If you think world-class content marketing is restricted to global companies with ginormous budgets, think smaller. See how these three businesses of modest size and means created a huge impact -and were rewarded big time!
1 - Mint.com
Infographics & blogging - According to an article by Alexandra Skey in Spokal, "Mint.comwas the first company to create infographics to attract customers on a mass scale - that resulted in 2 million customers within 3 years." Mint was started byAaron Patzer in 2006 to give consumers a new way to handle personal finances online. By 2007, the company was already managing 100,000 accounts, before skyrocketing to two million. Mint.com also has a very cool, friendly and inviting blog, Mint Life, that makes personal finance highly accessible.
Bottom line: Mint.com perfected creative content marketing - and made a mint. The company was bought out by Intuit for a cool $170 million. Mint currently looks after more than 10 million accounts.
Takeaway: Are you using infographics to paint the picture for your customers? You can review the basics here.
2 - Canva
Long-form articles - Canva's website provides a stunning graphic design tool free of charge. An article in Marketing Insider Group revealed, "Canva doesn't have a blog, they have a Design School. Canva's content can be fun, inspirational, useful or of course - educational."
But what's particularly revealing about Canva is that their most-shared content isn't about design, but rather a long-form article about the benefits of taking long walks. As Marketing Insider Group notes, "Despite containing very little imagery, the piece has been shared more than 60,000 times on Facebook, 400 times on Pinterest, and 2,000 times on LinkedIn. It's also (according to Ahrefs) received links from 163 different domains. The really great thing about this is that it's something you could emulate. You don't need a design and development team - you just need to pinpoint a topic that resonates with your audience and write about it well."
Bottom line: Canva grew to more than six million users in four short years. While their website does a fine job of showing off their creative design chops, what's just as interesting is their willingness to go way outside of the box.
Takeaway: Are you growing your content marketing muscles by stretching yourself and trying new things? In addition to pushing the creative boundaries in house, trying going outside to try creative outsourcing.
3 - Old World Inn
Review Sites - SEM Rush shared some great examples of small business content marketing. One story in particular reveals how a California wine country lodging called the Old World Inn reaches out using review sites like TripAdvisor. The Inn takes the time to not merely respond to traveler inquiries - but to draw a word picture of what it's like to experience the Napa Valley.
Bottom line: On their TripAdvisor site, you'll discover the Old World Inn's extensive history of communicating with the traveler - a history that spans several years. It's quite a commitment!
Takeaway: Are you using the location-based sites that make sense for your company and industry? Get yourself on the map - and encourage customers to share your story.
