Word-of-mouth marketing has to start somewhere, and that somewhere is advertising, press releases, sales calls, direct mail, etc. I’ve used this analogy before, but advertising is like the Big Bang that gives momentum to word-of-mouth.
First of all, don’t think of content as something you must give away for free. Content is widely available and, frankly, it’s easy to produce, but it’s not easy to produce good content. You get what you pay for, and if you pay for good content, you should look for ways to get a return on that investment.
Although communications, public relations and marketing functions are separated in many organizations, content is the bridge that connects them. Offering useful, compelling content is a sound strategy for anyone engaged in these roles. Here are five tips to help you move in that direction:
Respect is really the cornerstone of an effective content strategy. If you don’t approach your customers with respect, it will be painfully obvious in the content you offer them. Most traditional advertising copy (and sales strategies) are based on the notion that customers want to know about features and benefits. I think that’s still true, but what happened along the way? Companies started bullshitting about the features and benefits of their products.
I think the relationship between content marketing and sales too often gets lost. It’s difficult to measure how providing content translates into purchases, especially when the content is given away for free. So here’s a reminder of how content directly contributes to sales.
Position marketing and content marketing are so closely related on a strategic level that it’s a wonder more companies don’t see the relationship. It may be that marketing executives are pressed for time or that their education and experience is rooted in tactics, but when I talk to them about positioning, their priorities tend to start with the delivery vehicle. The content they actually deliver seems secondary.
Positioning is important because it helps a company differentiate itself from other companies in the market and therefore attract customers who identify with its brand. Content marketing and position marketing go hand-in-hand, because content is a powerful way to communicate differences in brands.
Videos—especially those uploaded to YouTube—can be powerful marketing vehicles, but they’re still only as effective as the content they deliver. Before you decide to use videos as marketing vehicles, determine who’s going to develop the content. Do you have in-house staff with experience writing, filming and editing video? Do they need it?
More and more organizations are recognizing the importance of content to their marketing strategies, but most offer lip service to the value of content. If you want to know which companies really value content marketing, look at their budgets.
Establishing trust with customers through content marketing is easier said than done. The following isn’t an exhaustive list, but what I consider four important criteria necessary for building trust. 1. Authority To establish authority, first you have to actually be an authority. No faking it with your customers. They’ll know whether you’re an authority they [...]
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