Yeah, It's Content. But is it Marketing?
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TOUGH LOVE FOR YOUR CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY YEAH, IT’S CONTENT. BUT IS IT MARKETING? 10 MARKETING STRATEGIES TO ACTIVATE THE ENGAGED BUYER
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The world is full of content. Some is boring. Some is awesome. But the most successful is memorable and keeps people emotionally engaged. Rather than making things just to make them, create content that focuses on building business value and that uses the buyer journey as a central framework. Who knows? Maybe you’ll even make some money out of it. In this presentation, Matt Magee, VP Digital Strategy at PJA Advertising + Marketing, introduces you to the dos and don’ts of content marketing strategy and how to avoid Content Marketer’s Remorse. It’s quick, informative, but most of all, it’s content you won’t forget.
Transcript of Yeah, It's Content. But is it Marketing?
TOUGH LOVE FOR YOUR CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY
YEAH, IT’S CONTENT.BUT IS IT MARKETING?
10 MARKETING STRATEGIES TO ACTIVATE THE ENGAGED BUYER
THIS PRESENTATION IS FOR YOU IF:
Your agency’s estimate for producing that awesome content series just ruined your day
Your infographic was a huge hit on Facebook—and Sales doesn’t seem to care
You suspect there’s more to content marketing than making great content
Somebody important just told you “we need a viral video”
CONTENTS:
The epidemic of Content Marketer’s Remorse
Tough love for your content marketing strategy
6 things to do (and 6 don’ts)
We’d like to help
PROBLEM
DIAGNOSIS
HOW TO FIX IT
WHERE TO TURN
THE PROBLEM:
SOMEBODY SAID CONTENT IS KING.NOW IT’S ACTING LIKE A ROYAL.
THERE ARE SOME GREAT REASONS TO LIKE CONTENT MARKETING...
Offers us a way to be interesting to an ad-weary world
Responds to the information needs of today’s engaged buyer
Can deliver reach at low cost—especially when targets share it for us
BUT ARE YOU EXPERIENCING CMR?(CONTENT MARKETER’S REMORSE)
It’s not just money, but time & attention—and not just for creating content, but promoting it too.
THE INVESTMENT IS MORE THAN YOU BARGAINED FOR
WARNING SIGN #1
You always need more, but you have few resources available to feed the content beast.
THE DEMANDS ARE UNRELENTING
WARNING SIGN #2
BUT ARE YOU EXPERIENCING CMR?(CONTENT MARKETER’S REMORSE)
Unless you see content as its own reward, measurable marketing results don’t just happen.
IT FEELS LIKE SUCCESS IS ELUSIVE
WARNING SIGN #3
BUT ARE YOU EXPERIENCING CMR?(CONTENT MARKETER’S REMORSE)
THE DIAGNOSIS:
TOO MUCH CONTENT.NOT ENOUGH MARKETING.
ASK YOURSELF THIS QUESTION:
At the end of the day, are you trying to be a publisher or a marketer?
ASK YOURSELF THIS QUESTION:
At the end of the day, are you trying to be a publisher or a marketer?
(Hint: What do you ultimately get paid for?)
MAYBE YOUR CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY NEEDS A MENTALITY SHIFT.
CONTENT-FIRST MENTALITY
“What are we going to make?”
MARKETING-FIRST MENTALITY
“What are we trying to achieve?”
HOW TO FIX IT:
6 WAYS TO MAKE SUREYOUR CONTENT PUTS
MARKETING FIRST
DO
1 ALWAYS TIE BRANDED CONTENT TO BUSINESS VALUE
The desire to create topical branded content is a sensible one; today’s engaged buyers tend to gather most of their information before they seek out your product content. But in the rush to transform themselves into “publishers,” many marketers have invested in branded content without enough impact on the business. The best branded content comes from understanding a conversation your buyer is interested in—and defining a valuable role for your brand to play in it. Only then can you produce interesting topical content that also delivers real marketing value.
DON’T
CREATE TOPICAL CONTENT THAT’S MORE INTERESTING THAN PRODUCT PROMOTION
DO IT WITHOUT CLEARLY DEFINING ITS BRAND AND BUSINESS IMPACT
DO
2 MAKE THE BUYER JOURNEY YOUR ROADMAP
You probably use a funnel or buying journey as a powerful framework for your other marketing strategies and tactics. Make sure any content idea you have is also designed to play a measurable role at a specific point in that journey. Like building awareness of your brand with a key audience at the very top of the funnel. Or moving your targets past a stubborn obstacle to product consideration.
DON’T
CLEARLY DEFINE EACH CONTENT EXPERIENCE’S ROLE IN THE BUYER JOURNEY.
DEFEND A CONTENT IDEA BECAUSE “WE CAN USE IT EVERYWHERE!” (THEN WHAT IS IT FOR?)
DO
3 THINK AS HARD ABOUT REACH AS YOU DO ABOUT THE CONTENT
You know the quality of your content is absolutely key to making it succeed. But even great content needs a serious strategy for getting it in front of your targets. This probably involves investing in some form of paid or sponsored media—as well as taking advantage of earned and owned channels you can leverage. It may even include building reach into the content idea itself (like an incentive for sharing).
DON’T
ASK HARD QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW YOUR CONTENT WILL REACH ENOUGH TARGETS TO MATTER.
THINK POSTING ON YOUTUBE IS A NO-COST WAY TO REACH MILLIONS.
DO
4 LOOK BEYOND THE VIEW
Maybe you get to make content that only needs to be consumed to earn its keep. But if you’re like the rest of us, you need your content to do more. Like interest someone in deeper information. Or generate a prospect email address. Or drive toward an in-store purchase. Objectives like these should have a huge effect on what content you decide to make and how it works.
DON’T
DESIGN EACH CONTENT EXPERIENCE WITH A NEXT ACTION IN MIND.
ADD A CTA AS AN AFTERTHOUGHT—OR WORSE, OMIT IT BECAUSE IT SEEMS “TOO SALESY.”
DO
5 STOP BEING A FORMAT SNOB
Video is a hot content format for lots of good reasons, but that doesn’t mean it’s the best or most cost-effective way for you to achieve a marketing objective. Broaden your toolkit beyond the sexy and expensive. Consider animated GIFs, Q&As, infographs, polls, slideshows—or longform pieces that can deliver substance for your most engaged buyers. And remember, it’s more likely your target will be attracted by your content’s topic and value than by its format.
DON’T
PUT OBJECTIVE AND IDEA BEFORE FORM.
BRAINSTORM VIDEO CONCEPTS INSTEAD OF CONTENT IDEAS.
DO
6 GRAB A PARTNER
It’s easy to think your brand has to make all its own content. But working with a partner can bring powerful advantages to the table. For example, many publishers have become more open to co-creating new forms of content with brands. Magic can happen when a publisher’s editorial mission, audience, and credibility align with the point of view and expertise you can bring to a topic. The result could be a win-win-win—for the publisher, for your brand, and for the audience you both care about.
DON’T
LOOK TO PARTNERS FOR REACH, RELEVANCE & RESOURCES.
ASSUME YOU SHOULD CREATE EVERYTHING YOURSELF.
WHERE TO TURN:
WE’D LIKETO HELP
SEE WHAT WE’RE ABOUTAs an agency, we like to figure out the hard stuff. And for marketers, the hard stuff is everywhere these days. Learn more about PJA at agencypja.com
OUR WORK
Breakthrough creative and results for clients including GE Healthcare, Brother, Iron Mountain, and Red Hat.
OUR THINKING
On topics from brand positioning to generating an earned premium on your marketing investment.
Meet the people who do business the other way in this PJA radio show featuring interviews with leaders from Warby Parker, MakerBot, Converse and more.
advertising + marketing for innovative brands
TALK TO US
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Matt MageeVP, Digital Strategy
Matt drives digital strategy and execution at PJA, where he’s helped clients like Corning, Yahoo! and TracFone take advantage of emerging digital opportunities to deliver marketing results.
PJA Advertising + MarketingGreg Straface
VP, Business Development
(617) 234-7371
@agencypja
We can help you develop a content marketing strategy that matches your marketing objectives—and make sure its execution delivers real value for the business.
