How to join the content marketing bandwagon

It seems we cannot escape the topic of content marketing – and for good reason. The concept of content marketing has turned the world of advertising and marketing on its head. It has changed the game from viewers trying to avoid marketing, to actually wanting to consume it – even seeking it out in some instances.

But if you’re finding it difficult to implement a content strategy – you’re not alone. Many organisations find it difficult to create a culture where content is king. Which is why we’ve strategised a framework to start the process.

The starting point

The basis of creating great content starts with the organisation itself. A good starting point is to sit down and answer the following questions:

1. What is the organisation’s purpose for existing?
2. What do our customers value?
3. What customer problems can we help solve?

These questions are key to creating great content, because – after all – content is only great if the customer finds value in it. Once these questions are made clear, employees will have a better idea of what unites the company and what content can help reach the goals of both the organisation and the customer.

Who’s responsible?

The next step is to appoint a content champion. Not everyone in the organisation needs to be a content creator, but it’s worth having someone lead up the activities. However, this person should not be solely responsible for all the content creation. You could even consider appointing several “content champions” in each department – or, if people feel uneasy about producing content, a good solution is to co-create content with a content champion.

People often think of content creation as the marketing department’s responsibility, but great content can and should span across all departments. Think of it this way – a customer might find value in learning about upcoming sales and promotions, how to use new product features, corporate sustainability activities, or improvements to customer service offerings. Limiting content to one subject area is missing an opportunity to tell the organisation’s full story.

Analytics can drive it forward

So, you’ve appointed a content champion and people are feeling empowered and encouraged to take the journey into content marketing. However, you may find that this enthusiasm for content drops over time, especially as other work piles up. Analytics can play a large role in driving long-term behaviours and forming a corporate culture where content rules.

Firstly, analytics will show how content is performing. How many times a post has been read or a video has been watched; how many leads a piece of content has generated; which topics are the most popular amongst your visitors; etc. This will help fine-tune the content offering and prove that generating content is worth the time and effort spent. Secondly, this data can be used to drive behaviours. Tracking the statistics of content can actually be quite fun – especially when used to show the impact it has on business objectives.

When people can easily visualise how their content is directly contributing to important business goals, like driving traffic to the site or meeting sales targets, it’s more likely people will be excited by the prospect of creating content.

Learn more about our content services or get in touch.