Whether you’re managing a business or you own one yourself, you know how important content marketing is. Retail brands all over the globe are trying to find and secure their place under the spotlight by using wisely crafted content marketing strategies. It involves a lot of creativity and thinking outside of the box, but if managed properly, it can be immensely beneficial for the success of a business.

Some retail brands have managed to excel in the mission to create unique content marketing strategies. By analysing their secret moves, we can learn a lot about being exceptional, brave, and different. If you’re curious to learn about some of the most successfully performed content marketing strategies by other retail brands, just keep reading.

Let’s break it down together.

1. IKEA

The Swedish furniture and home accessories brand Ikea is a great way to kick off this list. Not only are they a globally recognized brand, but they managed to surpass other furniture companies in terms of content marketing and brand recognition.

So, what makes Ikea’s content marketing strategy so special and successful?

There are several aspects we need to mention:

- personalization
Ikea’s website has an Inspiration section, where you can find helpful ideas for creating the home which fits you the best. It’s all about you and making you feel good.

They “believe in homes that are a perfect reflection of the people who live inside.” So it looks natural that you can find content like a bed inspired by the way you sleep or learn how to create space for your morning routines. 

-  Swedish cuisine If you're curious to live healthily and follow a Swedish diet, you can do it all in Ikea. They offer recipes, cooking ideas, and fresh ingredients you can buy.

-  People & Planet Finally, Ikea is raising awareness about the environment, sustainability, and renewable sources of energy.

They’re certainly walking the extra mile to stand out from the competition using their content marketing strategies. And, it’s definitely working for them.

2. John Deere

One of the world's most famous manufacturing companies John Deere created the ultimate content marketing strategy back in 1895.

They were way ahead of their time but are still using the same strategy today, with even more success.

We’re talking about their magazine „The Furrow“.

This magazine has been around for more than 100 years and it allows the readers to learn about various topics, such as:

-        agritourism

-        fertility

-        watering

-        latest technology

-        adventurous stories about road trips, farming, and heritage

Naturally, they manage to subtly mention their products, machinery, and technology and keep the readers of The Furrow interested and informed.

3. Patagonia

Patagonia is a brand inspiring passion and care for the environment and social responsibility for years. They're using their voice to advertise making smart choices and taking actual steps for saving the planet.

Patagonia’s content marketing strategy is so much more than just advertising their brand and making people want to buy their products. They actually care about their mission and that’s what makes them invincible.

Here’s how they make it happen:

- The Cleanest Line Blog Their blog is filled with stories about everything from individuals dedicating their lives to saving the ocean to books you should read during a summer road trip. It's diverse, entertaining, and valuable.

- Action Works If you’re ready to make a change, Patagonia can help you find a cause, event, petition, or volunteering opportunities near you.

They chose a direction and use their content marketing to promote both their outdoor clothing and gear and being environmentally aware.

4. Lowe’s

Lowe's Home Improvement is big on helping their customers and followers learn how to handle their own projects and do things with their own two hands.

Instead of hiring a professional, you can actually improve your house, garden, and overall lifestyle just by following Lowe’s how-to tutorials.

They’ve got two different channels you could use for inspiration, or help:

-        Blog “Lowe's How-Tos, Buying Guides and Project Calculators” is a section on Lowe’s website you can

visit any time you feel inspired to get your hands dirty and make an improvement in your home.

It comes with all kinds of ideas such as flooring installation, fence building, buying appliances wisely, etc.

-        YouTube Channel Lowe’s makes video tutorials which are extremely popular among their followers. Their YouTube channel currently has more than 727k followers!

They teach you things such as how to prevent flooding, repair drywall, and even organize your closet.

They choose how-to tutorials as the building block of their content marketing strategy and they’ve got an army of followers enjoying them every day.

5. Babylist

Babylist is designed to help future parents create a unique, all-encompassing baby registry for their little ones. However, their story goes way beyond this.

Babylist created a layered content marketing strategy, using several platforms to deliver one unique message:

-  We know how you feel, we know what you need. We’ve got you covered.

The secret of their success lies in the fact they know their target audience so well, and they curate their content aimed at a very specific group of people. You can achieve this, too, even without a dedicated content team.

They’re presenting their best content on the following platforms:

-        their website guide

-        their YouTube channel

-        their Instagram account

All of the platforms are designed to help future parents:

-        find answers to burning questions

-        make decisions about the way they raise their child

-        understand the difficulties of parenthood

-        find solutions to issues and problems

-        get ready to welcome their newborn

You name it, they’ve got it covered.

Their content is informative, useful, valuable, and life-saving for parents to be. And that’s what makes them so popular and successful.

Takeaway 

As you can see, a successful advertisement is more than just commercials and promotional materials. The 5 brands covered above are a great example of how being different, compassion, empathy, emotional connection, and understanding your audience's needs is the key to a successful content marketing strategy.

Think about your brand and what you want to achieve with it. Use the examples above to inspire you, and start working on a better, and more valuable content marketing strategy.