social media channels. That requires well-written, customer-oriented content, with proper SEO and keywords that correspond to your audience’s needs and interests.
However, with the rise of AI comes a new challenge for companies. What do you do when content can be mass-produced and mass-imitated, and where does that leave you, your business, and your expertise?
The one-word answer is: authenticity. Provide customers and prospects with your ideas, knowledge and experience, and do it in ways that transcend AI and engage your audience. In an ocean of mass-generated content, genuine quality and sincerity will stand out.
Visible and accessible expertise through content marketing
AI is not, and will likely never become, your greatest content marketing asset. Your greatest content marketing assets are your organization and all the expertise that permeates it.
AI cannot offer new insights or perspectives like your subject experts can. Their voices are authentic and personal; the voice of AI is neither. You and your colleagues interact with one another and your customers, whereas AI merely does and performs as instructed.
Your content marketing should give voice to the people in your organization. Share your insights and perspectives, and initiate a connection that increases the emotional bond between you and those you want to reach.
Some examples of how you can do that in your content marketing
- Using content marketing to build ecosystems of trust
Let creativity meet credibility by making blog articles, white papers, videos, and social media content (a podcast?) where your experts describe what matters to your audience and your industry. No corporate clichés or sales speeches; just the fresh thoughts and valuable knowledge your audience is looking for. Different formats will
speak to different customers, but the goal is one and the same: to earn your audience’s trust, and maintain their interest over time.
- Content marketing interviews and Q&As with a clear customer focus
We all know about Frequently Asked Questions, but what about all the questions that do not fit into that category? Questions that are common within your industry, yet rarely openly discussed. Or, highly specific questions that you and your colleagues
may be uniquely qualified to answer, perhaps in conversation with a customer? Short videos, Q&A articles, social media posts (with relevant links to your in-depth content) will make you both accessible and authentic in the eyes of your audience. Moreover, it will help differentiate your brand and organization even further.
- Your content marketing should not just reach your audience, but take root
People want to learn and hear from other people that they know and trust. Let your content marketing reflect that you understand that. Building the ecosystem of trust outlined above will rest on your expertise, but also on your willingness to share that expertise with your audience in creative, differentiated, and transparent ways. Take on different subjects, from different perspectives, and dig beneath the surface level. Your audience will find you, listen to you, and reward you with their trust and business.
Content marketing that initiates interaction and business
The rise of artificial intelligence and large language platforms has led some people to assume that marketing will no longer require any real effort. In fact, it’s the other way around. With AI on the scene, companies need to make a genuine effort in order to have an impact.
When everyone is vying for our attention, we naturally become more selective. Content marketing remains one of the very best and most diverse ways of initiating and forming stronger connections with your customers, prospects, and business partners. Do it consistently and sincerely – always with your audience in mind and your own organization at heart – and you will be successful.
Need help with content marketing?
Want our help with getting started with content marketing? Or perhaps you have started already, but are unsure of where to take your content marketing next? At Skapa, we are experts at bringing out our customers’ expertise, and turning it into insightful, attractive content marketing.
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What do your business needs look like, and what can we do to help? We look forward to hearing from you!