Why Marketers Need to Make Educational Content a Priority
While TikTok is often associated with teens, one of the reasons it has blown up across generations is its ability to help people. Users post everything from recipes to home improvement tips to suggestions for improving your fitness. People crave easy-to-follow how-to’s and tips, and the brands that understand this are the ones that will win over generations.
1. It Builds Trust
Before your target audience will decide to buy your product or service, you need to earn their trust. And educational content done right can do this. But make sure your goal is to help your customer, not make a sale. Know what problems your target audience faces and offer them solutions. Creating content that is actually useful, and makes a real impact, will ultimately help build trust.
2. It Leads to Sales
Advertising creates awareness and if it’s done well, it leads to an emotional response that leads to a sale. But truly engaging customers and adding value to their experience will keep your brand at the forefront of their minds. The more engaged they are, the longer you’ll be able to retain them, and the more loyal they will be to your brand. These long-term relationships ultimately lead to sales. In fact, a study from 2022 suggests educational content makes consumers 131% more likely to buy from you.
3. It’s What Consumers Demand
Today’s younger generations (Millennials and Gen Z) are now demanding all kinds of educational content from the brands they buy from. They turn to their phones for tips on everything from the best way to boil an egg, to how to put on their makeup, to how to save enough money for a down payment on a house. And they often purchase the products featured in this content.
The buying power of Millennials and Gen Z is growing fast. A recent report from Credit Summit showed that Millennials’ income will reach $8.3 trillion, increasing their purchasing power from the $1 trillion they currently spend. Gen Z is also grabbing more attention in the spotlight as an audience with their own spending power and unique purchasing habits. Tapping into this powerful target audience early on is important as their buying power continues to grow. But it’s not just younger audiences that are looking for educational content. Gen Xers and even Baby Boomers have also learned from the younger generations how convenient it is to get helpful content online.
4. It Builds Brand Ambassadors
Strong customer relationships can mean the difference between making a sale and sending a prospect into the arms of a competitor. Creating content that is educational can help position you as an authority on whatever you are selling. And if your content is done right and it becomes shareworthy, your customers will advocate for you and may even emulate what they’ve learned, helping to spread brand awareness even further. Getting your customers to share their experiences is a very powerful form of content.
While it’s tempting for brands to put a larger percentage of their marketing dollars into lower-funnel tactics due to the ability to target people directly who are searching for solutions that your product or service delivers, it’s important for marketers to remember that these consumers only represent a small percentage of the target audience. By investing in helping consumers who are in the awareness or consideration stages of the buying process can pay dividends in the future. The more engaged these consumers become through the helpful and useful content you deliver, the more willing and motivated they’ll be to purchase from you today—and tomorrow.
Wondering how your company can be helpful to your customers? Hoffman York is here to help you figure out the best way to do it.