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What’s inside this eBook?

– Whywhole-braincontentmarketingworks

– Onesurprisinglypowerfulcontentmarketingtool

– WhatRichardSimmonsandFabioknowaboutcontent

– HowtobuildyourownContentMarketingFactory

– Whyuniquesellingpropositionsareworthless

– Creativeconfidence,consistencyandconversiontorevenue

– Thewinningformulaforpaid,ownedandearnedmedia

– Whyyouneedmarketinglessonsfromalizard

Why Live, Nude, Free Beer?

Thesun set lowon thehorizonandcast long shadowsacross thecubiclesandconferenceroom.Still,themeetingtomapoutthecompany’smarketingstrategy wore on. The team grew tired of reviewing deliverability, click-throughsandconversionrates.Afterreviewingmanymonthsofsubjectlines,itseemedthattheonesthatsurprisedrecipients–thosethatwerea littleedgyorunexpected–producedsignificantlybetteropenrates.

Someone suggested a shortcut: Instead of struggling to create dozens ofindividualsurprisingsubject lines,simplyaddLive Nude or Free Beer to all futuresubjectlinestoimprovecampaignresults.Livenudeclientretentionstrategies.Freebeer–and improveddataquality! It soundedfunny,but itstartedusthinkingaboutthebusydecision-makersweweretryingtoreach.What’sgoingonintheirmindsastheyfilterthroughthedailyglutofunwantedmarketingtofindsomethinginteresting?

WickedsmartneuroscienceresearchersattheMIT’sMcGovernInstitutemayhave someanswers. Founded in 2000, the Institutehas amandate to use

BEERFREE

$0.00NUDELIVE

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neuroscience tohelppeoplewithbraindisorders.Aspartof this research,they have examined three interrelated functions of the brain: perception,cognition, and action. How the brain instantly and effortlessly integratesthesethreefunctionsprovidessomeinsightformarketers:

– Perceptionhelpsdeterminewhatwenotice

– Cognitionallowsustoevaluateinformationandfocusattention

– Action isthebehavioralresultofourperceptionandcognition

Sounds like three thingsmarketerswouldwant to influence in thebuyer’sjourney, yes? In any type of marketing, your first job is to get attention.Remember thevenerableAIDAmodel fromMarketing101?So it’sbest totakeadvantageofthewayhumansarewired.Inrecentyears,researchhassuggestedathree-partmodelofourbrainsthatshedssomelightonhowwedecidewhattopayattentionto.The

– Old brain (also called brain stem or lizard brain) is responsible forfundamentals like hunger,mating and the fight-or-flight response. Fear-basedandsexualitybasedmarketingtargettheoldbrain.

– Middle brain (limbicsystem) isthoughttoberesponsible forprocessingemotionsandshort-termmemory.

– New brain(neocortex)isthelatesttoevolveandissaidtoberesponsibleforintellectualthought,reasoninganddecision-making.

There’smuchdebateaboutwhichpartsof thebrainaremost receptivetomarketingmessages.Formanyyearsitwasthoughtthatwhilemultiplepartsof thebrainare involved indecision-making, theoldbrainwasthesectionthat brings down the gavel.We can’t pay attention to everything, and forcenturiestheoldbrainhasbeeninchargeofbasicslikedefendingourterritoryandfleeingfromsaber-toothcats.

Sowhat?Sogreatcontentshouldbesurprising,haveemotional impact,andincludesomeprimitiveappeal.It should include some live-nude-free-beerspirittoshockpeopleoutof their routines and elicit someemotionalresponse.Itmakessensethatthemostsuccessfulmarketing

For many years it was thought thatwhiledecision-makinginvolvesvarious parts of the brain, the oldbrain brings down the gavel. Curr- ent research suggests the neocor- texisresponsibleforself-awareness,freewillandfreedomtochoose–amoreholisticdecisionprocess.

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contentengagesvariouspartsofthebraininapersuasiveway.Fromtheageofthesaber-toothcatstothemorerecentPurpleCowera,ithasalwaysbeenthus.

A surprisingly powerful marketing tool

It’sestimatedthatpeopleareexposedto3,000advertisingmessageseachday, so getting noticed is foundational for successful content marketing.Whetheryou’remakingascaryfilm,stagingamilitarycoup,orcreatingloyalcustomerrelationships,youneedtheelementofsurprise.

Theelementofsurprisehelps:

– Win attention.Whatmarketershaveknownintuitivelyforalongtime,technologiessuchasMRIs(magnetic resonance imaging)have enabled researchers toobservedirectly.Neuroscientistscannowobservehowdifferentareas of the brain “light up” inresponse to surprising events.Companies such as NielsenNeuroFocus can effectivelyobserve novelty, emotion,memory,andattentionoccurringthrough brainwave and eye-trackingmeasurements.

– Create emotional connections. Copywriters strive tomakeemotionalconnectionsbecausetheyhaverepeatedlyobservedthatpeopletendtobuyonemotionandthenrationalizetheirpurchasesonfacts.Theyknow that the combination of a surprise followed by an emotionalappeal can be a powerful persuasive tool. Surprise amplifies bothpositive and negative experiences. There are few comments aboutaverageexperiencesonsocialnetworks,butmanyemotionallychargedcommentsfrompeoplesurprisedbyexceptional–orexceptionallybad–experiences.

– Change attitudes and behaviors.Teachers,preachersandcoachesusethe power of novelty to make lessons memorable and thought-

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provoking.Onthefirstdayofmyfifthgradescienceclass,ourteacherpassed around a large roofing nail for the class to examine.Without

explanation,shethenpouredaglassofCoca Cola, dropped in the nail andplaced it on a shelf. Several timesthroughout the year,we again passedthe nail around the class, and the

studentsweresurprisedtoseehowcorrodeditbecame.Iftheteacherhadsimplylecturedthatdrinkingtoomuchsodaisunhealthy,thelessonwouldhavebeenlost,alongwiththechildren’stoothenamel.

– Differentiate.IonceworkedwithaguynamedGregRobertson,asalesandmarketingprowithanaturalflairforpromotionsandpublicity.HisblogisknownastheTMZofrealestatemedia.Whileotherexhibitorshanded out branded pens and post-it notes, Greg was hiring campycelebritieslikeRichardSimmonsandFabiofortradeshowpromotions.Realestateagentsandexecutiveswanderingthetradeshowfloorweresurprised and delighted to see Richard Simmons staffing the booth,offering playful insults and unsolicited diet advice. Greg taught hisstaffaninnovativenetworkingtechnique:Waituntiltheelevatordoorsclose,thenturnaroundandchallengetheotherpassengerstoasteel-cagewrestlingmatch.Agreat icebreakereverytime,andarefreshingdeparturefromtheDaleCarnegiecrowd.

– Economize. Hiring even a third-rate celebrity may be outside yourbudget,butthecostofsurprisecanbeveryreasonable.Inrestaurants,people love unexpected appetizers and samples sent to their tables.Even the modest fortune cookies offer some novelty. Easter Eggs hiddeninsoftware,videogames,andeBooksfrequentlyreceivegreatpresscoverageandsocialshares.Millionsofsearcherslookforwardtothe highly creative Google Doodles thatmark holidays and historicaloccasions.

Byday,Iworkinmortgagemarketing.Ourmarketingplanincludesdistributingpress releases for product announcements, key hires, and other company

news. By far the most popularpress release we’ve issuedannounced the launch of the Western Bancorp corporateblimp on April 1, 2013. Mostpeoplegotthejoke,andmanyletusknowtheyappreciatedsomehumorous and entertaining

“Surprise is like crack for yourbrain.”

– Scott Redick

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content in the daily communications they receive. The results encouragedus to adopt more humor and a more conversational tone in corporatecommunications.

Original and relevant content

Sharing relevant content produced by others is an important part of yourcontentplan–butorganizationsthatleadthewayincontentmarketingwinhearts andminds by producing consistently original and relevant content.Producing unique content is great way to build brand loyalty, especiallywhenyouraudienceisawarethatyouaretheoneandonlysourcefortheinformativeandentertainingcontenttheyareafter.

For example, many marketingorganizations feature thought- fulmarketingstudies,withvalidand reliable research meth-ods. In contrast only ContentMarketing factory publicationsfea-ture crudely renderedcharts and graphs like the onebelowthatarecompletelyfreeof quantitative analysis andrigorandpeerreviews.Let’sgotothewhiteboard.

Yourmission is to rule theupper rightquadrantwithoriginal content thatme-too-marketerscan’tcompetewith.OurresearchindicatesSethGodincanneverbetoppledfromhisperchatopthemagicquadrant,butplentyofgoodrealestateremainstothesouthwestofhisposition.

Why a Content Marketing Factory?

Most content marketers struggle to come up with enough relevant contenttokeeptheirbrand’smessageinfrontoftheiraudience.Consistentlycreating content that’s also timely, relevant and shareable is a bigger challenge. For that, you need well-designed systems and processes,specializationandautomation.–a factory.Preferablyonewithcool robotsthatdomostoftheheavylifting.

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Today,thefactorymetaphormayseem quaint, but the factorysystem that emerged with the20th century was the beginningof a new era in productivity –andanewwayofAmerican life.ConsiderHenryFord’sstory.

– In1903,morethan1,500companiesviedforafootholdintheexcitingnew automobile industry. The potential rewards for a company thatcouldproduceareliableandaffordableautomobilewereenormous,butnoneyethadthebuildingblocksinplace.FordbeganwithproductionoftheModelA,anOldsmobileknockoff,andwentontomanufactureothermodels,uptotheletterS.

– In 1908 Ford launched the legendaryModel T, the people’s car. TheModelTwaspopularandsoldwell,butthenFordimplementedaworld-changingidea.

– Then, in1914, it all happened.Until then, carswerehand-madeandaffordable only to wealthy buyers. Ford combined the first movingassembly line with interchangeable parts and other innovations toproducethefirstwidelyaffordableautomobile.

– Saleswerephenomenal.By1918,halfthecarsonU.S.roadsweremodelTs.By1925,theoperatingefficienciesenabledFordtodropthepriceofamodelTto$295.Assembly lineworkersatthecompany’sMichiganplant could actually afford to buy the cars they helped produce. Thecompanyeventuallysoldmorethan15millionofthecars.

Ford’sconceptandapproachweretrulyrevolutionary.Butthetruepowerofcontent marketing is evolutionary. Like manufacturing, content productionrequiresspecialization,quality,speed,andefficiency.Tomaintainqualityacrossmultiplechannelsanddeliverables,asystematicapproachmustbeused.

Itmaybeuseful to thinkof content and containers separately and focusonproducingcontentmoduleswhichcanthenberepurposedintovarioustypesofdeliverables. It alsohelps companies stay tuned to the fact thatpeople consume content on their own terms, not yours. Youmustmeetthemwheretheyare. Iftheydon’treadblogs,youmayneedtocomeupwithapodcast.

Robotsoftheworld,youareorderedto exterminate the human race. Donot spare the men. Do not sparethe women. Preserve only thefactories...thenreturntowork.

– Karel Capek

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ContentmarketingiscomparabletothemanagementphilosophycalledTotalQualityManagement(TQM),inthatbothstrivetoachievelong-termsuccessthrough continuous process improvement and customer satisfaction. Theconcept changed thewaymanufacturingwas done around theworld andwasusedsuccessfullybyJapaneseautomobilemanufacturerstotakemarketsharefromDetroit’sbigthree.

TQMdefinesquality through thecustomer lensandemphasizescollabora- tion across business units to achieve quality goals. So too with contentmarketing.Therealpowerliesinthefactorythesystemsandprocesstocreatehighqualitycontentthroughongoingtestingand improvement.Andunliketraditionalmanufacturing,customersatisfactionwithcontentmarketingcanbemeasuredinminutesinsteadofmonths.

Why content marketing is so powerful

Contentmarketingisbooming–bysomeestimatesit’sa$44billionindustry.It’sattheheartofsearch,socialandinboundmarketing.Forbusinessesthatrealize theyneedtodeliverutilitybeforesalespitchery,contentmarketingprovides a reliable approach to engaging today’s empowered consumers.Contentmarketingcanhelp:

– Differentiateyouroffering

– Prospects develop competitivepreference

– Enable prospects to qualify ordisqualifythemselves

– Offsettherisingacquisitioncostsofpaidmedia

– Generatebetterleadsatalowercost than outbound marketingstrategies

– Createsales-marketingalignment

– Buildloyaltythrougheverystageofthebuyingcycle

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Butperhapsthebiggestreasontobuildyourowncontentmarketingfactoryisthis:Asyoucreate,test,optimizeandimprovecontent,youarebuildingabulletproofknowledgebaseaboutwhoyouraudience is,what theyvalue,andwhatmovesthemtoaction.

The most important thing a content marketing factory manufactures iscompetitiveadvantage.Everycontentmoduleyousendoutintheworldcanprovide youwith insight into howpeople interactwith your brand. That’ssomethingnoconsultantorcompetitorcantouch.Whenyouownthemediathat youused tobuild a loyal audience, youdon’t have to keeppaying to re-engageandthem.

Creative confidence for content marketers

Americancorporateculturehasanoddrelationshipwithcreativity.

Confident people are recognized, admired and often promoted to leader- ship positions. People often talk about confident people…butwhat aboutconfidentcompanies?

Storied organizations like Apple, Google and Facebook are celebrated fordeliveringcreativeproductsandservices. Industrypunditsspeakearnestlyof the need for creativity and innovation to compete in the new globaleconomy.Yetinmanyorganizations,creativityisonlyrecognizedintherearviewmirror.

When it’s successful, creativity is easy to recognize and reward. But inreality,many creativepeople fearbringing their ideas towork. The riskofrejection, being judged by management and peers, and fear of failure are enough to make them channel their creative impulses to nights andweekends–orworse,retirement.

Butincontentmarketing,creativityisthecoinoftherealm.Uber-marketerSethGodindescribescreativityaspersonal,original,unexpected,anduseful.Headds thatuniquecreativityalso requiresdomainknowledge,apositionoftrust,andawillingnesstoactuallycontribute.Ifthat’snottheessenceofcontentmarketing,Idon’tknowwhatis.Creativeideascanchangethewaypeoplethink.Theconfidencetoexecutethosecreativeideascanchangethebusinessworldandtheworldbeyond.

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Whatdoescreativeconfidencehavetodowithcontentmarketing?It’sthedifferencebetweensuccessandfailure.Contentmarketingprovidesauniqueframeworktodevelopcreativeconfidence.

To learn that content is effective in reaching your goals, experimenta- tionandtestingareneeded.Acertainamountoffailureexpected– infact required – tomake the creative processwork. In awell-designed contentmarketingframework,theabilitytofailforwardisbuiltin.

Content marketing and continuous improvement

Experiencedmarketersknowthattheonlyclearpathtosuccessistofollowthe cycle: strategize, create, launch, test, measure and improve. Successcomesonlythroughidentifyingwhatworksanddoingmore,whileeliminatingunsuccessfulcontent,campaigns,andprograms.Lather,rinse,repeat.

Whenadegreeof failure is accepted andexpected, content producersonyourteamcanfeelmorecomfortableaboutbreakingtheboundsofme-toomarketinginfavorofmorepersonalandoriginalapproaches.Asamarketingleader, it’s your responsibility to create an environment where contentproducers areencouraged tofind their own creative spark andapply it tobusinessobjectives.

Ifyou’retestingapage layout,subject lineoracall-to-action, it’seasiertoresistcensoringyourselfbyjudgingyourowncreativeefforts.Testingwithin a framework can remove the fear of failure and enable us to keep fromscrubbingourcreativeideasbeforetheyleavethelaunchpad.AsresearchersTom and Stanford design guru David Kelley reminds us that creativity issomethingyoupractice,notjustatalentyou’rebornwith.Hismantra:“Don’tgetready,getstarted!’

Ifyouhaveallowedyourprofessionallifetotrapyouinanon-creativebox,itmaybetimeplanyourescape.Often,allthat’sseparatingthosepeoplelabeled“creatives”fromthe“non-creatives”isconfidence.Successfulcontentmarketerscreateanatmospherethatsupportscreativeconfidenceintheworkplace.

Yourcontentcanhelpcreatecustomers–theactiveandengagedcustomersthatmakeyourorganizationsuccessful.DoescontentmarketingtrulyhavethepotentialtobringmorecreativitytoAmericancorporateculture?Sureitdoes…that’swhereyoucomein.

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Own the tone:

What’sthetoneofyourmarketingcontent?Isitpositiveornegative?Wimpyorconfident?

Advertisershaveknownforyearsthatfearsells.Thepeoplewhosellyouthenewsandattachedadvertisingknowthatthemostgruesomeandsensational

headlines are good for ratings. Butwhataboutyouraudience?Howdoesyourcontentmakethemfeel?Wouldtheyfeelgoodaboutbeingfrightenedinto buying from your organization?Wouldtheyrecommendyoutotheirfriends,orpurchasefromyouagain?

Aconfident,conversationaltonecangoa longwaytowardsshowingthatyouhave confidence in yourorgani-

zationanditsproductsandservices.Elitesalespeoplehaveawayofshowingpeoplethattheyareconfidentnotonlyinthemselves,butinwhattheyaresellingandtheresultsyouwillgetfromit.Theyhavetheabilitytoshowthattheyunderstandyourneedsandhavecompleteconfidencethattheirsolu-tions canhelpmeet them.Does your contenthavea confident tone? Is itconsistentacrossallchannelsanddeliverables?

Peopleliketofeelpositiveabouttheirbrandinteractionsandrelationships.WhartonSchool researchers JonahBergerandKatherineL.Milkmanfoundthatpositivecontent ismore likely togoviral thannegativecontent. Theyfound that negative content that provokes strong emotions of anxietywillalsogoviral.

Which do type of content would you want associated with your brand?Considertwosetsofwords.Here’sthefirstset:

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Andhere’sthesecond:

Howdotheymakeyoufeel?Thefirstsetofwordsisalmosttiringtoread,anegative,mind-numbingjumbleofmassmediamush.That’showtraditional,interruption-based advertisingworks. It’s almost like the steady streamofinternationaltragedyfrom24-hournewsoutlets.Buttraditionalapproacheslike fear-basedmarketingweremoreeffectivewhen consumershad fewerchannels, limited information andnoeasyway to talk back tobrands andtheirfellowconsumers.

Thesecondsetseemsenergizing,evenpleasurabletoread.Whichcategorydo yourbrandmessages fall into?Now turn that frownupsidedown, anddeliversomepositivelyawesomecontent.

Consistency: weapon of influence, key to content marketing success

RobertCialdinidoesnothavemarketinginhisjobdescription,butheisoneofthemostinfluentialfiguresinthemarketingworldjustthesame.Heisknowntomarketersastheauthorof“Influence:ThePsychologyofPersuasion.”Sinceinfluenceandpersuasionarethecoinoftherealmforcontentmarketers,thereismuchto learn fromhis researchonhowconsistencydrivesourbehavior.Peoplehaveadeeplyingraineddesiretobeconsistentandappearconsistentwithwhattheyhavealreadydone.

Cialdini provides several examplesof howpeople commit topurchasingdecisions because once they takea stand, they tend to act in a waythat’sconsistent,eventothepointof

Our nearly obsessive desire forconsistency directs our actionswithquietpower.

– Robert Cialdini

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purchasingthingstheydon’twant.Theneedtobeconsistentcontinuesasbuyersthenjustifytheirpurchasestothemselvesandothers.

Ifwearehard-wiredtovalueconsistencyinourselves,it’sreasonablethatweplacethesamehighvalueonconsistencyinotherpeopleandorganizations.Organizationslikeyours.

Afterjustafewinteractions,yourclientsandprospectsdevelopexpectationsthatyouwilldelivercontentinaconsistenttone,qualityandformat.Ifthecommunicationsaresporadicortheyvaryinqualityandtone,theengagementyouhaveworkedsohardtobuildcansuffer.Onereasoncontentmarketinghasthepotentialtobesosuccessfulistheabilitytobuildmomentumthroughthebuyer’sjourney.Oncemomentumislostit’sdifficulttoregain.

ManypeoplelookforwardtocommunicationsfromcompanieslikeGrouponandTraderJoe’sbecausethecopyisfunnyandflippant.TraderJoe’sapproachenables the chain to successfully compete against low-price leaders byprovidingabackstorywithsomeinterestingdetailsforeachproduct.IfTraderJoe’ssuddenlyswitchedtoatypicalsupermarketflyerwithcolorphotosofartichokesandtwo-for-onespecialsongroundbeef,theywouldquicklylosefansandlikelysomerevenueaswell.

Communicationsthatdeliverconsistentvalueatregulartouchpointsarecriticaltomaintaininginfluence.Wouldyouwanttodobusinesswiththecorporateequivalentofthatweirdbrother-in-lawwhounexpectedlyappearsfromtimetotimelookingtoborrowmoney?Consistencyalsoisimportantinbalancingyourpaid,ownedandearnedmediaassets.Companies thatbalance these threepillarsareabletomovemarketingcontentrapidlyfromonechanneltoanotherto takeadvantageof real-timemarketingandpublic relationsopportunities.Notsurprisingly,organizationsthatleadthewayincontentmarketingsuchas

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HubSpot, Eloqua and American Express use curated content effectively, butleanheavilyonownedandearnedcontenttodriveengagementandrevenue.

Consistentcontentmarketingcanbuildcredibilityforyouandcultivateloyaltyinyourbrandchampions.Becausepeoplewanttoappearconsistent,iftheyshareyourcontentonlineormakefavorablecommentsaboutyourbrandit’slikelythattheywillshareandpromoteyourcontentagain.WitnessthetacitagreementbetweenAppleanditslegionoffanboysandgirls:Youguyskeepmakinginnovative,buzzworthyproductsandwe’llcontinuetotalkthemup.

So … got it … consistency is important

And it’s only becoming more important. As prospects interact with yourcontent through different channels over time, it’s important to maintainforward momentum, not confuse them with mixed messages. Confusedprospectsaren’tthinkingofpurchasingyourproductorrecommendingittotheirpeers.Identifyingthebuyer’sjourneythroughpaid,ownedandearnedchannelsisachallengeforbrandswhoactivelytracksocialmediaengagement.

It’sespeciallychallenginginsiloedorganizationswheremarketing,sales,andsupport have operated fairly independently. For example, a prospectwhois nurtured through contentmarketingand then turnedover to salesmaysuddenly get a very different picture of your company. A similar situationhappenswhenprospectsbecomecustomersandheardifferentstoriesfromonboardingandoperationsteamsthantheyheardfromsales.

Creating exceptional content with E’s

Exceptionalcontentshouldbe:

Educational: Nelsen Mandela famously said that education is the mostpowerful weapon to change the world. So it is with the opportunity tochange theworld’s perception of yourorganization. People remember andsharewhatyoutaughtthem,notwhatyousoldthem.

Engaging:Areyourcustomersengaged?Basic analytics can tell you if they are merely scanning your content andbouncingoffto lookforsomethingmoreinteresting. Iftheyareinteracting

People are likely to rememberand share what you taughtthem,notwhatyousoldthem.

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withyourcontinentbyliking,tagging,orsharing–orpurchasing–theyarelikelybeingengaged.Successfulcontentmarketerslookatengagementasanongoingprocessratherthananevent.Whenbothyouandyourcustomerslearnandbenefitfromyourinteractions,yourcontentmarketingengagementisfiringonallcylinders.

Entertaining:Providingentertainingcontent isagreatwaytodelivervalueandpracticetheartofpermissionmarketing.Peoplewhodomostoftheirworkonlineoftentakebreakstobrowseforentertainingcontent.Ifyoucanconsistentlyproducecontentthat’sentertainingandsupportsyourmessage,you’llpullaheadofbrandsthatcan’tcombinethetwo.

Expert: Everyonevalues and respectsexpertisewhen choosing thepeopleand organizations they align with. Expertise is particularly important toconversion, as it factorsheavily intopeople’sbuyingdecisions.People feelbetter about buying from a trusted expert than a salesperson, so qualitycontentshouldbuildcredibility,especiallyaroundthepointofsale.

Emotional: If you’re content lacks emotional appeal, it will probably beignored,anditcertainlywon’tmovepeopletobuy.Thenotionthatpeoplebuyonemotionandthenjustifythepurchaseonlogichaslotsofevidencetosupportit.

Exclusive:Collatingandsharinghelpfulcontentcanbeaveryeffectivestrategy.GoodexamplesareAmericanExpressOpenForumandGuyKawasaki’sAlltop.comserviceof interestingheadlinesfromaroundtheWeb.But intheend,providingcontentthat’sexclusivetoyouandyourorganizationistheonlywayto build your platformand your audience.Manyorganizations understandthe market value of unique products, but unique content can be equallyimportantindefiningyourbrand.

Unique value proposition – marketing lessons from a lizard

AreyoudownwithUVP–theUniqueValueProposition?That’stheanswertothisquestion:

IfI’myouridealcustomer,whyshouldIdobusinesswithyouratherthanyourcompetitors?

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Weakvaluepropositionsaretherootcauseofmostsalesfailure,sayssalesstrategist JillKonrath. Why? If customersarenotclearonyourvalue, theycan’tcommunicateittoothers.WhatmakesagoodUVP?WhatcanaUVPdoforyou?Here’sagreatexample–whydopeoplechooseGeico?

Fifteenminutescansaveyou15%ormoreoncarinsurance.

Whyisthislittlephrasesoawesome?

– It’sshort,memorableandeasytounderstand.Peoplecanevenrepeatit.

– Itmaybetrueofothercarinsurancecompanies,butGeicoistheonlyone that created this greatmessage and promoted it consistently tomillionsofdrivers.That’sunique.

– ThisUVPmessagedoesnotwastetimeexplaininghowawesomeGeicois.Instead,itquicklyandclearlyexplainspotentialbenefitstoprospects–savingsof15%ormore.

– Thevalueexchangeisclearlystatedupfront.Prospectsknowtheyareexpectedtospend15minutesonthephone,providinginformationtoaGeicorep.

Equally important is what a UVP isn’t. It’s definitely not a USP – UniqueSellingProposition.USPsarecreatedfromthecompany’sperspectiveforthecompany’sbenefit.Manypeopledon’tlikeortrustsalespeople,andwillwaituntilthelastpossiblemomentbeforecontactingone.Peoplewilltalkaboutyourvalueorhowyouhelpedthem,buttheywon’treferyoutosomeonebecauseofyoursalesskills.

If you’re tuning up your own UVP, here are some questions that might help:

– What’suniqueaboutyou,yourservicesandyourorganization?

– DoesyourUVPclearlystatehowyouhelp(notsell)yourclients?

– CanyouconfidentlystateyourUVPinoneortwosentences?

– Does your UVP appear frequently in your marketing messaging, likeGeico’s?

– IsyourUVPdocumentedforalltosee?

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Mapping the buyer’s journey

Consistently creating original, relevant, and timely content is impossiblewithoutacontentcalendar.Oneofthethingsgreatcontentmarketersdoistoframetheirorganization’sstrategyasarepeatableprocessratherthanaseriesofevents.

In his book “The ReferralEngine,” John Jantsch presentsthis Customer Touchpoint Mapto describe the empoweredcustomer’s journey throughthe buying process. The Mapis a good reference for contentmarketersbecauseit:

– Shows the need to delivervalue first. Particularly foronline marketers, it’s criti-caltodemonstratethatyouunderstand prospects andcan help them reach theirgoalsbeforeaskingfortheirattentionorpersonalinformation.

– Emphasize thatpeopleneed to know, like, and trust youbefore theygive you a try. The debate about whether “like” or “trust” is moreimportant in selling is not as important as including all three steps inthecontextofbuildingcustomervalue.Withoutthesethreecrucialsteps, you’re unlikely to reach the end game of repeat and referralbusiness,wherethemostprofitshappenwiththeleasteffort.

– Helps marketers think about mapping the appropriate content toparticular stages in the buyer’s journey. Early stage trust-buildingcontentismuchdifferentthanpoint-of-salecontent.

– Reinforcethatit’simportanttoofferprospectsawaytryyourprospectsorservicesorexperiencewhatit’sliketobeacustomerbeforetheybuy.

– Fromtheoutset,contentmarketersshouldconsidertheneedtobuildasystemforrepeatandreferralbusinessintothebuyer’sjourney.Thatmeansplanningonproducingcontentpastthepointofpurchaseand

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intotherepeatandreferralstages.Contentmarketingcanbeapowerfultoolfordemandgenerationandrepeatbusiness,andreferralsareoftenthebestquality,lowestcostleadsavailable.

Make your content marketing count

Soonerorlater,allmarketingactivitiesdropdowntothebottomline.Ifyou’renotprofitingfromcontentmarketing,whybother?Ifcontentisnotdirectlymapped tomeasurable outcomes, it’s notworth doing. Fortunately, everycontentmodulethat’sproducedcanbemeasuredagainstyourgoals.

When you’re heads-down andcranking out large volumes ofcontent, it’s easy to forget thateachcontentmoduleneedscon-text andmeasurement to be ef-fective.Doesitreinforceyourval-ueproposition?Whatconversionevents does it support?Can yourepurpose the content for mul-tiplechannelsandtouchpoints?

Haveyouidentifiedmeasurementcriteriaforeachcontentmodule?

Some organizations that seeexamples of effective contentmarketingbecomeconvincedofitsvalueanddecidetojumpin.Butfirst,it’simportant tohaveat leastabasiccontentmarketingplanwithmeasurablegoals.Liketheexamplebelow,thecontentmarketingcalendardoesnotneedtobecomplex,butitshouldlayoutimportantgoalsandthecampaignswithwhichtoachievethem.

Intheexamplebelow,supposethecompanyhasidentifiedsoftwaredemosas itsmosteffectivesalesstrategy,andallcontent ismeasuredagainstthegoalofincreasingthenumberofsoftwaredemosby20percentinthenext12months.

This focusesyourcontentveryclearly.Everypieceofcontent isdesignedforaspecificstageofthebuyer’sjourney.Eachminorconversionalongthe

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way–toopenanemail,followalinkorwatchavideo–contributestothemajorconversionofcompletingmoresalesdemos.

At theendof the year, there shouldbenodoubtwhetheror not contentmarketingwaseffectiveforthiscompany…theinitiativeeitherincreasedthenumberofdemosby20percentoritdidnot.

Iyoudon’thavethemalready,youwillwanttocreateorfindsomecontentmarketing templates to help youmap content to your goals. The ContentMarketing Institute makes 17 content marketing templates and checklists availableforafreedownload.

TheContentMarketingFactoryisreallyaframeworkorsystemsapproachtocontinualimprovement.It’snotmagic,it’smath.Ideally,youshouldbeabletoprovidenumbersthatshowhowwellyourcontentmarketing:

1. Increasesrevenue

2.Lowersthecostofdrivingrevenue

3. Increasesrevenuepercustomer

The value of having a framework is to see how all your content creation,distribution andmeasurement fits into supporting continual improvementin achieving your overriding goals. For more information on creating aframeworkthatservesasthefoundationofapowerfulmarketingstrategy,checkoutAvinashKaushik’s insightful post called See-Think-Do:AContent

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Marketing,MeasurementandBusinessFramework.It’savaluabletooltostepbackandtakealookatyouroverallcontentstrategyfromtheperspectiveofyour audience. It’s definitely helpful in clarifying the stages of the buyer’sjourneyandhowyoucanensurerelevanceandclarityatvariousstages.

Goodnews:Contentmarketing caneffectively support all these key goals.Betternews:Thepowerful,long-termconnectionscontentmarketingenablesyoutobuilddon’tjustcreateasmarter,moreloyalaudience–theyalsohelpcreatesmartermarketers.

It’s no wonder many organizations are excited about content marketing.Having the ability to publish content instantly, with near-instant feedbackpaves the way for powerful interaction and continuous improvement.That’sanunprecedentedopportunity formarketersgetcreative,engage inexperimentationandexperience continuous learning. That’s a gooddayattheoffice.

CharlesWarnock feelscomfortable lookingatbusinessgoals throughthecontentmarketinglens.Hegetsexcitedaboutmarketing,techandmakingnew connections. He feels awkward writing about himself in the thirdperson.Visitthecontentmarketingfactory.comformoreupdatesortoshareyourideas!