My Take on Building A Better Content Marketing Strategy

Building a content marketing strategy can be a lot like building a house of cards.  You start with a goal and, hopefully, a plan.  Then, each card must be carefully positioned and placed for a house to stand up for the long term. 

If you don’t pay attention to every aspect of the process, your “house” will fall.

To avoid that unfortunate situation, most content marketers will agree that a great content marketing strategy contains these key elements:

1.  Define your goals – Why are you creating content and what value(s) are you looking to gain from it?
2.  Identify and understand your audience – Who are you creating this content for and how will they benefit from reading and applying the content?
3.  Find relevant stories to tell – What specific and valuable topics will you build your content around?  
4.  Manage the process – How will you structure and manage your content marketing program?  Who in your organization will concept and develop content, and how will it be delivered by channel?
5.  Measure and adapt your approach – How will you gauge and optimize your effectiveness and value to the organization?

All of these elements are critical, but in my experience the most important one is #2 – Identify and understand your audience.  And that may be harder to do than you think. 

Oh sure, you can define your audience, but do you truly understand them? 

Here are a few of the key questions to ask if you want to create the best possible content marketing program.

How does your audience perceive the current market environment? Do they know who you are and what your brand/company stand for?

What are your customer’s goals?  If you don’t truly understand what your customer is trying to accomplish, you won’t know if your company can help them to accomplish them.

What are the key needs your audience has, and how do the prioritize them?  While you may think you understand their goals and needs, you must look at each customer from their perspective, not from your own.  As an example, for some companies speed of delivery may overshadow quality or price, while others are not willing to compromise on any of these elements.

How does your target audience feel about your company? Do they recognize any unique values that your company has that are important to them?

How does your target feel about your competitors?  What strengths do they see for your chief competitors, and what do you need to do to win them over?

Most importantly, what does your audience need to know about your company to choose you over a competitor?  This is the most difficult aspect of this entire process, but understanding this is key to providing content that is relevant to your audience. 

Never forget that the best content is written for your audience, 
not for your brand or company.

Much of understanding your audience can be derived from your sales force and other contact points, a well as secondary resources. But sometimes you may need some primary research to go directly to your audience to ask them some of those key questions.   

Whichever path you choose, you must find that “big idea” that can mean the difference between a good content program and a great one.

It may be easy to identify who your audience is, but, in many ways, truly understanding them is much, much harder.  And if you don’t understand each of your customers attitudes, needs and goals, you will never create or provide the optimal content strategy.

- Don Morgan

Don Morgan is past-president of Puget Sound chapter of American Marketing Association, and principal of Raindance Consulting, a brand and content consulting company in Seattle.  He can be reached at dmorgan@raindanceconsulting.com.

How to target high-value sources of growth

This post is the first of a series that will address the biggest problems that marketers face today (as identified by AMA). The purpose is to make you think . . . and hopefully help you address these problems in a new way.

A couple of years ago, I heard an interesting talk from Lars Wulff, CEO of Mud Bay at a PSAMA South Sound meeting.  Lars told us the story of how he and his sister have led the growth of their company from one store to twenty-five, with plans to add 4-5 more stores in the coming year.

Start by asking the right questions.

Lars began his talk by asking the audience some questions - who owns pets? who has ever shopped at a Mud Bay store? Who considers Mud Bay their primary pet store choice?  He then asked the most important question – why?

Lars reminded me of Simon Sinek, author of "Start with Why", one of the best approaches to business and leadership I have ever heard.  Simon believes that “People don’t buy you make . . .  they buy why you make it”. He cites Apple as a great example of understanding that most companies tell you what they do, and how they do it.  But the key to success is to answer “why they do it”.   If you don't know Simon Sinek, take the next few minutes to view this condensed explanation of how innovative companies differentiate and grow their business and how great leaders inspire action.

Find a niche and own it.

I have always believed that your positioning strategy must be unique, believable, relevant and true.  In today’s hyper-competitive, global marketplace, unique becomes the true differentiator.  With so many options to choose from, and the ease of buying through e-commerce, without a unique niche, you are primarily competing on price or availability.  And neither of those strategies is sustainable in the long term.

Focus on serving your customer.

During his low-key, interactive presentation, Lars Wulff was interrupted several times with questions, and one of those questions was 'Have you considered other growth avenues beyond simply opening new stores?".  His response was immediate and genuine.  He replied “I am planning a session with my key management team to explore ways to enhance the customer experience, and that will determine any new directions we move".

Notice that he didn't say we will "explore ways to grow the business".  His response was to look for "ways to enhance the customer experience".

What a great way to approach business and growth!  Every company wants to grow.  How many approach growth from the customer's perspective?  How many companies have made missteps because they added new services instead of customer benefits to grow their business?   How many agencies have added new services or digital marketing departments or capabilities to "enhance their customer's experience" vs. just to gain more revenue?

Lars had a lot of good things to say about the importance of understanding and maintaining a consistent and strong corporate culture.  And the necessity of having a differentiating benefit that would build customer loyalty.

But the real strength of his organization is his basic approach to business growth "How do we enhance the customer experience?"

In a world with so much competition and so many options, asking the right questions, finding your niche and focusing on your customers can be the difference between success and failure.

Are you asking the right questions to identify those high value targets?  Isn't that a good place to start?

Do You Know Enough About Our Client’s Business To Provide Insights And Solutions?

While sorting through and cleaning up some old files, I ran across this email that I sent to my staff a few years ago. The purpose was to inspire them to provide better service and better communications solutions to our clients. The thoughts in this memo are still truths for any advertising. public relations or marketing services agency, so I hope you can gain something from reading this.


Memo to Staff:

A few years ago, we drafted a statement of purpose for the agency. We said that our goal is to be an indispensable source of insights and communications solutions to help our clients meet their business objectives. In every new business presentation we make, that statement is displayed prominently and discussed at length. It’s something we use to set our agency apart from other agencies. And it does.

A quick review of other agencies around town reveals these statements of purpose for some of our chief competitors – “we create ideas for clients who believe in the power of inventive thinking”; “art that inspires action”, and “the critical stage agency” (whatever that means). I don’t mean to put down what other agencies say is their reason for being. But I do think our statement of purpose is more direct and more powerful in what it says about us to a client or prospect.

What we are saying is that we provide something to help our clients grow their business – insights and communications solutions. Webster defines insight as “the ability to see and understand clearly the inner nature of things”. Think about that. We’re promising to go beyond the obvious and find out something special about our clients and their business. To provide insight, we’ve got to truly understand our client’s business. And that leads me back to my original question. Do we know enough about our client’s business to provide insights and solutions?

According to a recent survey among senior-level client people, that’s the number one complaint clients have with their agency. In the survey by Citigate and GfK Custom Research, “C-suite” executives were asked to judge the agencies that handle their advertising, public relations and marketing services. The biggest gripe (voiced by 42% of respondents) was that the agencies “fail to demonstrate an understanding of their business.” That’s a pretty damning statistic! Almost half of the clients’ key decision makers think their agency doesn’t really understand their business. By the way, these same executives had other complaints about their agencies. Thirty-six percent said that agencies make them feel like they are “just another number” without giving them enough attention. Other common complaints: agencies are too expensive (33 percent), lack creativity (32 percent) and don’t provide the right staff (25 percent).

These are also important things to know about how clients feel about their agencies. But I really want us to focus on the “understanding their business” issue, because that is what can separate us from other agencies. 

I’ve always felt that the secret to building a strong client relationship is to live their business. During my career, I’ve ridden a Sunbeam bread truck at 3 a.m., worked out in a sweat room at Procter & Gamble to test Secret Anti-Perspirant, toured a NAPA brake plant, picked oranges for Florida’s Natural, worked in a Slim Jim slaughter house, and baked Papa John’s pizzas with the founder at 11 p.m., to name a few clients I’ve worked on. I have been on sales calls with a client’s field salesmen, and checked at least 1,000 stores to study distribution and shelf placement. I’m not bragging. It’s something I just felt I needed to do to understand as much as I could about the brand, the category, the competition, and the environment in which my clients did business.

And, to be truthful, much of the time I really hated it. But I did learn a lot about the client’s business from the ground up. And, more importantly, I gained a respect from the client that paid off when I made recommendations on their communications strategies. If I could gain some understanding (and insight) from my inside look at their business, I had the credibility because I had been there.

Now I’m not saying that everyone should run out and sell Lottery tickets at 7-11. Or work at a jewelry store. Or plow a 40-acre field. But we can all do something to gain a greater understanding (and insight) into our client’s business.

How many of us read the newspaper every day and study the advertising? How many of us sort through all of the direct mail we get at home to be on the lookout for competitive mailings. Or for any really creative ideas that we might be able to adapt for our clients. How many of us are using the Internet to stay on top of category and general marketing trends?

Every day, I get e-mail news alerts and RSS feeds from key trade publications, major bloggers, AMA, Marketing Profs, TrendCentral, Forrester, McKinsey, AAAA SmartBrief and NRF SmartBrief. I’ve usually not looking for anything special. I’m just looking to see if anything pops up that will make me smarter about our client’s business. Any one can be a mystery shopper for a client by visiting their store or one of their competitor’s stores.

 And I can tell you from experience that clients appreciate it when you pass along your observations. Even if they aren’t great new insights, it shows we are trying. And that we care about their business.

Do you know enough about our client’s business? Do you care enough to learn? I hope you do. I think it’s a big part of what makes our agency such a great place to be. And how we keep our clients!

Are you asking yourself the right questions to grow your business?

Last night, I heard an interesting talk from Lars Wulff, CEO of Mud Bay,  a very successful regional pet store retailer.  Lars told us the story of how he and his sister have led the growth of their company from one store to twenty-five, with plans to add 4-5 more stores in the coming year.

I liked Lars a lot.  His self-effacing demeanor and true desire to learn how to do things better gave me a lot of cues on why he has been successful.

Lars began his talk by asking the audience some questions - who owns pets?; who has ever shopped at a Mud Bay store?; who considers Mud Bay their primary pet store choice?  He then asked the most important question - why?

It reminded me of Simon Sinek, author of "Start With Why", one of the best approaches to business and leadership I have ever heard.  If you don't know Simon Sinek, take the time to view this explanation of how innovative companies differentiate and grow their business and how great leaders inspire action..



 But back to Lars.

During his low-key, interactive presentation, he was interrupted several times with questions, and one of those questions was 'Have you considered other growth avenues beyond simply opening new stores?".  His response  was immediate and genuine, and led me to write this post. His response to the question was "I am planning a session with my key management team to explore ways to enhance the customer experience, and that will determine any new directions we move".

Notice that he didn't say we will "explore ways to grow the business".  His response was to look for "ways to enhance the customer experience".

What a great way to approach business and growth!  Every company wants to grow.  How many approach growth from the customer's perspective?  How many companies have made missteps because they added new services instead of customer benefits to grow their business?   How many agencies have added new services or digital marketing departments or capabilities to "enhance their customer's experience" vs. just to gain more revenue?

Lars had a lot of good things to say about the importance of understanding and maintaining a consistent and strong corporate culture.  And the necessity of having a differentiating benefit that would build customer loyalty.

But the real strength of his organization is his basic approach to business growth "How do we enhance the customer experience?"

In a world with so much competition and so many options, asking the right question can be the difference between success and failure.  Are you asking the right questions?

Are you talking about business or trophies in your new business efforts?

In a recent article from MarketingProfs, the author offered "Nine Key Things To Look For in an Agency Partner".  The article was well-written with some good advice to clients who are in, or will soon be facing, an agency search.

One of the author's  "key things to look for" struck me as particularly valuable for agency new business directors to consider:  In the '90s, awards, trophies, and accolades were the sign of an agency's true value; now, it's all "in the numbers." 

The author went on to say that "client results and ROI are the true measure of success, and recommended that clients should look for agencies that are able to prove past clients' success through metrics and can understand, analyze, and garner insight via pinpointed data."

If more agencies understood and accepted the premise that clients need reassurance more than puffery, they would be a lot more successful in their new business efforts.

In other posts, I have spoken about the need to focus on the client's business, not your past successes because I strongly believe that clients are desperate to find help from their agency.  They are searching for more than just creative executions, they want real understanding and assistance in helping them navigate today's fragmented marketing landscape.

Here are five key things for agencies to consider when  approaching clients and prospects about new business:

1. Clients are confused and overwhelmed by the pace of change. New media and marketing options continue to come on the scene every day, and clients need help in evaluating and determining which options make the most sense for their needs and budget constraints. 
2. Clients are under more pressure than every before.  The 2012 Spencer Stuart CMO Tenure Study pegged the average tenure for CMO's at 43 months (versus 9.2 years for CEO's).  But some categories are much more pressure-packed.  The average tenure of a restaurant CMO is only 22 months.
3. Clients want leadership, not partnership.   A recent New Business Study confirmed this with client quotes like "I need an agency to help me figure out how to take advantage of the new tools that are available", and "I need an agency that can help me invest in the right tools".
4. Clients want new ideas, not better execution of old ideas.  Clients are searching for the "holy grail".  You need to give them something new to think about, if for no other reason that for them to demonstrate to their boss that they are moving the brand forward.
5. Clients want process (it reassures them).  Clients don't want to take chances.  They can't afford to take chances because someone is looking over their shoulder questioning every decision they make.  In most of my new business projects over the last few years, I believe the client prospect made the safe decision, whether it was the best decision or not.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that clients aren't asking "How can you help us make ads or a new web site".  They are saying "How much do you know about our business in order to help us build a bridge between our brand and our customers.  They are asking a prospective agency hard-hitting, specific questions like "what metrics do you use to gauge success?  What types of listening and reporting tools do you use?

Are you still talking about your trophies?