Content Marketing
These days, every dollar of a marketing budget may be a precious thing. That's why in the past few years, companies are beginning to shift dollars away from display advertising — a traditional but tenuous and expensive means of marketing — and more toward online marketing, which promises measurable return on investment.
But approaching "alternative" marketing the same way you approached traditional marketing won't get you much further ahead. The same old intrusive, be everywhere to everybody, hit-them-over-the-head marketing just doesn't work anymore (if it ever really did), nor does the one-time "campaign" that piques interest and then leaves people hanging. People are overwhelmed with information and choice. They want to get to the right answer fast when they're solving business problems. And they want to look like the hero when they implement the right solution.
That's where content marketing comes in. Companies can use a multifaceted, well-orchestrated plan to deliver relevant content to prospects and customers at the right time — changing minds, educating people, establishing expertise, developing ongoing conversations, overcoming objections and building loyalty.
Content that keeps them coming back for more
Building and implementing an effective content marketing plan takes some time. It's not a one-time push or a temporary campaign. It requires a strategy to understand customer needs and map them to each stage of your sales cycle. That strategy enables your company to become the helpful guide who steps forward with an answer to the logical questions that arise in your prospect's mind, such as:
- Why should I change?
- What are my peers and competitors doing?
- How do I do this the right way?
- Who can solve my problem better than anyone else?
As they begin to look for the answer themselves, your company is stepping forward with content that helps them learn more, defend their position to others in their organization, make decisions and feel confident about how they're moving forward. You are the angel on their shoulder — and as they begin to see your company as the solution, they will reward you for it with their business.
At a recent conference on content marketing in Berkeley, California, one speaker said about his success with content marketing: "For the first time ever, people are coming to us ready to buy." Strategic content is helping to handle the education and persuasion for his company, with little or no hard sell involved.
