Case Study: Content to Conversion: Is Your Content Driving the Right Path? Content has become the catalyst for audience engagement, and the role of earned media in driving organizational success has been strengthened as a result. However, in this rush to content being "king", we have begun to lose sight on what we want that content created to achieve. At the outset of any campaign one must ask; what is the conversion metric we hope to attain to build awareness and spark action. Be it views, shares, sales; that metric is the key to any content marketing strategy. As your brand (whether B2C, B2B, or Non-profit) provides context around the conversation, we have to ask how your strong and compelling content is driving your desired outcomes. Presented by: Ninan Chacko, Chief Executive Officer, PR Newswire www.bdionline.com

1. CONTENT TO CONVERSION:
Is Your Content Driving
the Right Path?
Ninan Chacko
CEO

2. PR Newswire is the global leader
in innovative communications
and marketing services,
enabling organizations to
connect and engage with their
target audiences worldwide.

3. Amplify your content through our syndication network
PR NEWSWIRE’S
CONTENT
SYNDICATION
NETWORK
150+ MOBILE
PARTNERSHIPS
SOCIAL MEDIA
PRN’s social feeds +
social sharing buttons
GLOBAL NETWORK
OF 9,000+ ONLINE
NEWS SITES & PORTALS
SEARCH
PRNEWSWIRE.COM
Averages 1.5+ Million
monthly unique visitors, with
industry-leading search
visibility
200,000+
GLOBAL MEDIA
OUTLETS
BROADCAST +
ONLINE VIDEO
DISTRIBUTION
TARGETED DISTRIBUTION
Find relevant influencers by
Industry, region and/or topic
PRN’s MEDIA SITE
For registered journalists
& bloggers from 27,000+
Media Outlets

4. We have the
resources to
make your
content more
VISIBLE.
We have the
distribution &
syndication
network to
AMPLIFY your
content.
Our products &
services help you
continually
ENGAGE your
target audiences.

5. Not so very long ago…
Traditional methods worked independently to inform
consumers through EARNED and PAID media.

6. Image source: http://www.threewingsmedia.com/2011_02_01_archive.html
ADVERTISER
• Pushes information
• Needs to listen
• Focuses on transactions
CONSUMER
• Values authenticity
• Wants to be heard
• Expects an immediate
response to questions

7. The future is now
Content drives them all
OWNED
MEDIA
EARNED
MEDIA
PAID
MEDIA
SOCIAL + SEARCH + MOBILE
A brand pays to
place ad or content
in a channel to
drive conversation
forward.
Publicity gained
through influencer
promotion,
including shares,
likes & tweets.
Brand published
content to drive
earned media and
sustain buzz
around brand.
• Advertising
• Events
• Direct Marketing
• Press pickup
• Blog mention
• Social sharing
• Word of mouth
• Company blogs
• Company website
• Company social
accounts

8. We’re trending towards more
interactive, two-way communication
between consumer and brand
across all media.
Companies must provide value and
engage customers in meaningful and
exciting ways in order to gain their trust.
CONNECTED =
ENGAGED

9. The creation and sharing of high
quality, valuable content by the
brand to engage current &
potential audience and influencers.
Content Marketing will AMPLIFY your existing media
campaigns, increase VISIBILITY and drive
ENGAGEMENT leading to your desired outcome.
CHOICE
PREFERENCE
CONSIDERATION
AWARENESS
Content Marketing

10. The value exchange
BRAND
Currency = Content
AUDIENCE
Currency = Personal Info
Jane Smith
jane.smith@xyz.com
555-555-5555
CEO, XYZ Corp.
The brand continuously delivers
relevant content & establishes
its worth to the audience
The audience trusts the brand
enough to identify themselves &
grant permission for engagement

11. What that looks like…

12. IDENTIFY & TARGET
PROMOTE &
SYNDICATE
CREATE, CURATE &
OPTIMIZE CONTENT
LISTEN, ANALYZE
MEASURES &
STRATEGIZE
ENGAGE & INTERACT
The PR Newswire
Vision of Modern
Storytelling
LINKS FROM SOCIAL
boost search rankings, so get
your message shared [1] [2]

13. Adding the customer’s voice into content
It starts with LISTENING
Social Media
Channels
• Twitter hashtags #
• LinkedIn groups
• Relevant blogs
• Anywhere your audience
is talking
Customer
FAQs
What questions do your
customer service people
hear most often?
Incoming
Search Terms
What are the most
popular keywords &
phrases bringing
searchers to your site?

14. Map your content to the
customer’s buying process

15. Mapping to content personas at each stage
Define a persona to represent each of your audience segments.
?
???
?
Tailor your content to each at every buying stage
1. Match their needs (what are they asking)
2. Match their voice (what words are they using to search for answers)

16. Research data, funny videos,
curated lists, infographics,
thought leadership
Types of content
Thought leadership &
entertainment to build brand
and awareness
Tools that help buyers find you
when they are looking for
solutions
Company-specific information
to help evaluate & reaffirm
selection
Buying guides, RFP templates,
ROI calculators, whitepapers,
analyst reports, webinars
Pricing, demos, services
information, 3rd party reviews,
customer case studies
Gated?
EARLY STAGE
MIDDLE STAGE
LATE STAGE
*Content courtesy of Marketo
Content must always
be relevant and helpful

17. Classic story arc
x = time
y = tension
opening
scene
climax
dénouement
Earned Media
beginning middle end
Adapted from Lou Hoffman - www.Hoffman.com
72 Hours

18. x = time
y = change
Old Way New Way
future
storytelling
fodder
Adapted from Lou Hoffman - www.Hoffman.com
The communicator’s story spike

19. Content such as Blog Posts & YouTube videos can
Educate Customers to the point where they’re ready to buy

20. We began blog post syndication
in June 2011 and found our
blog traffic more than doubled
from earlier in the year
53%
And, in the first month, those additional eyes proved to be a qualified audience
52.8% increase in
blog subscriptions
Click-through
rate increased
to 12.15%
from 9.43%
average 52.4% increase in
blog post shares
Content such as Blog Posts & YouTube videos can
Educate Customers to the point where they’re ready to buy

21. 57%
More likely
to purchase
when there
is video
Content such as Blog Posts & YouTube videos can
Educate Customers to the point where they’re ready to buy

22. With content tailored to what customers
want or need, they end up spending
more time engaged with that content
… developing a relationship
with the brand and remaining
engaged with the products
AND

23. Stream & distribute your content in multiple formats
Online distributions
with photo
Multimedia News
Releases
ARC Engagement
Platforms
Photo (image such as photo, logo
or infographic)
Photo + Video + Audio + PDFs +
Dedicated Page
Photo + Dynamic Video
+ Dedicated HTML Page
+ Strategic Placement

24. * The number of stories with downloadable files
such as PDFs, PPTs, DOCs is significantly fewer
than those without, however the data shows the
potential for very high visibility when such assets
are included along with other multimedia assets.
Source: PR Newswire Web Analytics, June 2012
Releases with multiple
multimedia elements resulted
in up to nearly 10 times more
than that of text-only releases
More multimedia = more views

25. Multiple-stage engagement
PERSONA:
Tax filers who:
1. Are concerned doing
their taxes will take a lot of
time.
2. May fear safety of
sharing their information
online.
3. Don’t want to spend a
lot of money to file.
ACTION:
Awareness: Release text
Consideration: Watch
videos
Preference: How to video
Choice: File now.

26. Multiple-stage engagement
PERSONA:
PR & Marketers who:
1. Want to learn how to
use video to tell their story.
2. Think that video is too
costly or difficult to
produce.
3. Don’t know how to use
their channels to syndicate
their video to their
audiences.
ACTION:
Awareness: Release text
Consideration: Watch
videos
Preference: How to video
Choice: Ask for someone
to contact them.

27. Adding distribution paid off — tallying
thousands of reads of the press release —
and tens of thousands of video views.
Readers of the multimedia release shared it with
their Facebook friends 196 times (as of Mar 26)
Distributed content reaches qualified, interested
audiences. And social shares have a strong viral
effect, triggering more shares.
The effect of content distribution

28. Men’s Wearhouse utilized the a combination of multimedia, multiple
assets, and multiple updates to power an integrated paid, owned
and earned media campaign and drive their CSR initiative; their
national suit drive that collects gently worn clothing for those
transitioning back into the work force
OBJECTIVES:
> Secure at least 110,000 clothing
donations
> Increase interaction with
Multimedia content
> Grow visibility and awareness
around the National Suit Drive
> Deliver high campaign
Impressions without media buys
> Garner traditional & social media |
attention
> Promote social engagement and |
donations through Facebook &
Twitter
> Improve search visibility
surrounding the campaign
Corporate social responsibility

29. 130,171 total garments collected. ARC ENGAGEMENT STATS
Total impressions through strategic
media placements
1,919,378
Total video streams (views) 42,511
Total landing page views 7,988
95% of exit links went to the Men’s Wearhouse site
400+ search queries leading to the ARC
250 unique keyword searches leading to the ARC
Breaking suit drive records!
Social media mentions:
35,536
Impressions:
46,212,223
Facebook
• 10,997 likes/comments/shares
• 3,631 tab visits
• 16,185,076 unique users
• 35,577,116 total impressions
Twitter
• Trending topic
• 10,635,107 total impressions
• ~10,500 retweets
Additional $25k donated to the cause

31. Publish a steady
stream of content
Keep it relevant
& interesting
TRUST RELIABILITY DELIGHT
Adapted via: http://danspira.com/2011/09/10/make-room-for-follow-through/

32. 1
CONVERGENCE
of Paid/Earned/Owned
is blurring lines
between corporate
content from how it’s
created to who and
how it is being
curated.
2
SYNDICATION
through a variety of
channels is critical
in achieving
audience
engagement.
3
CONVERSATION
around your message
organically is the first
step to effective
content marketing to
ensure it’s seen,
searched, and shared.
3 KEY TAKEAWAYS