Indian startups with great content marketing strategies
You look around anywhere and there are buzzwords aplenty. 'Content Marketing' is probably one of those terms. Everyone is talking about it, everyone knows they need one but only realize the difficulties once they get into it. According to the Content Marketing Institute, the idea of content marketing is to attract and retain customers by creating and curating relevant and valuable content. It is deeply ingrained into the marketing strategy. Globally, the likes of Buffer have set a very high benchmark! We thought of throwing some light on home grown companies that are doing a good job with content marketing:
1) Zomato
Zomato is an online directory for finding restaurants around you and one of the poster boys of the Indian startup ecosystem. Zomato has gone global to over 15 countries, raised more than $65 million in funding and has shown an impressive growth rate. Coming to the specifics, Zomato is surely one of the best in the business when it comes to content marketing. And content marketing just doesn't mean a constantly updated blog- Zomato has content in various forms like infographics, videos and campaigns. Zomato is bold and keeps experimenting. Yes, there are things that go wrong with trying out different things but that is the only way to know what works. Some examples:
Channels- Zomato's blog | Facebook page | Twitter Handle
2) Eventifier (read about them)
Eventifier is a tool that can be used to showcase an event. Competing with the likes of Storify, Eventifier can be used to showcase tweets, slides, pictures, etc about an event on one page. Founded by youngsters from Mangalore, Eventifier was incubated at The Startup Centre, raised venture capital and has scaled globally. One of the best part about their business is the content they've been producing. Full of valuable insights for event organizers, Eventifer's blog and newsletter are a great resource. Here's sample of their newsletter:
Channels- Eventifier Blog and Newsletter subscribe link
3) Brightpod (here's more on them)
Brightpod is a web-based project management and time tracking software for digital marketing and creative teams. Brightpod aims to take the chaos out of marketing collaboration and helps teams get clarity on their workflows. Brightpod comes from Synage Software which was started back in 2005 by Sahil Parikh. The company has had experience in marketing their products globally and Brightpod is their latest in the fleet of products. The best thing about Brightpod are their constant updates for customers and the resources for marketers on their blog.
4) Druva (a deep-detailed look into their growth)
Druva is an endpoint data protection and governance technology for enterprises. Founded in 2008, the company has scaled globally to find a big market in the US with more than 3000 customers in total. They've also managed to raise more than $65 million. The company has a great story of how a young co-founder who took the responsibility of sales took the company to great heights. One of the key things about their content marketing is the domain expertise the team possesses. Their blog is a goldmine for everything related to data security and LinkedIn seems like the channel they've cracked for distribution. Druva is a great example of content marketing for a B2B startup.
Channels- Blog
5) Simplify360 (read about them)
Simplify360 is a social media analytics company which was started back in 2009 by Bhupendra Khanal. The company has more than 25 solid customers and had acquisition offers from companies like Adobe, WPP and Twitter. They decided to go ahead themselves and have made good headway. Simplify360 relies on its strength- collecting, chopping, dicing data and presenting it in a meaningful way. The company has come up with interesting infographics, and analysis that have been carried by various publications.
6) JustUnfollow (read their story)
JU is a Twitter and Instagram friend management application that has more than 10 million users across the globe. Founded by Nischal Shetty, this Mumbai based company is bootstrapped and one great example of how to build a successful consumer business from India. The content they produce surely crosses paths with others in their domain but JU has managed to maintain a certain quality and continuity in the kind of content they produce. Their articles on the blog mainly revolve around managing a person's social media accounts and happenings from around the globe.
Channels: Blog
6) Thrillophilia (read their story)
Thrillophilia is a Bangalore-based activity based trip planning portal that has climbed up the ladder in the travel domain. It has fixed activity based tours and offbeat travel experience packages. They have managed to build a great content repository with articles that are inherently 'shareable'. e.g. 15 remote places in India to disconnect from the world, 25 mysterious places in India, etc.
Channels: Blog
7) Buzzvalve
Buzzvalve is a data driven content marketing boutique founded by Rohan Chandrashekhar. The company is about content marketing itself and helps companies manage the entire lifecycle of web-based content (creation –> distribution –> promotion –> conversion) with clients like UNICEF, ISB, Honda, Fortis, etc. Their content and track record is what has attracted other companies to hire Buzzvalve for creating content. Buzzvalve has a modest and minimal looking website but has clarity in what it provides and what the client should expect. The examples of their work is present on their social channels.
Channels: Blog
8) SutraLite
SutraLite is an HR recruitment consultancy for startups and SMEs that represent a special category in this list. SutraLite (part of Sutra Services Pvt Ltd. which also operates SutraHR) is popular for writing articles which aren't in their domain but ones that attract eyeballs. The company focuses on low cost hiring for startups and SMBs and has been around for a while. They have articles regarding the product on the blog but rely on click baits to get in the big traffic. For example, 16 Indian Muslim Entrepreneurs whose stories will amuse you, top 100 startups of 2014, etc. Such articles pique curiosity and bring in traffic but the alignment with what the company does is not quite there.
Channels: Blog
These were some of the companies that caught our eye with respect to content marketing. Tell us what do you think about them?