Is it everything that is available on the internet? Is information content? Is news content too? Is it video? Is that selfie you took on your last foreign trip, content too?
To me, content is an engaging piece that evokes response from people who consume it. Irreverent to its length or format. And there lies the importance of storytelling in creating a successful piece of content. I remember how my friend introduced me to My Houzz and I devoured an hour-long episode where Gordon Ramsay gifted one of his star chefs a renovated house using Houzz’s services. That’s great content. It hooked me immediately with the core concept of well-known celebrities gifting their friends/colleagues/relatives the house they believe the latter deserve. How Houzz made it hassle free and convenient is incidental. The brand is present all across, but the story is so powerful and humane that the brand never overshadows it, and hence it doesn’t seem like a branded propaganda. That’s what makes it enjoyable, watchable, sharable. I mean, come on, we all know people do not like advertising. The first thing we do when an ad appears while scrolling our phones, is skip. But if it’s something that tells me a story that I can relate to, I will keep coming back to it, even if it’s sponsored by a brand. Think Coke Studio. Even before the word content became a buzzword, Coca-Cola created this platform in Pakistan which literally transcended barriers and mesmerized people season after season. Think Lego Movie. What a heartwarming and powerful content that allowed the brand to relate itself to relevant life lessons for kids e.g. remaining true to one’s self, and encouraging imagination, creativity and innovation.
The two examples I cited above are successful branded contents. Then there is this wide territory of unbranded content. Online clothing start-up Wren tackled one of the most common marketing hurdles: creating a conversational piece on a low budget. They decided to create a short film called First Kiss, where 20 strangers got together to kiss one another for the first time.
The film cost only $1,500 accumulating 110 million YouTube views, with over 1.1 million shares across Buzzfeed. It saw a significant amount of media success too with coverage from The Guardian, the New York Times and CNN. The power of engaging people over content lies in telling compelling stories that are relevant to them, that stirs them emotionally and ingrains the brand values in their minds, in a relatable fashion.
Now what does a clothing brand has to do with the first kiss? Go, figure.