Getting creative with the latest inbound marketing tools

Visual content is and always has been one of the most important portions of a successful inbound marketing strategy. However, not every marketing department has an expert in-house design team. Not to worry - we want to share a few inbound marketing tools and tips which can help designers, marketers and small business owners to build a coherent and attractive visual library.

1. Define your brand and stand out from the crowd

People like pretty pictures. It's not rocket science, in fact it's not even GCSE science. A significant 37% of marketers told Social Media Examiner that visual marketing is the most important form of content for their business, second only to blogging with 38%. All of this being said, it's common to see companies cobble together bland static imagery which, in a visually saturated culture, just doesn't stand out enough. 

It's our belief that visual content shouldn't be an afterthought. Put the work into creating a set of rules for your imagery and videos to emphasise your brand and highlight your product or service in a way that stands out from your competitors.

2. Ceros - make your content interactive

I've been using Ceros for around six months, and though there's a few things that would be better done using code, it presents an easy alternative for designers to quickly create clickable interactive content without having to handcode any Javascript or HTML5.

If I'm honest about Ceros, what it's been most useful for is transforming dull information or statistics into something that actually gets people to engage. Yesterday, I created an interactive timeline of a company in around three hours. If I'd have built that using code, it would have taken way more time, possibly the rest of my life.

3. Video - film production doesn't have to be complex

There's no excuse to not be using video in your inbound marketing campaigns. Cisco projects that videos will make up 80% of all global internet traffic by 2019. So if you're not producing them already, get stuck in. There's nothing more fun to some of us than cracking on with an after effects project, but for those less knowledgeable on video production there are some simple inbound marketing tools that can help, such as Animoto.

Focus on creating short snappy videos that showcase your product or service in a cool way. Try to keep a simple message that gets straight to the point of what you're offering and add a CTA at the end. Video is always going to be better if you use a professional videographer, but doing it yourself will still have a more positive impact than not doing it at all.

4. Is print dead?

Perhaps the most uttered phrase in the design community: "Print is dead"

Of course it isn't, but it's probably a bit more difficult to utilise in inbound marketing campaigns than it ever has been before. That said, it can be a great way to supplement your digital content. There are plenty of simple to use mail-order print companies online, so you don't need to have a great knowledge of the printing process.

Focus on creating something that's cool to look at and nice to handle. You want whoever receives your printed goods to feel guilty for throwing them in the bin. Make something good enough to be sat on someone's desk reminding them of what you're offering, every single day.

5. Use your brand's voice

Before you've thought about what imagery to use, you should be thinking about what it is you're actually trying to say about your brand. Is your product something fun and playful or something costly and technical?

The smartest thing to do with your visual content is to work with someone that can not only help you to create it, but can also find something that really works for you. At Six & Flow, we can do just that.