10 Types of Content Marketing, and How a Saudi Business Should Choose
Most businesses in Saudi Arabia that struggle with content are not short of ideas. They are using the wrong format for the job: a long video where a customer needed a price, or a pretty Instagram post where a Google search needed an answer. This guide covers ten types of content marketing, what each one is good for and what it takes to produce, so you can pick two or three and do them properly instead of doing all ten badly.
What counts as content marketing
Content marketing means publishing something useful or interesting so that the right people find you, trust you and contact you. An advert pays for attention. Content earns it, and keeps working after you publish it.
The format is the shape that content takes: an article, a short video, a carousel, an email. The same idea can usually take several shapes, which is why the format decision matters as much as the topic.
The 10 types at a glance
Blog articles: Being found on Google.
Short video: Reach with new audiences.
Long video: Explaining and building trust.
Carousels and image posts: Saves, shares, simple explainers.
Customer stories: Closing hesitant buyers.
Guides and checklists: Collecting leads.
Email and WhatsApp updates: Repeat business.
Live video and webinars: Questions and expertise.
Podcasts: Depth with a loyal audience.
Creator and customer content: Borrowed trust.
1. Blog articles
Articles answer the questions people type into Google, and they are the format most likely to keep bringing visitors a year after you publish. They work well for services, B2B and anything expensive enough that buyers research first.
A dental clinic in Jeddah could write "How long does teeth whitening last?" A contractor in Riyadh could explain what affects the cost of a villa fit-out. Write in the language your customers search in, and link each article to the service it supports. Our SEO service and content writing team build articles this way.
2. Short video
Short vertical video on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts is the quickest way to reach people who have never heard of you. It suits food, beauty, retail, real estate and anything that looks good in motion.
The opening seconds decide whether anyone stays, so start with the result or the question, not your logo. A phone and good light are enough for most businesses. Consistency matters more than polish.
3. Long video
YouTube tutorials, walkthroughs and explainers suit decisions that need thought. A long video can show a process, introduce the team or answer every question about a service, which saves your sales team repeating it. It costs more to make, so plan it to be cut into short clips. See how we approach this in content production.
4. Carousels and image posts
A carousel is a post of several swipeable slides, and it works well for tips, steps, before-and-after comparisons and product ranges. On Instagram and LinkedIn it is a cheap way to explain one idea clearly.
Give each slide one point, make the first slide the reason to swipe, and finish with what to do next. For a Saudi audience, plan Arabic slides from the start rather than translating afterwards, because right-to-left text changes the layout.
5. Customer stories and case studies
When a buyer is nearly convinced, proof helps more than another claim. A case study sets out the problem, what you did and what changed. It can be a web page, a short video or a single slide sent over WhatsApp during a sales conversation.
Get the customer's permission, use real numbers where you have them, and say which sector and city the customer is in so that similar buyers recognise themselves.
6. Guides, checklists and templates
A useful download gives people a reason to share their contact details. This might be a fit-out checklist, a price guide, a menu-photography brief or a planning template. Keep it short and practical. One page that solves a problem beats forty pages nobody finishes. We offer a marketing plan template this way.
7. Email and WhatsApp updates
This is the one format where you own the audience, because no algorithm decides who sees it. Email suits B2B and longer updates. In Saudi Arabia, WhatsApp is often where customers already talk to you, so offers, restocks and booking reminders fit there.
Send only to people who agreed to hear from you, keep it occasional, and give them an easy way to stop. Sell less than you help.
8. Live video and webinars
Going live on Instagram or TikTok, or running a Zoom session for B2B buyers, lets people ask questions and see the person behind the business. It works for launches, Q&A sessions with a doctor or consultant, and product demonstrations. Announce it in advance, and save the recording so it can be used again.
9. Podcasts
A podcast builds a small, loyal audience over a long time. It fits consultants, founders and B2B firms with real expertise to share, and it is usually the wrong first step for a shop or restaurant. Commit only if you can keep going for months. Filming the conversation gives you YouTube episodes and short clips from the same recording.
10. Creator and customer content
This covers paid or gifted content from creators, along with photos and reviews your customers post themselves. People trust other people more than they trust a brand's own account. In Saudi Arabia, check that any creator you pay is licensed to advertise, and ask permission before reposting a customer's content. Our influencer marketing team handles this side of the work.
How to choose the right formats
Start from your goal, not from the platform:
• You need more enquiries from search: blog articles and customer stories.
• Nobody knows you yet: short video and creator content.
• You sell something expensive or complicated: long video, case studies and guides.
• You want existing customers to return: email, WhatsApp updates and carousels.
Then check what you can sustain. One article a fortnight and two short videos a week, kept up for six months, will do more than a busy first month followed by silence. Choose one format that brings new people and one that helps them decide, then add a third once those two run smoothly.
If you have not set your goal yet, start with our guide on how to make a marketing plan.
Turn one idea into several formats
You rarely need ten separate ideas. Take one customer question, such as "How much does a website cost in Saudi Arabia?", and it becomes:
• An article that answers it fully.
• A two-minute video explaining the main cost factors.
• Three short clips from that video.
• A carousel listing what affects the price.
• A WhatsApp reply your sales team can send when customers ask.
That is one piece of thinking used five times. Our social media management work is planned this way, and paid advertising can put your strongest pieces in front of more people once you know which ones work.
Frequently asked questions about content marketing
Where to go next
onesolute plans, writes and produces content for businesses across Saudi Arabia, in Arabic and English, under one team. Tell us about your business and we will suggest the formats worth your time.
Ready to Start? Let Us Look at Where You Are First
Book a free 30-minute consultation. We will review your website, your accounts and your current campaigns, and give you a candid opinion on your growth priorities — whether or not you work with us.