Content marketing formats to try in 2022
I feel like I’m still waiting for March 2020 to resume so it truly doesn’t seem possible that 2022 is right around the corner! But since the end of the year is rapidly approaching, it’s time to start planning for next year and one of my favorite aspects of planning is dreaming up new content to create!
While most people tend to think of content as simply blogs and eBooks or other written content, it’s not the case. Not every customer wants written content nor do they only want to visit your website to get it.
As you start making your 2022 marketing plan, see if you can find a way to fit these different content formats into it.
5 content formats to add to your marketing plan in 2022
Video
There’s so much you can do with video content and so many different ways to create it, like:
- Animated explainer videos
- Interviews or panel discussions
- Answering FAQs
- Client case studies or testimonials
- In-depth whiteboarding sessions
- Video tours
- Product demos and teasers for product launches
- Employee interviews and spotlights
- Reviews
- How-tos
- Sneak peeks at events
Video can be a great way to create both short-form and long-form content. Or even taking long-form content and breaking it up onto quick clips for different purposes. Make sure to continually review your video analytics to find the sweet spot for video length, subject, and style.
Podcasts
Podcasts have grown in popularity and while they can take a lot to produce, they can often pay off well if you’ve got a captive audience. It’s a format that allows you to control the conversation as well as humanize your brand by making it more conversational than presentational. Podcasts can really improve brand loyalty and customer retention when done right.
That said, podcasts do have a high barrier to entry as you need quality equipment and this is one tactic you can’t start without a firm plan and content production schedule. If people can’t rely on you releasing new podcasts consistently, they won’t continue to tune in.
Interactive infographics
Take your best eBooks or infographics and transform them into interactive experiences. This format can help your customers feel more in control of their buyer’s journey and they can pick and choose what interests them most instead of mindlessly scrolling through a PDF. Include a variety of eye-catching elements, like clickable video, animated statistics, drag-and-drop, and so on.
You can also apply the interactive element to quizzes and calculators with links to other resources to help them on their way to becoming a customer.
Presentations
This one is going a bit old school, but instead of webinars just let people have the presentation that they can click through on their own pace. Include embedded links so they can learn more or get some more context on what a certain slide is referencing, but sometimes people just want the info instead of hearing someone read it aloud to them.
Education by email
We all know that Top-Of-Funnel (TOFU) content is meant to educate but many brands quickly move from education into sales pitches in nurture streams. I know, I know. Email should be driving sales and conversions and you can still have emails that have that intent. But why not also introduce purely education email that isn’t selling something?
These kinds of emails can help you get to know your customers better, understand what they’re interested in, understand what content gaps you may have, and help build trust and influence.
Another alternative to this is creating a mini online university for your customers so they can take quizzes to truly test their knowledge or earn certifications or badges for their understanding of your products or services.
Content considerations
Before you run off writing scripts or building new emails, I want you to ask yourself a few questions.
- Do I have the budget to create this type of content?
- Do I have the time to create this type of content?
- Do I or does someone on my team have the right skills to create this content?
- Do I have the right equipment or do I need to outsource it to get it produced?
These questions can help you and your content team set the right expectations for creating content that does a lot of heavy lifting. I recommend mixing it up and trying a variety of different formats to ensure you maximize your budget and test what kind of content experiences engages your audience the best.
Are you adding any new content formats to your 2022 plan? Tell me what your new addition is in the comments below!
