A long time ago I entered a kindergarten competition and won! In my years in marketing, I’ve found that gardening and marketing have a lot in common – especially when it comes to content seeds.
Every summer I start a vegetable garden. I buy seeds, plant them, tend them and help them grow with the right weather conditions. Content seeds are very similar. Instead of hoping to expand a valuable zucchini, “Plant”-Hone to increase brand awareness and leads.
To better understand how content seeds work, I spoke Jonathan GoldbergFounder and CEO of Kimberfire. I’m sharing what I learned while talking about content seeds and how you can use it to market your brand.
Table of contents
What is content seeding?
Content seeding is a strategy in which content creators plant a brand’s content on different platforms to reach their target audience and attract leads. This includes partnering with an influencer to promote a product on social media.
Content seeding allows brands to highlight their content in places where audiences will see and engage with it.
Here’s what Goldberg had to say: “Content seeding is the strategic distribution of valuable content across different platforms and networks to organically reach and engage your audience.”
Goldberg notes that the process involves planting content in places where he can expand visibility, such as through blogs, social media or partnerships. This leads to increased brand awareness and trust.
If you’re an avid podcast listener like me, you’ve probably heard an ad about Quince, an online fashion retail brand. Typically, podcast hosts read the Quince ads and give glowing reviews about the brand. I won’t lie. These reviews have convinced me to check Quince’s website more than a few times. This is content network.
One reason for content seeding (sometimes called product seeding) is to be so successful that the content shared by influencers or partners is relevant to the target audience. And brands know this because they have conducted market research, which gives them guidance on where to seed content.
What is influencer seeding?
Influencers are a top choice for seeding content because they typically have large audiences. These audiences trust influencers more than their friends.
Goldberg also explained to me influencers who looked me up. He said: “It is the process of sending products or services to influencers in your target audience to encourage authentic reviews, content creation and word of mouth.”
According to Goldberg, successful influencer viewing includes advocates who align with your brand values and audience to reinforce your message in a relatable way.
As with content seeding, using influencers who align with your target audience’s interests will yield the best results because their audience trusts them. For example, you can use:
- Industry leaders who are trusted experts in their niche.
- Micro-influencers who have built a small but tight-knit community of loyal followers.
Working with influencers can be an advantage when segmenting or narrowing your audience.
Social media platforms are flooded with marketing campaigns and advertisements. Make your product or service stand out by leveraging the networks of smaller influencers and using word-of-mouth cred.
Content seeds versus giving
Before we get too far into it, it’s helpful to discuss the differences between content seeding and giving. I like to think of gift-giving as a strategy under the umbrella of content law.
Giving is a great marketing tactic to elicit genuine comments about your brand. Typically, your brand identifies an influencer in your niche and you send them your product or service for free. They would leave a note saying “If you like our product, consider talking about us through your channels.”
By giving, you leave the ball in the influencer’s court. Since your product or service is a gift, they don’t technically have to use it. But it’s great if they do because it helps with your reach.
Layering works best when you target multiple influencers in your niche. This gives you a better chance of spreading the word about your brand. However, influencers are not the only way to facilitate product seeding. You can also contact an agency that specializes in seed or think tank partnerships.
Where contentseed is commonly used
While blogging and editorial outlets previously served as the main avenues for content purges, social media platforms have become the dominant method of choice. Content seeding works on platforms like:
- Tiktok.
- Twitter.
- YouTube.
- Facebook.
- Instagram.
- LinkedIn.
- Podcasts.
- Pinterest.
But all these platforms are useless if you don’t have a plan to use them. Next, we’ll look at tips for creating an effective influencer seeding campaign.
Creating an influencer seeding strategy
Goldberg has used content seeding to raise awareness for his brand Kimberfire. So I asked him for tips on creating a product seeding strategy. Here’s what Goldberg told me.
1. Set your end goal.
Before you start planning your seeding strategy, think about your end goal. For example:
- What do you want to achieve?
- Do you want to build brand awareness or increase sales?
- Are you trying to grow your following?
Once you have set your goals, you can assess which platform will be most effective at achieving them.
2. Research ideal influencers.
By now you should have clear personas to identify your target audience. Now it’s time to identify your ideal influencers. When I asked Goldberg about this, he reiterated that working with micro and nano influencers whose audiences align with your brand values is best.
With this information in hand, research the types of people they would follow and their interests. Look at trending hashtags or topics about your brand and the influencers who follow them.
3. Send relevant content, services and products.
You should ensure that what you send to an influencer to promote is relevant to their brand and audience.
For example, if you sell artisanal chocolates, you may want to reach out to influencers who are dedicated to chocolate candy and dessert content, rather than just sending products to foodies in general. This is where the niche pays off.
4. Create a clear value proposition.
Goldberg told me that when working with influencers and partnerships, you need to be clear about the value of your brand. He said: “shows how your product improves their lives while providing creative freedom for authentic storytelling.”
A clear value can convince influencers to try your product or service and talk positively about it on their channels.
5. Instructions, no restrictions.
One of Goldberg’s most interesting tips is to give your influencers guidance, not limitations. He said: “Share brand guidelines but let influencers express your product’s value in their unique voice.”
An influencer’s audience will immediately know if they are sincere in their product recommendation. This gives them the freedom to tell their story (and yours!), which is much more authentic.
6. Engage and comment.
When an influencer posts something about your brand, engage with it. This may include possible posting, commenting or sharing. Even if the feedback is negative, you can thank them for their honest review and learn how to improve.
7. Measure the result.
Examine the reach of influencer posts, traffic statistics and engagement (shares, comments, brand expectations). Goldberg suggested using your platform’s analytics to measure your performance. This allows you to adjust your strategy as needed.
For eCommerce, track any promo codes or affiliate links used during the campaign. These metrics will help you determine what worked and what didn’t.
Examples of content seeds
If you’re thinking about ways to dive into content seeding, which platforms to use, and what content to share, don’t worry – I have content seed examples for you. Let’s look at a few.
1. Neva Larue x Eatokra
Neva LarueAn Instagram influencer has become a well-connected micro-influencer in the foodie niche. On her Instagram she collaborates with Eatokra.
This app helps people find black-owned restaurants. In her post, Larue shows pictures of delicious food and tags the restaurants (along with the app) so people can support her too. With so much information, the post is really helpful and deserves trust.
What I like: Because her audience trusts her opinion, Larue’s Billsement spreads awareness about the app and Black-owned restaurants.
2. Charli d’Amelio x Geske Beauty Tech
Charli d’Amelio partner with Geske to promote their beauty products. This partnership aligns with D’Amelio’s followers – young people who are looking for lifestyle advice – and Geske’s audience – young people who want new beauty products.
D’Amelio also gained new engagement from the partnership and built her credibility as an influencer. I think this is a great example of how content seeding can work both ways to build brand awareness.
Pro tip: You don’t have to work with the biggest influencers. They just have to share the same audience.
3. Dolly Chawla x Daniel Wellington
Beauty and lifestyle influencer Dolly Chawla partner with Daniel Wellingtona fashion brand to promote their watches. For this campaign, Daniel Wellington asked his many influencers to use the same hashtag in their posts.
Collaborating with multiple influencers in different niches and using the same hashtag was a great strategy to increase awareness and interest in the luxury watch brand. The brand can now be in front of multiple audiences.
Pro tip: A diverse group of influencers can help you reach multiple communities that may be interested in your products.
4. Becky Hillyard X Saks Fifth Avenue
Bloggers Becky Hillyard Collaboration with Saks Fifth Avenue To show your followers the inspiration from the brand. Hillyard has over a million followers on Instagram, making her channel a great marketing resource for Saks. Hillyard used her DMs to share direct connections with her followers, which engaged her audience and drove traffic to Saks.
I appreciate bloggers who take their partnerships from social media to their websites. Becky also partnered with Saks to create brand awareness on her blog, which helped attract a larger audience to the brand.
What I like: I love the direct interaction between Hillyard and their audience. This is a great way to get products in front of consumers, all from one trusted guide.
5. Anna Shields x Masterclass
Parenting influencer Anna Shields promoted the learning platform Masterclass to their audience. The key here? The class that supports them. Taught by James Clear, the course teaches students how to build better habits to improve their lives. As you can see in the comments, this topic resonated with parents in their audience.
Shield’s partnership with Masterclass is an invitation for their followers to build similar, life-changing routines. I don’t think it’s too hard to imagine, but if 10,000 of Shields’ followers are interested in her story, the site could benefit greatly from putting her branded content on her Tiktok.
Make content work for you
My vegetable garden thrives every year due to a combination of my work, the right soil and favorable weather conditions. I found the same for content seeds. A Perfect Content Seeding Strategy Seeding is based on brands finding the right partners, a great platform and a cheap product or service.
You don’t need to invest huge amounts of money in content seeds. Choosing micro-influencers, guest bloggers, and podcast interviews are also more cost-effective ways to seed content.
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in November 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.