Brand journalism differs from typical expert content in that brand journalism is about providing transparency into the company and its mission as well as its people.
Brand journalism offers several benefits for small businesses, contributing to their growth and success. Here are some of the key advantages:
1. Building Brand Awareness
Brand journalism helps small businesses stand out in a crowded market by sharing relatable stories and compelling visuals, setting them apart from their competitors. This increased visibility can attract potential customers and generate conversations about the brand on social media and other media outlets.
Doing it with focus and purpose: Brand journalism focuses on creating a story about a company, with branding as a central component of the strategy. It seeks to educate, inform, and inspire, rather than drive sales.
Use a variety of content types: Brand journalism involves media-style content published by a company through the use of third-party interviews, external expert analysis, researched or reported news, and feature stories as well as internally-focused stories.
Establishing Trust and Credibility: By sharing high-quality content about industry issues and telling authentic stories, brand journalism can position a small business and its people as industry authorities, leading to increased trust and credibility. This, in turn, can positively affect the company’s bottom line by attracting potential customers and driving sales.
Strive for brand transparency: While typical expert content may focus on the brand, its products, or its people, brand journalism is more about providing transparency into the company and its brand. Its focus is on the industry and closely related topics of interest to the audience.
2. Attracting and Retaining Talent
Brand journalism can also be a powerful tool for recruiting, as it allows small businesses to tell better stories about real people within the organization, which can help attract top talent.
3. SEO Benefits
Brand journalism also offers search engine optimization (SEO) benefits, helping small businesses improve their online visibility and attract organic traffic.
Examples of Brand Journalism
Proctor & Gamble: They reward both purchases and brand engagement by donating to the causes they support, showcasing a blend of brand journalism and content marketing.
Internal Data Analysis: Companies like Zillow, TripAdvisor, and MagnifyMoney have used internal data to create brand journalism content, such as analyzing new-vehicle transaction prices, the impact of fall flavors, and the cost of pumpkin spice items.
Timely Topics and Verified Sources: Brand journalism often relies on precision and truth, similar to traditional journalism. It can cover topics like industry trends, consumer behavior, and other relevant subjects, using verified sources to build brand authority.
These examples illustrate the diverse forms that brand journalism can take, from traditional news-style reporting to data-driven analysis and storytelling that goes beyond direct sales and marketing.
To summarize, brand journalism is important for small businesses as it can help them differentiate themselves, connect with their audience on a deeper level, increase brand affinity, attract and retain customers, and even recruit top talent.