The world of marketing has undergone dramatic changes in recent times. The internet has changed how people seek entertainment, advice, products, and suggestions. Advertising itself has evolved to keep up with new media and audience behavior.

Two types of marketing dominate the conversation today: content and social media. This quick guide will break down the two concepts and their key differences.

Basic Definitions

There’s a lot of confusion and ambiguity surrounding modern forms of marketing. That includes the terminology. However, basic definitions of social media and content marketing are as follows.

Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing is, at its core, any usage of social media platforms to market a brand or product. Arenas are limited and well-defined. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, TikTok, and Snapchat, as of 2020. New platforms pop up with some frequency.

For social media marketing, individual platforms define the type of materials needed. On Twitter, brands often shed long-form messages in favor of snarky ripostes. On Facebook, relatable memes and engaging video content are key. Each platform plays by its own rules.

Effective social media marketing allows a brand to rise through the ranks of the algorithms. In essence, it reshapes the company’s image to suit a new medium while preserving its unique voice. It’s a fine line to walk, requiring expert staff with a finely-tuned ear for these platforms.

Content Marketing

This form of marketing is the strategic creation and deployment of content in order to engage niche target audiences. Its purpose is to provide high-quality material. The text itself can be directly or tangentially relevant to the target audience. Click Intelligence mentions the importance of creative and technical strategies to boost your SEO campaigns.

This is helpful in a few ways:

1. It helps drive up traffic to branded websites, often boosting search engine performance.
2. It attracts high-value customers with an ongoing interest in the company as part of a lifestyle.
3. It builds authority and credibility for brands.

Solid content marketing campaigns require a deep understanding of the audience. These professionals tend to break down the anticipated readership into key demographic archetypes. That makes it easier to optimize content production to target highly-specific niche customers.

Solid content marketing campaigns require a deep understanding of the audience. These professionals tend to break down the anticipated readership into fundamental demographic archetypes. That makes it easier to optimize content production to target highly-specific niche customers.

Understanding the Difference

At first glance, there are many similarities between content and social media marketing. Most content is published and distributed through social media, making for considerable overlap. However, they’re very different approaches.

Social media marketers study their platforms in great detail. They’re the masters of going viral, increasing customer engagement, and creating brand recognition. Their success is measured using metrics such as likes, shares, and followers.

Content marketing is about audiences and demographics, keywords, and authority. It’s all about creating value for potential customers while subtly nudging them towards a marketing funnel. Success is measured in page rankings, organic traffic, and reader engagement.

Final Thoughts

Understanding content and social media marketing is a step towards building a brand. That said, effective digital strategies use both of these techniques.

To do so, it’s always best to get the services of a professional internet marketing agency. Only a team of pros can combine techniques in a cohesive strategy.

Content, social media, and SEO are all vital tools for an online marketing team. Use them with care to get the best results.