Small Business Marketing & Business Acceleration | FrontlineMarketingSystems.com

Online Marketing News: Content Marketing World!, Google Goes Big Brother, Searcher Personas, Retro SERPs

Posted on 04. May, 2012 by Ashley Zeckman in Blog, Content Marketing Institute, content marketing world, joe pulizzi, Search Industry News, Small Business Internet Marketing, Small Business Marketing

Content Marketing World, We Found A Home

This recent video from Content Marketing Institute Founder Joe Pulizzi, provides some background into how Content Marketing World came to be.  If you are big or small brand, B2B, B2C, or virtually any organization that creates content this conference is for you.  Scheduled this year for Sept 4-6 in Columbus, Content Marketing World is now the largest content marketing conference in the world. TopRank is proud to be one of 4 exclusive media sponsors along with Copyblogger Media, Social Media Examiner and SmartBusiness Content Marketing.

Forget Big Brother – What About Giant Google?
Last week Google released its full FCC report which contained information about data collection from unsecured Wi-Fi connections.  It appears that Google’s Street View cars were not only taking photos of streets, but were also intercepting email and SMS traffic.  Read more to see what else Google has up their sleeve.  Via Forbes.

Searcher Personas Driving Landing Page Design
Determining what drives your customers to purchase is invaluable information for any online marketer.  Using searcher personas to determine what techniques to use for your landing pages will improve targeting and therefore your results.  What motivates people to click?  Read on to find out more.  Via Search Engine Land.

Google Keeps It Real (Time)
Google News is getting an upgrade.  Google will begin rolling out further integration between Google+ and Google News.  Starting today Google News users will be able to see what their circles are covering and what they have to say about trending topics.  Another new feature is a “realtime coverage page” which will surface Google+ comments and new articles as they become available.  Via TechCrunch.

Enhance SEO with Author Avatars
Launched in June of 2011, Google’s authorship markup allows websites to connect individual authors to their posts across the web by adding a simple rel=author tag to their content.  Google plans to use this information to help connect people with authors and ultimately their content.  Via ClickZ.

5 Key Strategies for Building Your LinkedIn Network
With over 150 million members, LinkedIn is a valuable asset for business professionals.  This article provides some seemingly simple but effective tips on sharing relevant and engaging information with your network. As well as tactics for continuing to grow your network on an ongoing basis.  Via Social Media Examiner.

Tip Top TopRank(ing) Internet Marketing News

Brian Larson – Your Search Results Just Went Retro
Bell bottoms made a comeback, so why can’t a simplified SERP as well? Although Bing originally led the charge in creating a more customized (and busy) SERP, the search engine is simplifying its search results. Don’t expect anyone to copy the Alta Vista UI, but Greg Sterling of Search Engine Land shares what this retro look means for Bing searches.  Via Search Engine Land.

Jolina Pettice – Segmenting Traffic Based of Value of Device
Search Marketers are used to segmenting traffic based on sources which are known to convert at higher rates. i.e. Search Engines vs Direct vs Referrals.  However, we may need to add an additional layer onto this segment to account for the type of device the visitor is using. For example, are visitors from iPads more valuable in terms of time-on-site and conversion than a visitor from a different type of tablet or desktop.  This may be a data piece to mine further, if your visitors are viewing your site from an array of devices.  Via Search Engine Land.

Shawna Kenyon – How 7 Top Brands Are Using Facebok’s New Ad Tools
In 2012 Facebook previewed a slew of new ad products to people outside the industry, though to some these new initiatives might have appeared to be ‘old hat’, advertisers see them as anything but.  Among the new products were Premium on Facebook, Reach Generator, Offers and Logged Out ads.  These new advertising offers came as a way to showcase new products and services in more than a two dimensional way allowing for ads to reach all of a brands fans and designed to expose them to things they might not otherwise see. The article above showcases 7 big brands and how they are utilizing the new services.  Via Mashable.

Time to Weigh In: What emphasis does your company place on developing customer personas?  Do you consider an article in your Google search more credible if there is an author avatar attached?  Is your company currently segmenting traffic?  If so, based on what data points?

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the
TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog, 2012. |
Online Marketing News: Content Marketing World!, Google Goes Big Brother, Searcher Personas, Retro SERPs | http://www.toprankblog.com

Content Marketing for Professional Services: Does It Cannibalize Your Business?

Posted on 27. Mar, 2012 by Joe Pulizzi in Blog, content marketing, content strategy, Guest Posts, joe pulizzi, Small Business Internet Marketing, Small Business Marketing, social media consulting, sxsw

Guest post by Joe Pulizzi, founder of the Content Marketing Institute and Junta42. Joe evangelizes content marketing around the world through keynotes, articles, tweets and his books,Managing Content Marketing and Get Content Get Customers. If you want to get on his good side, send him something orange. For more on Joe, check out his personal site or follow him on Twitter @juntajoe.

In my second trip down to SXSW, I had the distinct pleasure of presenting with Jay Baer, my good friend, a CMI consultant, and one of the best social media minds in the game. The title of our session was, “Does Free Content Cannibalize Your Paid Consulting?“, and it focused on content marketing strategies and tactics for professional services companies.

As a good content marketing best practice, we’ve put together the highlights of the presentation below, along with the downloadable SlideShare version.

Is content marketing required for professional services companies?

“Technology is shifting the power away from the editors, the publishers, the establishment, the media elite. Now it’s the people who are in control.” –Rupert Murdoch

In the past, there were barriers to entry for any non-media company, let alone paid consultants or professional services companies, to get traction from its content marketing. These were:

1. Death of the intermediary: Although media placement and coverage can still be incredibly effective, it is no longer necessary. We can now communicate directly with our customers and prospects, if we have compelling and relevant information to share with them (can you say opt-in?).
2. Access to talent: In the very recent past, it was challenging for professional services companies to attract the kind of journalistic talent necessary to create and distribute truly remarkable content marketing. That is no longer the case. More and more journalists are making the leap over to the dark side (non-media side) where, frankly put, more resources and opportunities present themselves for great content creators.
3. Viable technology: You, me, and the sign post can all create a blog in five seconds or less. Social media channels abound for publishing purposes. Marketing automation services are available to all. There are no more excuses.

The recognition that we are media companies

Professional services companies need to realize that they are in competition with not only other consultants in your space, but also media companies in your industry, Google, and the billboard down the street. That means we need to develop and distribute content that is as good or better than anything else in our industry to attract and retain customers.

So, we are indeed all publishers today.

There is only one thing that separates the content developed by a media company and content developed by brands like Intel, John Deere, or LEGO: How the money comes in.

For a media company, content is created in order to make money directly off the creation of content through paid content sales (direct purchase of content) or advertising sales (someone sponsors the content that is created, like we see in newspapers and magazines).

For a non-media company, content is created not to profit directly from the content, but, rather, indirectly by attracting and retaining customers.

In all other respects, the content creation activities in both types of companies are generally the same. Both needs to be authentic and credible. This is important to realize, in that non-media brands are competing with traditional media for attention and retention, just like you compete with the other businesses in your field.

The three-legged success stool

In order to be found in search engines, to drive inbound leads for your organization, and to be successful with your social media strategy, you need remarkable storytelling. Simply put, your content marketing strategy must come before your social media strategy.

You would think since more professional services companies are realizing this, and that the barriers to entry are gone, that content marketing success stories for professional services companies would abound. Unfortunately (or fortunately), most paid consultants and services companies now realize that content marketing is really hard.

Recent Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs research shows us that the biggest content marketing challenge for B2B marketers is developing content that truly engages customers and prospects.

For this strategy to work, it takes patience, commitment, and excellence at the craft. Professional services companies need to shift their thinking and realize that, in order to be the leading experts in their industry and get online referrals, they need to be creating consistent, valuable, and compelling content.

The Content Marketing Institute story

Although we do offer some paid sponsorship opportunities as part of the Institute and our premier event, Content Marketing World, the majority of our online leads come in for our consulting practice, headed by Robert Rose.

In our session, Jay called this strategy a “Trojan Horse Effect”, where we look and feel like a media company, all to generate interest around the consulting practice. Jay may indeed be right.

Since launching CMI in May of 2010, we now average nearly 100,000 unique visitors a month on our sites. We have over 70 active content contributors to CMI, producing two posts per day around “how-to” content marketing as well as content marketing news. Over the past three months, we’ve received dozens of qualified inbound leads into our consulting division, six of which are Fortune 500 companies.

Partial Google Analytics Chart with Referrals Showing for Content Marketing Institute

The best part is that these companies come to us ready to buy, and our sales cycle has dropped, in some cases, to just a few days.

6 concerns/myths about consultant’s content marketing

But while our belief is that giving away your knowledge (as much as possible) leads to substantially more opportunities, how far should a professional services company or paid consultant open the Kimono? Let’s discuss.

1. My clients don’t consume online content: We hear this all the time. A paid consultant will say that they target CEOs, who don’t use search engines or social media. Recent Google research tells us that the average consumer engages in over 10 sources of information before making a buying decision. Also, according to research from Doremus and the Financial Times, over 60 percent of senior executives read blogs, watch online video, view webcasts, and use professional networking sites like LinkedIn.
2. We don’t have time to create content: Online content marketing is the ultimate informational annuity. For example, Jay shared his statistics on just one post on social media strategy he created almost three years ago. The post still attracts an average of 300 people per day (to just that one post) and has led to multiple pieces of business for Jay.
3. We can just do social media, we don’t need content: Jay’s Content Marketing Necessity Scale says it all. If people are already talking about you online in the right places, you don’t need as much original content as those that aren’t yet invited to the party. Frankly, if you want to be shared and talked about in social media, you need some amazing content to make your social media go. As Jay says, “Content is fire. Social media is gasoline.“
4. We can just do a blog: Today, a blog is just a ticket to the ball game. Sixty-five percent of B2B companies have blogs today (according to CMI and MarketingProfs research). In order to be the leading expert for your industry, you need to take story ideas and adapt them to channels, like blowing a dandelion in the wind. For example, with the Content Marketing Playbook, although the eBook was the main content product, we produced a SlideShare version, multiple podcasts, multiple blog posts, a news release, an enewsletter version, snippets in our print magazine, Chief Content Officer, guest blogs, promotions on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and more.
5. We’ll give away all our secret sauce: Contrary to what some people believe, a prospect doesn’t read one blog post and buys on the spot. Through our content, we develop attention, then interest, then action. So you’ve got to work it by solving the pain points of your customers. Yes, you may give away your secrets, but having a grocery list doesn’t make you a chef. Those customers that want to take your advice and do it themselves?… fine. Those are not the kind of customers you want. What you need to do is show your expertise and insight, and have smart executives recognize your talent.
6. We shouldn’t talk about price in our content: Jay and I call this the Marcus Sheridan effect. Marcus is owner of River Pools and Spas and is now a prominent marketing speaker and consultant. Marcus was able to sell more fiberglass swimming pools than anyone in the country by sharing everything, including specifics on price. Just type in anything around pricing and fiberglass pools into Google… Marcus always comes up and dominates the search rankings. This same philosophy has also worked in his marketing practice. If you can’t talk specific pricing, at least talk about the dynamics that go into pricing. This is your competitive advantage waiting to happen.

4 things to know before you dive into content marketing

1. Know your niche: Where can you be the leading expert in the world for your specific buyers? It’s better to go smaller and broaden out once you dominate your niche. Think as if you were a trade magazine. Vertical is in, horizontal is out.
2. Know your audience: Jay’s practice targets the social media practitioner, and has truly focused on this with this Social Pros podcast series. He doesn’t want all people interested in social media, just practitioners. It’s an important distinction. The same goes for OpenView Venture Partners [disclaimer: I am an advisor], who is targeting successful technology entrepreneurs looking for capital to grow, not just any entrepreneur.
3. Know your budget: Just read this budget and content marketing investment post for agencies from Jay. Enough said.
4. Know your metrics: Here are the four key metrics for agencies, as well as a content marketing ROI analysis considering the three kinds of measurement indicators for your business.

Thanks again to everyone who came to the presentation. Here are the slides below to pass around at your discretion.

Good Content Marketing vs. Great Content Marketing: Learn the Difference From Joe Pulizzi #OMS12

Posted on 09. Feb, 2012 by Ashley Zeckman in Blog, content marketing, Content Marketing Institute, joe pulizzi, Online Marketing Summit, Small Business Internet Marketing, Small Business Marketing

If you are part of the online marketing or content marketing industry you have undoubtably heard of Joe Pulizzi (@juntajoe) and his company the Content Marketing Institute (CMI).  Joe has been a member of the content marketing community for over a decade, and has made it his mission to help brands create quality content and distribute that content through multiple online channels.   This was my first time seeing Joe speak and he made it a great interactive experience, and was of course wearing his trademark Orange.

I enjoyed the history that Joe shared with the audience as well as his practical tactical tips that can be implemented by an organization of any size.  However, I think the true takeaway is determining a way to differentiate yourself from your peers and your competition.

A Brief History of Content Marketing

Content marketing is not a new concept.  In fact, one of the first slides in his presentation showed a newsletter from 1931 published by John Deere.  Their print publication the “Furrow” was created as a way to educate their customers about their products and services, and provided a way to solve some of the common technology issues that they were facing.  One quote from Joe that stuck out in my mind during the presentation was:

“From the days of cave men writing on the walls, brands have been creating stories to sell their product and form a connection.”

The Barriers to Entry are Gone

The issues that our content marketing forefathers faced are far different than those we face today.  The barriers to entry or our ability to get in front of potential customers is no longer a hurdle.  Where are we now?

• Content Acceptance: prospects and customers can accept a piece of content online within 3 seconds.
• Talent: Journalists that would have previously worked as editors or writers for major publications have now shifted to the brand side.
• Technology: We can now execute a content strategy that will not cost an extravagant amount of money to distribute.  Often times the technology we use is at no charge.

Pulizzi stressed that we must do what we can to make a difference for our audience.  But how can we accomplish this seemingly difficult task?  Through storytelling!  A well-formed story is an essential part of an online marketing strategy.  If you are trying to figure out why you aren’t having much interaction, it’s probably because you don’t have compelling stories.  Online tactics including search engine optimization, lead generation, and social media should al be focused around telling a compelling story to engage your audience.  After all, we know that facts tell and stories sell!

One of the examples shared was that of Coca-Cola.  The brand has recently released a series of videos that provide their take on the future of content marketing and more specifically the importance of storytelling.

If you’re interested you can find links to the videos below:

Content Marketing 2020: Part One

Content Marketing 2020: Part Two

Six Characteristics That Separate the Good to Great Content Marketers

#1 – The focused Non-Sales Content Mission and Platform

People do not want to be constantly bombarded with sales material.  If you are in a competitive industry (which lets face it most of us are) try to find a super niche way to attract your customers.  Create content that is not sales focused but customer centric.

#2 – Opening up New Content/Media markets

Create content that doesn’t pitch your product but focuses on what the audience wants to know.  Try experimenting with different types of content.

#3 – The Chief Storyteller

We are seeing great brands that are hiring people to tell some great storytelling.  Many teams are now made up of managing editors, content producers, chief listening officers, and content creators.

#4 – Leveraging Employees in Content Creation

By encouraging they participation of your employees in content creation you can accomplish a few things.  First off content creation on a regular basis will continue to educate your employees on the industry and provide them with increased exposure online as an advocate for your brand.  Secondly you can eliminate the need to hire a content creation team all at once.

#5 – Removing Your Brand From the Story

Joe said that someone once told him “your story travels further the less you mention your brand.”  Therefore, the more you provide quality content that is relevant to your readers the more likely they are to read and share that information.

#6 – Building the Influencer or Customer Community (a focus on referral traffic)

Search is still very relevant but we are seeing the switch to increased referral based business.  If you have an influencer ripe for you on your site and they share with their network and that will in turn send even more people back to your site.

Key Takeaways: Social Media 4-1-1 From the Content Marketing Institute

Content Marketing Mix: For every 6 posts shared on Twitter or Facebook CMI follows the following formula:

• 4 shares of other influencers/company content
• 1 original piece of CMI content
• 1 sales pitch

Make It Easy to Share: Have you ever wanted to share an article and spent more time looking for the social share buttons than you did actually reading the content?  Place your social sharing buttons in a visible place that makes it easier for your audience to share your content with their network.

Start Small:  If you focus on creating a lot of content versus quality content it will hurt your brand.  If you believe that it is more realistic to post great content once a week you will be far better off than posting mediocre content five times a week.

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the
TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog, 2012. |
Good Content Marketing vs. Great Content Marketing: Learn the Difference From Joe Pulizzi #OMS12 | http://www.toprankblog.com

5 Key Roles for Content Marketing Success in 2012

Posted on 26. Oct, 2011 by Lee Odden in Blog, content marketing, Guest Posts, joe pulizzi, Small Business Internet Marketing, Small Business Marketing

[Note from Lee: The next in our series of Wednesday guest posts comes from no less than the Godfather of Content Marketing, Joe Pulizzi. I’ve known Joe since he published his first book, Get Content Get Customers, and have been amazed at his relentless efforts to lead the charge towards better marketing.

What I like best about Joe is that he’s a “Walk the Talk” content marketer with Junta42, Chief Content Officer magazine and the largest annual content marketing event, Content Marketing World. Joe is also co-author of Get Content Get Customers and Managing Content Marketing plus he writes a content marketing blog.  For this post Joe focuses on what businesses need to know about smarter planning for content marketing into the coming year.

According to the latest research from the Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs, 90% of non-media companies create original content, in some shape or form, to attract and retain customers. Yes, we are indeed all publishers today.

The biggest challenge? Creating compelling content.

Let’s face it … content marketing is a new muscle for most organizations.

Most brands have been doing things the same way for so long that thinking like a publisher is, well, quite taxing. Worse yet, we aren’t set up for publishing; we’re set up for traditional marketing practices set up in the usual organizational silos.  That means we might not have an awareness of the types of roles needed to succeed with managing the content marketing process. And in order to get it done, you need the following four things:

• People to do it
• Roles and responsibilities for those people to fill
• A schedule by which the tasks are fulfilled (editorial calendar)
• Rules and guidelines

The most difficult of these may be finding the roles within our company to drive the process.  If that’s the case for you, here’s the answer.

Assembling the Team, their Roles and Responsibilities

Given the size of your organization, you may have one person – or many – responsible for your content marketing initiative; however, in general, no matter how many people actually take responsibility for the function, the following roles are needed. NOTE: These are roles within the organization, not necessarily position titles (although they could be).

The Manager — or Chief Content Officer (CCO)

At least one person in your organization should own the content initiative. More recently, organizations have been calling this a chief content officer (CCO). Kodak calls this role the vice president of content strategy; social media technology company Radian6 calls it the director of content marketing (here’s a full Chief Content Officer job description). This is the “chief storyteller” role for your content effort and is responsible for executing the goals that you set out to accomplish. When content marketing fails, it’s usually not because of a lack of high-quality content, but because of a drop in execution. This is why this manager may be your most important asset, even though this person may not be creating ANY of the content. The CCO must ensure excellence in every content marketing tactic including:

• Content/editorial
• Design/art/photography
• Web resources for content
• Integration of marketing and the content, including social media
• Project budgeting
• Contract negotiation with freelancers
• Audience development
• Research and measurement

In organizations where there is no budget for a dedicated CCO, this role may be filled by the director or vice president of marketing. Many brands, such as UPS, have a manager inside the company who oversees internal content production as well as the production of content by an outside agency. Although brands can outsource a wide variety of content production through outsourced vendors, it’s important to keep the CCO inside the organization.

The Managing Editor(s)

The editors have a critical role in the content marketing process, and are probably the most sought after by brands today. As more brands develop content, employees are being asked to blog and write on behalf of their companies. Unfortunately, the writing style of employees who have never created content before often leaves much to be desired. That’s where the managing editor comes in. This role, sometimes outsourced, and sometimes part of the CCO’s responsibility, manages the editorial functions of the content marketing effort. These are your day-to-day content execution people. They help internal employees develop and write content, and they help external people match their writing to meet the organizational goals. The managing editor works with the employees on:

• Content production
• Content scheduling
• Keyword selection
• Search engine optimization of posts
• Style corrections
• Tagging and images

Sometimes the managing editors are there to teach, so the employees can do more on their own. They also may act as coaches, encouraging the managers, executive team, or even external writers to produce content against the schedule. OpenView Venture Partners, a VC firm based in Boston, has a managing editor who oversees all the content on the OpenView blog, but only creates a small portion of it. Nearly every employee is responsible for developing original blog posts, so the managing editor edits content from the entire enterprise.

Content Creators

Content creators produce the content that will ultimately help to tell the story. This role typically overlaps with the managing editors who are also producing content, but also may simply be subject matter experts within the organization. For example, typical content producers include anyone in the C-suite, the head of R&D, the product manager, the customer service director, or a hired consultant. In many cases this role is outsourced when there is a lack, or gap, in resources to produce the content. It’s important to note that this person does not need to be a writer (although it’s really helpful if they are). In general, they are there to be the “face” or “voice” of the authentic organization. They may be interviewed for content, or they may produce a long, rambling email that is transformed into a cogent blog post.

Content Producers

Content producers format or create the ultimate package that the content is presented in (i.e., they make the content pretty). Chances are this role already exists in your organization to some degree; it is either handled in-house or by an agency. It might be a Web agency if the end product is a blog or a Web site.

Chief “Listening” Officer (CLO)

The role of the CLO is to function as “air-traffic control” for social media and your other content channels. They are there to listen to the groups, maintain the conversation, and to route (and/or notify) the appropriate team members who can engage in conversation (customer service, sales, marketing, etc.). For the content marketing process, this function serves as the centerpiece of our “listening posts.” You establish listening posts so you can continue to get a “feed” of information so that you can always be ready to react and adapt as your subscribers react and change.

Making the Content Marketing Process Work

Where do these roles fit in the content marketing process? Let’s look at this map:

As you can see, the CCO stays engaged throughout the entire process. His or her role is to focus on the entire process and make sure that it runs smoothly and meets the goals set forth in the strategy.

The content creators are purely focused on the creation and management stage of the content marketing process. They may be fed with information gleaned during the measurement and insight phase, but their time is squarely dedicated to creating.

The managing editors play an equally important role during the creation and management phase and also shepherd the content through the optimization and aggregation phase. This role may also play into the conversing and listening phase, especially as they work to make sure content is meeting editorial, SEO, or other guidelines; however, their role lessens as the content moves out into the “live” environment and is consumed.

The content producers are almost exclusively focused on the optimization and aggregation phase, as they design, format, and produce the content in whatever end form it will take.

The CLO focuses on the Converse & Listen phase.  In some cases they will actually conduct the conversation that ensues – but more likely are the “ears” of the organization.

Their job is to quickly and efficiently route the conversation to the appropriate part of the organization. Each role shifts as the process goes forward, and the percentage of time or attention that each person spends is allocated accordingly. If you look at this mapping as a part of your initiative, you can begin to envision how the workflow for the team might have to be allocated, especially given the volumes of content, the velocity, and how much external communication will be necessary.

If managing the content marketing process is something your organization is challenged with, Robert Rose and I just wrote the aptly named Managing Content Marketing: The Real-World Guide to Creating Passionate Subscribers to Your Brand.

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the
TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog, 2011. |
5 Key Roles for Content Marketing Success in 2012 | http://www.toprankblog.com

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 1

Posted on 17. May, 2011 by John Jantsch in Ann Handley, Blog, brian clark, Brian Halligan, joe pulizzi, NSTuesday, Small Business Week

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 1

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

This post is one in a series of five guest posts authored by the super star bloggers pictured below. As part of a celebration of National Small Business Week we are asking readers to match all five guests posts up with the contributing blogger to be entered for a chance to win an iPad2. Read all five posts in today’s series and come back each day this week for five new posts in this great educational series and another chance to win.

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 1

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 2

Posted on 17. May, 2011 by John Jantsch in Ann Handley, Blog, brian clark, Brian Halligan, Janine Popick, joe pulizzi, NSTuesday, Small Business Week

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 2

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

This post is one in a series of five guest posts authored by the super star bloggers pictured below. As part of a celebration of National Small Business Week we are asking readers to match all five guests posts up with the contributing blogger to be entered for a chance to win an iPad2. Read all five posts in today’s series and come back each day this week for five new posts in this great educational series and another chance to win.

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 2

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read it 3

Posted on 17. May, 2011 by John Jantsch in Ann Handley, Blog, brian clark, Brian Halligan, Janine Popick, joe pulizzi, NSTuesday, Small Business Week

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read it 3

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

This post is one in a series of five guest posts authored by the super star bloggers pictured below. As part of a celebration of National Small Business Week we are asking readers to match all five guests posts up with the contributing blogger to be entered for a chance to win an iPad2. Read all five posts in today’s series and come back each day this week for five new posts in this great educational series and another chance to win.

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 3

Ever heard the saying “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know?”

Well, when it comes to creating effective online content, it’s not what you know, it’s what you know that you can teach others.

After that, it’s right back to who you know, same as always.

People Distribute Content

If you’re creating online content, you’ve got to get the word out about it for people to share it far and wide with others. And that process starts with good old-fashioned relationships.

It’s not called social media for nothing. Beyond the creation of content itself, online content distribution begins with key relationships with others in your subject matter arena.

It’s easier to establish these relationships than ever, thanks to social networks. And since social networks are where content sharing happens, it makes sense to begin making those relationships early on.

Help to be Helped

The key is to follow and be useful to people who are also producing content in your niche. Share their content and provide meaningful comments on their blog posts.

Your next step might be to offer to guest post for them, which provides them with vital content and provides you with exposure to their audience. You’ve now just gone from anonymous to a contributor with access – and that’s the beginning of a real world relationship that drives the virtual world as well.

Don’t view those who create content on the same topic as competitors. This is zero-sum thinking that usually has very little application in the wide-open marketplace of online ideas.

Complement, Don’t Compete

Think of your work as a complement to the content others create. You won’t be seen as a subject matter authority or a thought leader in your industry if you jealously guard your ideas from the so-called competition.

Be generous with your ideas and the relationships you form. You’ll find that your content spreads much farther and wider than it would otherwise.

And that’s the idea, right?

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read it 4

Posted on 17. May, 2011 by John Jantsch in Ann Handley, Blog, brian clark, Brian Halligan, Copywriting, Janine Popick, joe pulizzi, NSTuesday, Small Business Week

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read it 4

This content from: Duct Tape Marketing

This post is one in a series of five guest posts authored by the super star bloggers pictured below. As part of a celebration of National Small Business Week we are asking readers to match all five guests posts up with the contributing blogger to be entered for a chance to win an iPad2. Read all five posts in today’s series and come back each day this week for five new posts in this great educational series and another chance to win.

Okay, I’m Creating Content How Do I Get Someone to Read It 4

Yes, it’s true.  All small businesses create content.  Nine in 10 small businesses develop content to drive marketing goals.

But since less than 50% of SMBs feel satisfied with their content marketing efforts, obviously there is a major disconnect.
Here are 10 reasons that may be true for you, and what you need to do about it.
1.          Lack of Content Goals. What’s the behavior you want to see as a result of the content you are creating?
2.          Your Content is about Everything. You have no niche. You create content on the entire industry.  What can you be the leading expert in? Focus.
3.        The Content is about YOU YOU YOU. Remember, your customers don’t care about you. Focus on your customers’ pain points and create content around that.
4.         Good Enough is not Good Enough. Your content is competing with everyone and everything, even traditional media companies.  Make your content unique, interesting, fun (if possible), multichannel and execute the crap out of it.
5.          Lack of a Content Calendar. Stop thinking from a campaign mentality. Content for your customers is a promise. Execute a content marketing editorial calendar.
6.          Not Leveraging Employees. Your employees are your content assets. Find the 10% of employees that are content creators and nurture that.
7.          People will Magically Engage in your Content. Your content isn’t good enough that the magic content fairies will find it and spread it around the internet. Find out where your customers are on the web and be active in those communities.
8.        Your Content Has No Chief Content Officer. Look at the great media brands like the Wall Street Journal. All of them have a chief editor that owns the content. Find your chief editor.
9.       No Content Experience. Most brands don’t, so get over it. FIX: Hire a journalist.
10.     You Don’t Have Support. Those brands that don’t have internal support for content marketing are 300% more likely to stink at content marketing. Do the previous nine steps and, as Matt Heinz says, “Don’t invent new metrics. Track more but report less. Focus on behaviors.”

Read the rest of today’s mystery posts here