If you’re a content marketer, you can’t ignore sponsored content, because everything has a place on social media platforms now. So getting a new set of target audiences is not difficult, but drawing their attention is the most difficult challenge. However, sponsored content can take care of both things, make the content visible to a wider audience, and get a great response from the target audience. So, let’s move on to all the things you should know about creating promotional content.
What is sponsored content?
Creating promotional content is very similar to local ads, easily blending with the rest of the website or platform content, and blending so well that it doesn’t look like a marketing effort at all. Publishers invest a lot of resources in promotional content such as articles, videos, social media posts, or even entire microsites.
Sponsored content is provided as a natural part of the site content and is not usually an obvious advertisement, but rather gives a positive image of the sponsoring brand to the audience.
An ideal example of creating promotional content is that an Instagram content designer posts an image of the brand product with the disclosure that the partnership is a “paid partnership” between the brand and the owner of the Instagram account.
What do you do before you create promotional content?
Here are a few things you should know if you want to use sponsored content to spread your brand.
1. Analyze the needs of your target audience
Before you sign up for a publication, website, or influencer in your content campaign, understand your target audience.
A study found that 84% of people are fully open to high-quality, value-added advertising efforts from other brands. For example, Buzzfeed followers are already looking for good quality flyers that meet website standards.
2. Group it well so it doesn’t look like an ad
If your content gives the impression of an ad that promotes a product or service, people usually reject it. Content should be able to educate or entertain the reader in a way that adds value to the viewer’s experience.
3. Rely on consumer insights, not guesswork
Before you push for content promotion, make sure you don’t rely on guesswork to make the right decision about what type of content your audience is looking for because it often fails. On the other hand, analytics and research can help you as you discuss concept ideas.
It’s important to see what your audience is looking for, by searching for what people are most searching for in your content category. You can find creative ways to answer their questions and make their lives easier.
4. Merge a story
Stories have a greater impact on people, telling a good story through your sponsored content will ensure your content is shared, and people will look for more content from your brand. Chances are, they will remember you for that story that made their day better!
Now, let’s learn more about creating sponsored content on some popular social platforms:
Create promotional content on Facebook
Promotional posts or promotional content are paid for on Facebook. These posts will appear in your news feed just like any other content but will have higher visibility and higher range.
It’s relatively easy to create promotional content on Facebook, just access Ad Manager to post your promoted content. Facebook pushes itself to do this for you to sponsor your posts to improve their access and sharing.
You will need to develop a strategy to match your published campaign goals. If your goal is to promote participation or posting of a particular piece of content, Facebook-sponsored content is the way to do it. But make sure to identify the aspects of your target audience where you’ll be asked for details as you create your campaign.
Create advertising content on Instagram
Instagram is the second most popular social media platform after Facebook. So it is interesting to note that 75% of users take some action when they see sponsored content and 60% use the platform to explore new products. This in itself is a reason enough to consider creating Instagram advertising.
Brands will work well with famous influencers for a small campaign or single publication, but in return, they will charge a large amount. However, the new trend could be passed on to micro-influencers, with thousands of followers, rather than those with millions of followers.
Create promotional content on YouTube
Sponsored video on YouTube happens when a brand approaches a YouTube content creator, with a good subscriber base, to support their products by incorporating them into their videos.
If you’re a creator and want to incorporate paid product themes and approvals into your videos, you’ll need to tell YouTube by checking the box labeled “Video contains paid promotion” in the advanced settings. Creators must also delve deeper into legal obligations related to paid promotions disclosures.
