Our Content Writers’ Favorite Blog Picks

At Marketeering Group, our fabulous content writers are well-versed in a wide variety of topics.  From plumbing, to industrial strainers, cannabis, tequila, and more, these ladies have a knack for adopting brand voices, telling unique stories, and giving content style and flair. We asked each of them to share a few of their favorite company blogs from which they draw inspiration. Here’s what they had to say:

Leesy’s Pick

http://kerrygoldusa.com/blog/

Grazings: The Kerrygold Blog

Kerrygold has established itself as an Irish brand through and through. Perhaps this identity is part of what appeals to Europhiles across the pond — but to give credit where it’s due, these guys really know how to attract a target audience. The popular lineup of grass-fed butter and cheese is a hit with stateside and worldwide food connoisseurs, and the brand continues to gain fans thanks to its content strategy, which includes engaging onsite and offsite blogs.

User Generated Content and Sponsored Posts:

One major way Kerrygold keeps its finger on the food industry pulse is by leveraging partnerships with relevant influencers. In terms of online content, this means tapping into the blogosphere. The brand’s onsite blog, “Grazings,” is buoyed by recipe-driven content shared by regular guest bloggers, while the Kerrygold name gets plenty of offsite love via sponsored blog posts. Household names including Molly Yeh (“my name is yeh”) and Christina Lane (“Dessert for Two”) are regular contributors.

Of course, the appeal of sponsored posts is that they’re mutually beneficial: the Kerrygold brand is featured in a recipe and accompanying photos, and bloggers are compensated for their work. Both brand and blogger can reach a wider audience and gain eyeballs (and, ultimately, more followers and/or customers) when they harness the other’s existing fanbase. Plus, readers can try a new recipe at home (Cheddar and Thyme Scones, anyone?), purchase and use the Kerrygold product in the process, and potentially convert into repeat customers. It’s a win-win-win strategy, and it’s one of Kerrygold’s greatest marketing strengths.

Relationship-Focused Branding:

Brand voice matters. The copy (and tone) used on your website matters. This is part of what makes Kerrygold such an accessible brand. The site content invokes more of a conversational tone, as if you’re hearing from a dear friend or family member, than a buzzy corporate pitch — important for resonating with home cooks and professionals in the hospitality industry.

Kerrygold’s content embodies the Irish hospitality the brand hopes to highlight. A standout example is the Friends of Kerrygold profile, which applauds Ireland’s culinary contributions and the individual dairy farmers, chefs, producers, and personalities driving the industry. Site visitors can put faces to names and embrace the humanity behind the Kerrygold label, ultimately establishing trust in the brand’s ethical standards.

Supplemental Strengths:

Intelligent partnerships abound: Kerrygold is the official butter used in Sur La Table cooking classes. The brand is also the reigning sponsor of Radio Cherry Bombe, a weekly podcast produced by (awesome) independent, women-focused culinary magazine Cherry Bombe. While these moves can’t be filed under traditional content marketing, Kerrygold clearly knows when and where its presence matters most.

Megan’s Picks

http://www.hostelworld.com/blog/c/all-cities/

REI: Co-op Journal

The REI Co-op Journal is REI, a popular outdoor equipment store’s blog. Here’s why I love it:

Diversity of stories: They not only cover a wide variety of topics in their blog including sports for every season, tales from the trips they offer, and news features, but the stories they tell really reflect the people in them. Their use of individual stories is not only strategic in terms of increasing reach, but it helps the readers envision a wide variety of people (i.e. themselves) taking part in these adventures.

Use of multimedia: If a picture is worth a thousand words, videos are worth exponentially more. The use of video and other digital elements in their storytelling brings their content to life, showcases their characters and makes it exceptionally shareable.

Their values are the core of their content: When you’re churning out a ton of content, sometimes the core message gets lost in the shuffle. That’s not the case with REI. From stories of sustainable stewardship to being a thought leader in conservation, this company isn’t just trying to push sales, they’re sharing stories larger stories of the importance of protecting the planet.

Hostelworld

Email marketing lists are a dime a dozen, but I can’t bring myself to unsubscribe to Hostelworld’s content. A website where budget travelers can find hostels almost anywhere in the world, this company’s blog really showcases their service and values.

Great information: There are many blogs with listicles for days, but this one does it well and has great information. They don’t only showcase great places to visit, but also highly pertinent tips such as budgeting, hostel safety, and how to make the most of traveling alone.

Target Audience and User Generated Content: Hostelworld does a great job of finding the right people at the right place at the right time-after all, your marketing messages can be great but they won’t do you any good if no one sees them. Hostelworld’s avid use of social media and headlines that draw you in but aren’t too spammy really do the trick. The travel industry is easier than most to make good use of User Generated Content (UGC) but Hostelworld does a great job of using it to their advantage.

Norelle’s Picks

https://www.drunkentomato.com/bloody-mary-blog/

The Drunken Tomato

This local blogger does an excellent job of content curation, coming up with interesting ideas all centered around one topic: Bloody Marys. She features mixes, gift guides, spots in different cities with great Bloody Marys… etc. The blogger is also from Seattle!

Amazing photos: As a content writer who doesn’t always have access to the photos I need to support a post, especially for more niche topics, I can’t help but admire what The Drunken Tomato does to find beautiful, fresh and yummy-looking Bloody Mary photos.

Dedication to the audience and topics: You’d think that they would run out of stuff to write about Bloody Marys, but The Drunken Tomato is killing it with new ideas! They do a great job of sticking to the tone and attitude of their audience, as well.

The Skimm

Busy people often lose touch with the happenings in the greater world, and it’s hard to stay up to date on important issues. The Skimm helps with a foot-in-the-door daily news brief solution, where you can sign up to get the daily Skimm in your email inbox. It’s got a fun and quirky tone that makes it engaging to read as well. They also talk about important issues on their blog, and do it in a way that doesn’t feel like a news organization but more like they’re crowdsourcing news and actually getting real peoples’ input on opinions.

Seth Godin

He’s one of the best-selling authors and content marketers of the day, and has been for quite a bit, but he’s also super engaging just from a cool-person level. His blog is mostly small snippets of thought that he publishes on a daily basis, sometimes about more complex topics that he relays in just a few words and follows it up with something funny or super weird.

I like this content because it comes in thoughtful little snippets (I don’t have time to read lengthy diatribes). Its also consistent-he publishes something new every day. The content also really resonates with me and is super applicable!

Blogging is a great way to tell stories of all kinds. It can also be a powerful tool across SEO, social media, and more. To learn more about Marketeering Group and our content marketing services, visit our website today!