what's that smell? your r.o.t. content

#ROTcontent @annabananahrach @MikeCorak

What’s that smell? Your ROT content.


Content marketing is everywhere.


Content marketing is everywhere. Literally.


The world’s biggest brands are now content marketers


“All advertisers need a lot more content so that they can keep

the engagement with consumers fresh and relevant, because

of the 24/7 connectivity. If you’re going to be successful around

the world, you have to have fat and fertile ideas at the core.”

- Jonathan Mildenhall, VP Global Advertising Strategy and Creative Excellence at Coca-Cola


“Content is king! Create it now, and create lots of it on every channel!”


“Content marketing is the new SEO. Create a blog post around these keywords.”


“Remember Oreo’s ‘dunk in the dark’ tweet?What’s our ‘Oreo moment’?”

#ROTcontent @annabananahrach @MikeCorakhttp://pixabay.com/p-114090/?no_redirect #ROTcontent @annabananahrach @MikeCorak

#ROTcontent @annabananahrach @MikeCorakhttp://pixabay.com/p-114090/?no_redirect

Content


#ROTcontent @annabananahrach @MikeCorakhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/jdhancock #ROTcontent @annabananahrach @MikeCorak


Stop focusing on MORE.Customers don’t want more. They want better.


Time to face the facts. Brands have a content problem.


They’ve hired people to create more and more content


They’re not using strategy.They don’t know if it’s working.


What does this approach create?


What does this approach create? Piles of non-performing content.



What do companies do?



What do companies do?Create more.


Before you create one more piece of content, you need to identify your ROT content.


What’s ROT content?


R

O

T


Redundant:

O

T

Duplicate content, overly wordy


Redundant:

Outdated:

T


Expired offers, out-of-date content, outdated materials, broken links/images


Redundant:

Outdated:

Trivial:


Expired offers, out-of-date content, outdated materials, broken links/images

Not relevant for the brand, no value for the visitor, missing content or context


Redundant

2013 2015


Outdated


Trivial


Trivial

Oreo may be able to get away with this...but chances are your brand can’t.


How does ROT content happen?


Governance wasn’t part of your plan.


The ideal content creation process

Audience Intelligence

The “Who”

• Who are we speaking to?

• Who is our customer?

• Whose needs do we need to consider?

The “When”The “Why”

• Why are we creating content in the first place?

• Why will users care?

• Business goals vs. user needs?

Content Strategy

• Planning and updates

• Content performance

• Workflows

• Update process

• Prioritization

Content Governance

123

The “How”

• How is content to be distributed?

• How are channels different?

• How will customers react?

The “What”

• What are we going to create?

• What is the posting schedule?

• What gets promoted?

Content Marketing

Editorial Execution


The typical content creation process


The “Who”




123

The “How”




The “What”




The “Why”




Content Strategy

The “When”

• WTF?

• What do we do next?

• Who’s in charge of next steps?

• So...create more?

Content Governance

Content Marketing

Editorial Execution


This is just the worst. Don’t do this. Please.


The “Who”




123

The “How”




The “What”




The “Why”




Content Strategy

Content Marketing

Editorial Execution


Content execution gets prioritized over content strategy.


Content strategy and content marketing


Content strategy as the filter


You gotta know the sweet spot


You gotta know the sweet spot

Psst...that’s the sweet spot!


Roles and responsibilities are blurred.


?Q: Who’s

Responsible for Content?

○ No one responsible for content


!Q: Who’s Responsible

for Content?

A: EVERYONE!

But responsibilities need to be clearly defined and

understood by everyone.

○ No one responsible for content


Stakeholders can’t agree, so everyone has a different agenda.


Content is just being used as another vehicle for search engine optimization.


Search in its simplest form

ResearchMeasuring

PerformanceTactical

Execution


Search was...about keyword usage in content

Keyword Research Keyword UsagePage elements: Titles, headings, meta, body copy, links including anchor

Keyword Rankings *Keyword data via analytics

ResearchMeasuring

PerformanceTactical

Execution

THEN


Search today is about themes and intent

• Biz objectives• Social listening• User personas• Analytic insights• Keyword research by THEME• All of which feeds content

strategy

• Search• Content planning• Site hierarchy• Social posting• Display messaging• Email messaging• Local messaging• PPC Ad Groups• Content focused media (Native)

• Standard KPIs(real world)

• Thematic performance (segmentation, attribution)

ResearchMeasuring

PerformanceTactical

Execution

NOW


SEO should inform – not dictate – content creation


Modern SEO = Data Analyst

Volume of Data

Past

Data Sources:Keyword RankingsBacklinksPageviewsPageRank

Data Sources:More Robust Analytics Data Conversion DataAttribution ModelingEngagement DataCompetitive InsightsContent DemandSocial DataWebmaster Tools DataSERP Data

Future


FYI: Keyword-heavy content = ROT


The left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing.


Top Impediment to Program IntegrationNot so great for content creation


Shift your culture to break down silos

Educate, educate, educate

Gain senior buy-off

Reimagine your organizational structure, processes

Rally teams and partners around integrated programs

Assign common success KPIs across teams

Create senior level Content position

Include cross-channel teamwork in performance reviews

Celebrate group successes


Why ROT content matters


bigger isn’t always better


Is this how you want customers to see your content?!


ROT creates confusing user experiences

WTF?


How to clean up ROT content


Step 1: Take an inventory of your content


Step 2: Audit and score your content


Basic audit criteria

BRANDATTRIBUTES

USERRELEVANCY

CUSTOMEREXPERIENCE

Business goals

Core values

Messaging architecture

Voice, tone and style

Content goals

Key themes

Customer goals

Useful

Usable

Informative

Valuable

Actionable

Hierarchy

Clarity

Technically sound

Key themes

Delightful

Information Architecture


Step 3: Determine what can and cannot be fixed


Step 4: Trash unnecessary content

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdhancock/

Step 4: Get rid of bad content


Step 5: Clean up and organize content

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdhancock/


Step 6: Build governance into your content process


The “Who”




123

The “How”




The “What”




The “Why”




Content Strategy

The “When”

• WTF?

• What do we do next?

• Who’s in charge of next steps?

• So...create more?

Content Governance

Content Marketing

Editorial Execution


Step 6: Build governance into your content process


The “Who”




The “When”The “Why”




Content Strategy

• Planning and updates

• Content performance

• Workflows

• Update process

• Prioritization

Content Governance

123

The “How”




The “What”




Content Marketing

Editorial Execution


Questions?


Thank you

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