Everything You Need to Know About

Content Marketing
and What It Means for You

The Importance of Great Content

The Internet has had a huge impact on the way people make purchases. A generation ago, if you wanted advice on what to buy, you asked a friend for a recommendation or checked a rating publication. Now, people flock to the Internet to do research. This means that in order to stand out your business needs a web presence greater than a simple website. Your website must provide meaningful and useful content that can attract social media sources. Websites and social media thrive on content; good, authoritative, content. So, what is content? Content takes many forms. Most of them are written, but it also includes video and audio. Content marketing differs from other types of marketing. Where most marketing focuses on selling product, content marketing focuses on selling knowledge. The advantage? Content marketing shows potential and existing customers that youre knowledgeable and passionate about your industry. This gives you a competitive advantage.

Content Marketing is the creation and distribution of content that: Converts prospects into customers Provides valuable information to existing clients which ultimately helps them make a purchase Offers a solution to a problem or situation Content creation and sharing is an integral component to an effective marketing strategy. It helps organizations expand their customer reach, nurture leads, build credibility and maximize your natural search rankings. Since content marketing is a fairly new channel, the lines between various types of content are fuzzy. The terms are not absolute. Some people may use words interchangeably. This alphabetical guide details the various forms content marketing takes and when it might be of use to you and your business.

Articles

Unless youve been living under a rock, you know articles. Youve seen articles pretty much from the time you could read. They appear in newspapers, magazines, trade publications, and on the Internet. An article generally covers a single topic. It can range from earth shattering news to a description of various tools, and anything in between. Articles are well researched and generally provide an impartial representation of the facts. Articles may appear online or in print. Online, they help increase your SEO ranking and draw traffic to your website. Informative articles, rather than sales pitches, show that your company is interested in providing impartial and useful information to existing and potential customers. They will remember you when making a purchase. There are several tools that make it easy for readers to tell others about your articles. Creative Commons (http://creativecommons.org/) copyrights your material and allows others to pass it on. Other popular social media sharing sites include Share This (http://sharethis.com/), and Add This (www.addthis.com/).

Blogs

Unlike their factual cousin the article, blogs can include personal opinions about a topic or issue. Business blogs are a way you can communicate directly with your customers. Blogs are often used to get feedback on both your company and its products. Blogs are comprised of entries called posts that are listed in chronological order, with the most current post on top. In most blogs, readers may comment on posts, and this dialogue can improve product development and customer service. A business blog can raise your websites ranking with search engines, since blogs contain frequently changing information, which is food for search engine spiders. Sounds great, right? Then why doesnt every organization have one? Cause theyre a lot of work. Its not easy to come up with something entertaining yet interesting several times a week. In order to develop a following, your blogs writing style must be appealing. There must be something unique, playful or engaging about the writing. Blogs that read like the inserts to prescription medication dont get a huge following. Equally as important, you must be able to deftly handle criticism without taking it personally. Not many of us come to work with bulletproof vests on a regular basis, and thats often what you need to manage a successful blog. Still not sure?

Think through these questions to help you decide if blogging is for you: Which type of blog makes the most sense for your organization? CEO / senior management blog demonstrates thought leadership. Specialist blogs provide a place for conversations with customers. Staff blogs can make the organization more human by showcasing various employees. Will you allow comments? If so, will they be moderated i.e., will someone review each comment before it goes live? If not, are you prepared to be lambasted in various forms of social media for not being open to differing opinions? How will you handle feedback? What will you do if the feedback is negative? Is your organization capable of responding in a manner that engages rather than angers readers? Who will be the voice of your company? Will it be written by senior executives or someone lower down in the food chain? Will there only be one voice for the company or will many people write blog posts?

Do you have a clear blogging strategy that defines what your organization hopes to accomplish with the blog? How does the blog add to your existing marketing strategies? What are your expectations for the blog? Do you want to add a blog to increase sales, raise your organizations profile or educate the blogosphere? Many content marketers believe the blog is the foundation of thought leadership. Even if you dont see a blog as a reasonable option, you can still use the blogosphere to get your thoughts and expertise out in public. All it involves is regularly checking the blogosphere to see who is discussing your organization and what theyre saying. You can benefit from blogging by commenting intelligently to existing blogs about your industry or responding to blog posts about your organization. To find out whats being said about your organization, type www.technorati.com into any web browser and then enter your organizations name.

E-Books

The E-Book, is like the youngest child in the family. Its very different from the oldest child, the more serious and technical white paper. E-Books can take many forms. It can be a chapter book or simply information on a specific topic (like this information on content marketing). In general, E-Books interject a bit more whimsy or fun into a topic. They also include visual imagery to break up the page and make it more appealing to the reader. They make liberal use of white space, knowing that dense, text-rich material causes many peoples eyes to glaze over. E-books are not sales pitches. They dont replace a marketing brochure. Instead, theyre meant to showcase your organizations thought leadership on a given topic. E-Books that appear on the Internet are generally formatted as PDF documents. Those designed to be read on an E-Reader device adopt whatever format is customary for a specific device. (This is used most often with book-length creations.)

E-Books answer questions existing or potential customers might have about a body of knowledge (such as what is content marketing). They showcase your organization as a trusted resource that is willing to provide information for free. Some experts think E-Books should be presented in a landscape format to distinguish them from the more serious white paper. This is obviously an idea we at Write For You Inc. dont endorse. We think landscape articles are difficult to read on a computer screen because you have to scroll to read. How does an organization develop and nurture an E-Book? Decide why youre writing the E-Book Is it to provide information? Do you want to generate sales leads? Do you want the reader to make a purchase? Think like the reader What issues or challenges do they face that you can help them with? Of those, what can your organization write intelligently about? Write for your audience Make your title attention-grabbing. (We could have called this Content Marketing 101, but went instead for something more fun.) Use a subtitle to either describe what the reader will learn or entice them. Write in a tone that would appeal to your audienceengineering jargon and acronyms make the non-technical reader run for the hills.

Use a professional editor and a proofreader Writing is hard work. Even the best writers often have difficulties editing their own work. Poorly edited material isnt going to showcase you as a thought leader. Pay attention to the design Hire a professional designer, if possible. Write for You can help you find reasonably priced people for this task. Make sure the finished product is visually appealing. If you make your E-Book sharable to various social media/networking sites, your words may take on a life of their own.

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Newsletter

A newsletter can be printed and mailed, although the vast majority are emailed to existing clients or those who have expressed an interest in receiving information. Like other forms of content, a newsletter should contain information that satisfies the needs of your audience. Otherwise, your missive will quickly meet the delete key. Since they are often a composite of several articles or kernels of information, newsletters come out on a monthly or even quarterly schedule. Of course, you could send one out every week, but that requires a lot of staff time in addition to a wealth of fresh, relevant content. Why write a newsletter? It allows your organization to maintain a relationship with existing customers and nurture potential customers. What is the care and feeding of a newsletter? Think like your readers (targeted audience) Include news that would be interesting to them. If youre numerically-inclined, include industry trends or statistics. Offer tips or advice.

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Select the voice that best represent your organization Do you want to be like bloggers and express an opinion about something thats of interest in your industry? Is your goal to inject a bit of humor or whimsy into your subjects? Write to get attention This starts with the name of your newsletter. Use your front page to entice the reader to take time from their busy day and read what youve sent. Would you keep reading if the front page was boring? Chances are your audience wont either. Consider putting teasers on the front page, with the articles available on subsequent pages or even on your website. Think about the design Do you want to include graphics or art work? Done well, they break up the text and make the overall impression more pleasing to the eye. Do your articles lend themselves to sidebars? Use a professional editor and a proofreader Writing is hard work. Even the best writers often have difficulties editing their own work. Poorly edited material wont make you look like a thought leader.

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Podcasts

Dont get frightened by the science fictiony word, a podcast is simply an audio file that you can listen to on your computer or download to an MP3-type player. Many podcasts are available through iTunes, although the most popular repositories for podcasts are Podcast.com (www.podcast.com/) or Podcast Alley (www.podcastalley.com/). Once relatively short, podcasts of 30 minutes or more are becoming increasingly popular. The general rule of thumb is to take as long as needed to cogently discuss a specific topic. Podcasts are a way to share information and opinions with existing and potential customers. They are not vehicles to advertise or promote your organization. Think of podcasts as soft-sell marketing by providing meaningful information, your organization is seen as a thought leader, which in turn promotes your organization.

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What does it take to produce a podcast? Financial investment Although you may not need a studio, a podcast requires highquality recording equipment. Editing software. Understand your target audience What keeps them up at night? What challenges do they face that you could solve? Ability to distill information The best podcasts focus on one specific topic. If you think in terms of steps, you could develop a series of podcasts surrounding one subject. Set the appropriate tone Podcasts sound to the listener as if theyre sitting across the table from the speaker in a caf. Decide what information you want to provide and how best to package it so it appeals to your target audience. Podcasting makes a personal connection with your audience.

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Videos

The number of new videos being added to You Tube each day is unbelievable and continues to soar! Remember the saying a picture is worth a thousand words? Thats a video. They can be added to your website, or e-newsletter. Videos let you demonstrate complicated concepts simply. Like a blog, they can also be used to make the people who work for your organization seem more human. There are various types of Videos you could make: Show people using (or misusing) your products. Interview staff or customers. Showcase a new product or technology. Do a behind-the-scenes interview. Showcase events. The goal of a video isnt to go viral. What you want is to create a video that reaches the types of people who might buy your products or services. What does it take to produce a video?

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Financial investment Although you may not need a studio, a video requires better recording power than your mobile phone. Editing software. Understand your target audience What keeps them up at night? What challenges do they face that you could solve? Ability to distill information The best videos focus on one topic at a time. If you think creatively, you could develop a series of videos on related subjects. Set the appropriate tone Your goal is to create a video that would appeal to the types of customers you want. Theres no sense appealing to the tweener market if what you want are not-for-profits. Write a script that allows your characters to be likeable. Having them appear like Moses on the mountain generally isnt a good idea. Decide what information you want to provide and how best to package it so it appeals to your target audience. Use your creativity so the videos make a personal connection with your audience. Come up with a jazzy title This is what people will see get their attention. Tag your video with every keyword you think potential customers might use.

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Websites

Think of your website as your primary corporate presence on the Internet. If youre a small business, it may be your only exposure to potential customers. You have less than 10 seconds to grab a customers attention before they leave your site. Thus, your website must engage visitors immediately. How? Make it easy for them to find exactly what theyre looking for; make it obvious how you can help your visitors achieve their personal or professional objectives. How often have you landed on a site and not been able to find what you were looking for? Did you return? Chances are your visitors wont either. Your website must provide information about your company, your products and services, and information on why people should buy from you. Content on your website is your handshake and smile, and it needs to be flawless. This is the place for a well-written, carefully crafted sales pitch. Using visuals that are closely connected to your written content can enhance the readers experience.

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Webinars

Webinars are simply online seminars. They can be an interactive venue for your content. Using web-enabled software such as Adobe Connect (www.adobe.com/products/adobeconnect.html) or Go-to-Meeting (www.gotomeeting.com/fec/), webinars gather participants in a virtual room where one or more presenters deliver audio content in conjunction with a PowerPoint slide presentation. If they log in during the actual presentation, participants can often ask questions of the presenters and have them answered at the end of the presentation. In most cases, webinars provide free information to participants. Many organizations archive their webinars so they can continue to reach prospective customers months after the initial event. This helps defray the initial costs of the webinar. Webcasts showcase your company as a thought leader and can be a good source of lead generation. How to go about creating a webinar Consider hiring a consultant Hiring a professional can save a lot of money and increase the likelihood that your webinar is a success. A consultant can recommend the right software to use given the geographical dispersion of your target audience.

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 Good consultants do at least one rehearsal to ensure the presenter and the slides work properly. Write for You can help you find the right seasoned professional for your needs. Determine who will be the presenters Quite often, a vendor will co-brand the webinar and bear some of the costs if they can provide some or all of the speakers. Decide if you want a single presenter or a group of presenters. Pick compelling speakers and work with them. Presenting in a web environment can be challenging since the presenter cant see the audience and feed off their energy. Pick a moderator A good moderator can manage the flow of the presentations, monitor written questions from the audience and handle any ongoing technical glitches. Moderators introduce the speaker(s). Dont have the moderator provide the ground rules. Its best to provide ground rule information in an email. If the moderator drones on about ground rules, some of your audience will start to read email and tune out the webinar. Expect the unexpected Have a plan for how youll handle hurricanes that pull down telephone lines. What will you do if theres a blackout that impacts your presentation? Plan for all sorts of contingencies and cross your fingers that they wont happen.

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White Papers

Much like a newsletter, a white paper can be found online (usually a PDF document) or on paper (generally white). In fact, the term white paper is derived from the white bond paper that was the first home for this content type. Initially, white papers were technically oriented, involved research, provided information, and were home to many graphs and charts. They were read by engineers and other technical types, so they were often acronym-rich and geared to a specific, often small, audience. Today, they are much the same. They showcase the organization that writes them as thought leaders. However, they are not sales pitches and arent used to promote products. Of course, you could outline a problem and, in your last paragraph, explain how your organizations product could solve the problem. A white paper generally showcases a solution to a problem or explains in great detail about a specific situation. Theyre often used to introduce technology innovations and products.

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Although not as light and breezy as their younger sibling the E-Book, white papers should be written in an engaging style. Titles matter and should entice the reader. The opening sentence should drive the reader to continue reading. How does an organization develop a White Paper? Know your audience What problems do they face for which you can offer solutions? Although you cant shill your solution, you can lead the way to the logical conclusion that you are the best provider. Write for your audience Make your title attention-grabbing. Use a subtitle to describe what the reader will learn or a benefit they will gain. Make sure your opening paragraph grabs the readers attention. In this time-constrained world, its imperative that the reader sees your white paper as a good use of his or her time. Write in a tone that appeals to your audience jargon and acronyms should be used sparingly unless the terms are explained. Ensure your writing matches your audience; engineers expect a different writing style than vice presidents would. Write the white paper in the third person since this is professional business writing. Focus on the readers pain points Showing that you understand your readers pain showcases your organizations empathy.

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Consider outsourcing the writing of a white paper This may sound counterintuitive, since your engineers or technical staff know the most about your products and services. However, the professional writer is able to interview the experts within your organization and write a paper with the right level of enthusiasm. More importantly, the hired gun can be impartial and not have their ego tied to the finished product. Use a professional editor and a proofreader Writing is hard work. Even the best writers often have difficulties editing their own work. Poorly edited material isnt the first step to being viewed as a thought leader. Pay attention to the design Hire a professional designer, if possible. Write for You can help you find reasonably priced people for this task. Make sure the finished product is visually appealing. If you make your White Paper sharable to various social media/ networking sites, your words may take on a life of their own. Many organizations require that readers provide contact information such as company name and email address so that they can add the readers to their marketing efforts. Some even charge for their White Papers.

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Carrie Shearer is a writer and researcher who has been

published in the Wall Street Journal and other global publications. Before embarking on her second, or is it third career, Carrie spent 25 years in the international petroleum industry, most of it overseas.

Write For You is a boutique content marketing company that

works primarily with small businesses and not-for-profits. We pride ourselves on investing time in getting to know our customers and the needs of their customers so we provide service that is just right.

www.writeforyouinc.com