Companies around the world and across different fields are beginning to realize the value of content marketing in customer acquisition. But it can be tough business.
To help you get ahead of your competition, we sourced out and extracted 24 top insights from inbound marketing experts, combined them with relevant statistics, and organised them into a coherent and incredibly visual narrative.
Enjoy!
2. YOU NEED A REASON,
WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?
BUILD A STRONG RELATIONSHIP
WITH YOUR AUDIENCE
INTERESTING CONTENT IS A
TOP 3 REASON
PEOPLE FOLLOW BRANDS
TEN T ON SOCIAL MEDIA
CO N OF CONSUMERS
PREFER GETTING
70%
TO KNOW A COM PANY
VIA ARTICLES THAN ADS
3. YOU NEED A REASON,
WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?
BUILD A STRONG RELATIONSHIP
WITH YOUR AUDIENCE
INTERESTING CONTENT IS A
TOP 3 REASON
PEOPLE FOLLOW BRANDS
TEN T ON SOCIAL MEDIA
CO N OF CONSUMERS
PREFER GETTING
70%
TO KNOW A COM PANY
VIA ARTICLES THAN ADS
Rand Fishkin taught me
that content isn't for
direct signups – it's to
create loyalty, branding
and familiarity.
LEO WIDRICH
CO-FOUNDER, BUFFER
As long as people see content as a means to an
end (getting higher rankings and distracting
people so you sell more stuff) instead of part of
the end itself (building strong relationships
and an enduring audience who will ALWAYS
buy your stuff) it'll stay crappy.
IAN LURIE
CEO, PORTENT
4. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?
FFRRUUIITT BBLLOOGG
OF CONSUMERS
WILL PAY MORE
FOR A BETTER
86%
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
WELCOME!
NOT SURE
WHAT YOU
WANT? HEAD
OVER TO
FRUIT BLOG,
AND WE’LL
SHOW YOU
THE BENEFITS
OF EACH
FRUIT!
YOU NEED A REASON,
INTEGRATE IT AS PART OF
A GREAT USER EXPERIENCE
5. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?
FFRRUUIITT BBLLOOGG
OF CONSUMERS
WILL PAY MORE
FOR A BETTER
86%
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
WELCOME!
NOT SURE
WHAT YOU
WANT? HEAD
OVER TO
FRUIT BLOG,
AND WE’LL
SHOW YOU
THE BENEFITS
OF EACH
FRUIT!
YOU NEED A REASON,
INTEGRATE IT AS PART OF
A GREAT USER EXPERIENCE
Experience is never divorced from
commerce, so as long as your
ecommerce site feels more like a
gift shop and less like Walmart…
you’re on the right track.
RYAN DEISS
FOUNDER CEO,
DIGITALMARKETER.COM
Consider the user journey as they
structure their content and site
experience. In my experience, we are
usually called on to accommodate
many different buying stages.
DJ FRANCIS
VP OF CONTENT STRATEGY,
IMAGINATION PUBLISHING
6. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?
FFRRUUIITT BBLLOOGG
OF CONSUMERS
WILL PAY MORE
FOR A BETTER
86%
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
WELCOME!
NOT SURE
WHAT YOU
WANT? HEAD
OVER TO
FRUIT BLOG,
AND WE’LL
SHOW YOU
THE BENEFITS
OF EACH
FRUIT!
YOU NEED A REASON,
INTEGRATE IT AS PART OF
A GREAT USER EXPERIENCE
To most ecommerce sites, content feels almost like a distraction. They're there to
sell products, and can't make a good, data-verified connection between content
and sales. So content gets shunted off to the blog, separated from the products,
which of course reduces the impact, and makes it seem more like a distraction.
IAN LURIE
CEO, PORTENT
7. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
NEWS INFO-GRAPHICS
ADS OPINIONS
PAGE VIEWS
DATA
SOCI AL
LISTENING
ENGAGEMENT
HOW DO I STAY
HEALTHY?
HOW’RE YOU
FEELING TODAY,
MRS HUDSON?
GREAT! MY LITTLE
GRANDSON IS
LEARNING HOW
TO WALK!
GET TO
KNOW THEM
8. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
NEWS INFO-GRAPHICS
ADS OPINIONS
PAGE VIEWS
DATA
SOCI AL
LISTENING
ENGAGEMENT
HOW DO I STAY
HEALTHY?
HOW’RE YOU
FEELING TODAY,
MRS HUDSON?
GREAT! MY LITTLE
GRANDSON IS
LEARNING HOW
TO WALK!
GET TO
KNOW THEM
Get to know your shoppers through data,
social listening and engagement via real
conversations. The data will let you know
how well types of content are performing.
Social listening will give you an idea of
what your customers are looking to see
from you. Engagement opens dialog and
actually empowers consumers to feel they
are a part of your business.
CARMELLA LANNI
BLOGGER, THE VEGAN E-COMMERCE GIRL
Choose who you want to reach,
and find out everything you can
about them. Their problems
and desires. The topics that
relate to those problems and
desires. The language they use
when searching Google and
social media for those topics.
Who else is serving the needs
of these people, both with
content and with products
and services.
BRIAN CLARK
CEO, COPYBLOGGER MEDIA
9. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
YOUNG
ENERGETIC
DECIDE WHAT
OPTIMISTIC
YOU WANT
THEM TO FEEL KEYWORDS
KEYWORDS
OF CONSUMERS FEEL
MORE POSITIVE ABOUT
60%
A COMPANY AFTER READING
CUSTOM CONTENT ON ITS SITE
10. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
YOUNG
ENERGETIC
DECIDE WHAT
OPTIMISTIC
YOU WANT
THEM TO FEEL KEYWORDS
Make sure you have a really well
thought out positioning statement.
This should summarize very succinctly
the sets of feelings that you want to
engender among your target
customer. Having this will not only
position you in the customer's mind,
it will help you focus your KEYWORDS
efforts.
PAUL MAY
CEO, BUZZSTREAM
OF CONSUMERS FEEL
MORE POSITIVE ABOUT
60%
A COMPANY AFTER READING
CUSTOM CONTENT ON ITS SITE
11. IDENTIFY
ENTERTAINING
OR HELPFUL
TOPICS
ANNOYING
ORANGE
FRUIT
NINJA
BANANAS
IN PYJAMAS
WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
12. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
IDENTIFY
ENTERTAINING
OR HELPFUL
TOPICS
ANNOYING
ORANGE
FRUIT
NINJA
BANANAS
Think about the broaIdN se Pt oYfJ toApiMcs AS
that may be helpful (or
entertaining) to your potential
shoppers. Don’t be salesy. Just
share stuff that relates to them.
Once you’re getting that attention,
you’re hoping to squeeze the
social, search and email benefits
from it, making all of your
marketing gradually more effective.
ANDY CRESTODINA
WEB STRATEGIST AND CO-FOUNDER,
ORBIT MEDIA
13. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
FIGURE OUT INTERESTING CONTENT
THAT HELPS SOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS
FEELING HOT?
HERE ARE 24
FRUIT DRINKS
THAT’LL COOL
YOU DOWN!
BLOG
LINK
14. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
FIGURE OUT INTERESTING CONTENT
THAT HELPS SOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS
FEELING HOT?
HERE ARE 24
FRUIT DRINKS
THAT’LL COOL
YOU DOWN!
BLOG
LINK
Create content
that sells the
lifestyle around
your products,
not just the
products
themselves.
MARK
MACDONALD
GROWTH TEAM
CONTENT MANAGER,
SHOPIFY
Every customer really only
wants two things from your
content: (1) Help
overcoming something
negative; (2) Help achieving
something positive. And,
really, that’s what all
products do as well.
DANIEL BURSTEIN
DIRECTOR OF EDITORIAL CONTENT,
MECLABS
The best content is
not about products
but rather is a focus
on the problems that
buyers face.
DAVID
MEERMAN SCOTT
MARKETING
SALES STRATEGIST,
WEBINKNOW.COM
15. WHO ARE YOU
WRITING FOR, EXACTLY?
YOU HAVE TO BE SUPER SPECIFIC.
FIGURE OUT INTERESTING CONTENT
THAT HELPS SOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS
Sell around a vertical. If you’re REI, it’s
outdoor and sporting gear. Petco is
about pets. What content will help solve
your customers’ problems, answer their
FEELING HOT?
HERE ARE 24
FRUIT DRINKS
THAT’LL COOL
YOU DOWN!
questions, inspire them to try new
things, tell stories around their interests?
Experiment, learn what resonates, and
develop a content strategy from there.
BLOG
LINK
REBECCA LIEB
DIGITAL ADVERTISING MEDIA ANALYST,
ALTIMETER GROUP
Start producing content that is
useful and interesting to your
target audience. Give them a
reason to come to your website.
To find influencers, you can use a
tool like SEOmoz's FollowerWonk
– or even Twitter search.
DHARMESH SHAH
CTO, HUBSPOT
16. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
DON’T PUMP
CONTENT,
PUMP OUT
PASSION
PASSION
WHAT
YOU
KNOW
WELL
WHAT
YOU
LOVE
17. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
DON’T PUMP
CONTENT,
PUMP OUT
PASSION
OnlPy AwritSe aSboIuOt whNat comes
from passion. Sure, you are not
going to outrank Mr. Humungo.
But slowly but surely you will
WHAT
YOU
KNOW
WELL
build a local and relevant
audience and in the end it is
not about attracting 1 million
people, it is about attracting
the 1,000 that are in your area
that want to give you money.
WHAT
YOU
LOVE
AVINASH KAUSHIK
DIGITAL MARKETING EVANGELIST,
GOOGLE
18. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
MOTIVATION!
MORE
BANANA!
GET CONTENT
CREATORS
INVESTED IN
CONTENT
CREATION
19. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
MOTIVATION!
MORE
BANANA!
GET CONTENT
CREATORS
INVESTED IN
CONTENT
CREATION
If you can go to people and say, look,
you've told us about the time
constraints of your job, we know
you're hesitant to commit to anything,
but here is an editorial calendar that
takes into account your time
limitations, and here's the kind of
support we can offer you during the
process... and here is WHY we want
you to create this content... then you
have a solid business case that also
seems manageable to the individual.
KRISTINA HALVORSON
CEO, BRAIN TRAFFIC
20. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
HERE’S WHY
TIM’S APPLES
ARE THE
HEALTHIEST:
START BY
GUEST
POSTING
21. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
HERE’S WHY
TIM’S APPLES
ARE THE
HEALTHIEST:
START BY
GUEST
POSTING
Start by guest posting - not by
writing your own blog. Put
your best free content on the
blogs your prospects are
already reading. Don’t try to
beat those influential blogs;
partner with them. They’re
looking for epic content, and
you’re looking for prospects;
so be uber-businessy about it
and ‘synergize’.
JOANNA WIEBE
FOUNDER, COPYHACKERS.COM
22. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
INCLUDE
SOCIAL
PROOF
WHY EVERYONE LOVES
TIM’S APPLES:
GREAT!
REVIEW:
THE BEST
VIDEO:
LOVE IT!
23. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
INCLUDE
SOCIAL
PROOF
WHY EVERYONE LOVES
TIM’S APPLES:
Content marketing delivered by the
brand must be complemented by
content generated by brand or
product advocates. Brands that
emulate, if not duplicate, the best
aspects of social networks not only
activate a self-sustaining model of
content marketing, but they can
become more trusted in the process.
GREAT!
REVIEW:
THE BEST
VIDEO:
LOVE IT!
KIERAN TAYLOR
CMO, BLUCARAT
24. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
WRITE IN A
TWO-STEP PROCESS 06:30
AM
RESEARCH: 1 HR
PRIORITY: BREAK THE
“BLANK PAGE” SYNDROME!
03:00
PM
EDIT AND WRITE
PRIORITY: FOCUS ON DETAILS
25. YOU CAN START ANYWHERE, BUT YOU GOTTA
FIGURE OUT YOUR PROCESS.
WRITE IN A
TWO-STEP PROCESS 06:30
AM
The first step is the sourcing process. I find lots of research studies on a topic.
Write a few sub-headings and basically make a big mess in a word document.
I intentionally jot down lots of things that don't flow well. I do this for around an
hour or so. Then I go and do other tasks. Then in the afternoon, I get back to the
post. The great thing is that my brain has by then normally made sense of all the
different sections. I then edit and write the actual content in a concise form. In
RESEARCH: 1 HR
PRIORITY: BREAK THE
“BLANK PAGE” SYNDROME!
03:00
PM
EDIT AND WRITE
PRIORITY: FOCUS ON DETAILS
this second phase I'm very focused on the actual wording, the flow and
ordering all the research I've collected. I then publish that post next thing in the
morning after doing a few final tweaks, like adding images, and so on.
LEO WIDRICH
CO-FOUNDER, BUFFER
26. THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
WHY DO I
NEED TO EAT
FRUITS?
I LIKE
VEGGIES
AND FRUITS.
WRITE IN YOUR
AUDIENCE’S
LANGUAGE
27. THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
WHY DO I
NEED TO EAT
FRUITS?
I LIKE
VEGGIES
AND FRUITS.
WRITE IN YOUR
AUDIENCE’S
LANGUAGE
What we call SEO copywriting is
actually reflecting the language of
the audience back at them (when
done correctly). This has been the
secret to effective copywriting in
general for decades before search
engines. The key is to quit worry
about gaming an algorithm (that's
getting more person like all the
time) and focus on the language of
the audience in order to connect
with them, first and foremost.
BRIAN CLARK
CEO, COPYBLOGGER MEDIA
28. TRY
LONG-FORM
WRITING
LIKELIHOOD OF SUCCESS
500
800
WORD COUNT
THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
29. TRY
LONG-FORM
WRITING
LIKELIHOOD OF SUCCESS
500
800
WORD COUNT
THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
Long-form stuff definitely works.
But not for complex stuff – it is
usually consumer-focused and
impulse-buy. It is not against
best-practice. It is actually in a long
and battle-tested tradition of direct
response copywriting. The stuff has
been around for many decades
with people like Eugene Schwartz.
I wouldn't use it for expensive
B2B stuff though.
TIM ASH
CEO, SITETUNERS
CHAIR OF CONVERSION CONFERENCE
30. THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
USE VISUALS
WITH RESTRAINT
VISUAL TEXT MOTION
ORANGE
HIERARCHY OF DISTRACTION / VISUAL ATTENTION
31. THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
USE VISUALS
WITH RESTRAINT
VISUAL TEXT MOTION
People misunderstand the power of visuals. Basically they distract the visitor and
make it hard for them to prioritize. There is a hierarchy and stuff at the higher
levels will prevent the visitor on focusing on more subtle stuff at the lower levels.
ORANGE
So cut back on the motion and the window-dressing – boring works.
TIM ASH
CEO, SITETUNERS
CHAIR OF CONVERSION CONFERENCE
HIERARCHY OF DISTRACTION / VISUAL ATTENTION
32. THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
BREAK DOWN COMPLEX ISSUES
AND VISUALLY DEMONSTRATE
CONCEPTS WITH INFOGRAPHICS
33. THERE ARE
STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
YOU SHOULD AIM FOR.
BREAK DOWN COMPLEX ISSUES
AND VISUALLY DEMONSTRATE
CONCEPTS WITH INFOGRAPHICS
I love infographics IF – and only if – they're done well. I think infographics
have been abused and have gotten a bad rap as a result. But when we're
analyzing data from thousands of advertisers and looking at billions in
spend, charts are boring. Infographics can really help break down
complex issues and visually demonstrate concepts if they're done right.
LARRY KIM
CTO, WORDSTREAM INC.
34. PEOPLE ARE BUSY SO YOU HAVE TO
REACH OUT TO THEM.
KEEP THE
CONV E RS AT I ON
GOING TH ROUGH
RELEVANT
SOCIAL CHANNELS.
REWARD
PROFILE
CREATION,
NEWSLETTER
SIGNUPS AND
FOLLOWS.
USE THOSE
KEYWORDS
TO BUI LD
CO - R ELEVAN T
CO N T ENT I D E AS .
PUSH THE
CONTENT AT
THEIR FOLLOWERS
THROUGH
OUTREACH AND ADS.
CON T EN T
BLOG LINK
LOO K AT THE
WORD CLOUD OF
ALL THE FOLLOWERS
OF THE BIGGEST
PLAYER.
FOLLOWERWONK
HEALTH
TASTE
WEATHER
FIND PROMOTABLE
TOPICS
MIKE KING
INBOUND MARKETER, IPULLRANK.COM
35. PEOPLE ARE BUSY SO YOU HAVE TO
REACH OUT TO THEM.
APPLY THE 5 PRINCIPLES
FOR CONTENT PROMOTION
PAUL MAY
CEO, BUZZSTREAM
PLAN SEGMENT LEVERAGE ENGAGE AUTOMATE
SPEND AT LEAST
AS MUCH TIME
PLANNING AS
YOU DO ON
THE ACTUAL
PROMOTION
FRUIT LOVERS
FINDING
CONTACT
INFO
COLLECTING
HEALTH-CONSCIOUS
PEEPS
CITRUS FANS METRICS
BROADEN THE
LIST OF PEOPLE
YOU REACH
OUT TO BY
SEGMENTING
YOUR “CONTENT
MARKET”
LEVERAGE
EASIER TO
ACQUIRE LINKS
TO HELP GET
THE MORE
DIFFICULT ONES
ENGAGE
IN YOUR
COMMUNITY
PRIOR TO
OUTREACH
AUTOMATE
LOW-VALUE
TASKS
36. PEOPLE ARE BUSY SO YOU HAVE TO
REACH OUT TO THEM.
BUILD A
FAN BASE
Strategically, I believe that
start-ups should be building
permission assets – groups
of people who are excited
to hear what they have to
say (tactically, I'm a big fan
of email marketing).
WILL CRITCHLOW
CO-FOUNDER, DISTILLED
CAN’T WAIT FOR MORE NEWS!
FA N B A S E
CO NTE N T
PRODUCTION
COMM UN ITY
MANAGEMENT
ACTI VI T Y
SEARCH
SOCIAL
CH ANN EL
37. PEOPLE ARE BUSY SO YOU HAVE TO
REACH OUT TO THEM.
PERFORM
EMAIL
MARKETING
EMAIL
MARKETING:
CAMPAIGN
ANALYSIS,
METRICS,
BEST
PRACTICES
CONT ENT
38. PEOPLE ARE BUSY SO YOU HAVE TO
REACH OUT TO THEM.
PERFORM
EMAIL
MARKETING
EMAIL
MARKETING:
CAMPAIGN
ANALYSIS,
METRICS,
BEST
PRACTICES
CONT ENT
I. Love. Email marketing!
If you are not thinking about the
transformative nature of mobile on
email consumption and engagement,
you are making a BIG MISTAKE.
AVINASH KAUSHIK
DIGITAL MARKETING EVANGELIST, GOOGLE
39. YOU NEED TO MEASURE
THE EFFECTS OF YOUR WORK
OR YOU'RE FOOLING YOURSELF.
OBSERVE THE
HIERARCHY OF METRICS
DOLLARS
IN THE DOOR
(CUSTOMERS)
LEADS
(PROXY FOR FUTURE
CUSTOMERS)
I’M BUYING! I’M CONSIDERING! I’M AWARE!
METRICS FOR
MEASUREMENT
VISITORS
(PROXY FOR
FUTURE LEADS)
BETTER MORE DUBIOUS
40. YOU NEED TO MEASURE
THE EFFECTS OF YOUR WORK
OR YOU'RE FOOLING YOURSELF.
OBSERVE THE
HIERARCHY OF METRICS
DOLLARS
IN THE DOOR
(CUSTOMERS)
LEADS
(PROXY FOR FUTURE
CUSTOMERS)
The motivation behind measurement is to figure out what is
working and what is not. Most of the time, we measure things
that we think are indicative of the thing we actually want.
Because often, it's hard to measure the thing we actually want.
I’M BUYING! I’M CONSIDERING! I’M AWARE!
DHARMESH SHAH
CTO, HUBSPOT
METRICS FOR
MEASUREMENT
VISITORS
(PROXY FOR
FUTURE LEADS)
BETTER MORE DUBIOUS
41. YOU NEED TO MEASURE
THE EFFECTS OF YOUR WORK
OR YOU'RE FOOLING YOURSELF.
AUTOMATE A CUSTOM REPORT WITH ONLY
SPECIFIC METRICS THAT YOU CARE ABOUT
FOCUS
ON KEY
METRICS 1:
VIEWS
EMAIL LEADS
SIGNUPS
SHARES
AUTOMATE
THE PROCESS 2:
METRICS
42. YOU NEED TO MEASURE
THE EFFECTS OF YOUR WORK
OR YOU'RE FOOLING YOURSELF.
AUTOMATE A CUSTOM REPORT WITH ONLY
SPECIFIC METRICS THAT YOU CARE ABOUT
FOCUS
ON KEY
METRICS 1:
Aside from forensic data dives, webmasters should only spend their time
monitoring key performance indicators (metrics on 'roids) that they care
about. So for one webmaster, this might be just the basics. For another, they
might be a brick and mortar who only cares about traffic from their sales
VIEWS
EMAIL LEADS
regions, let's just say. That will require a custom report using some
advanced(ish) metrics. But all too often, marketers don't automate this
SIGNUPS
process and do the same repetitive tasks week after week, month after month.
SHARES
AUTOMATE
THE PROCESS 2:
METRICS
ANNIE CUSHING
FOUNDER, ANNIELYTICS
43. YOU NEED TO MEASURE
THE EFFECTS OF YOUR WORK
MONITOR
DWELL TIME
DWE LL
TIME
WHY EVERYONE LOVES
TIM’S APPLES:
GREAT!
REVIEW:
THE BEST
VIDEO:
LOVE IT!
*BACK*
IS THERE A DWELL TIME
THAT LEADS TO HIGHER
CONVE RS I ON RATE?
ANY CORRELATION
TO SOCIA L SH ARING? DOES PAGE SPEED CAUSE HIGH ER
OR LOWER DWELL TIME?
IN SOME CASES, DOES
DWE LL TI ME C AUSE M E
TO M AKE MORE RE PEAT
VISITS (AN D MONEY)?
OR YOU'RE FOOLING YOURSELF.
44. YOU NEED TO MEASURE
THE EFFECTS OF YOUR WORK
MONITOR
DWELL TIME
DWE LL
TIME
WHY EVERYONE LOVES
TIM’S APPLES:
GREAT!
REVIEW:
THE BEST
VIDEO:
LOVE IT!
*BACK*
IS THERE A DWELL TIME
THAT LEADS TO HIGHER
CONVE RS I ON RATE?
ANY CORRELATION
TO SOCIA L SH ARING? DOES PAGE SPEED CAUSE HIGH ER
OR LOWER DWELL TIME?
IN SOME CASES, DOES
DWE LL TI ME C AUSE M E
TO M AKE MORE RE PEAT
VISITS (AN D MONEY)?
OR YOU'RE FOOLING YOURSELF.
For sites like my blog a very large percentage of people will just come to read
the latest post or one post to solve a specific problem. Dwell time tells you
what that engagement looks like because all web analytics tools stink
(natively) at capturing time for single page view visits. I use the data to figure
out what content is causing people stay and read.
AVINASH KAUSHIK
DIGITAL MARKETING EVANGELIST, GOOGLE
45. THE BEST PART OF ALL OF THIS IS THAT
YOU GET TO GET BETTER AT IT.
JUST KEEP DOING
OVER AND OVER
FIGU RE OUT
WHAT YOU
WAN T T O
FOCUS ON.
SET ASIDE
WRITING
TIME FOR
YO U RSE L F
HONOR IT.
DO IT.
ASK FO R
FEEDBACK.
MAKE AN
EDITORIAL
CALENDAR
FOR
YO U RSE L F.
RESEARCH
ANALYTICS
I WROTE
THIS!
46. THE BEST PART OF ALL OF THIS IS THAT
YOU GET TO GET BETTER AT IT.
JUST KEEP DOING
OVER AND OVER
FIGU RE OUT
WHAT YOU
WAN T T O
FOCUS ON.
Remember high school English? That's where you learned how to write (or, you
were supposed to—heh). And you learned from doing it over and over again.
KRISTINA HALVORSON
CEO, BRAIN TRAFFIC
SET ASIDE
WRITING
TIME FOR
YO U RSE L F
HONOR IT.
DO IT.
ASK FO R
FEEDBACK.
MAKE AN
EDITORIAL
CALENDAR
FOR
YO U RSE L F.
RESEARCH
ANALYTICS
I WROTE
THIS!
47. THE BEST PART OF ALL OF THIS IS THAT
YOU GET TO GET BETTER AT IT.
REWORK
CONTENT
FOCUS HEAVILY
ON DESIGN
THINK ABOUT
CHAN N ELS
INCORPORATE
FEEDBACK EXPLICITLY
EMPATHIZE
DEFINE
IDEATE
PROTOTYPE
TEST
HERE’S WHY TIM’S APPLES
ARE THE HEALTHIEST:
PHOTO:
THEY TASTE GREAT!
REVIEW:
BEST APPLES I’VE
EVER TASTED!
VIDEO: WATCH MY
BABY DAUGHTER
EAT THE APPLES!
VIDEOS BLOGPOSTS
TIM’S APPLES
KEYNOTE
EMAILS SLIDE DECKS
HERE’S WHY TIM’S APPLES
ARE THE HEALTHIEST:
SPECIAL THANKS TO @JONY
FOR HIS FEEDBACK!
EGO-BAITS WORK!
48. THE BEST PART OF ALL OF THIS IS THAT
YOU GET TO GET BETTER AT IT.
REWORK
CONTENT
FOCUS HEAVILY
ON DESIGN
THINK ABOUT
CHAN N ELS
INCORPORATE
FEEDBACK EXPLICITLY
EMPATHIZE
I think that I've been too guilty of always moving onto the next thing rather
DEFINE
than seeing all the different ways that a piece can be repurposed.
IDEATE
PROTOTYPE
TEST
HERE’S WHY TIM’S APPLES
ARE THE HEALTHIEST:
PHOTO:
THEY TASTE GREAT!
REVIEW:
BEST APPLES I’VE
EVER TASTED!
VIDEO: WATCH MY
BABY DAUGHTER
EAT THE APPLES!
VIDEOS BLOGPOSTS
TIM’S APPLES
KEYNOTE
EMAILS SLIDE DECKS
HERE’S WHY TIM’S APPLES
ARE THE HEALTHIEST:
SPECIAL THANKS TO @JONY
FOR HIS FEEDBACK!
EGO-BAITS WORK!
WILL CRITCHLOW
CO-FOUNDER, DISTILLED