Content Marketing Hub: How to Create One (+ 6 Examples)

A content marketing hub is a collection of curated content about a specific topic. This can be a huge undertaking, but there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.

When I picture a hub, the image that comes to mind is usually something like the Mos Eisley Cantina (yes, the spaceport on Tatooine, for my fellow Star Wars fans). It’s a centralized location where Jedis and Wookies and the occasional robot come to meet and plan the downfall of the Death Star.

A content marketing hub is surprisingly similar. This hub is a place online where all your different types of content live. From blog posts and articles to videos and podcasts, your hub is somewhere users can visit to find relevant information or dive into new topics.

While that all sounds great, what’s the purpose of a content marketing hub, and what can it do to boost your online marketing efforts? We’ll cover all of that, plus some truly stellar examples to inspire your own content marketing hub.

What is a content marketing hub?

A content marketing hub is a platform or part of a website that serves as a repository for an organization’s content marketing efforts.

The goal of a hub is manifold. They aim to:

• Provide valuable, relevant content to your audience
• Attract potential customers
• Build brand awareness
• Nurture customer relationships 

This hub typically hosts various forms of content, such as blog posts, articles, videos, infographics, podcasts, case studies, ebooks, whitepapers, and more.

Key components of a content marketing hub can include:

1. Centralized content

All of your valuable content gathered in one place makes it easy for users to find what they need and explore a range of diverse topics.

2. Search functionality

A search feature allows visitors to easily find content based on keywords or specific topic searches.

3. Content organization

Content is organized into categories and topics, allowing users to browse and find information more easily.

4. Lead generation and conversion

A content marketing hub will often incorporate lead capture forms, landing pages, and call-to-action (CTA) buttons to convert visitors into customers.

5. Analytics and insights

A hub like this will typically use analytics tools to track content performance, engagement, and user behavior. This allows content managers to better understand what type of content people like to see and helps them plan for future content.

6. Social sharing

Built-in social media buttons allow sharing across platforms, increasing visibility and reach.

7. Marketing automation integration

A content hub may be linked with marketing automation platforms to streamline lead nurturing and customer segmentation based on content interactions.

Some awesome content hub examples

We’ve established that a good content marketing hub is user friendly, informative, and organized. As a marketing resource, your hub can build trust and authority for your audience. Below are some stellar examples of content marketing hubs done right.

Washington Post Jobs Hub

Washington Post’s career subdomain is a masterclass in content marketing. With a clean design and easily navigable interface, this hub is the go-to spot for employers and job seekers alike.

Washington Post career content hub (Image: Washington Post)

WaPo’s career content hub features many of the same elements we outlined above, from a signup CTA and a search functionality to organized content menus across the top of the page. 

HubSpot

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve certainly heard of HubSpot. A cornerstone of content marketing, HubSpot has been slaying the game from the very beginning.

HubSpot resources content library (Image: HubSpot)

Under their “resources” tab, we see well-organized topics outlining everything from education and services to more specific user resources. 

NerdWallet

Super-savvy finance company NerdWallet has made their mark in the world of financial content. Their mission is to empower individuals to make their own financial decisions, and their highly-organized content library makes topic research a snap.

NerdWallet travel content hub (Image: NerdWallet)

Above, you’ll see the “travel” category highlighted with a brief description of what visitors can expect to find in this content corner. A unique feature, they also display jumplinks to their “travel tools,” (aka frequently searched topics and/or phrases) making it easy for users to find answers ASAP.

Zillow

Zillow is an excellent example of the “topic matrix” type of content hub at work. A topic matrix organizes a huge amount of content all with a similar layout. 

Some topic matrix content hubs will house content such as product descriptions or blocks of SEO content on ecommerce sites. Zillow does this with real estate.

Zillow search results for “houses for sale in Portland, ME” (Source: Zillow)

This search result on Zillow for “homes for sale in Portland, Maine” acts as the “pillar” page, with each home listing acting as a subpage.

HawkSEM

We don’t mean to toot our own horn here, but we are really proud of our approach to the classic “hub and spoke” content model.

This is the most common type of content hub, and similar to topic matrices, the structure leans on a “hub” page with each blog article acting as a “spoke”, AKA more in-depth information related to the topic page.

Here’s our SEM content hub:

SEM hub page (Image: HawkSEM)

Further down the hub page, we have a chapter section outlining each “spoke” within the SEM hub:

SEM spoke chapters (Image: HawkSEM)

AKC Breeds

A personal favorite of mine, the American Kennel Club’s dog breeds content hub. This hub features a topic page outlining what a dog breed is, and then rolls through the alphabet of each of their recognized AKC dog breeds:

AKC’s dog breeds content hub (Image: AKC)

AKC’s dog breed subpages (Image: AKC)

I’m not sure about you, but I’d say this is one of the cuter topic matrices I’ve seen in my day.

What to include in a content marketing hub

A content marketing hub offers numerous benefits and serves as a central and strategic platform for your content marketing efforts. Here are some compelling reasons why you need a content marketing hub:

Consistent brand messaging: With a content marketing hub, maintaining consistent branding throughout your content is a cinch. This consistency helps reinforce your brand identity and messaging, making it easier for users to recognize and remember your brand.

Authority building: Consistently delivering valuable content in your niche positions your brand as an industry authority. This builds trust and credibility, which can lead to increased customer loyalty and advocacy.

Ease of content distribution: A central hub simplifies content distribution across various channels. You can easily share your content on social media, email newsletters, and other platforms, expanding your content’s reach and visibility.

Efficient content management: With a content marketing hub, you can manage your content more efficiently. It simplifies content creation, editing, and updates, making it easier to maintain a content calendar and ensure content consistency. (Not to mention help you provide great content).

Adapting to future trends: As the digital landscape evolves, a content marketing hub provides a flexible platform to adapt to new content formats and emerging marketing channels.

How a content marketing hub affects SEO

When executed well, a content marketing hub can do wonders for your SEO efforts. Here’s a brief outline of the SEO benefits a content marketing hub can provide.

When executed well, a content marketing hub can do wonders for your SEO efforts. (Image: Unsplash)

1. Keyword targeting

When you organize content into different categories and topics, a content marketing hub can effectively target specific keywords and search queries. This keyword optimization can improve the chances of ranking higher in the search engine results page (SERP) and even aid in your keyword research.

2. Increased organic traffic

 Your content marketing hub is likely to host a wide range of high-quality, relevant content. This can attract more visitors through organic search, leading to higher search engine rankings and increased organic traffic.

3. Internal links

Having a hub for your content allows you to strategically interlink, which in turn helps search engines crawl and index content more effectively.

4. Backlink attraction

High-quality content is more likely to attract backlinks from other websites, adding to your authority and trustworthiness in your industry. Search engines love seeing that type of credibility, which can positively affect your overall SEO performance.

5. Improved user engagement and dwell time

Good user engagement and the amount of time users spend on your site are positive signals for search engines that can contribute to higher search rankings.

6. Navigation and user experience

Creating a hub that’s well-organized and easy to navigate is like catnip to search engines. Not only does it help foster clean site architecture for better UX, but it also makes it easier for search engines to crawl.

7. Faster website load times

A well-optimized content marketing hub ensures that all content is efficiently organized, reducing page load times. Faster loading pages can positively impact SEO rankings as search engines prioritize user experience.

What should you include in a content marketing hub?

Remember that content alone is not content marketing. Pretty much anything you consume on the internet from this blog article to your friends’ Insta posts are content. 

The marketing part comes in when you’re catering to your specific audience. The goal of your content marketing hub should be to build and attract an audience, engage, and convert new customers or followers to your brand.

That said, it should provide a seamless user experience and offer a variety of valuable, in-depth, and relevant content to attract, engage, and retain your target audience. This can be done in a lot of different ways, but here are a few of the elements we think are good to include:

Blog

A blog is a staple of content marketing hubs. It allows you to publish regular articles, updates, insights, and industry-related content. And, as any seasoned digital marketer knows, blogs are excellent for driving organic traffic and engaging with your audience.

Resource library

Create a section for downloadable resources such as ebooks, whitepapers, guides, templates, and other valuable content. This will showcase your expertise and encourage users to subscribe or provide their contact information for lead generation purposes.

Infographics, videos, and visual content

Present complex data and information in a visually appealing way through infographics, videos, and other visual content. These are highly engaging, and can be easily shared on social media and other platforms.

Case studies

Showcase your success stories and case studies to demonstrate the value of your products or services and how they have benefited your customers.

You can also encourage users to contribute their own content, testimonials, reviews, or experiences with your brand. User-generated content builds trust and authenticity.

Podcasts

If you produce audio content, create a dedicated section for podcasts. This allows users to access and listen to your episodes conveniently.

Social sharing

Add social media sharing buttons to make it easy for users to share your content across various platforms, increasing its reach and visibility.

Newsletter/email signup

Provide an option for visitors to subscribe to your email list to receive updates, newsletters, and new content releases.

Types of content hubs

A content marketing hub isn’t a one-size-fits-all sort of thing. The right kind of hub for your business will depend on your target audience and the goals of your content marketing strategy.

One of the most common types of content hubs you’ll come across is the corporate blogging hub or something that’s education-based, designed to engage your audience and answer their industry questions. Here are a few of the types of content hubs you’re most likely to see:

Knowledge-based

A knowledge-based hub is designed to provide comprehensive information and answers to common questions related to a specific industry, product, or service. 

It often includes articles, tutorials, FAQs, and troubleshooting guides. Companies in the tech sector, customer support, and software industries often use knowledge base hubs to assist customers and users in finding solutions to their problems.

Learning & training-based

This type of content hub is geared towards providing educational resources and training materials. It can host online courses, webinars, tutorials, and interactive learning modules. Educational institutions, online course platforms, and companies offering professional development often utilize this hub to facilitate learning and skill development.

News & updates

A news and updates hub focuses on delivering timely news, announcements, and industry updates. You’ll see this a lot for industries that experience rapid changes, such as finance, technology, and healthcare.

This hub keeps the audience informed about the latest trends, regulations, and developments in the field.

Entertainment & lifestyle

Entertainment and lifestyle hubs are centered around providing content that entertains and engages the audience (remember BuzzFeed?). 

It includes content like videos, articles, quizzes, and interactive games that cater to users’ interests and hobbies. Media companies, lifestyle brands, and content creators often use this hub to capture users’ attention and build brand loyalty.

Community & social

A community hub focuses on building a sense of community among the audience. It includes user-generated content, discussion forums, social media feeds, and events that encourage interaction and engagement among users. 

Non-profit organizations, fan communities, and brands aiming to foster a loyal customer base often employ this type of hub.

Ecommerce content hub

For ecommerce businesses, this content hub combines product information, buying guides, reviews, and other content that assists customers in making informed purchasing decisions. 

It can include detailed product descriptions, comparison charts, and customer reviews to help visitors understand and choose products that meet their needs.

The takeaway

From expanding content topics and subtopics to revamping existing content, a content marketing hub can take your marketing efforts to the next level. 

Need help creating the best content marketing hub out there? Send us a message and let the Hawks swoop in.