The Case of Content Marketing

Doug Kessler on Content Marketing

When you think about it, emerging media has provided us with limitless tools to attract consumers.  We may have been using them without fully understanding their extent.  Look at Content Marketing for example, as marketers we need to gather necessary information to be able to deliver information that is relevant to both our target audience and our overall business strategy.  Any good marketer does that without thought, but not all can take it a step further.

The beauty of Content Marketing is that You get to be your own media- no more low quality because of limited budgets, with the advantage of providing credible information that are essential to a customer’s buying decision. In turn, you get to reach you customer better because you have better and more in-depth information about them.

 Content Marketing can be provided offline and online.  But let’s focus on online as we become more customer-centric. I recently came across Bloomstein’s ‘The Case for Content Strategy-Motown Style’, which focuses on how to create effective content for measurable ROI. The article pays particular tribute to achieving communications objectives through the process of content strategy.

This cost effective approach primarily requires a clear understanding of what a company wants to communicate to its clients, and what clients are expecting from a company. A content strategist allows a company to bring together an effective website. By focusing on the three important factors of website creation, the process includes:

1- Reviewing all existing documents that have been prepared for the website. This ensures that the information the company is planning to upload is relevant to what their target is looking for. Additionally, it would also help assess what other tools (blogs, videos, testimonials, etc.) can be used to make the site more attractive. With the understanding of the brand goals, the qualitative content inventory audit characterizes each every piece of content based on the following: Will it be current and accurate upon launch? Will it be on brand for the client’s message hierarchy and evolving look and feel? Is the content useful and relevant for the context and audience goals at each point in the experience?

2- Knowing what’s out there about the brand. Researching brand traits and its audience through both the company’s marketing and existing search engines, then integrating them, allows a company to design a website that generates more traffic from the relevant target.

3- Understanding the company’s communication goals. This guarantees that the creative concept is on target in terms of key messages and overall design, tone and feel of the website.

4- Correlating content to communication goals and brand strategy. Assessing what exists and what needs to be generated in terms of content from an objective perspective strengthens reach to the target audience.

Bloomstein concludes that having a content strategist improves user experiences, as they contribute to design, brand development, information architecture, search engine marketing, and writing.