McDonald’s tries user-generated content instore – Content24

Welcome to Content24. Why is it different? Because it’s a digest of the stories that have made an impact over the past 24 hours, and not just a platform for recycled content marketing. Today we’re looking at Google and McDonald’s

McDonald’s tries user-generated content instore

McDonald’s has hired Australian content marketing software provider Shareroot to handle marketing for 38 outlets in Texas. Yes, this is only a small proportion of the 14,000 establishments where you can procure yourself a Big Mac and a McFlurry. But what is interesting is that Shareroot manages and provides user generated content.

The system scans social media platforms for content according to certain criteria – searching for pictures on Instagram, for example. Shareroot then provides the user with licensing rights specific to the environment where it is intended to be published, ie offline, online or in-store.

At FirstWord we often state that content marketing needs to be about journalism. One of the first things fledgling journos become aware of is usage rights to photography and how expensive it can be if you get it wrong.

The other interesting angle is that, in what is probably a trial, McDonald’s is looking at employing user-generated content in-store.

Google uses AI in search algorithm

The algorithm Google uses to generate results for all our searches is in a continual state of flux. The latest addition to the system is RankBrain, which pulls in results for words not included in the search criteria. RankBrain is part of the Hummingbird algorithm, which was launched in 2013.

What is interesting about RankBrain is that it is handled not by Google engineers, but by artificial intelligence.

While technical changes at Google are not content marketing, it is worth being aware of what is going on there. For that purpose, take a look at this Q&A, which examines RankBrain and neatly explains how it fits in with the other search components.

Video and data are the future of content marketing

This piece follows the UK journal The Drum’s content marketing awards. The judges were asked what they thought about the state of the industry. Video and data are the way forward, it seems.

Speaking about data, Vikki Chowney, director of content strategies at Hill+Knowlton, said: “There’s so much available to us now, it’s easy to use and easy to interpret, and when brand and businesses use data properly it can create truly interactive, personalised experiences that significantly give them the advantage. We’re just scraping the surface in terms of what can be done and achieved with the proper use and application of data.”

Ben Maher, executive director EMEA at Mashable, said: “The evolution of content marketing will come down to layering; finding the perfect moment for your content not just to fit the audience but the device they’re consuming on and the functionality of that device.

The awards take place next month.