So you've implemented a blogger outreach program and you're working with YouTube influencers to have them say cool things about your brand, whilst also collecting unique Instagram photos from your consumers. Now what?
Having those earned mentions floating around the blogosphere and across social are fantastic, but let's face it, we could all do a better job of making the most out of our earned media and user generated content (UGC).
Start by thinking of the different branches of your brands' image and marketing that you or your team creates content to power. Your website. Your email newsletters. Your own social posts. Instead of writing content for your brands' owned assets, where can you insert your earned media instead?
A key characteristic of today's digitally driven consumer is that they're self-sufficient in researching brands and look for a non-biased voice to get information about a brand. By placing earned media and user generated content strategically throughout all funnels of your marketing, you can increase sales and conversions by helping consumers along their buyer's journey.
Content to Replace with Earned Media
- Go through a list of your favorite earned blog posts. Pull out a quote from each and make a new post, email or section on your site that says "here is what our favorite bloggers say about us", and highlight their words describing your brand
- Peruse the tweets that you have favorited from your brand's Twitter presence. Pick a few to embed on your homepage to showcase cool things about your brand through voices outside of your own
- Have a customer testimonials section on your website, let your earned media speak for itself
- Create a video resource section on your website for the "how to's" or the best practices use videos from your influencers instead of only creating your own videos
- Create a gallery and use the images that bloggers have put in their posts or that consumers have shared on Instagram instead of stale images you or a photographer takes of your brand
- Replace stock photos with consumer photos
- In your email marketing, try curating the voices of consumers and influencers and use their words to compose your email instead of self-promotional content
Look at this gallery on ModCloth
ModCloth is known for their vintage clothing, as well as their innovation in social media marketing. One glance at their site shows how well they weave together content submitted by consumers.
Cuisinart's Site is Mostly Consumer Driven
Instead of going on and on about their kitchen technology, Cuisinart showcases recipes shared by bloggers they partner with and consumers who love their brand.
Do you have an example to share of how you use earned media in creative areas of your marketing?
Main image via Shutterstock