Imagine that you’re standing in a car lot with the goal of heading home in a new vehicle at the end of the day. Many factors play into this eventual decision, making choosing a new ride a difficult task. What’s your budget? Which vehicle will best fit your current needs? Do you really need those upgraded speakers to enhance your experience? When it comes to appearance, what are your likes and dislikes? Believe it or not, it’s helpful to ask yourself many of these same questions when trying to choose the most ideal digital medium to represent your brand.
Whether you’re planning an upcoming social media campaign, introducing a new product to customers, or sharing recent company news, the digital medium you use to communicate your information has the potential to make or break your success. So, what’ll it be?
Which Medium Is Best for My Brand?
Because brand communication—and communication in general—can take so many different forms, choosing the best medium for your content requires understanding the strengths of multiple mediums and deciding how to utilize the one (or multiple) that most closely aligns with your existing offer, product, or services.
Audio
If you’re like 80 percent of people involved in a survey from Podcast Insights, you’ve listened to at least one podcast in the last week. Audio marketing is currently experiencing unprecedented growth. This month alone, 29 million podcast episodes have been released! By choosing to utilize the audio medium and create or advertise through a podcast, audiobook, or other auditory content, you open your brand up to a whole new world of marketing potential. Not only is audio content fairly affordable to produce and market, but it is also easily consumed by an on-the-go audience in ways that visual content, such as traditional advertising, is not.
Audio content also provides a great way to increase your authority as an expert in your field through the hosting of interviews, forums, and informed discussions. Since listeners can access your content anywhere, instead of needing a desktop screen, you can also increase brand awareness and widen your consumer base.
Image and Video
Since the rise of social media giants YouTube and Instagram, photo and video content have overtaken much of traditional content marketing. By offering a whole new avenue of creativity and connectivity, images and videos provide a way for brands to transition their unique offerings from flat words into living, breathing, engaging content.
If a picture tells a thousand words, then we think a video is worth a million. With research showing that images and videos can increase user engagement by as much as 94 percent, this is an ideal medium for any brand with a large digital following or even the desire to increase an online presence.
Text
Instant, mobile technology has become a staple among the next generation of consumers, pushing social media and social content to the forefront of marketing. And what’s at the heart of all of those posts? Strong copy (often combined with images and video!). Considering the increasing importance of influencer promotions and customer reviews, a strong, reputable social media presence is a necessity for any brand wishing to capture the support of young consumers. Social content also provides brands with a real-time avenue to engage with their followers. Polls, chats, and this-or-that surveys require consumers to do very little, yet are also an easy way for brands to collect information and engage with their target audiences.
You don’t have to conquer social media to make text your medium of choice. One of the more “traditional” content mediums, email marketing has proven to still be a surefire investment for any brand. Pulling in an average ROI of $44 for every $1 spent, this tactic is ideal for brands that have collected enough information from their consumer base to create highly targeted or segmented email lists. And when used smartly, email marketing can be highly effective—allowing brands to cater each message to the specific needs of the reader.
Media vs. Medium
Be sure to take some time to examine how your chosen medium can work in conjunction with your existing social accounts and any other avenues through which your brand communicates. The digital medium that’s most ideal for your brand might not necessarily be best for your favorite social media platform. For example, if your brand relies heavily on video ads or communications, Twitter, which is best for short-form communications, is a poor choice of social media for your brand. Instagram, specifically designed for image and video content, will highlight the video medium much better.
As you work on cultivating content within your ideal medium, consider how it will translate to the social media platforms currently utilized by your brand. You might choose the best medium for your brand and create unmatchable content within that medium, but if this information is not communicated through the best platform, it won’t reach your target audience. Don’t waste your time or marketing budget: make sure your chosen medium and media platforms work seamlessly together to create the ideal marketing experience for every consumer.
Master Your Digital Medium with Snap
Still nailing down your brand voice? Need help creating killer copy for social or crafting the perfect email blast? Contact Snap today. Our team of experienced digital gurus would love to help your brand find its best fit.