Are you looking for help to develop your content marketing strategy? In this presentation delivered at Content Marketing World, I'm offering all the tips, tools and templates you need to go from wherever you are in your content marketing journey to being a world class content brand.
How consumers use technology and the impacts on their lives
Tips, Tools and Templates To Build Your Content Marketing Strategy
1. Tips, Tools, And Templates To Help You
Build Your Content Marketing Strategy
Michael Brenner
Head of Strategy, NewsCred
@BrennerMichael
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
2. Agenda
• The key factors for content marketing success
• The core components of a content marketing strategy
• How to utilize content across the buyer journey
• Companies doing it right
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
3. Just 3 Things . . .
The world has changed.
Most content stinks.
Attract people through stories they love.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
12. 1
I have no patience for useless
things. @BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
13. Content Marketing
Success
Building a Successful
Content Strategy
Companies Doing It Right
Utilizing Content Across
the Buyer Journey
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
19. “The buyer journey is nothing more than
a series of questions that must be
answered.
- IDC -
”
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
20. Awareness Consideration Preference
Online Communities
Search Engines
eBooks
Email Newsletters
Editorial Articles
White Papers
Podcasts
Case Studies
Online Videos
Webcasts
Virtual Trade Shows
Product Literature
Trial Software
Online Vendor Demos
Begin
decision
process
Make
decision
Identify
business
problem Establish
requirements/
build RFP
Align IT with
business
objectives
Explore
technology
options
Research
solutions
Determine
solution
strategy Assess ROI
Research
products/
vendors
Build
short
list
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
22. Ann Handley: “Take your brand out of the story. . .
. . .Make your customers the hero.”
Our Natural Instinct
Content
Marketing
What
Brands
Publish
What
Customers
Want
Charity
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
24. “Content marketing is the marketing and business process for creating and distributing
relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and
understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action.”
-Content Marketing Institute
• Not advertising or PR
• It is continuous not campaign-based
• Customer-focused, not brand-focused
• Seeks to answer customer questions across the buyer journey
• Owned media = An asset for your business with LTV and ROI
Content Marketing Defined
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
25. Joe Pulizzi:
“Don’t build your house on rented land.”
- Publish On Your Own Content Hub -
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
26. The Promise of Content Marketing:
To earn your audience . . .
. . . versus buying it!
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
27. How brands can become consumed with their
story, not their customers.
Unique Point of View Trap
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
28. “We need to stop interrupting what
people are interested in and be what
people are interested in.
- CRAIG DAVIS -
”
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
30. Key factors to content marketing success:
1. Documented content strategy and mission statement
2. Have someone accountable for content
3. Consistently publish quality content
4. Map content to consumer journey
5. Paid Distribution
6. Focus on Content Subscribers
7. Track Content Marketing ROI
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
31. Give yourself a grade . .
Best Practice R Y G
Have a documented content strategy?
Have someone managing content
Content hub maps to the consumer journey
Publishing quality, volume and variety
Social activation of content
Paid distribution
Focus on Content Subscriptions
Measurement template / ROI defined
Overall:
D
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
33. Why is it Important to Have a Documented
Content Marketing Strategy?
Source: CMI
34. • Thinking and acting like a publisher
• Delivering content your audience wants
• Managing content as an asset (with an ROI)
What is a Content Marketing Strategy?
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
35. 3 Steps to Building a Content Strategy
1 Why?
What’s the Business Case?
3
What?
Show results tied to your business
objectives.
2 How?
Team, actions, and budgets needed.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
36. Content Marketing Mission Statement
Become a destination for [target audience]
interested in [topics]. To help them
[customer value].
This will help us [content marketing goals]
• Earn your audience’s attention vs. just
buying it
• Reach, engage and convert NEW buyers
AmEx Open Forum Example: Help Small
Businesses Do More Business. To become
the largest source of inbound leads.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
37. What Is Your Content Marketing Mission Statement?
Become a (premier?) destination
for [target audience]
interested in [topics]
to help them [customer value].
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
38. Steps to crafting a content strategy
Discovery
Destination
Branding +
Design
Roles +
Responsibility
Editorial
Strategy
Distribution +
Optimization
Measurement
•Current State
•Target Audience
•Business Case
•Mission
Statement
•Budget
•Branding
•UX
•Platform
•Who does
what?
•NewsCred
•Agency
•You
•Structure
•Topics
•Types
•Sources
•SEO
•SEO
•Platforms
•Paid
•Owned
•Earned
•Email
Newsletter
•Business Case
KPIs
•Define report
•How often
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
39. Building the content marketing business case
1. Reach early
stage buyers
2. Engage new
buyers with your
brand
3. Conversions you would
have never reached
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
40. Define Content Marketing Roles and Functions
Content
Marketer /
Editor
Strategizes,
writes,
and oversees
content projects
to ensure brand
consistency and
alignment with
business
objectives.
Community
Manager
Distributes content
across social
channels, engages
online communities,
and contributes to
content projects.
Designer
Brings content to life
through the user
experience and rich
visuals.
Contributors
Any content creator-
blogger,
photographer,
designer — who
contributes to your
project.
SEO / Paid
Specialist
Manages the paid
distribution of
content online.
Analytics
Defines best/ worst
performers,
conversion
optimization and
measurement
communications.
Curation
Fines and re-
purposes the best
content from your
business and from
around the web.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
42. Design Structure
1) Categories across the top show
visitor what space you are in
2) Images help humanize the site
and break text
3) Published content horizontally
shows frequency (add dates and
authors)
4) Share buttons encourage social
sharing
5) Mid-stage offer on right
6) Newsletter/subscription sign up
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
43. Content Marketing
Success
Building a Successful
Content Strategy
Companies Doing It Right
Utilizing Content Across
the Buyer Journey
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
48. Look at Content by Buyer Stage
Early Stage
Middle Stage
Late Stage
66% 28%
Early-Stage Content
Late-Stage
Content
Middle-Stage
Content
6%
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
49. Reach, Engage and Convert
the Right People.
Early-stage Searches
Middle-stage
Brand Searches
Search/SocialVolume
What is Content Marketing?
(10-3000 X)
Who is the best Content
Marketing provider?
(2-10 X)
NewsCred Content
Marketing software
is how awesome?
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
50. What Are We Going to Write About?
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
51. Publishers publish everyday on each topic/category
• Organic Traffic goes up with each new article published
• Diminishing return? (see below)
• Optimize content budget vs. paid distribution budget
• Increasing frequency will increase Organic + Social % of Total PVs
A few times
a year
1-2X per
month
< monthly 1-2X per
week
1 per day More than
1 per day
57. Xyz Early Xyz
Late Xyz Xyz
Persona Questions/Concerns
Xyz
Middle Xyz Xyz
Keywords
Xyz Early Xyz
Late Xyz Xyz
Persona Questions/Concerns
Xyz
Middle Xyz Xyz
Keywords
Stage
Stage
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
Research Keywords, Then Filter By Personas
58. Utilize the Right Mix of Content
Custom Content
Share on-brand stories and recipes which are created
specifically for your brand.
Community Content
Leverage content from customers, employees,
influencers that grows and engages your community.
Licensed Content
Boost credibility, publishing cadence, and direct traffic
with a high-volume of fully-licensed, compliant
content.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
60. How To Rank For SEO? The 3 Vs (Content Mix)
Volume
Number of posts
on the topic
Value
The best answer
on the internet
Variety
Text, images,
video, slides
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
61. Even great content needs a push
The average Hollywood movie spends 50-60% of production budget on distribution.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
63. 3 Components of Content Marketing ROI
1. Cost 2. Utilization 3. Performance
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
64. Proving Content Marketing ROI
1. Reach early stage buyers
• Fair “Share of Conversation”
• % Unbranded Search traffic on your website
• Banner effectiveness at driving brand visits
• Cost of advertising / search landing pages with low organic and social traffic
• Cost of organic and social website traffic vs. paid
2. Engage new buyers with your brand
• Time spent, Bounce rate on content vs. advertising landing pages
• Cost / Repeat visits, Time engaged with your brand
• Subscribers, value per subscriber
3. Conversions you would have never reached
• Cost per lead, Pipeline touched, Cost per registration (content or events), Cost per sale
• Content % source of leads
• ROI vs. Avg. Marketing ROI
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
65. Content Marketing
ROI is 4X our traditional
marketing spend.
”
“
Julie Fleischer, Kraft
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
67. Organic and Social: Up and to the Right
0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
35,000
UniqueVisitors
Traffic from Organic, Social & Referrals
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
69. Content Marketing
Success
Building a Successful
Content Strategy
Companies Doing It Right
Utilizing Content Across
the Buyer Journey
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
70. AMEX OpenForum
Mission: Help Small Businesses Do
More Business.
Approach: Publish every day,
authoritative voices, build community
Outcome: The largest source of
inbound leads.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
71. BufferApp Blog
Lesson for Brands:
Think bigger than yourself and
what you sell. Help people with
their biggest problems and you
will earn their attention.
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
72. Casper’s Van
Winkles
• Effortlessly combines national
housing news with articles on
inspirational interior design,
celebrity homes and company
updates.
• Up to 6 new posts per day
• Distribution and large
audiences across Facebook,
Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter
and Google+
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
74. Red Bull's Red Bulletin
“Turning brand love
into can love.”
Lessons for Brands:
• Take the buzz phrase "act like a
publisher" literally.
• Divert paid media dollars to earned and
owned value
• Build in-house production resources
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
76. A Successful Content Marketing Strategy
Key Takeaways:
1. Commit to publishing content that your customers actually want
2. Figure out what questions your customers ask (Google) what
content they share (Social) and what channels they use
3. Start publishing content
4. Distribute the winners (paid, email and organic social)
5. Measure and optimize what works
6. Thank Michael Brenner . . . (Your Welcome!) jk
@BrennerMichael • #CMWorld
Not only are we going to give you tips and tricks but also make it very practical
We’ve all asked the question, why content marketing?
To set the stage, there’s been a fundamental shift in the way we as consumers consume and share content. Momentous amount of content being created, consumed and shared. An amazing amount of content, the real question is how does a brand stand apart?
Ant that can be your brand
The secret to content marketing is that its not that hard. There are obstacles, but what we’re going to do is give you our secrets and let you know what’s worked for other brands to drive a content marketing strategy.
The secret, content marketing is relatively simple. The buyer journey is just a series of question to be answered and we as brands have a role to play. Its simply to answer the customer questions.
A more complex view, content marketing explained on a page. What types of different content we consume at different parts of the buyer journey.
Awareness, we’re wanting to learn, get our questions answered and read thought leadership.
Consideration, we want more types of content.
By Preference, there’s less thought leadership and learning, and more about what makes your brand different.
As a brand, our natural instinct is to talk about ourselves. Customers are asking questions, they want to be informed and entertained, but we can’t just do that because that’s just charity.
So the way we balance is make your customers the hero of the story.
Take your brand out. How do you do that? You solve their problems at every stage of the journey.
As a brand, our natural instinct is to talk about ourselves. Customers are asking questions, they want to be informed and entertained, but we can’t just do that because that’s just charity.
So the way we balance is make your customers the hero of the story.
Take your brand out. How do you do that? You solve their problems at every stage of the journey.
The formal definition of content marketing.
NOT advertising or PR – important
About helping your customers answer those questions in the journey they’re taking
Owned media – its specifically content that lives on a brand owned media.
Core components the way we need to think. We need to think different.
Effective content marketers are 5 times more likely to have a DOCUMENTED content strategy.
Why you are in business and what value you’re providing? Establish your own why.
How are you going to achieve that goal?
Most brands make the mistake of jumping into the pool of what. What am I going to publish? But they haven't thought it through.
Help your customers with something. Do their jobs better, become heroes. You need to fill in the blanks.
Help your customers with something. Do their jobs better, become heroes. You need to fill in the blanks.
Corporate websites bounce rate are down at 40% because the only people going there are those who want to be there
These are not all necessarily people, but instead responsibilities. One of my first hires was a curator. Someone who finds and repurposes the best content from around the web. Look at what your audience is interested in.
SEO on the other hand, understand what kind of content you need to create.
Is it an on brand or off-brand strategy? Depends on your brand and goals.
Timeline – totally unbranded. Off-branded domain. Branding that’s almost invisible.
Monster – you can see its completely in line with their corporate website. Logo, typography, similar structure.
Pepsi pulse – completely reinvented their website. Seeking to be a destination about anything about pop culture.
A content audit is important because it helps you understand the level of the content issues you have. Help you determine where you have performance issues.
No matter where you are in your content marketing strategy, NewsCred's Strategy Services team can help ensure you're successful.
Not only do we provide 24/7 global product support, but we also offer daily editorial curation and can help set your long-term strategy with customized consultations, workshops and brainstorms.
94% of all the content we were creating was for late and middle stages. Most of the content we made was promotional…why we were better.
However, more people are in the early stage, so we were completely upside down.
A lot of people jump to topics. Google trends, competitors, online properties serving needs. Thinking about topics and architecture is an important step.
Help your customers with something. Do their jobs better, become heroes. You need to fill in the blanks.
Key words appropriate
Finding the right combination of licensed content, original content and social content is key to executing a well-rounded content strategy.
Licensed content gives you an easy way to access a high-volume of content from credible sources, allowing you to boost publishing cadence.
Original content gives you the ability to share hyper-targeted stories which resonate with your audience and are optimized for SEO.
Social content allows you to always stay topical and publish content that is buzzworthy and trending. Co-created content.
We call this combination The Rule Of Thirds – a starting point. AS you’re publishgin you can optimize.. Diversifying your content strategy allows you to scale in a way
Corporate websites bounce rate are down at 40% because the only people going there are those who want to be there
Help your customers with something. Do their jobs better, become heroes. You need to fill in the blanks.
Tracking over the course of a year.
Are we gaining traffic from organic and social. Up and to the right.
Help your customers with something. Do their jobs better, become heroes. You need to fill in the blanks.
Help your customers with something. Do their jobs better, become heroes. You need to fill in the blanks.