Episodic Content Marketing: What Is It and How Can It Help Your Brand?

At a point when all sorts of content are saturating the market, experts are talking about a new approach to publishing that can let your brand stand out. It’s called episodic storytelling, and while the biggest businesses deploy it through videos, there’s no reason why you can’t incorporate it into the content marketing services you currently employ.

What is episodic content?

Episodic content marketing focuses on creating posts centered on a unifying theme or topic. Each post takes off and builds on the previous one, much like episodes in a television series. Any type of content can be episodic—be it text, images, video, or audio—and any of these can be shaped so that, like serials, content can also come across as a story instead of an advertisement.

What advantages does it bring?

Producing episodic content is not just trendy, nor is its story-like format effective only in ways that other “soft-sell” approaches to marketing are. Episodic content can do the following:

• Establish a returning audience. Like any great TV episode, a good serial post can get people hooked to your content and keep them coming back for more.

• Grow a list of followers and/or subscribers. This is the most tangible result episodic content can deliver. People interested in the next article will follow your blog; in the next photo, follow your page; in the next kind of anything, your brand.

• Establish a connected audience. Good episodes can cultivate an active audience that responds and interacts with your content. A storytelling approach also allows you to create characters or personas that your clients identify with, strengthening your connection.

• Mark you as an original content creator. The originality of your content will not only win attention; it will win you credibility as a brand that invests in more than just the average product.

• Provide in-depth material to audiences. You also win points for credibility by delivering quality. A series of posts that delve into a topic provides more information to your audience than a single post that tries to hit all points in one go.

• Keep your well of content overflowing. Breaking up your content into parts also benefits you as a creator. By working on in-depth installments, you can stretch out your discussions and see your well of topics stay full.

How can I create it?

Is your strategy focused on blog posts? The simplest way to deploy episodic content would be to publish multi-part articles. You can up the ante by infusing these with storytelling elements. For example, instead of producing a straightforward series of how-to guides, you can present anecdotes featuring character stand-ins for your target audience, who problem-solve their way through your topic.

Are you more visually inclined? Maybe your infographics can feature a likeable and recognizable character based on your brand logo, such as a “mascot” that appears in every installment. Maybe you can produce cartoons or comic panels instead of the standard chart-like graphic. Even a simple series of Instagram posts can be episodic, if they’re themed and will tease followers into awaiting the next visual.

There are many ideas you can explore in tandem with a creative content marketing agency. Brainstorm with Bryt Communications today.