How to Create Branded Content That Will Attract Eyeballs

Branded content is that which blurs the distinction between conventional advertising techniques, and the entertainment world. It is a way for advertisers to reach out to the public with content that they believe will provide a two-way benefit. Viewers enjoy the leisure/informational aspect of it, while advertisers are able to push their products and services.

With anything though, you need the right tools to be able to properly approach the situation. According to marketingcharts.com, sites with branded content outperform other websites in 41 out of 43 advertising metrics. With stats like those it is no wonder why more and more organizations are turning to this form of advertising in order to promote their brand. Now, onto the ‘how’.

1. Understand Your Audience – branded content is a fairly new and exciting technique, and the idea of it is great if you can get the right eyes on your content. Although there are many upsides to this medium, such as viewers actively seeking out and/or watching it, that in turn is a downside as well. Unlike with broadcast, viewers are not forced to watch, or at least pushed in the right direction. It is much more difficult to find audiences and get them to actively engage with your content. The Key tool in finding audiences is first knowing who you want to target. Make sure to do your homework and figure out what your target market looks like. Once you know, look for the best places to ‘meet and mingle’ online with that sort of people. Maybe it is through blogs and forums, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, or whatever other place you can locate and connect with your niche audience. Target, Understand, Engage.
2. Create Engaging Content – With the over-saturation of the internet, it is difficult to garner the attention required for a campaign to be relevant. Like with most great things though, great content is always at its core. It doesn’t matter how many bells and whistles you have, if you provide viewers with something interesting, exciting, heartwarming, or that which they have never seen before, you are more likely to hit a home run. Other useful angles for your content are the informational approach, where you provide the viewer with a ‘how to’ and then utilize your branded products at the core. Other prominent means of branding content is by finding content that is already engaging and has an audience, and then inserting your brand into the mix – like an updated form of product placement. Just be careful that you give full disclosure, as the online realm really dislikes ‘posers’.
3. Get to the Point – Lets be honest. Audiences have short attention spans. Unless it is something that online fans are begging for, more often then not it is the audience who is pulling the strings with advertisers praying for success. In order to be successful, it has been proven time and again, in order to keep attention, give viewers what they want, and fast. Don’t make them wait until after a long and drawn out intro which doesn’t provide them with entertainment or any other sort of stimulation.
4. Break into Modules – If you do have content which cannot be conveyed in the traditional 30 sec. – 2min viral video, then break it up into sections. You will be much more likely to attract initial views with a shorter video, and then once you have them hooked they are more likely to look for the second part themselves. If they don’t go onto the second part it is either because they simply aren’t interested, or you haven’t provided a clear enough ‘next step’. If you are posting your video on YouTube you can create custom annotations which direct audiences to the next video in the chain.
5. Don’t Give it up All at Once – Once you have an audience which has discovered your content and is engaged, ensure that you don’t let them go. Providing them with regular and continual content is key. If you do have a series of videos which you have broken up into modules, release one a week. Like with traditional media, it gives viewers something to look forward to, and keeps the buzz going about your brand.

In the end, the ultimate goal is to create a strong consumer base. In order to do that, not only are the above techniques necessary, but continual and persistent promotion is needed as well. You have to actively seek out your target audience and give the content a chance to speak for itself. Ideally, once you have spread your branded content around to all of the right places, the social realm will either chew it up and spit it out, or devour it and ask for more. All the best!