5 TED Talks to Teach You Everything About Content Marketing

Are you looking for inspiration, information, and insight? TED Talks and TEDx Talks (a few of them) can bring you all of this in less than 20 minutes. They are based on a variety of topics, and today we are going to talk about TEDx videos that will help you understand more about content marketing. 

These five TED videos are of people who deeply understand the market. These talks are fascinating because of the way marketing is explained with well-crafted content marketing examples. Here is the list of videos you MUST watch. 

5 Inspirational Ted Talks on Content Marketing

1. Why Videos Go Viral by Kevin Alloca

Video marketing has become synonymous with content marketing today. This type of content–from a small Reel on Instagram to an hour-long video on Youtube–has become a tried-and-tested recipe for success.

As videos take over our lives and the world of content marketing, author and technology professional Kevin Allocca’s TED video from 2012 that talks about video marketing still remains relevant to this date. The Head of Culture & Trends at YouTube broadly gives four reasons why videos go viral, according to him. 

He explains how viral videos are not just well-made content with a substantial production value but are a source of some kind of change in society. Videos, once viral, become a part of our daily lifestyle and influence other market trends. 

Alloca’s talk is witty, filled with numerous content marketing examples, and well-structured. The key takeaways from his video are his three influencers of virality: tastemakers, communities of participation, and unexpectedness. What do those three facts entail? You will have to watch this whole inspirational TED talk video and find out.

2. How To Get Your Ideas To Spread by Seth Godin

While this talk is from 2007, the insights from Seth Godin are timeless and packed with information. This TED talk specifically gives you a barrage of “a-ha” moments with every anecdote. 

Right at the start, Godin talks about sliced bread. The invention of sliced bread was a remarkable breakthrough in the culinary world. Till today, we fail to comprehend how this simple alteration in bread serving made bread easier to consume and sell.

But the day sliced bread hit the markets, it was a disaster. For many years consumers never warmed up to the idea. This went on until the day a brand called ‘Wonder Bread’ made it a big deal. Merely owning the great product was not enough; it was the brand that took the idea and convinced people about it. 

Through his talk, he spotlighted how you can get your idea to spread to more people. Regardless of what business you run or what you do daily, we all live in a world where we want to spread ideas to others. 

Godin’s talk will make you question your product choices — What about this product made you reach for it? You will realize that it was nothing but the brands’ ability to spread the idea to more people.

3. Neuromarketing: The New Science of Consumer Decisions by Terry Wu

Marketing is all about playing with the psychology of a buyer, and this inspirational TED talk willrevealt the subtleties of such marketing.

Dr. Terry Wu holds a master’s degree in Neuroscience from Duke University. He also earned a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Vanderbilt University. He focuses on research related to learning and memory. So, how does this learning help with content marketing? 

In his TEDx video, Dr. Wu talks about a phenomenon called Neuromarketing — the underlying and unseen side of marketing that influences a user without any ads or in-your-face techniques. He explains this with many content marketing examples. 

He opens with an experiment with shoppers making a wine selection. Shoppers pick from two batches of wine — French and German. While shoppers pass through the aisles, French music is played for one section of people and German music for the other. 

It is noticed that this ambient music influences the choice of the shoppers. The same music promotes better sales in their equivalent countries. The shoppers were then quizzed about their wine selection and asked if the music played any role in it. Surprisingly, they said their choice was subconscious, and most never really paid attention to the music. 

This talk is filled with subtle and convincing content marketing strategy examples from Coca-Cola to cookies. Dr. Wu breaks down the science behind neuromarketing and provides incredible insights into user behavior. 

4. How Influencers Have Transformed Modern Marketing by Rachel David

Influencers are an enormous rage in today’s digital world. Using well-known online celebrities or people with large social media followings to promote brands is an effective marketing strategy for the tech-savvy world. Unboxing videos, tutorials, or even a shout-out play a crucial role in this transformation. 

Rachel David runs an influencer marketing company called Hashtag Communication. After noticing how every country deals with influencers, she shares her learnings on TED’s open platform. 

She explains how we are yet to understand statistics like ROI and content types for this domain. Even without concrete data, this type of marketing is also almost foolproof. It’s one of the best ways to gain attention in just one specific genre.

More than 60% of all ecommerce sales come from online influencers today. And as more and more millennials spend half their days online, YouTubers and social media creators are becoming like friends to them. David draws a parallel explaining the relation between ‘word-of-mouth’ and ‘influencer marketing.’ 

“The keyword is relatability,” says David as she explains how we look at celebrity ads and realize that they might not use the same products as the typical buyer. But the sale is faster when you look at an influencer who talks, lives, and behaves the same as the target audience.

Her TED Talk contains case studies, content marketing lessons, and facts about the world of influencer marketing. If you are on edge about this form of content marketing, then you can gain incredible knowledge about this domain by watching her video. 

5. The Four-letter Code To Selling Anything by Derek Thompson

“Is there a formula to selling anything?” [SPOILER] — the answer is ‘novelty.’  This statement forms the basis of Derek Thompson’s talk. Thompson is a senior editor at The Atlantic. He talks about economics, technology, and media trends during his time there. He also worked with NPR to create a fascinating show called Here and Now.

His content marketing examples range from Coca-Cola and Lucky Strike packets to modern cars and buses. Thompson convinces you that each user wants something different, and many formulas out there that help you determine what the mid-ground could be. 

“Hits live at the perfect intersection of novelty and familiarity,” says Thompson. His TED talk is sprinkled with stories, examples, and data-driven facts that explain the science of selling things. 

The above-mentioned TED and TEDx Talks and videos contain information, stories, and content marketing examples that will help you understand more about content marketing. However, it is also easy to go into a wormhole of information and lose track of reality. While you lean on encyclopedia-worthy insights from these talks, good marketing will need you to pick a handful of the tips and try them yourself. 

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