Presenter: Mindy Weinstein, Director of Training at Bruce Clay Inc. Event: SEJ Summit 2015 "3Takeaways" Hosted by Searchmetrics- Santa Monica When your product or service is yawn-inducing, or is not generally a topic of polite company, what's a marketer to do? Mindy will take us through case studies of creating compelling content for challenging verticals. SEJ Summit 2015 is a new, boutique marketing conference series for Big Brand marketers. It's happening in Santa Monica, Dallas, Chicago, London, Silicon Valley, New York, Miami. It's *free* for invited attendees (a tip on how to get an invite is below). Our day of learning and networking features speakers from Disney, Copyblogger, Taco Bell, AirBnB and Copyblogger to name a few. Breakfast, lunch and a hosted networking reception are all included. SEJ Summit is hosted by Search Engine Journal and Searchmetrics. There will be no pitches, no product demos, no sponsored content. Note that anyone can request an invitation. Due to the room capacity, we can't guarantee everyone will receive one. *Protip: Big brand marketers will get priority. Request your invite here: http://www.searchenginejournal.com/sejsummit2015/

1. #SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

2. • Director of Training at Bruce Clay, Inc.
• Published author
• Former business professor
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

3. 3Takeaways
Develop real-life stories Keep your eyes open for
inspiration
Focus on being practical
and personal
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

4. WhenyourSubjectMatteris
is dull as a doorknob...
Whatdoyoudo?
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

5. #SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

6. Develop Real-Life Stories
When rats invade your car,
what do you do?
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7. Develop Real-Life Stories
“Why are stories so valuable? One reason is
that a story exerts a power beyond the
obvious. The whole is so much greater than
the sum of the parts—the facts, the events,
the context—that a story creates a deep
resonance.”
– Think Like a Freak
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8. Develop Real-Life Stories
• Stories allow us to put ourselves in the character’s shoes
• As the reader, we start to project ourselves onto the character:
• “Yes! That is what I would have done”
• “That’s how I felt too”
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

9. • People become interested when they are in need and want to know how
you have helped others like them
• When you all of a sudden have a problem, you start to notice possible
solutions all around you
• A once boring topic is no longer that boring to you
Develop Real-Life Stories
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

10. • Develop stories that address:
• How people have used the product or service
• The types of successes your customers or clients have had
• Take testimonials a step further by painting the entire picture for the
reader
Develop Real-Life Stories
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11. Develop Real-Life Stories
Why LED billboards are the right
choice for your organization.
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12. Develop Real-Life Stories
From our families to yours.
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13. #SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

14. Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
• It is often difficult to sit down at your computer and try to determine
what to write.
• Prepare ahead of time by storing a file on your desk that is labeled
“Content Topics”
• Say goodbye to writer’s block
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

15. • Behave like a critical thinker
• Reexamine every article or book you read and story you hear—is there
some type of angle or insight you could provide your target audience?
• Reshape concepts and ideas into something new by asking yourself,
“How can I translate this information into something useful for my
audience?
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

16. • Harness your inner news reporter
• Always be looking for something new that would relate to your
audience
• Some of the questions you should ask:
• What are other companies saying?
• Is there an event or holiday that I can tie to this topic?
• What can I say that is different?
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

17. Personal Finance = Often boring
Budgets + Calories = Something interesting
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
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18. Will it blend?
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
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19. • Sources of inspiration:
• News publications
• Magazines
• Social networks
• Comments on your existing blog posts or articles
• Junk mail (yes, even junk mail can be inspirational)
• Anything can inspire you
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

20. • Even more sources of inspiration:
• Google Trends: http://www.google.com/trends/
• Google Alerts: https://www.google.com/alerts
• BuzzFeed: http://www.buzzfeed.com/
• Buzzsumo: http://buzzsumo.com/
• Addict-o-matic: http://addictomatic.com/
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

21. • Great tool, if you want to store articles and read them later: Pocket:
https://getpocket.com/
Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

22. #SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

23. FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL
And once the advice became practical
and personal, it became memorable.
– The Tipping Point
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24. FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL
• You have to include points in your content that makes it personal, but
also practical to the reader
• You don’t have to provide an avalanche of new information—you might
only need a change in how you are presenting your message (boring
or not)
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

25. FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL
No bags or filters to buy. No extra
costs.
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

26. • What concerns does the reader have and how can you make it
simple to get help?
• Consider the types of questions your customers or clients ask and
the worries they face—those are potential topics
FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

27. FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL
Embarrassing question?
No problem.
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

28. FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL
When you are in a car accident, you
will be looking for advice.
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

29. #SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

30. #SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

31. 3Takeaways
Develop real-life stories Keep your eyes open for
inspiration
Focus on being practical
and personal
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

32. @mindydweinstein
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mindydweinstein
plus.google.com/+MindyWeinstein/
#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics