The Idea of the Great Marketing Oracle Is a Myth
Can you imagine the success your company could realize if the marketing team could tap into the minds of their prospects and know exactly what content would be compelling, interesting, and important to them? And not only understanding what is relevant, but having the knowledge to know precisely where to publish it based on this unique and individualized understanding of your prospects preferences. It would be as if you became the great Oracle, who gained omniscience through an ability to speak with the gods. Nothing short of miraculous.
Unfortunately, unlike the Oracle, we do not have the power of insight, so as mere mortals we are left to figure this out on our own. The good news is that we do have resources available to us whereby we can analyze buyer behavior and study the results of our activities associated with executing our content marketing plans.
However, content marketing is still a challenge. It is difficult to know what and how much to share with your constituency because
- Organizations cannot create enough content to meet the demands of their audience
- There is so much information on the internet that it is difficult to find content that is unique, original, and relevant
- There are so many outlets where content can be shared it is hard to know which one(s) to use
- We need to make the content work for us so that we can develop awareness, leads, permission, trust and thought/authority leadership. Or why bother?
There is one rule of thumb that we must follow and that is “one size does not fit all.” Marketers know that each channel they leverage to reach their prospects and customers requires a unique approach. It is essential to understand what will resonate with your audience based on their expectation.
Social Channels
For example, Facebook is a great social media network. It is known for a social experience associated with lifestyle, storytelling, and emotional sharing. As marketers we need to think about the right content to share on Facebook so that our audience “likes” what we publish. Consider sharing information about your company culture, fun events, emotional and human stories–the kind of stuff that makes you human. Everyone loves a great story – so tell them on Facebook.
LinkedIn on the other hand is more of a business network. Here our audience finds people and information that has relevance to their business. The content for LinkedIn needs to address top-of-mind topics that individuals or groups require to gain understanding and deeper appreciation for trends, issues, or news that assist them in being better informed to perform their job. The content needs to be highly relevant and thought-provoking especially if you are going to leverage “groups” of people with like characteristics. It is our job to ensure that our content triggers engagement and creates a loyal following.
The Buying Cycle
Another consideration is to choose the right content based on where our prospects are in their buying cycle. It is really important to match content appropriately along the pipeline journey. At the top of the funnel, the information needs to be educational and more macro in nature thereby eliciting further curiosity so that your audience becomes engaged and desires more. Consider white papers that inform while telling a story, trend analysis that educates thereby helping unleash needs or pains that perhaps are latent/unknown.
In the middle of the funnel your audience is seeking content that is geared toward helping your buyer differentiate your product from the competitors so the right purchasing decision can be made. The content needs to be more focused on your product including webinars, product case studies, data sheets, buyers’ guides, analyst information, and any content that reaffirms that your solution is best of breed.
And finally at the bottom of the funnel the content is all about your customers. Customer success stories, references, those gems that make your new buyer want to be part of your community… the community of creative, successful and clever people who purchased your product and are thriving in their decision.
Conclusions
I think you get the point: One size does not fit all.
The dilemma now is how to build a content strategy that can meet the many demands of your audience. Here at Trapit, we believe in content strategies that blend the appropriate balance of created and curated content. In order to address the challenges articulated above, curated content is a must. Organization cannot create enough compelling and relevant content, period. Curated content is no longer a nice to have – it is a must have.
And with Trapit not only can you easily discover content you never knew existed, but you can teach Trapit what is relevant and be assured that the content you get back will in fact be highly personalized and compelling thereby meeting your prospects expectations. You will have an abundance of riches in the content Trapit discovers. Simply pick and chose, and let Trapit do the rest. With the push of a button you will publish the appropriate content to the appropriate channels – each one receiving that which meets their expectation. You no longer have to worry about how you will deliver the right content to your audience with Trapit will almost become an Oracle in your own time.
Throughout the month of June we are giving our potential customers a 30-day free trial. We would love to help you transcend the challenge of knowing what content to deliver to your customers.
-Pat
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Image Source: KNILT