What do Huy Tran, the National Marketing Manager for the Aburi group, and I have in common? Very little, as he is talented and more pristine than I will ever be, but we both do love delicious food! Huy’s passion for food and his talent in marketing led him to a role that perfectly combines both and I am deeply inspired by that path. It is not a secret that I love cosmetics and have a strong passion for product knowledge which is what led me to my job at Sephora. One day I hope to merge my passion with my career just like Huy is doing in his current role. When speaking with Huy this week, he provided great insights about content strategy from a real-life perspective as someone who actively deals with it everyday. Consumers choose to support and shop from brands that they have an emotional connection with. This concept, also known as brand affinity, is a huge when thinking of what content you want to put out their for your brand as your goal should always be to maintain how positively people view you.Brand affinity creates brand loyalty. When a person believes a brand aligns with their values and they trust them. they are more likely to continue being a customer. I personally associate Sephora with feelings of belonging, acceptance, and joy which makes me more likely than others to stay loyal to them for my beauty needs. I don’t know exactly how Sephora builds brand affinity through content marketing, but based on this week's readings I have a few ideas. I believe in every step of the marketing funnel Sephora keeps brand affinity in mind as a driving force in the way its content is curated. This week I read about the three pillars of content marketing: content creation, search engine optimization and promotion/social media. Sephora’s content is consistent with this idea of inclusivity, product knowledge and a sense of belonging. They give their customers a voice and use their real employees as the faces of their ad campaigns and in-store promotional material. This is clever and intentional marketing as it gives meaning to every piece of content created, connects customers with the brand and shows that Sephora upholds its values. In the search engine optimization pillar, Sephora is focusing on how they’re content will get seen and maximize its visibility. I have always wondered why Sephora conveniently shows up as the first option in a Google search about lipstick (and it’s not because it was fate), it is because of SEO tactics. Sephora has to seamlessly blend its unique in-store experiences with its online presence, making this part of content marketing critical to ensure the trust between the brand and its customers remains. Sephora does social media better than any other brand as it is consistent with their voice, and their in-person shopping experience and it feels authentic even at such a large scale. As an employee of the brand, I feel so lucky to work for a brand whose external presence aligns with the values practiced and implemented internally every day. Until next time...