Author: Mary Klest

Content Strategy Applies Focus to Content Creation

Staying focused is a problem for people who have lots of interests, are generous and unable to say no, get distracted easily, and are just plain busy. Most of us fit into one of these categories. When a business loses focus on its content, a content strategy is needed. Erin Kissane, author of The Elements of Content Strategy, believes there is only one guiding principle of good content: “It should be appropriate for your business, for your users, and for its context.”

For the content writer, the best way to stay focused when creating content is to have all the peripheral stuff (including strategy) taken care of before any writing begins. The process then becomes simple: topic + length + purpose + channel. This allows the writer to get right to the heart of the matter – connecting with people interested in your products or services.

  • What to write about? Go to your monthly editorial calendar with topics listed. Plan ahead and don’t repeat. All the writer has to do is develop the idea listed on the calendar, not think one up. These topics should be aligned with business objectives and audience interests.
  • How many words or minutes? This depends on the objective. If you want people to bookmark what you write, it should be more than 500 words. If you want them to share on social media networks 200 to 400 words may be best. With video and podcasts keep it to two minutes or less.
  • What is the purpose? Are you trying to gain support, attract business, educate, promote something, get links, or start a conversation? Choose one. Being helpful is a given.

After knowing your topic + length + purpose, choose a channel. When writing for particular channels answer one question to keep the writing focused (though the question may change depending on your purpose):

  • Blog posts: How will this topic start a conversation with my target audience?
  • Landing page: What do we want the viewer to do?
  • Website: What do our buyers want to know?
  • Social media: Does this effort help us achieve our strategic goals?
  • Email marketing: Will the content help solve a customer problem?

Relying on a focused, efficient content strategy saves lots of time and frustration for the writer, the business, and the audience. What ways have you and your company found to help focus the content creation process?

Collecting, Creating and Distributing B2B Content That Matters

Knowledge workers spend 2 ½ hours a day searching for information to do their jobs. That’s what Ardath Albee, author of E-Marketing Strategies for the Complex Sale, said at the ConFab content strategy conference a few weeks ago. Scott Abel, who blogs at The Content Wrangler showed how efficient the content curation process can be using social networks. Steven Rosenbaum, author of Curation Nation, discussed how human choices are not made with algorithms.

Because the B2B buying cycle is long content must include depth, diversity and dimension according to Albee. Here is my practical 3D view on what these speakers were talking about. Good content writers who know how to curate can lessen a prospects search time by creating content that matters.

Add Depth by Collecting

The call for focused, edited, or filtered information is important from one end of the buying cycle to the other. We need to create meaning. Some ways of doing this are to talk with your own subject matter experts. Every company has them. You can also search the deep Web using the word “database” after your subject topic. For example, I am working with product developers in the functional foods industry. My search term would be: “Functional Foods database.” My search results lead me to information from PubMed and other credible sources. Another entryway to the deep Web is using “site: edu” in your search. The term “Functional Foods site:edu” brings me to sources at UC Berkley and the University of Michigan. Try searching your topic term followed with the words “white paper.” For good industry sources look at the bibliography of the white paper you find. That’s what brought me to Food Business News, Nutrition Business News, and Nutritional Outlook – all aggregators of good content for manufacturers, suppliers and distributors doing business in the functional foods industry.

Create & Diversify With Context

Content writers don’t create content in a silo. I often include the sales force from the beginning. I ask them what they know and what they need. Start collecting and creating information from within the company. What can the Human Resources and Engineering Departments add? Ask them.

Content writers sometime write for a persona, but we are aware that the audience is often made up of thousands of people with their own questions and concerns. We anticipate what they are looking for. I like the conversational tone on the Nutritional Outlook site: “Here’s where you’ll find information on.” It lists ingredients, market coverage, manufacturing know how, regulatory information, and research updates. Very simple, friendly and clear.

Here is another example at New Hope 360.com, that describes itself as a “digital marketplace that connects the healthy lifestyle industry from supply to shelf.” “Don’t see your product? It’s a big world of products, but we can help you cut through the clutter. List your company today to ensure that decision makers can find you!” They also have an “Editor’s Pick” column with a listing of relevant articles.

As content writers we know how to move site visitors from problem to solution. The buying process begins with the status quo and moves to a priority. Research is required. They ask: “What are the options?”We help them validate, then make a choice. We also monitor responses along the way.

Be Multi-Dimensional and Distribute

Content should be integrated through multi-platform channels including social media, blogs, articles, mobile and email. Your audience has an audience too. Ask them to share.

Deep content engages in different ways. It educates, offers expertise in the form of trends or methods, and adds ideas. Evidence can come from customer stories or your own. I found an article on the New Hope 360 site that included an interview with  Shawn Parr, CEO of Bulldog Drummond, a branding and innovation consultancy in San Diego. He shares this advice: “Think about your origin story—not only about how your company was started, but also where your ingredients come from and the relationships you have with your suppliers.”

Scott Abel shows the efficiency of a content curation process using his own twitter account as an example. He sets up an RSS feed to gather information, then reviews and approves what goes out for distribution. By carefully choosing what is distributed, he reduces the noise and adds value to the conversation through social networks.

The master at video curation is Steven Rosenbaum, author of Curation Nation and CEO at magnify.net. He says in the book that discerning quality is a human task, not to be allocated to search engines. Content curation needs qualitative judgment. Since there are no longer gatekeepers, access to an audience will come from gathering, creating and distributing the best and most relevant content. He was kind enough to sign his book for me at the Confab conference. In it he wrote: “In a busy world on the move – curation will make us trust again.”

How are you creating more efficient ways of creating and collecting  information that matters?

How is Content Like a Campfire?

A campfire fills a need whether for outdoor cooking, light, or warmth. A campfire is isolated and controlled, drawing people towards it even when they are lost. A mood and expectation surround it. This small, functional and aesthetic space attracts people. A call to action is also present. To keep it going, a campfire needs to be tended.

So does content.

When I prepare content for a website I answer questions posed by the four Ps: Purpose, Process, Problem, and Practice. People are making decisions everyday on what to engage with. Remember the campfire. It shows immediate relevance. Its value is recognizable. So should your content be.

Purpose

Quality content resolves a need, want, or force. Website visitors start the conversation, usually with a question. Know them well enough to answer their questions. Help them counteract any opposing forces.

Process

Understand where in the product purchase cycle your prospects are and provide them with obvious pathways to finding what they need. Show them you are different. Demonstrate your expertise.

Problem

Address problems. Offer solutions. Help visitors complete their task. Discover trails that lead to success. Product descriptions, instructions, and training are problem busters throughout the buying cycle.

Practice

Explain your product or service well enough for the buyer to make a decision. What is getting in the way? Be clear and concise. Speak directly to your target market. Simplify.

You are not fighting forest fires. You are adding kindling to your campfire. Site visitors will become a part of your circle. Let competitors put their fires out; you feed yours. Keep your site well tended with content that is fresh, relevant, and recognizable.

Quality content is like a campfire because it serves a purpose, solves a problem, attracts attention, and creates a space for conversations.

Notes From CONFAB, The Content Strategy Conference

CONFAB was a first of its kind conference held in Minneapolis this week. Planners brought together leaders in the field of content strategy to discuss best practices, dispel myths, and bring thoughtful solutions to business needs for quality content. Here are my highlight notes from the first morning of the two day conference.

What is Content Strategy and Why is it Important?
Definitions, Needs, & Roles

Content is defined as everything that can be uploaded to an online site.

Content needs to be planned prior to launch dates, during, and beyond. Inconsistent content through channels is a problem. Multi-platform content development is critical. Get rid of the silos. Content needs to be nimble. Content is a business asset.

Establish a visual rhythm that is recognizable across channels.

A content strategist articulates, investigates, integrates, appreciates, and ideates. They set procedures for content creation, delivery, and governance. They ask: “How can we make content grow by applying  urgency and purpose?”

SEO cannot solve the content problem. Even Google has abandoned the word “search” in favor of “knowledge”.

Content Curation

Content curators are finders who filter information. Information created up to the year 2003 totaled 5 exabytes. That amount is now being created every two days. “I can’t keep up” was expressed by 46% of survey respondents. Sleeping less was a solution for 34% of information consumers.

Humans are replacing algorithms. Ideas are replacing data. “What are people thinking?” is the question to ask; not “How do I manipulate search engines?”

Choose your endorsements, “Likes,” retweets, links, and posts carefully. That is curating the web.

Listening is more powerful than speaking. Gather, organize, and filter good stuff. Monitor for positive re-enforcement and use it as social proof.

In a noisy world, customers embrace clarity.

Questions That Support Quality Content

Where does our data live and why?

What can people do with our content?

What can they do with what they create from our content?

What is our framework for building content?

What’s working? What is not working?

What kind of place does the content create?

How is the content connected?

What forces does content resolve?

How do you keep control of your own content?

Interactions

Reactive and fragmented response is poor content delivery.

Deliver the right information at the right time to the right audience.

Recommend. Share. Be social.

Serve up content.

Business Needs

Move content from a cost center to a profit center by meeting business objectives.

Marketing focuses on new leads, not base. What does your base need and want? How satisfied are they? Existing customers may be more valuable than new customers.

Teach everyone what good content looks like.

* Thank you Kristina Halvorson, Steve Rosenbaum, Erin Kissane and Valeria Maltoni for sharing your thoughts at CONFAB.