17 excellent examples of content marketing in australia

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17 excellent examples of CONTENT MARKETING in Australia By Trevor Young


Content marke+ng in Australia has been picking up pace for a couple of years now. Google tells us the search trend for the term 'content marke+ng' is on the up, while according to one research report, spending on content marke+ng in Australia is set to increase by 61 per cent, with 12 per cent of respondents saying they will be 'significantly increasing' their budget this year. Obviously this augurs well for the nascent content marke+ng 'industry' in Australia. In the spirit of highligh+ng the posi+ves locally, here are examples of 17 Australian brands doing content marke+ng well.

17 excellent examples of CONTENT MARKETING in Australia By Trevor Young


hFp://www.writerscentre.com.au/

The Australian Writers’ Centre (formerly the Sydney Writers’ Centre) continues to grow its community of supporters, fans and advocates, and as a consequence, business is thriving. The centre - under the steady hand of its founder, author, speaker and entrepreneur Valerie Khoo (@valeriekhoo) - is a classic case study in what TO DO when it comes to social media and content marketing. And the Australian Writers’ Centre does it all well. Let’s see: An information-rich, well-written blog (check) – a hard copy and digital magazine (check) – a podcast featuring interviews with authors (check) – an email newsletter (check) – YouTube videos, again featuring interviews with authors and publishers – plus active social networking accounts, events and meetups that bring its community together. A first class effort!

www.trinityp3.com

TrinityP3 is a growing international independent strategic marketing management consultancy that assists marketers, advertisers and procurement departments with agency search and selection, agency engagement and alignment. A well-maintained, information-rich blog sits at the heart of TrinityP3's content efforts – it’s been very successful too, growing its readership 300% year-on-year since 2011. However, the company also has a solid presence on SlideShare and YouTube, and is active across the likes of Twitter and LinkedIn. Cleverly, TrinityP3’s founder Darren Woolley has turned the blog’s top 50 posts from 2013 into a hard copy and digital book.


www.intrepidtravel.com

Eco-friendly adventure travel company Intrepid Travel uses content and social media to connect and inspire its customers. YouTube videos and an active blog form the core of the brand's content marketing efforts. The company’s blog is all about "real travel, real traveller tales” and is jam-packed with photos and stories, travel ideas, tips and advice. However, Intrepid has taken things a step further content-wise by entering into a partnership with The Perennial Plate – the chef and documentary-maker duo, Daniel Klein and Mirra Fine – to produce a series of videos under the ‘Real Food World Tour’ banner. Followings on Google+ (over 1.1 million), Facebook (175K) and Twitter (40K) are clear evidence this is a brand that knows how to build its community through connection and storytelling.


www.lornajane.com.au

Women's activewear brand Lorna Jane continues to go from strength to strength in the content marketing stakes, both here in Australia and overseas where the brand is actively expanding. Its standalone Move Nourish Believe website essentially acts as the brand's content hub - it features heaps of articles of interest and relevance to its target audience i.e. it doesn't just focus on Lorna Jane products but covers topics of interest for its audience, including healthy eating, skincare, motivation and lifestyle, plus profiles of Lorna Jane 'active living advocates’; plus forums, videos, healthy recipes and details regarding upcoming Lorna Jane events.


Blogging regularly and with purpose has been critical in not only building awareness of 'corporate storytelling' consultancy Anecdote, but also demonstrating its expertise and developing relationships with prospective clients. The Anecdote blog, now over nine years old, still acts as the 'engine room' of the firm’s overall marketing effort and helps its partners to develop relationships with professional executives (read: potential customers) from all around the world. A monthly e-newsletter ('Anecdotally'), speaking engagements and whitepapers - along with the blog - form the core of Anecdote’s content strategy, while Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook all contribute along the way.

www.anecdote.com/



The guiding light behind Melbourne SEO company StewArt Media – Jim Stewart – was ‘doing’ content marketing long before it was fashionable i.e. he started video blogging in 2006 (but was active in online video as far back as 1999). Jim makes the list because of his sheer commitment to the cause. Anyone who produces 400+ (weekly) videos aimed at educating the public on SEO topics such as Google authorship, webmaster tools, backlinks and keywords – giving away his ‘secrets’, his stock-in-trade expertise and knowledge that he charges good money for – should be applauded. His videos are raw and genuine, effectively bringing Jim’s true personality to the fore. As a result of his video blogging – plus his regular activity on social networks such as Twitter (@jimboot) – has helped Jim build a reputation as an authority on SEO and search engine marketing nationally and beyond.

hFp://stewartmedia.biz/

www.myob.com.au

Australian accounting software company MYOB continues to grow its 'must-read' multi-author blog aimed fairly and squarely at the company's core target market - Australian small businesses. Called The Pulse, the blog provides "news, views and ideas for your business" written by in-house staffers plus a solid roll-call of subject matter experts. The company's decision to blog across a multitude of topics that are of interest and relevance to its audience, not just the obvious subjects such as accounting, tax and finance, is a key reason for the blog’s continued success with its target audience. (DISCLOSURE: I'm a regular contributor to the MYOB blog).



kikki.K, the Swedish-inspired retail chain that's home to all things stationery and home/office organisation, was established in 2001 by creative entrepreneur, Kristina Karlsson. Today, the brand has over 70 boutique stores across Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, plus an online boutique that services the rest of the world. A stylish 'Inspiration' blog that reflects perfectly the style and substance of the kikki.K brand is the jewel in the brand's content crown; it's actively maintained and well structured in terms of specific categories (e.g. An Organised Life, Food Inspiration & Recipes, Styling & DIY Projects plus quick Q&A conversations with artistic individuals), while the Happiness Collaborative Project is a nice touch and comes from the heart of the brand's founder.

http://www.kikki-k.com/


Open Wealth Creation’s team of property specialists guide people step-by-step to build successful investment portfolios in the Australian market. Transparency via the relentless provision of relevant information - content that educates and empowers - has been the cornerstone of the company's content marketing strategy. One of the reasons Open Wealth Creation's content efforts are having such a positive impact on the business is because the concept has been wholly embraced by founder and CEO, Cam McLellan. Cam has written and self-published a book (from which he has also produced a free PDF mini-ebook), writes with the help of his team a regular blog (which includes articles and information-based videos), plus provides visitors to the Open Wealth Creation website with free access to a 13-part video education series (email required for the latter).

http://openwealthcreation.com.au/

(DISCLOSURE: I worked with Cam and the team to help them develop and implement their content marketing strategy).

INTERVIEW/CASE STUDY: How content marketing helped boost this property entrepreneur’s sales by 400%


Problogger is both a business and an individual – a perfect blend of personal brand meets business brand. But let’s focus on the personal brand. Melbourne-based Darren Rowse (right) is Problogger – an internationally recognised professional blogger whose two blogs – Problogger and Digital Photography School (DPS) – attract over five million unique visitors per month, making his brand more popular than most major traditional media mastheads in this country. Stop and think about that for a moment – it’s a wonderful achievement! But what Rowse understands better than most is having people consume his content is one thing, but turning them into a community of loyal fans and followers of his blogs, is another. This is where channels such as Twitter (202,000 followers – 105,000 for DPS), Facebook (60,000 likes – 285,000 for DPS) and conference events have worked in Problogger’s favour. A weekly newsletter and a growing series of ebooks (sold on the Problogger website as well as via a series of affiliate partners globally) round out the Rowse’s growing content-based mini-empire.

hFp://www.problogger.net/


Telstra has been one of the leading lights when it comes to adopting social media for the enterprise in Australia. In terms of social media alone, Telstra has 55,000 followers on Twitter, 483,000 likes on Facebook (Telstra24x7 brand page), while 72,000+ people have them in their circles on Google+. Importantly, Telstra has maintained a corporate blog for many years, with posts written by a sweep of experts from within the organisation. Called Telstra Exchange, the blog covers technology, community issues and initiatives, as well as Telstra news. The company has also produced case studies, audio podcasts, whitepapers, NEXT (newsletter for the enterprise) and reports (e.g. Towards a Clever Australia 2013). Meanwhile, the brand's free magazine for small business - Smarter Business Ideas (sent regularly to 300,000 SMEs) - is a top notch long term content marketing initiative.

http://telstra.com.au/


http://www.netregistry.com.au/

Netregistry provides online services such as web hosting, domain name registration and web design. At the core of Netregistry's content efforts is its well-maintained blog, which covers all things online marketing in a simple and sharp manner. But wait, there's more (resources). The company's stockpile of online videos is solid; I particularly like the way they've segmented them into relevant categories, along with transcripts. Ditto with an e-book series, all nicely categorised for easy access. Then there is a beginner's guide, archived webinars, and the company's long-running joint-venture business magazine Nett (plus its accompanying information-rich website).


https://www.commbank.com.au/

Commonwealth Bank seems to have made a genuine commitment to content marketing, versus merely dipping its ‘big corporate toe’ in the water like so many other blue-chip brands in Australia. The bank's blog has multiple authors and covers various categories, including ‘Your Money’, ‘Your Business’, ‘Your Bank’. However, the jewel of Commonwealth Bank's content marketing crown is its Women in Focus initiative - "a community of women who are doing extraordinary things” Women in Focus is brilliant - well thought out and executed - and is a genuine, active community, complete with forum ('Community Noticeboard'), events listing, publications and blogs, videos, Comm Bank Insights and social media channels. The brand’s CommBank Entrepreneurs Hub, which contains a 'What Kind of Entrepreneur Are You?' video series, also shows promise.

(https://www.womeninfocus.com.au/ )


INTERVIEW/CASE STUDY: How Firebrand Talent used blogging and social media to grow its brand from scratch

hFp://firebrandtalent.com/

I’ve written about the recruitment specialist Firebrand Talent a number of times … and with good reason! Firebrand is an wonderful example of what can be achieved if you approach your social media and content marketing with purpose, enthusiasm and strategic intent. Firebrand is still a relatively new company (it was launched late in 2010) but has managed to build a significantly strong profile within the digital, marketing and communications space as a result of its social media and content marketing efforts. Firebrand’s well-produced multi-author blog (‘Ideas Ignition’) is seriously jam-packed with top-notch articles designed to empower the brand’s core audience groups – employers and job-seekers. Carolyn Hyams from Firebrand describes the blog as “like Central Station; that’s where all our content comes out of, all our thought leadership”. (DISCLOSURE: I'm a regular contributor to the Firebrand blog).


Sydney-based* software company Atlassian is cut from a different cloth than many (most?) Australian companies. This, from the company’s about page: “Come on in and say g'day to the geeks, beer drinkers, nerf herders, fraggers, and Wolverine-wannabes that make up Atlassian.” With a culture of learning and sharing, it’s no wonder that Atlassian is a blogging enthusiast as well as a community builder via social channels Twitter, Facebook, Google+), user events, forums, webinars and hackathons. The company also produces videos. A lot of them! Some are serious, some are fun and irreverent (designed to appeal to the dev community). All in all, Atlassian is about using content to bring its brand (and corporate culture) to life! * Atlassian also has offices in San Francisco and Amsterdam

hFps://www.atlassian.com/


Pod Legal is a thriving Australian boutique law firm run by Karan and Jamie White that specialises in intellectual property , technology and social media law. Pod Legal makes the list not just because of the amount of valuable free content it publishes on the web (plus the high levels of social media activity undertaken by the two directors) but because they’re doing it within the confines of what is a conservative and risk-averse industry that dislikes giving away its IP. Pod Legal provides a raft of helpful articles, PDF ebooks, detailed answers to FAQs – even cartoons (‘Podtoons’) that simplify a number of legal dilemmas. Its free annual event celebrating World IP Day caps off a stellar content marketing effort!

hFp://www.podlegal.com.au/


Bluewire Media is run by two young Australian entrepreneurs, Adam Franklin and Toby Jenkins. The company has been relentless in providing utility-based content that educates and empowers marketers and small businesses. EXAMPLES: A Web Strategy Blog that regularly publishes informative posts around getting the most from your internet marketing efforts; a video interview series with ‘heavy hitters’ from the world of social media and content marketing; more free tools, ebooks and planning templates you can ‘poke a stick at’ - plus the company runs its own high quality social media marketing events (DISCLOSURE: I presented at the 2013 Bluewire Media social media conference). All in all, a great case study in content publishing belief and perseverance!

hFp://www.bluewiremedia.com.au/


17 excellent examples of

CONTENT MARKETING

in Australia

By Trevor Young | @trevoryoung on Twitter

17 excellent examples of content marketing in australia

Marketing