O content marketing (Digital Content Strategy) is the process of creating valuable and relevant content to attract, win over and engage audiences. Potential customers today are inundated with more marketing messages than ever before. This creates an environment of short attention spans, challenging marketers with the task of producing relevant content that doesn't get lost in the noise.
A well-crafted content marketing strategy puts the brand in the position of an innovative leader, boosting preference as it informs and educates current customers and potential buyers. Providing useful and dynamic content can form a strong bond between the brand and its audience, which continues to grow and generate results over time.
Digital content marketing is not just synonymous with more traditional blog posts - and Airbnb is proof of that.
The best example of branded content are neighborhood guides, which provide value to customers who want to stay in a particular location.
Using these guides, users can find landmarks, experiences, restaurants and other favorite places in a specific neighborhood. Airbnb also makes great use of user-generated content, such as reviews, recommendations and insider tips that present an authentic picture of a given area.
Airbnb's goal is, of course, for customers to book a vacation and stay in one of its properties. So, through these neighborhood guides, users are also led to highly rated Airbnbs where they can stay within that location. It's the perfect example of promotional content that is also extremely useful.
In addition to the content they produce themselves, Airbnb provides users with the information and resources they need to create quality content for property listings, which make up a large percentage of the website.
When a host lists their space on Airbnb the brand is there every step of the way, with useful tips on how to write a description of your home, prices of similar listings nearby, ideas about the type of hospitality guests are looking for, among other relevant factors.