Learn More About Businesses with the Best Content Marketing in 2018

2018 was a fantastic year for those involved with content marketing. Below are five businesses with the best content marketing campaigns in 2018, and a look into what made them so successful.

1. Spotify – Spotify Wrapped 2018
   One thing that sets Spotify apart from its Apple Music competitor is their annual Wrapped campaign. Using a timely approach, Spotify enlists user data to sum up some of the most memorable moments from that year. Aside from curating playlists for each specific account, Spotify also rolls out a series of humorous billboards that highlight unexpected statistics of the past year. They also give users shareable content, making it easy for them to share their end-of-the-year statistics with their online community. Spotify sees annual success with this campaign due to its time sensitivity, personalized marketing, and increase of social media engagement.
2. Dominos – Paving for Pizza
   Anxious customers spurred the idea for this campaign. But what were they anxious about? Potholes ruining their pizza in transit. With this is mind, Dominos created an initiative that focused on the customer and began using small grants to help communities repair their roads. Dominos saw success with this campaign because they chose to focus on their authentic brand image rather than just delivering ROI. They demonstrated that they listen to the consumer and that they can be trusted as a socially conscious brand.
3. Tide – It’s a Tide Ad
   Many may say that the reason this campaign did so well was because it aired during the Super Bowl; however, that’s not entirely the case. When Tide was forming the idea for this advertisement they had to take in account much more than just those watching TV. Today brands need to ensure that people see them on multiple channels—especially social media. Tide nailed this technique on the head with their celebrity endorsements, repeating TV ads, online interactions, and self-awareness. It’s an example of how important social proof and brand recognition are when dealing with consumers.
4. Stabilo – Highlight the Remarkable
   Feeding off “behind every great man is a great woman” Stabilo’s 2018 campaign draws attention to the remarkable women who are often left in the shadows of their male counterparts. The campaign first gained attention with paper advertisements and then found a lot of traction on social media shortly after. This was all due to the social consciousness that the brand displayed along with the ad’s simple format. It’s common for customers to feel like businesses prey on their insecurities, so when Stabilo made the choice to empower others, it resonated positively with their audience. The company successfully sold consumers highlights in a clever, indirect manner by showing them that they share the same beliefs.
5. The Philadelphia Flyers – Gritty
   Realizing they were missing out on a huge marketing tool when the other Philadelphia mascots greeted the Eagles after their Super Bowl win, the Flyers got to work. Within the first month of his existence, Gritty reached over 70 million people on TV (16 million being locals), and online he garnered 5 billion impressions worth $151 million in earned media. Even though a lot of the online world thought Gritty was first considered “horrifying,” it played right into the fiercely defensive Philadelphia fanbase. The team’s marketing success can be summarized through three factors: meme culture, audience comprehension, and social media take over.

All the campaigns listed here were successful because consumers chose to seek out their content and expressed the fact that they wanted to consume it.