Post on 06-Apr-2016
description
Content Marketing WorkshopWhy and how to generate sales leads
from content you share on the Internet
© 2014 Hollister Creative, Inc.All rights reserved
HollisterCreative.com
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Goals for this workshop
1. Understand what content marketing is
2. Understand why investing in content marketing makes sense for most companies
3. Understand how your company can generate sales leads from content you share online
HollisterCreative.com
Goals for this workshop
1. Understand what content marketing is
2. Understand why investing in content marketing makes sense for most companies
3. Understand how your company can generate sales leads from content you share online
2
Section 1What is
content marketing?
HollisterCreative.com
What is
content marketing?
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Content marketing is a marketing tacticOther marketing tactics that might be more familiar to you are exhibiting at trade shows, pay-per-click ads and direct mail.
Savvy marketers use multiple tactics and plan them so that they work together to reinforce your brand and message.
HollisterCreative.com
Content marketing is a marketing tacticOther marketing tactics that might be more familiar to you are exhibiting at trade shows, pay-per-click ads and direct mail.
Savvy marketers use multiple tactics and plan them so that they work together to reinforce your brand and message.
4
Content is information you create in any formExamples of digital content you can share online:
• Article• Case study• Contest• Customer story• Digital magazine• Ebook• Email newsletter• Expert Q&A• Game• Help forum• “How to” explainer
• Informational graphic• Photo gallery• Podcast• Poll and results• PowerPoint• “Pro and Con”opinion piece• Tip sheet• Review• Video• Webinar• White paper
HollisterCreative.com
Content is information you create in any formExamples of digital content you can share online:
• Informational graphic• Photo gallery• Podcast• Poll and results• PowerPoint• “Pro and Con”opinion piece• Tip sheet• Review• Video• Webinar• White paper
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Content created for marketing is purposefulIts purpose is:
• To attract the right audience
• To engage people who have an interest in a product or service you sell
• T o convert those people into leads for your sales team
HollisterCreative.com
Content created for marketing is purposefulIts purpose is:
• To attract the right audience
• To engage people who have an interest in a product or service you sell
• T o convert those people into leads for your sales team
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Content for marketing is not an advertisement• It provides information and/or entertainment that is valuable to
your audience
• It demonstrates your company’s knowledge and experience by showing, not telling
• It doesn’t ask the reader to buy anything
HollisterCreative.com
Content for marketing is not an advertisement• It provides information and/or entertainment that is valuable to
your audience
• It demonstrates your company’s knowledge and experience by showing, not telling
• It doesn’t ask the reader to buy anything
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Content marketing requires distributionContent can’t fulfill its marketing role unless you:
Pull in your audience by placing the content on your website or blog, and optimizing the content so that people find it when they search online for information on that topic
…and…
Push out to your audience by sending the content, or a link to it, via email, social media and possibly offline promotion
HollisterCreative.com
Content marketing requires distributionContent can’t fulfill its marketing role unless you:
Pull in your audience by placing the content on your website or blog, and optimizing the content so that people find it when they search online for information on that topic
…and…
Push out to your audience by sending the content, or a link to it, via email, social media and possibly offline promotion
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Section 2Why should I
invest in content
marketing?
HollisterCreative.com
Why should I
invest in content
marketing?
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People like to buy, but dislike being sold to• More than 200 million Americans have registered on the FTC’s
“Do Not Call” list — that’s two-thirds of U.S. residents
• 86% of people watching pre-recorded television shows always fast forward through the ads (YouGov research for Deloitte)
• The click-through rate for online display ads is 0.19% for standard media, 0.18% for rich media (DoubleClick by Google)
HollisterCreative.com
People like to buy, but dislike being sold to• More than 200 million Americans have registered on the FTC’s
“Do Not Call” list — that’s two-thirds of U.S. residents
• 86% of people watching pre-recorded television shows always fast forward through the ads (YouGov research for Deloitte)
• The click-through rate for online display ads is 0.19% for standard media, 0.18% for rich media (DoubleClick by Google)
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People do research online before they buy• 97% of consumers use online media to research products or
services in their local area (BIA Kelsey 2010)
• Consumers spend an average of 79 days gathering information before making a major purchase
(GE Capital Retail Bank’s second annual Major Purchase Shopper Study, July 2013)
• 79% of consumers say technology empowers them with more information and the knowledge that they are getting the best deal (GE Capital Retail Bank’s second annual Major Purchase Shopper Study, July 2013)
HollisterCreative.com
People do research online before they buy• 97% of consumers use online media to research products or
services in their local area (BIA Kelsey 2010)
• Consumers spend an average of 79 days gathering information before making a major purchase
(GE Capital Retail Bank’s second annual Major Purchase Shopper Study, July 2013)
• 79% of consumers say technology empowers them with more information and the knowledge that they are getting the best deal (GE Capital Retail Bank’s second annual Major Purchase Shopper Study, July 2013)
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Businesses buy the same way consumers buy IHS GlobalSpec reports on surveys of North American technical professionals show:
• 74% use the Internet to find components, equipment, services and suppliers
• 69% use it to compare products across suppliers
• 59% rely on digital research to narrow down their options before getting a vendor involved; they don’t make contact with vendors until the evaluation or purchase stages later in the buying process
Reports cited: 2014 Digital Media Use In The Industrial Sector and 2013 Understanding the Industrial Buy Cycle
HollisterCreative.com
Businesses buy the same way consumers buy IHS GlobalSpec reports on surveys of North American technical professionals show:
• 74% use the Internet to find components, equipment, services and suppliers
• 69% use it to compare products across suppliers
• 59% rely on digital research to narrow down their options before getting a vendor involved; they don’t make contact with vendors until the evaluation or purchase stages later in the buying process
Reports cited: 2014 Digital Media Use In The Industrial Sector and 2013 Understanding the Industrial Buy Cycle
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We all buy from those we know, like and trustFree, relevant content helps people…
• get to know your company as an expert and leader in your industry
• grow to like your company because it reaches out to them in an authentic and helpful manner
• develop trust in your company as the one most able to relieve their pain
HollisterCreative.com
We all buy from those we know, like and trustFree, relevant content helps people…
• get to know your company as an expert and leader in your industry
• grow to like your company because it reaches out to them in an authentic and helpful manner
• develop trust in your company as the one most able to relieve their pain
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Content is the #1 way to optimize a websiteIn fact, it is now the only effective way…
• Google has killed nearly all previously effective SEO tactics while rewarding sites that have relevant content
• Each blog post adds a page to your website, giving Google another page to index and giving your site another topic for which it can show up in search results
• Blogs on company websites result in 55% more visitors, 97% more inbound links and 434% more indexed pages
HollisterCreative.com
Content is the #1 way to optimize a websiteIn fact, it is now the only effective way…
• Google has killed nearly all previously effective SEO tactics while rewarding sites that have relevant content
• Each blog post adds a page to your website, giving Google another page to index and giving your site another topic for which it can show up in search results
• Blogs on company websites result in 55% more visitors, 97% more inbound links and 434% more indexed pages
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Content marketing is highly cost effective• Content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and
generates about 3 times as many leads per dollar spent (Demand Metric)
• Over a 2-year period, cost-per-lead from content marketing is 31% less than cost-per-lead from paid search (Kapost/Eloqua study)
• B2B companies with blogs generate 67% more leads per month than companies without blogs (Social Media B2B)
• The website conversion rate is higher for brands that do content marketing — 2.9% versus 0.5% for brands that don’t — a 6x advantage for the content marketers (Aberdeen)
HollisterCreative.com
Content marketing is highly cost effective• Content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and
generates about 3 times as many leads per dollar spent (Demand Metric)
• Over a 2-year period, cost-per-lead from content marketing is 31% less than cost-per-lead from paid search (Kapost/Eloqua study)
• B2B companies with blogs generate 67% more leads per month than companies without blogs (Social Media B2B)
• The website conversion rate is higher for brands that do content marketing — 2.9% versus 0.5% for brands that don’t — a 6x advantage for the content marketers (Aberdeen)
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Section 3 How can my
company generate
sales leads from
content marketing?
HollisterCreative.com
How can my
company generate
sales leads from
content marketing?
16
1. If you are not blogging, start now. If you are blogging, blog smarter.
First, a few technical points about blog setup …
• Make your blog part of your website, not a separate domain; that way, your entire site gets the SEO benefits of higher Google rank from more content and more backlinks
• If your current website platform doesn’t have a great blog option, integrate a WordPress blog
• Install an SEO plugin that guides you in optimizing each blog post for search; for WordPress, we recommend the Yoast plugin
HollisterCreative.com
1. If you are not blogging, start now. If you are blogging, blog smarter.
First, a few technical points about blog setup …
• Make your blog part of your website, not a separate domain; that way, your entire site gets the SEO benefits of higher Google rank from more content and more backlinks
• If your current website platform doesn’t have a great blog option, integrate a WordPress blog
• Install an SEO plugin that guides you in optimizing each blog post for search; for WordPress, we recommend the Yoast plugin
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2. Develop a blog content strategyAligning each blog topic with the strategy will ensure that your content is purposeful
• Purpose: Attract the right audience
Strategy: Write for your buyers and their influencers; define their job titles, demographics and motivations
Title
Age
Gender
Education
Motivators
HollisterCreative.com
2. Develop a blog content strategyAligning each blog topic with the strategy will ensure that your content is purposeful
• Purpose: Attract the right audience
Strategy: Write for your buyers and their influencers; define their job titles, demographics and motivations
Title
Age
Gender
Education
Motivators
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• Purpose: Engage them
Strategy: Answer the questions they have at each stage of the buying process, from awareness to vendor selection
Is there a solution to this problem?
What are all the ways to solve it?
Who can help me solve it?
Which vendor will be best?
HollisterCreative.com
• Purpose: Engage them
Strategy: Answer the questions they have at each stage of the buying process, from awareness to vendor selection
Is there a solution to this problem?
What are all the ways to solve it?
Who can help me solve it?
Which vendor will be best?
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• Purpose: Convert them into leads
Strategy: With every blog post, offer them options to learn more, ask a question, contact you or request a rep call
Want to learn more? Go to www.this-page-on-our-website.com
Have a quick question? Click for live chat to ask it right now
Ready to contact us? Call 444-444-4444 or email info@ourcompany.com
Want a rep to call you? Submit this form so we know the best number
to reach you and the best time to call
HollisterCreative.com
• Purpose: Convert them into leads
Strategy: With every blog post, offer them options to learn more, ask a question, contact you or request a rep call
Want to learn more? Go to www.this-page-on-our-website.com
Have a quick question? Click for live chat to ask it right now
Ready to contact us? Call 444-444-4444 or email info@ourcompany.com
Want a rep to call you? Submit this form so we know the best number
to reach you and the best time to call
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3. Give the blog a voice and personalityDull, dry, passionless or plodding will turn off readers
• Choose a company voice consistent with your brand
• Speak passionately about the things your company is passionate about
• Enfuse the voice with excitement about the subject matter
• Give meaty facts but spice them up by expressing the company’s well-informed attitudes and opinions
• Aim for thought leadership, which requires not just subject matter expertise, but also industry knowledge, trend analysis, vision and the confidence to say something new that all your peers aren’t already saying
HollisterCreative.com
3. Give the blog a voice and personalityDull, dry, passionless or plodding will turn off readers
• Choose a company voice consistent with your brand
• Speak passionately about the things your company is passionate about
• Enfuse the voice with excitement about the subject matter
• Give meaty facts but spice them up by expressing the company’s well-informed attitudes and opinions
• Aim for thought leadership, which requires not just subject matter expertise, but also industry knowledge, trend analysis, vision and the confidence to say something new that all your peers aren’t already saying
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4. Make a realistic plan to blog regularlyConsistency is key to building an audience and a library of content with detailed answers to audience questions
• Commit to providing the necessary resources
• Require that blog articles be posted on a firm schedule
• Assign the job of blog manager to a qualified employee or an outside contractor
• Provide incentives for every person in your organization to submit questions asked by prospects and customers
• Ask that employees respond promptly to requests for information or an interview from the blog manager or writer
HollisterCreative.com
4. Make a realistic plan to blog regularlyConsistency is key to building an audience and a library of content with detailed answers to audience questions
• Commit to providing the necessary resources
• Require that blog articles be posted on a firm schedule
• Assign the job of blog manager to a qualified employee or an outside contractor
• Provide incentives for every person in your organization to submit questions asked by prospects and customers
• Ask that employees respond promptly to requests for information or an interview from the blog manager or writer
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5. Select a strategic mix of blog topicsEach quarter, have topics that appeal to each type of buyer at each stage in the buyer journey
• Example: If you blog 3 times per week and have 3 types of buyers (CEO, VP of Operations and Maintenance Manager), one blog per week can be written for each type of buyer
• Example: In a 13-week quarter, with 13 blog posts aimed at the VP of Operations, you can answer 4 top-of-sales-funnel questions, 5 mid-funnel questions and 4 bottom-of-funnel questions
HollisterCreative.com
5. Select a strategic mix of blog topicsEach quarter, have topics that appeal to each type of buyer at each stage in the buyer journey
• Example: If you blog 3 times per week and have 3 types of buyers (CEO, VP of Operations and Maintenance Manager), one blog per week can be written for each type of buyer
• Example: In a 13-week quarter, with 13 blog posts aimed at the VP of Operations, you can answer 4 top-of-sales-funnel questions, 5 mid-funnel questions and 4 bottom-of-funnel questions
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6. Distribute blogs through multiple channelsMost people will not subscribe to a blog, so use other means to get the content in front of your audience
• Each month, collect the most recent 4-5 blog posts and make them the content in your email newsletter
• Share each blog post through your company social media outlets: LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter (and Facebook if B2C)
• Ask company executives and employees to share selected blog posts through their personal LinkedIn pages, or the LinkedIn groups they belong to, or other social media accounts they have, when the topic relates to their areas of responsibility
HollisterCreative.com
6. Distribute blogs through multiple channelsMost people will not subscribe to a blog, so use other means to get the content in front of your audience
• Each month, collect the most recent 4-5 blog posts and make them the content in your email newsletter
• Share each blog post through your company social media outlets: LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter (and Facebook if B2C)
• Ask company executives and employees to share selected blog posts through their personal LinkedIn pages, or the LinkedIn groups they belong to, or other social media accounts they have, when the topic relates to their areas of responsibility
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7. More smart ways to share content A blog that answers buyer questions is the core of a solid content marketing strategy. Get that going as described, then you can expand on the types of content you share and the ways you share it.
• Remember all those forms of content we listed? Many blog topics can be addressed in a different format, such as a video. Some topics could be expanded into a white paper or an ebook. Some could be condensed into a graphic.
• Sharing blogs on social media should be routine. But some topics may lend themselves to repurposing as an article on an industry blog or in a trade magazine, a case study on your website, or a topic for a webinar or a trade show talk.
HollisterCreative.com
7. More smart ways to share content A blog that answers buyer questions is the core of a solid content marketing strategy. Get that going as described, then you can expand on the types of content you share and the ways you share it.
• Remember all those forms of content we listed? Many blog topics can be addressed in a different format, such as a video. Some topics could be expanded into a white paper or an ebook. Some could be condensed into a graphic.
• Sharing blogs on social media should be routine. But some topics may lend themselves to repurposing as an article on an industry blog or in a trade magazine, a case study on your website, or a topic for a webinar or a trade show talk.
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Hollister Creative supports the growth and success of ambitious organizations through marketing and communications. We guide and assist our business and nonprofit clients in strategy, branding, content creation, graphic design and distribution in print and on the web.
Hollister Creative, Inc.763 W. Lancaster Ave., Suite 250
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
484-829-0021 | www.hollistercreative.com contactus@hollistercreative.com
www.linkedin.com/company/hollister-creativehttps://twitter.com/HollisterCreate
https://www.facebook.com/HollisterCreative
HollisterCreative.com
Hollister Creative supports the growth and success of ambitious organizations through marketing and communications. We guide and assist our business and nonprofit clients in strategy, branding, content creation, graphic design and distribution in print and on the web.
Hollister Creative, Inc.763 W. Lancaster Ave., Suite 250
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
484-829-0021 | www.hollistercreative.com contactus@hollistercreative.com
www.linkedin.com/company/hollister-creativehttps://twitter.com/HollisterCreate
https://www.facebook.com/HollisterCreative