Reviewing Content Types Working with Original Short- and Long-Form Content
Creating original content isn’t easy, but it can deliver the greatest punch. However, the companies who have gained the most traction have figured out how to distinguish their content from that of their competitors, regardless of length by using visuals with both styles of content.
See whether these comments sound familiar to you: “You should create only short-form content because people don’t have the time to spend reading long articles” or “Your audience wants long, thoughtful pieces and expects you to spend the time and money to create them.”
The content community continues to debate whether long- or short-form content is preferable. Although some claim to know the answer, it really depends on what your specific audience prefers. For example, it may like long-form how-to blog posts but prefer short list posts. You can find the answer by looking at your own data. In addition, some content is determined by its platform.
Making Use of User-Generated Content
Next in the list of content types is user-generated content (UGC). For better or worse, this is not content created by you but rather your audience. UGC is any content that is published to an online site by an end user to be seen by other users. If you’ve ever asked your customers to submit pictures of themselves using your product or to send photos using a specific hashtag, you’ve dealt with UCG.
UGC can be positive or negative, depending on the mindset of the user. By its very nature, it’s uncontrollable. You will get UGC whether you want it or not. It’s the voice of the customer weighting in on you and your brand. It includes such content as user reviews, videos, photos, and ratings. UGC can be your greatest sales driver or your worst nightmare. If you launch a specific campaign and you tap into some major customer dissatisfaction, it can be a recipe for disaster.
Understanding the positives
Some online influencers believe that UGC can be a great tool for brands. An op-ed by Aliza Freud on DIGIDAY recommends that “brands should use more UGC.” Freud cites the following three reasons.
You can see that major benefits can accrue to any brand that generates positive UGC. Brands establish strong relationships with their customers by constantly monitoring what is being said on their sites and on social media. In this way, they know where the bumps may be
Dealing with the negatives
The pain of failed UGC campaigns has been well-documented. Sometimes companies launch a new UGC campaign and get a barrage of nasty comments and images. Could the companies have avoided them? Maybe. It depends on how connected the brand is with its customer.
Dealing with Live Video Content
Now, live from anywhere — you can reach your audience using one of several live-streaming apps like Facebook Live and YouTube. These marketing tools add a real-time dimension to anything you promote or share. But, as with any tactic, you need to think about how to integrate it into your larger content strategy.
Extending Business News
Content that is created specifically to promote your business is not like other original content. Of course, all the content you create will have some value to your company. But specific content that you write for press releases, stockholders, potential investors, and others with goals are different from all your other content.
Last word
This type of content is important because it can have additional uses and is often overlooked. After you’ve created this content, you can feed it back to your editorial group to repurpose it.
