The Secret to Great Marketing Content
Back in 1996, Bill Gates made famous the concept of “Content is King” in reference to what would drive revenue streams and growth on the Internet. More than a quarter of a century later, those words continue to ring true, and as marketers we spend most of our time conceptualizing, developing and repurposing content to drive interest and build engagement with our target audiences.
But what does “content” mean today? And how can you build the kind of content that keeps your audience coming back for more?
Start With A Plan
Before you start building content, you need to create a plan around that content. That plan should be based on a few key considerations:
Who are you writing for?
What is your audience interested in?
When is the right time to reach them with that content?
Where will they receive that message best?
Why do they need this message? Why do you need to provide it?
How will they consume your content?
Who-what-when-where-why-and-how are concepts you’ll see me talk about frequently when it comes to messaging and marketing. These core questions are what drive the hard answers you need to build a program that will both entice and engage your audience.
Tell A (Great) Story
Human beings love stories. From the days of our ancient ancestors huddled together around the cave fire to modern movie wonders with spaceships and dragons, we are drawn to narratives that help us relate to our world or explore new ideas. As you develop your content, consider what story you are telling to your audience. Even if your content is technical in nature, you can still build out a story format that is engaging and interesting for your reader. This is especially important with B2B industries, as frequently your competitors will put forward content that is dry and less engaging. If you can take what you offer and put an interesting story around it, your messaging can really stand out to your audience.
As you develop your story ideas, make sure that they discuss not only what you know, but also what your audience really cares about. Go back to your initial questions and answer the WHY. Why do they care? If you consider their problems, their challenges, their needs, you can build a story that is more about them than you, and that is what they will find the most interesting.
From there, think about where and how your story will be presented. In some industries, a white paper is the right format to showcase information and build engagement. For others, an article on Medium or LinkedIn might be the best way to bring visibility to a topic. Once you understand the where and how, you can craft the right format for your story and ensure a delivery that is appropriate and well-received.
Finally, think about consistency. Rarely is there one magical piece of content that will transform your business or convert your audience. Your content needs to be delivered regularly and consistently to your target reader in order for them to receive and internalize your message. Build out not just one piece of content, but a series of pieces that you can put in front of your audience in a consistent manner to help them understand and embrace your message.
Not So Secret
The reality around delivering great content is that there really aren’t a lot of secrets. Successful content is about understanding your audience, anticipating their needs, and then crafting what they will find interesting. It’s nothing secret, but it does require some hard work, research and a bit of writing talent to help craft the most engaging content that they will respond to.
Hey there…
After decades of crafting successful campaigns for my clients, I’ve seen and learned a lot. Tap into some of those lessons in my book, Precision Email: 7 Lessons in Engagement Strategy, available on Amazon.
