Digital marketing includes various channels and strategies you can choose from. For example, many marketers struggle between content marketing vs. social media marketing. Depending on your goals and target audience, you can use both or one of them.
If you can’t decide which strategy to choose, you have come to the right place. We have curated a detailed guide for you to learn about this dynamic duo for long-term business success.
Content Marketing Explained
As the name suggests, content marketing is about using original content to attract new customers. The strategy works by educating the relevant audience or sharing valuable information. Remember that a good content marketing strategy must be informative enough for your target audience to share it with other people.
A great way to use this strategy is by combining various forms of content. These include the following:
- How-to guides
- Infographics
- Articles
- Blogs
- eBooks
- Video content
- And more
Any content marketing campaign’s primary aim is to boost brand awareness. It also encourages conversions, as you can use the content to show you are an experienced and authoritative leader in the industry. When you create engaging content, your customers will return to your website.
Social Media Marketing Explained
Social media marketing is another way to build trust with your customers but through the art of interaction. For example, you can use various social media platforms to connect with your customers and engage in a dialogue with them. You can deliver the message, and your customers can respond, or vice versa.
A major difference between content and social media marketing is that in the latter, the consumer has much more control over the interaction and the relationship. Remember that social media marketing is more than just a platform for special offers and promotions.
Instead, you can leverage these platforms to discuss the experience of customers with your brand through:
- Asking for feedback regarding recent purchases
- Complaints or compliments related to your business
- Opinions or thoughts on different types of news
People are more willing to share what is on their minds on social media. So, this can be a positive for your business. You can use social media to answer questions, address issues, and develop a long-lasting relationship with your customers.
Content Marketing Vs. Social Media Marketing: The Key Differences
Now that you have an overview of content marketing vs. social media marketing, it is crucial to take a deep dive into the differences. It will further clarify what you need to do to choose the right strategy for your business.
Here are some of the most obvious differences between these two marketing strategies:
Objectives
Understanding the objectives of each digital marketing strategy will help you decide whether it aligns with your current marketing goals. Marketers usually select social media marketing to enhance brand awareness, target new and existing audiences, and generate activity and discussion around the brand. When these things happen, the brand becomes more visible on digital channels.
In the long run, social media marketing is also ideal for enhancing customer satisfaction and boosting customer retention rates. You will notice that most businesses also leverage the power of social media to engage in a direct dialogue with their customers. On the other hand, content marketing has a different objective than social media marketing.
Content marketing usually has the objective of demand generation. The content quality brings more prospects to the website, hoping to convert them into customers. Quality of content is crucial if you want to fulfil this objective and create effective outcomes for your brand.
Point of Focus
The focal point of content marketing vs. social media marketing is also unique. By focal point, we mean the place where all the action happens regarding the marketing strategy. If you opt for social media marketing, all the action will happen on the social media platforms you use for your business.
These platforms allow you to interact with your customers and build relationships with them. Everything, from your tone to your content on social media, will be customised to suit the needs of your target audience and the platform’s culture. You must also keep tweaking the strategy to adapt to the platform as it evolves.
However, the focal point of your content marketing is your website. You can think of your website as your digital real estate, where you have complete control over what you want to show to your customers and how you want to interact with them. It is the heart of your content marketing strategy and the place you will use to drive customers to your business.
Service Process
When discussing the service process, we refer to the process your marketing team will select to execute these strategies. As your team works on social media marketing, they might want to focus on a solid engagement and follower growth strategy. Your team will work on helping you gain more followers so you can grow your audience and reach more people.
Such a process will allow them to create and present engaging social media content that your followers will want to interact with. On the other hand, the content marketing service process includes integrating other digital marketing channels. However, the main focus will be on content planning and implementation.
So, the service princess greatly differs between the two. Many businesses either have an in-house marketing team or outsource this process to professionals offering exceptional services.
Buyers Journey
Every buyer has a unique journey in the digital realm, depending on the aim they want to achieve. Sometimes, content and social media marketing can overlap, but they mostly operate in different phases of the buyer’s journey. For example, social media marketing targets the brand awareness phase of the journey, while content marketing targets the consideration phase.
Awareness Phase
Social media marketing targets the awareness phase, as it is a great place to let prospective customers know that you exist. During this phase, the objectives are brand awareness and audience building. Marketers can conduct various activities to target this phase of the buyer’s journey.
These include the following:
- Social media marketing
- Collaborations on social media
- Targeted or paid social media ads
- Media or PR coverage
These social media marketing tactics will help you bring more awareness to your brand. Prospective customers will know of your brand, and they will be eager to see what you have to offer. So, they will also want to visit your website and check your content, which is where the consideration phase comes in.
Consideration Phase
Content marketing mostly targets the consideration phase. The primary objectives of this phase include generating leads and building customer trust. If you offer quality and valuable content to your customers, they will be more likely to trust your brand and take action.
You can use various content types for the consideration phase, which can include the following:
- Blog posts
- eBooks
- Case studies
- Videos
- And more
The type of content and style is important to get right to reach your marketing objectives. Read more about this below.
Content Style and Type
Content marketing vs. social media marketing also have the difference of the content style and type you offer with each strategy. Social media marketing requires what you post to be unique to the platform you use. For example, you can use a combination of text and rich media with short-form videos on social media platforms.
An example of this is Twitter where you can post text with videos, photos, hashtags, and even links. On the other hand, Instagram is mostly used as a video and image platform where you can aslo add text captions. So, you have to curate content on social media depending on the platform you use.
A content marketing strategy focuses on long-form content that offers some value to the user. These include podcasts, videos, blogs, articles, and more. You post such content on your website, and create in-depth content to grab the attention of your customers.
In the long run, you can also repurpose the content on your website for other channels, such as social media. You can also use social media to link the content to your website. While these channels have different content styles and types, it is important for you to be creative and see what works best.
Metrics
Some metrics between content marketing and social media marketing may overlap, but you are measuring different things when utilizing these strategies. As you implement a social media marketing strategy, you will want to measure:
- How many people the content reach
- The number of people engaging with your content
- Clicks on links to your website
- Taking other action, such as purchasing your products after viewing your social media content
These metrics will provide you with valuable insights on whether your social media marketing strategy works or not. You can also opt for other metrics, depending on the type of social media campaign you are running.
Content marketing strategies can measure metrics such as the traffic directed to your directed, where its coming from, what else are people doing on your website, and whether they are closer to becoming a customer. You can track their journey on your website, and then decide what changes you want to make, if any.
Factors To Consider Before Choosing A Digital Marketing Strategy
It can be a challenging decision to choose between content marketing social media marketing. However, this decision can be easier if you consider a few factors to decide what strategy you want to select. We have listed a few important factors to take into account before deciding on the right digital marketing strategy for your business:
Target Audience
The first thing you must consider is your target audience. You must conduct detailed research on their demographics, online behavior, preferred channels, interests, and more. Such information will provide you with insights on what marketing channels will be the most useful for engaging with them.
For example, if you are targeting an older demographic, they might not be as active on social media, but use Google Search more. Then, you will be better off employing a content marketing strategy than social media. So, make sure you conduct extensive research on the target audience to decide what channel you can opt for.
Business Goals
Another factor you must take into account are your business goals. Sit with your marketing team to discuss your business objectives and align them with your marketing goals. Your goals can range anywhere from boosting brand awareness to improving sales and revenue. The strategy you select must align with your goals for maximum impact.
If you have just started your business, then using social media can be useful in enhancing brand awareness. On the other hand, if your goal is to establish trust and authority in the market, then content marketing will be the better option. You can also combine both marketing channels, depending on what you want to achieve.
Competitor Analysis
Before you select a marketing strategy, we recommend that you conduct competitor analysis, and see what strategies your competitors are using or marketing. Analysis like this will help you understand what will work well for your target audience and your specific industry. Then, you can utilize the insights to tailor a unique approach for your business.
Chances are that your competitors will be using a mix of many digital marketing strategies. You can asses them, and decide how you plan on cutting through the digital noise. Even you can use multiple channels for a holistic digital marketing strategy.
Budget
Lets not forget that every business has a marketing budget they must adhere to. Even you have a set budget for various digital marketing activities that you want tp conduct. Different strategies will have unique costs associated with it that you must take into account.
A good practice is to consider what you can afford and then allocate your resources in an efficient manner. You have to maximize your ad spend, and invest your money in the channels that will provide you with the highest returns. Weigh the costs and benefits to decide what strategy will work best for you in the long term.
Analytics
When you decide on a digital marketing strategy such as content marketing vs. social media marketing, you must have various metrics to measure your performance. These are known as key performance indicators (KPIs). Various analytics tools related to the strategy you select will provide you with numbers you can use to gauge the effectiveness of the campaign.
Such data will also provide insights for decision-making in the future, and the optimization of your campaigns. Then, you can keep optimizing until you reach a campaign strategy that works the best for your business.
Content Marketing Vs. Social Media Marketing: The Dynamic Duo For Your Digital Marketing Strategy
You dont have to stick to one strategy when you can leverage the power of both. The key is to understand how both these strategies can complement one another for you to use them effectively. Here are the various ways you can use content marketing and social media marketing together:
Using Social Media For Input On Future Content
Social media is a fantastic way to talk directly to your customers and build a rapport. You can also utilize the power of social media to ask for input on future content. Many businesses dont even have to ask for this input if they have worked on building a relationship with customers.
Instead, customers jump at various opportunities on social media to share their thoughts about the business and what it offers. However, you can begin this chain by asking them share any questions they may have about your business. Then, you can take the time to thoroughly answer their questions to foster that connection.
You can also use their questions to create content for your website that answers these questions and then link it on your social media. After all, informative content focuses on solving the problems that customers have regarding your business or otherwise. Your customers will also know that you listen to what they have to say.
Promotion Of Content On Social Media Platforms
Promoting your content on social media and vice versa can help direct your customers to different platforms you are on. For example, you can utilize social media platforms to promote your blogs or website. You can link and share your content on social media to drive more traffic to your website.
In the same way, you can link and share your social media posts on your website so people that find you there can be directed to your social media platforms. However, an advantage of social media over your website is that the former can be used for a long time to promote posts. People check their social media daily, but the same is not true for your brands website.
So, you can leverage both of these platforms to complement one another and promote your posts. Once you do, you will see the growth in your conversions soon enough.
Content Marketing Vs. Social Media Marketing: Which Is More Effective
There is no right or wrong answer to this. Once you consider all the factors we have mentioned above, you can answer which one will prove to be the most effective for your business. You can always hire a digital marketing agency to help you decide what strategies and campaigns you must choose.
Digital marketing professionals have the skills and knowledge to help you understand what will work best. They will conduct a thorough analysis and come up with a combination of the most effective digital marketing channels for your business. Then, they can implement those strategies to provide you with optimal outcomes.
Select A Digital Marketing Agency For Your Content Marketing And Social Media Marketing Needs
By now, you have a complete overview of the different digital marketing strategies. If you dont have a dedicated marketing team for research and deciding what strategy to choose, then we recommend you opt for a digital marketing agency like The Dreams Agency.
Here is what you will get from our services:
Complete Marketing Strategy And Execution
The Dreams Agency has been in the digital marketing game for a few years now, and our professionals have more than a decade of experience. Because of this, we can provide complete strategies and execution for your business. Our professionals will conduct an extensive analysis, then come up with the strategies that will be profitable for your business.
Once we execute them, you will see the results for yourself. We also monitor and track campaigns to make changes for better outcomes.
Business Growth
A digital marketing strategy is nothing without the results. This is why we focus on ensuring that our content and social media marketing provide you with the growth you deserve. Your business will start experiencing growth that will help you scale it with time.
We use the latest analytics and reporting tools to collect data and show you the results in numbers. You will experience higher leads, conversions, sales, and more.
Dedicated Content And Social Media Marketing Team
When you choose The Dreams Agency, you will receive a dedicated content and social media marketing team. Our professionals excel in these areas, which is why they will stop at nothing to help boost your business. You can connect with our team for more information on this.
Final Thoughts
Now that you know the differences between content vs. social media marketing, you can decide whether you want to opt for both these strategies or just one. If you re confused about what to do, we recommend that you connect with one of our professionals. We will help you decide what will be the ideal digital marketing course for your business.