2. Content Marketing Network
• Google
• Traffic Arbitrage
• Culture
• Information and Brands
• Reputation and Algorithms
• API’s
• Perfect Storm
• Idea: Create Content Marketing Network
• Content Marketing Network Network Benefits
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3. Google
• Google’s dominance is reshaping online commerce and marketing:
– Google share of search traffic > 70%.
– Google’s stress on content flooding web with keyword dense
content:
• Bruce Clay et al. teaching same lessons to anyone with tuition.
• Keyword density tools such as WordVision = sophisticated and
ubiquitous.
– Google’s algorithm changes favor nimble, flexible platforms with
regularly changing keyword dense content.
– Google looks for authority and measures it by:
• Inbound Links and reputation of those links.
• Keyword Content and “On Page” factors.
• Traffic and user metrics (how long, what do).
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4. Traffic Arbitrage
• Traffic arbitrage sites such as About.com and AskMen.com add
thousands of words of content from multiple authors every day.
– Site architecture and Content designed to gain search listings.
– Search traffic sold to advertisers.
• Traffic arbitrage is high margin after initial costs because:
– Platform is largest investment.
– Use of platform lowers investment cost per content created.
– Content becomes self fulfilling and beneficial
• More traffic truly leads to more traffic, more listings, more
revenue and lower costs.
– Ability to create new “products” (articles or content) is infinite and
inexpensive compared to manufacturing or distributing hard
goods.
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5. Culture
• Culture is also shifting (chicken or egg who knows):
– DIY (do-it-yourself) = reality with “free” tools.
– Word-of-mouth and social networks = key.
– Consumers difficult to reach with traditional marketing (tv,
print).
• DIY Trend super fueled by new tools:
– Free Social network sites such as Facebook.
– Free Word Processor software (Google Docs).
– Free Blogging software.
• Web’s ubiquity and morphing delivery systems (phones, tv)
changing marketing:
– CraigsList = destroys classified ads destroying newspapers.
– Hulu’s free TV = one of web’s fastest growing sites.
– SKYPE = free long distance using voice over internet.
– Apple iPhone goes to 10MM units sold in months inspiring
other handheld manufacturers to emulate “always on”
connection to web.
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6. Information and Brands
• Steven Johhson’s book Everything Bad Is Good For You argues:
– Complexity is new baseline.
– New Tools (Google and video games) increase capacity to handle large
amounts of information.
• Capacity to manage more information is greater, time is not.
– The Attention Economy = time is new currency:
– 3,000 to 5,000 commercial messages seen by every adult every day,
millions of ad messages by 30.
– People must shut out advertising messages:
• Reviews more important than Feature / Benefit copy.
• Word-of-mouth = best and hardest to get advertising.
• All marketing battle for hearts and minds
• Ability to buy no longer special
• Able to buy anything at anytime from a number of sources.
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7. Reputation and Algorithms
• Brands provide short hand to parse mountains of consumer information
• In some ways brands are weaker:
– Become vulnerable to price snipping thanks to free review, reputation
and ranking tools.
– Easy to find (Amazon.com, BizRate, Epinions) reputation algorithms
mean everyone knows everything simultaneously.
• One effect of DIY culture may be reduction in brand loyalty.
– Recent CMO Study shows consumers less loyal to many consumer
packaged brands during recession.
• Reputation as expressed in algorithms = key to long term marketing
success.
• Law of large numbers (more information, more reviews) creates a higher
baseline (one negative review can’t sink the boat or brand).
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8. API’s
• Software development too is changing:
– More “open source” applications.
– Application Program Interfaces (API’s) allow building with other people’s
tools (OPT).
– New software provide API’s for survival:
• Can’t create enough variety fast enough on their own.
• More Applications = more scale = survival.
– Use of API transfers familiarity and legitimacy.
– Free and open source are move viable than ever before.
– Free = philosophical shift.
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9. Perfect Storm
• Marketing is in a perfect storm:
– Traditional tools costing more, delivering less.
– New tools (Facebook) launched, but not scaled.
– Winners uncertain.
• Some marketing rules do not change:
– Do marketing first.
– Purple is important.
– Exclusive is a currency.
– Customer service = very important.
• Cash register for other marketing not sustainable (Google doesn’t care).
• Online marketing strategy must change.
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10. Idea: Create A Content Marketing Network
• A Content Marketing Network is…
– Loose affiliation of content creators using flexible web-based tools to
create and edit content.
– An emergent system with little centralized control over what content
is created or how it is edited.
– A community ruled, for the most part, by social stigma and wisdom
of crowds.
– Formed around a particular topic or issues shared by commercial (e-
commerce web sites or companies) and noncommercial (nonprofits,
colleges, university) stakeholders.
– A shared resource possibly created by a “sponsoring” agent or
company but dedicated to advancement of human issues and ideas
not a single company’s profits or standing.
– Not traditional marketing using some other means.
– Managed for greater good as judged by community leaders.
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11. Evolution of the Web
E-Commerce Content Marketing Content Marketing Networks
Time Now
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12. Idea: Create Content Marketing Network
STORE
Colleges & Universities - - Dictionary / Wiki
Seminars - - Forum
Mash Up Content - - Magazines (monthly editorial feature)
Contests& Games - Content Marketing Network - Professionals & Experts
Local Search (city & state) - - Other Sites
Lifestyle - - Wholesale & Other Web sites (SI, RX)
Social Networks - - Buzz Team Profiles and Reviews
Personals - - Blogs
SUPER PARTNERS STORES
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13. Content Marketing Network Benefits
• Reduced content creation costs.
– Users create content in an emergent system.
– Costs distributed across a network.
• Increased organic listings and traffic they bring.
• Flexible, responsive, constantly changing “content world”.
• Hard for competitors to duplicate quickly.
• Important source of market intelligence.
• Increased brand awareness as “sponsoring agent” and Network backbone.
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