So you’ve decided that content marketing is a serious to do list item for 2015, but it’s a bit daunting to get started. Well you’re in luck. Here’s everything you need to know on how content marketing is maturing and the ways that marketers can embrace it.
Not that long ago, clients were wary of “content marketing.” Could we really attract audiences and build relationships by sharing information (copy, photos, videos) that was relevant and interesting but not directly selling products and services? Brands large and small have proven that a committed, proper effort is extremely worthwhile.
The question is no longer “should we pursue a content strategy?” it’s more like “how can we scale content marketing so it really impacts our relationships and drives new, qualified traffic?”
- Make Content a Company-Wide Commitment – Chances are, you have a couple of good writers in every department. Find your hidden talent, brainstorm, and guide them with an editorial calendar that draws perspective from every area of the company. Content multiplies and this more transparent, holistic approach generally produces fresh, credible content. Plus, it’s a hell of a lot easier to stay consistent when you share the responsibility.
- Build Content Partnerships – If you don’t have the bandwidth or writing talent internally, fear not! There are other options. In fact Larger brands are actually purchasing publications or creating formal partnerships with YouTube personalities or successful niche bloggers. But you don’t have to go that big; a content partnership can also just mean two groups sharing content on each other’s sites. There are also more formal paid and unpaid services for “content syndication” you can explore.
- Leverage Brand Advocates – Tried, proven and still powerful – motivate your raving fans to create and share content. This remains the most credible, highly effective way to scale your content exposure.
- Blogger Outreach – From pitching story ideas, to exchanging guest posts, soliciting product reviews, there’s a ton of ways to create content through blogger outreach. It’s nothing new, but it’s still a solid, productive tactic.
- Repurpose, Reuse Content – We’re not saying start cutting and pasting old content and reposting it. That’s a big no-no. But reusing content isn’t a bad thing if it’s done right. It can be breaking dense content into a series of posts, or repurposing content for different networks to reach different audience segments.
- “Transmedia Storytelling” – This is just a fancy way of saying that instead of just repurposing content, you should use each social network to tell different aspects of the story, so that all together they give users a much richer overall narrative.
- Personalized Content – This sounds great, but the reality is daunting. So, walk before you run. Create several meaningful audience segments, determine how to uniquely speak to them, adjust your editorial calendars and set concrete goals for engagement, click-throughs or action from each audience.
