Content entrepreneurs all the time have rather a lot on their plates. But prior to now two years alone, you’ve possible taken on additional obligations, tailored your advertising and marketing methods, and developed your viewers understanding – all whereas going through intimidating challenges.
These aren’t any small feats. So, this week whereas the U.S. provides official thanks, within the spirit of gratitude, we’ve gathered just a few standout content material advertising and marketing examples that talk to the theme. Many of these appetizing efforts had been honored as winners and high finalists at this yr’s Content Marketing Awards. But award or no, they’re all price savoring.
Spending time with pals and family members
Thanksgiving is when many individuals collect with whom they care about and switch to in occasions of want. It’s a reminder of how significant human connections are, whether or not across the dinner desk, in entrance of the TV, or by way of your favourite digital gadgets.
Love connection
Some may bear in mind AT&T’s tagline, “Reach out and touch someone,” in reference to person-to-person telephone calls. Though the conduits for these conversations have expanded, the model stays devoted to maintaining the strains of communication open and obtainable.
@ATT doesn’t use its Reach out and touch someone tagline, but it still promotes connection. Its Love Connections campaign does just that, says @joderama via @CMIContent. Click To Tweet
In its Love Connections marketing campaign, private communication isn’t only a vacation obligation – it’s an important necessity. The uncooked documentary video sequence highlights the life experiences of members of the LGBTQ+ group who rely closely on their trusted connections to bolster their sense of belonging.
For instance, within the inaugural video (under), Alok – a gender nonconforming individual – describes the harassment and antagonistic remarks about their flamboyant look. Despite experiencing that negativity, they don’t hesitate to reside on their very own phrases and encourage others to do the identical.
The Love Connection sparked significant conversations among the many LGBTQ+ group, their allies, and even their detractors. The model furthered its dedication by supporting The Trevor Project – a company geared toward suicide prevention and disaster intervention for LGBTQ youth. You’ll discover extra particulars on this marketing campaign in 5 Lessons From the Content Marketing Awards Project of the Year Finalists.
Reaching customers’ hearts by way of their stomachs
Some customers might have packed away their sourdough starters in favor of new dinner reservations, however there’s no substitute for a home-cooked meal shared with family and friends. To evoke related emotions of consolation and connection, entrepreneurs fill their plates and content material platforms with tempting, food-focused fare.
McCain cookbook creator
Many households bond by passing down recipes by way of the generations. McCain Foods turned that custom right into a branded kitchen memento with McCain Family Cookbook Brought to You by Food24.
With the assistance of its content material advertising and marketing company New Media and South African foodie website Food24, McCain developed a first-of-its-kind Cookbook Creator device. As defined on this video, it lets customers add six favourite household recipes, together with private notes and photographs.
Top recipes from Food24 and McCain rounded out every assortment. Each customized guide was printed and delivered to the buyer who created it.
The effort strengthened McCain’s place as a meal prep accomplice whereas making a memorable – and lasting – affiliation between the model and home-cooked household meals.
For extra particulars on this marketing campaign, learn Where There’s a Goal, There’s a Way: 4 Strategy-Led Content Programs.
Butterball Talk-Line calendars
Butterball is a model virtually synonymous with Thanksgiving’s large chicken.
Its annual Turkey Talk-Line opened on Nov. 1 to reply questions and assist stop meal prep meltdowns. But this yr, the model additionally took the speak offline with a free calendar full of culinary experience and further emotional help.
Known for its turkey hotline, @Butterball sold a 2022 Comfort Calendar filled with culinary expertise and extra emotional support. It sold out almost immediately, says @joderama via @CMIContent. Click To Tweet
The 2022 Comfort Calendar offered out method earlier than Thanksgiving grocery procuring even began. But Butterball doesn’t go away clients holding the (giblets) bag: It’s stuffing its Instagram page with sufficient tasty tricks to carry you thru Christmas.
Taking the turkey present on the street
Consumers eagerly return to the skyways and byways for post-pandemic vacation reunions. Yet, journey suppliers nonetheless reel from nearly three years of turbulence that shook their companies to the core. Fortunately, their business companions are serving to them pull out of the tailspin with focused content material instruments and inspiration.
The Compass accelerates journey enterprise restoration
Leisure journey brokers struggled as vacationers resumed their travels. They needed to sustain with frequent regulatory modifications, meet the surge in buyer demand, and develop (or reopen) their companies.
Small boutique businesses have been notably exhausting hit. But they will discover much-needed help by way of The Compass, an editorial media model launched by VAX VacationAccess to unite and help its viewers within the skilled journey group.
The Compass Magazine and website are full of well timed business schooling on matters like social media advertising and marketing, agent growth, and scorching journey locations (as proven within the picture above.)
In addition, private tales and views from their fellow brokers assist reignite the readers’ ardour for touring and encourage them to make their enterprise a hit.
Fáilte Ireland sparks progress with customizable content material property
The U.S. wasn’t alone in pandemic-impacted journey companies. Many companies in Ireland’s tourism business struggled to remain afloat, misplaced employees, and/or had minimal advertising and marketing expertise and little time for coaching.
Those compounding issues spurred Ireland’s nationwide tourism physique, Fáilte Ireland, to launch a first-of-its-kind interactive toolkit. Keep Discovering gives the nation’s small and medium-sized companies with quick, easy-to-access content material, customization providers, and different sensible sources – all free.
This picture of the toolkit’s cowl describes some of the Keep Discovering choices – downloadable property, social media calendar and electronic mail templates, and ready-to-go marketing campaign photos and movies.
With over 7,300 downloads of its branded property and greater than 5,000 visits to the toolkit web page, Ireland’s journey brokers appreciated the assistance. According to Transmission (the company on the marketing campaign), Keep Discovering helped regional tourism companies to “rally in huge numbers.”
To be taught extra about this marketing campaign, learn Want To Generate More Demand? Follow These 4 Content Tips.
Get your recreation on
Football is a well-liked pastime on U.S. Thanksgiving. Whether customers plan to attain some touchdowns of their yard or play armchair quarterback with a drink of their arms, an amazing content material play will help push the thrill into extra time.
Captain Morgan leads a cheer for the followers
Football followers are recognized for going to nice lengths to point out help for his or her favourite groups. For its sponsorship of the National Football League’s Fan of the Year contest, Diageo’s rum model Captain Morgan captured that pleasure in a video-centric marketing campaign.
Captain Morgan introduced on NFL legend Victor Cruz to host its We Bring on the Spice docuseries. Victor visited the highest seven Fan-of-the-Year finalists and dove into their tales of devotion and the way they share that keenness with others of their fan communities.
The ensuing movies embrace the story of an LA-based New York Giants fan who travels 3,000 miles to attend video games (proven within the video under) in addition to an excellent fan who created a supporters’ group that’s now over 10,000 members sturdy.
By giving these NFL tremendous followers a video-centric platform to share their workforce love, Captain Morgan spiced up the soccer season – and left its signature taste on the sphere for its viewers to take pleasure in.
Learn extra about this effort, and different standout video content material campaigns, in 4 Ways To Win With Video – The “It” Content Format for 2023.
Get impressed to offer again
This yr, Patagonia’s founder put his company shares into a trust that will direct future profits to fight the climate crisis. Your model doesn’t have to take “giving back” to that excessive, however you should use your content material platform for philanthropy and public service.
Anheuser-Busch invests in stopping alcohol abuse
Anheuser-Busch markets some of the world’s most iconic beer manufacturers, together with Budweiser, Corona, and Michelob.
But as Ahava Leibtag writes, it additionally donates cash and creates content material to teach customers in regards to the risks of abusing and misusing its merchandise, similar to drunk driving, underage ingesting, and binge ingesting.
That content material consists of Global Smart Drinking Goals, which Ahava describes as a set of applications and initiatives to cut back dangerous alcohol use by focusing on shifting social norms, shopper behaviors, and their group’s enterprise practices.
The picture under exhibits the age gate to entry its website, reinforcing the model’s efforts to maintain alcohol-related content material out of the arms of guests youthful than the authorized ingesting age.
Anheuser-Bush additionally shares content material on Instagram utilizing #DecidetoRide. In partnership with Uber and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the efforts encourage customers to name a ride-share service in the event that they’ve been ingesting alcohol throughout their vacation celebrations.
Pepsi implements actions that assist advance racial equality
Many manufacturers revealed anti-racism content material following the homicide of George Floyd in 2020. But Pepsi bolstered its public statements with a long-term dedication to the trigger.
That yr, the beverage model launched its racial equality journey initiative with a five-year plan and pledged a $400 million dedication to extend Black illustration at PepsiCo, help Black companies, and empower Black communities.
Today, guests to the PepsiCo site can discover ongoing progress experiences, particulars on the newest program components, and outcomes of the initiative thus far.
As Ahava writes, Pepsi bolstered its dedication to diversifying its workforce by recruiting potential job candidates from traditionally Black faculties and universities (HBCUs).
The model promotes this recruiting partnership by way of content material like this HBCU Halftime Game video, which acknowledges HBCU college students’ contributions on and off the sphere.
To be taught extra about these two campaigns – and different examples of manufacturers that give again, learn Ahava’s article, How To Raise Your Brand’s Voice on Issues That Matter.
Better but, why not put your group’s variety, fairness, and inclusion (DEI) intentions in play – actually?
Line 25 makes a recreation
Line 25 Consulting is a follow devoted to serving to organizations broaden their DEI viewpoint by way of guided coaching, personalized workshops, and different service choices. But recognizing a possibility to make the teachings extra partaking and actionable for advertising and marketing groups, company founder Michelle Ngome created the Be Inclusive card game.
Each card within the DEI deck incorporates a immediate like, ‘How do we practice DEI beyond social media’ or ‘How can we accommodate neurodiversity in the workplace’?
(*9*)
By facilitating productive conversations on these essential points, the sport prepares groups to take the subsequent logical step – discovering significant options to handle them.
Fill your plate, however don’t neglect to gasoline your intentions
From the CMI workforce to yours, we hope you discover time to take a break this vacation season to be reenergized and able to create superb content material that allows your companies to do and be higher in your clients tomorrow.
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Cover picture by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute