What is content? Content is anything and everything. Images, writing, music, videos. Anything you create for your business is content. Physical items like brochures you hand out to customers are content, but in the context of this article, I am going to talk about different types of digital content that are used to drive traffic to your website, build trust and/or create engagement.
What is Content? – Types of Digital Content
There are many forms of content, and they can be classified into three main categories of written, visual and audible content.
Written
If we discuss content marketing, blog posts may come to mind when we ask, “what is content?”. Blogging has been a mainstay of digital marketing for well over a decade now. Blog articles, whether short or long, are the most popular form of content for websites. They aid SEO, build trust with potential customers, and improve your brand image when done well. Blog articles aren’t the only pieces of content however and other similar pieces of content include:
- Whitepapers
- Case studies
- E-books.
Web page copy and product descriptions are also part of a website’s written content strategy. As they can be used to engage, persuade or inform, web pages are just as important as a consistent blogging campaign. Anytime you write text digitally for your business, that’s content so it should always reflect your brand. I provide all these types of written content as part of my freelance services.
Visual
Visual pieces of content can be posted on your website, social media, email marketing campaigns, adverts or any other digital medium. Some examples include:
- Photos that are included on blog posts, on web pages or used on social media.
- Graphics that are produced for your website and social which can be used to explain succinct concepts. The graphics in this article are a great example.
- Infographics, which are longer more extended graphics to explore in-depth information or stats.
- Videos are a great example of engaging visual content. According to a Hubspot State of Video Report, 72% of customers would rather learn about a product or service by way of video,
Audible
One of the lesser utilised pieces of content is audible content, but it is on the rise. The main form of audible content is podcasts. Podcast listenership in the UK has increased year-on-year, reaching an estimated 15.6 million podcast listeners in 2020. Podcasts can be utilised by both B2C and B2B. It’s a great way to build a community of dedicated customers and engaged fans. You could also consider utilising audiobooks as part of your content strategy. Some people like to listen to learn, so an audio course could be an excellent way to connect with these leads. It will help build trust in your expertise. Although we’ve categorised videos as part of visual content, the majority of videos have sound so it’s essential to consider the audible elements of this content too.
Other Content Types
When people talk about types of content they think of one-off pieces of information but content can also encompass the whole user experience on a website. I’ve therefore discussed some additional forms of lesser-known content; microcontent and accessibility provisions.
Microcontent
The segment of microcontent includes the call to actions throughout a website such as:
- Within the text
- On a button
- The navigation
- Search bars
- Checkouts
- And the list goes on…
This could also be about smaller visual and graphical elements. When an object on a page changes shape or colour, this is an example of visual microcontent. All these small little interactions can build your brand. They present you in a way that is professional but also displays your personality.
Accessibility
Accessible content includes items not usually seen or heard by the general populous. This is information that is created to aid those who may have accessibility issues. I have plans for a more in-depth article but accessible content could include;
- Adding alt tags in images that help visually impaired people know what an image on a page is showing.
- Closed captions on videos can help hearing-impaired people gain more from the content.
- Writing content that is easy to understand and measure it against aids such as Flesch Kincaid Reading Ease can help communicate to those with learning difficulties.
No matter what you create, it’s good to consider how it can be reached by the widest audience.
What types of content should my business use?
Ideally, you should employ a large variety of content for different audience types. Some people prefer to read, some to watch and some to listen. By providing more options in your content strategy you will reach a larger audience. Plus, it will also develop trust with more potential customers. A great content marketing campaign is about producing consistent, frequent content that is right for your audience. Whether you’re producing content for your website or other marketing mediums, quality should be at the heart.
I hope I’ve answered your questions on what is content. If you’d like any help with your content strategy, I am here to help. Get in contact to discuss how to grow your business and we can build a content campaign together.
