Content marketing is an umbrella term covering a set of strategies, techniques, and tactics to fulfill business and customer goals by using the most relevant content to serve, attract, convert, retain and engage customers. Content
marketing is used across the customer journey and customer lifecycle but doesn’t start nor end with the customer in the strict sense. Content marketing further serves several business functions in a consistent, integrated and continuous way. It looks at the customer from a connected perspective and takes into account the content requirements of anyone serving and engaging
prospects and customers.
What is Content Marketing?
Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer
action.
The marketplace we live and work in today is radically different from the one in which many of us started. Content marketing is a marketing technique, covering a broad range of tactics and processes, whereby
1) Content and information needs/preferences of strategically defined target audiences are analyzed,
2) Content is created to serve these needs in alignment with predefined marketing goals,
3) The created content is made available, optimized and used to serve customers and business objectives in all possible areas of marketing, PR, sales (enablement) etc. in a measured and integrated way.
1) Content and information needs/preferences of strategically defined target audiences are analyzed,
2) Content is created to serve these needs in alignment with predefined marketing goals,
3) The created content is made available, optimized and used to serve customers and business objectives in all possible areas of marketing, PR, sales (enablement) etc. in a measured and integrated way.
Content marketing isn’t new. We’ve been practicing it since far longer than the term existed, as did many others. Research shows that the majority of organizations use content marketing, in the sense of using content for any possible marketing or customer facing role, regardless of content format, medium or channel. What is new, though, is the way of looking at the role of content in a more strategic, planned, integrated, intelligent and customer-centric way.
Creating a Content Marketing Strategy
An effective content marketing strategy is built on two pillars that you (hopefully) have already:
1. A set of robust, strategic personas, and
2. An understanding of your typical buyer’s journey.
2. An understanding of your typical buyer’s journey.
Each content asset should appeal to one (or two) personas at each stage of their buying journey, gently nudging them to the next stage.
How to Design Engaging Content
Design means much more than color schemes and stock photos. The process will look different for every marketing team, and even for every team’s various content pieces.
In general, the design starts at the very beginning, as you map out a content marketing strategy. Understanding the brand’s personas and marketing goals will shape the basic style of each design each should be useful to your personas, and true to your brand voice.
A strong content marketing strategy includes a variety of content types, so as individual pieces begin to take shape, there are some specific things to keep in mind:
Blog Posts
Distill your content marketing strategy into your blog schedule/strategy. The company blog can and should be used to cross-promote other content, which will help keep posts on a consistent schedule. If you don’t have a marketing team member who is familiar with SEO, this is one area where you might want to consult a professional.
Ebooks
Ebook content should follow some sort of narrative structure and include a lot of good, visual design. The goal of an ebook is to educate (rather than entertain), but make sure to keep the language conversational if that is consistent with your brand and personas.
Cheat Sheets
These are short (two or three pages at most). That means there won’t be a lot of room for big images, so you’ll want to use text formatting to make them easy for a reader to quickly scan through. Link or point to other resources for more in-depth learning.
Workbooks and Templates
Design means much more than color schemes and stock photos. The process will look different for every marketing team, and even for every team’s various content pieces.
In general, the design starts at the very beginning, as you map out a content marketing strategy. Understanding the brand’s personas and marketing goals will shape the basic style of each design each should be useful to your personas, and true to your brand voice.
A strong content marketing strategy includes a variety of content types, so as individual pieces begin to take shape, there are some specific things to keep in mind:
Blog Posts
Distill your content marketing strategy into your blog schedule/strategy. The company blog can and should be used to cross-promote other content, which will help keep posts on a consistent schedule. If you don’t have a marketing team member who is familiar with SEO, this is one area where you might want to consult a professional.
Ebooks
Ebook content should follow some sort of narrative structure and include a lot of good, visual design. The goal of an ebook is to educate (rather than entertain), but make sure to keep the language conversational if that is consistent with your brand and personas.
Cheat Sheets
These are short (two or three pages at most). That means there won’t be a lot of room for big images, so you’ll want to use text formatting to make them easy for a reader to quickly scan through. Link or point to other resources for more in-depth learning.
Workbooks and Templates
A great way to keep your brand in front of buyers, while also being really helpful. These resources should be designed for print and made as interactive and practical as possible.
Whitepapers and Reports
These are similar to an ebook in that they are primarily educational materials, but whitepapers and reports are generally less graphically designed and use language that is a little more professional. They can also create opportunities to partner with other organizations.
Infographics
The name says it all: just give readers info and graphics. Use as little text as possible for the former, and let the latter tell the story. If you don’t have a killer graphics artist in-house, this is one for which you might want to work with a professional.
Slide Decks
Slide decks are a great format for breaking down complex ideas into simple steps or bite-sized pieces. Keep the slides simple minimal text in one font throughout, and use big images & graphics.
Video
The trick to effectively using video as part of a content strategy is keeping it as timeless as possible. Otherwise, you risk wasting resources (time and money) updating videos every year. High-quality video content can also be used to expose your brand to YouTube’s large and active audience.
Case Studies
Build case studies with real numbers and complete stories. This will help keep the content focused on the value and results, not the brand.
Whitepapers and Reports
These are similar to an ebook in that they are primarily educational materials, but whitepapers and reports are generally less graphically designed and use language that is a little more professional. They can also create opportunities to partner with other organizations.
Infographics
The name says it all: just give readers info and graphics. Use as little text as possible for the former, and let the latter tell the story. If you don’t have a killer graphics artist in-house, this is one for which you might want to work with a professional.
Slide Decks
Slide decks are a great format for breaking down complex ideas into simple steps or bite-sized pieces. Keep the slides simple minimal text in one font throughout, and use big images & graphics.
Video
The trick to effectively using video as part of a content strategy is keeping it as timeless as possible. Otherwise, you risk wasting resources (time and money) updating videos every year. High-quality video content can also be used to expose your brand to YouTube’s large and active audience.
Case Studies
Build case studies with real numbers and complete stories. This will help keep the content focused on the value and results, not the brand.
Content Marketing and Social Media
Social media is one of the primary vehicles for a content marketing campaign especially the more entry-level, entertaining pieces. There are three tiers of social media promotion for your content:
Owned: Sharing your content on the brand’s own social media channels is a quick, customizable, and free opportunity to connect with your target audience.
Paid: Most social networks allow for some kind of paid advertising. Matching a network’s demographics with your brand’s personas will help you determine where to invest.
Earned: The most valuable, but the hardest to create, social media promotion happens when your audience shares your content with their networks.
Each social network tends to gather a different type of user. Match your person as to network demographics to find out where your target audience is social online, and start sharing your content.
Let's cover the differences between social networks:
Facebook
Facebook is still the biggest social network, and while it is the fastest growing, that growth is slowing and shifting. At the beginning of last year, Facebook usage was growing fastest among older adults. As of January 2015, Facebook users are most likely to be college-educated, lower-income women.
Twitter
Emerging markets account for 78% of the traffic on Twitter, with India as one of the fastest growing. Statistically speaking, Twitter users tend to be recent college graduates living in urban areas.
Social media is one of the primary vehicles for a content marketing campaign especially the more entry-level, entertaining pieces. There are three tiers of social media promotion for your content:
Owned: Sharing your content on the brand’s own social media channels is a quick, customizable, and free opportunity to connect with your target audience.
Paid: Most social networks allow for some kind of paid advertising. Matching a network’s demographics with your brand’s personas will help you determine where to invest.
Earned: The most valuable, but the hardest to create, social media promotion happens when your audience shares your content with their networks.
Each social network tends to gather a different type of user. Match your person as to network demographics to find out where your target audience is social online, and start sharing your content.
Let's cover the differences between social networks:
Facebook is still the biggest social network, and while it is the fastest growing, that growth is slowing and shifting. At the beginning of last year, Facebook usage was growing fastest among older adults. As of January 2015, Facebook users are most likely to be college-educated, lower-income women.
Emerging markets account for 78% of the traffic on Twitter, with India as one of the fastest growing. Statistically speaking, Twitter users tend to be recent college graduates living in urban areas.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is commonly known as the professional social network, and it’s obvious that its users are serious. Sixty-four percent of social referrals to corporate websites come from LinkedIn, compared to 17% from Facebook and 14% from Twitter. A glance at the demographics demonstrates that LinkedIn has the greatest percentage of college educated, higher-income users of all the major social channels.
Pinterest
Consumers love Pinterest. Forty-seven percent of online shoppers have made a purchase because of a Pinterest recommendation, and Pinterest generates 4x more revenue (per click) than Twitter. Pinterest users tend to be more affluent women living in rural areas.
Content Marketing and SEO
In the same way that you take a couple extra steps to help your content succeed on social, take a couple more to help your content succeed with search engines. Weaving some SEO best practices into your content will help make a good impression with Google and move your website up the rankings list.
Use keywords (naturally): Identify your main keyword for the content, a few synonyms, and a few related keywords. Then make sure you’re actually using them in your content, headers, and page content. Don’t overdo it, though. Search engines have been cracking down on content that is “stuffed” with one or two keywords. Write for the reader, but do make sure those important words are present.
Earn natural links: Links from spam my sources can actually hurt your site with search engines. Build relationships with industry professionals who will share your content, and link to their primary resources in return. Links from high-quality websites will give yours a boost.
LinkedIn is commonly known as the professional social network, and it’s obvious that its users are serious. Sixty-four percent of social referrals to corporate websites come from LinkedIn, compared to 17% from Facebook and 14% from Twitter. A glance at the demographics demonstrates that LinkedIn has the greatest percentage of college educated, higher-income users of all the major social channels.
Consumers love Pinterest. Forty-seven percent of online shoppers have made a purchase because of a Pinterest recommendation, and Pinterest generates 4x more revenue (per click) than Twitter. Pinterest users tend to be more affluent women living in rural areas.
Content Marketing and SEO
In the same way that you take a couple extra steps to help your content succeed on social, take a couple more to help your content succeed with search engines. Weaving some SEO best practices into your content will help make a good impression with Google and move your website up the rankings list.
Use keywords (naturally): Identify your main keyword for the content, a few synonyms, and a few related keywords. Then make sure you’re actually using them in your content, headers, and page content. Don’t overdo it, though. Search engines have been cracking down on content that is “stuffed” with one or two keywords. Write for the reader, but do make sure those important words are present.
Earn natural links: Links from spam my sources can actually hurt your site with search engines. Build relationships with industry professionals who will share your content, and link to their primary resources in return. Links from high-quality websites will give yours a boost.
Media: Include images and video (with descriptive titles and alt text) on blog posts and landing pages. They improve the user experience, which decreases bounce rates and improves your standing with Google.
The strength of a good content marketing strategy is in providing the information and answers that your target audience is looking for, but your hard work is all for naught if they can’t find it! Make sure you’re creating content for the user, but that search engines will also favor.
Content Marketing vs. Traditional Copywriting
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
CONTENT MARKETING uses blogs, podcasts, video, and social media sites as a vehicle.
COPYWRITERS write magnetic headlines, persuasive landing pages, and conversion-driven emails.
Two totally different things, right?
In any smart online marketing strategy, they work together. Content marketing is being used by 86% of businesses today. But effective content marketing? Not so easy to find.
Digital content marketing
Although content marketing is not just about digital marketing, the digital dimension plays an increasing role as “digital” sources become more important in the buyer journey, the customer lifecycle and most importantly customer behavior and preferences overall.
To emphasize this and also because specific digital content channels, formats etc. are “different” in many aspects, as are tactics in the digital and social marketing context (from social content and search engine optimization to even online advertising) we see that more people talk about digital content marketing as a “subset”. Nevertheless, a holistic approach is important here too.
The strength of a good content marketing strategy is in providing the information and answers that your target audience is looking for, but your hard work is all for naught if they can’t find it! Make sure you’re creating content for the user, but that search engines will also favor.
Content Marketing vs. Traditional Copywriting
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
CONTENT MARKETING uses blogs, podcasts, video, and social media sites as a vehicle.
COPYWRITERS write magnetic headlines, persuasive landing pages, and conversion-driven emails.
Two totally different things, right?
In any smart online marketing strategy, they work together. Content marketing is being used by 86% of businesses today. But effective content marketing? Not so easy to find.
Digital content marketing
Although content marketing is not just about digital marketing, the digital dimension plays an increasing role as “digital” sources become more important in the buyer journey, the customer lifecycle and most importantly customer behavior and preferences overall.
To emphasize this and also because specific digital content channels, formats etc. are “different” in many aspects, as are tactics in the digital and social marketing context (from social content and search engine optimization to even online advertising) we see that more people talk about digital content marketing as a “subset”. Nevertheless, a holistic approach is important here too.
Comments
Post a Comment