What’s in a name?
ContEnt mARketing.
See that? This is a big tip-off that brands need to be using their ears rather than their mouths if they are to succeed in their content marketing campaigns.
You wouldn’t have a conversation with someone and not let them get a word in edgeways. In fact, that wouldn’t be much of a conversation at all and the poor person on the receiving end would probably get very bored very quickly.
Listening is just as important as talking in content marketing; something which slips the mind of many a brand.
Chief technology officer for the campaign to re-elect Barack Obama to the US presidency, Harper Reed, has recently condemned brands for using social media to broadcast their own thoughts rather than take note of the views of others.
Speaking in an interview at marketingweek.com, Mr Reed said: “A lot of people when they think about social, they think it is about talking. That’s a massive misnomer. Social is more and more about listening.”
He noted that by failing to lend their audience an ear, many brands are not harnessing the full potential of social networking sites.
He added that while some brands act as though they are listening to what their customers have to say, they are in fact only “fake listening” and letting the views of others whizz by.
One of the biggest content marketing fails is being unashamedly self-promotional.
You should know by now that content should not be self-promotional in any way. This is one of the key points of content marketing: you are trying to be a part of customers’ conversations, not an annoying interruption to it.
Self-promotional content is more likely to push potential readers and customers away rather than draw them in. No one likes ideas being forced down their throat; the key is to engage on a conversational, more human level.
This means incorporating keywords as naturally as possible so the piece reads well and creating content that is relevant and engaging for your target audience.
Creating content that is stuffed with self-promotional twaddle is hardly going to make you stand out as a trusted source of information.
Likewise, spamming an audience isn’t going to do you any favours. Your social media distribution technique should match the way you create your content – make sure it is targeted and that you are engaging with readers.
Google+ community leaders are becoming increasingly fussy. Content marketers, be warned: they are not afraid to delete your post or remove you from the group entirely if you dare stray from the strict rules that dictate you must engage with others/not post from your own blog etc. Read the community guidelines before you start posting – post spontaneously at your own peril.
Likewise, simply posting on Twitter isn’t going to do your content marketing efforts much justice. Read comments, get involved, start discussions, thank people for retweets – little courtesies go a long way and could really boost awareness of your brand.
Jenny Maclean
