Traditional marketing channels have become ineffective in capturing and engaging the attention of today’s perpetually connected consumers. Today's businesses must adapt their marketing strategies in an effort to build a brand advantage in the face of the consumers’ rapidly changing media consumption landscape. Additionally, today’s millennial generation does not trust traditional advertisements, only 6% of millennials consider advertising even to be credible. In this class, you will learn how to develop, promote and take advantage of branded content delivered through a strategic social media plan that will allow your business to engage today's generation, building a trusted relationship, and become unmistakable and essential in their eyes. In this session, you will learn how to create content based on your strategic plan for your content marketing and social media efforts. IWU Small Business Development Center and YouthBuild McLean County Marketing Series.

1. DEVELOPING TRUST
THROUGH CONTENT
IWU Small Business and Youth Build

2. Digital and Traditional Marketing | Content
Strategy | Social Media | UX | Designer |
Educator | Consultant
• huonks.com
• linkedin.com/in/brianhuonker
• slideshare.net/bkhuonker/
(The one thing to remember)
BRIAN HUONKER
MS, SAFe® Agile, CLU®, Human Factors CUA™

3. Before the information age, the only people who had
access to “primary sources” — direct words from politicians,
celebrities, and other public figures — were the
professionals.
When newspapers, radio, and television chose what to
write and what to publish the rest of the public only got
what they were given.
Today, there has been a massive increase in public access
to primary sources through the internet. Every “primary
source” has their own website with links to a Blog,
Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and more.
Much of the information news outlets use to write their
articles has been made available to the general public . The
media environment has changed. It’s up to us to
determine what is said about us with branded storytelling.
WHY “BRAND” STORYTELLING

4. A RISE IN MEDIA
◻ A shift to social and online media as sources
of news
◻ One-in-five U.S. adults say they often get
news via social media.
◻ While TV still remains primary, it has been
declining rapidly since 2016. Being replaced
by news websites and social media
◻ “citizen” journalism… only held accountable to
their readership
40 percent get their news from multiple online
and social media sources.

6. AND A LOSS IN TRUST
◻ Trust in media hits bottom
◻ Just 53% of those aged 65 and older
◻ Just 33% of those under age 30.
◻ 60% say sources pay for stories. Which is backed
by the continuing consolidation of media outlets.
◻ 41% are unlikely to believe stories filled with
anonymous sources.
◻ 42% of Democrats believe the media isn’t biased.
Just 10% of Republicans said the same.
Media is last on a list of all of Washington’s
institutions that the public has confidence in,
even under Congress.

9. How have you been
mis-represented?

10. A RISE IN MEDIA AND A LOSS OF
TRUST
◻ News outlets compete for readership with everything else
online.
◻ News outlets are being bought out and consolidated… and
with them, the news departments.
◻ Newspapers are becoming smaller and smaller. TV News
programs are pressured to be more “entertaining”. Radio,
well, who listens to radio?
◻ The rising presence of less credible sources such as
unregulated “citizen journalists” and deliberate
misinformation campaigns.
◻ People can now “choose” where to get their information.
And as such, choose that sources that reaffirm their
personal views.

12. We are exposed to around 4,000 to 10,000
ads each day

13. Americans expect to get their information from
social media, but they don’t expect it to be
accurate.

15. But with branded storytelling, allowing for
transparency and accountability, business can
rebuild their trust.

16. Who is involved in their
content/social marketing?
Who has a content
marketing program?

17. Where do you start?
DEVELOPING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT

18. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
◻ To begin building trust, we need to find
stories that:
¤ Captures the community’s persona (the variety of
personalities that exist within the community).
¤ Written in a manor that the can be easily
discovered and shared.
¤ Allows for continual discovery of additional content
while reading.
¤ Ultimately connects your business through
cultural, relevant, and valuable content with the
customer.

19. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
◻ STEP 1: IDENTIFY AND SET GOALS in order
to have clear and measurable return on
investment.
◻ Determine what you want to achieve with
storytelling?
◻ Ensure they align with your companies overall
vision, mission and directions.
◻ Ensure they align your marketing strategies.
◻ Record them in your content calendar (not
only for tracking but for future articles/posts)

20. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
◻ STEP 2: PAINT A STORY that engages your
readers.
◻ Discover what the community is talking about.
◻ Research what your community wants to hear
about at the “point of transaction”.
◻ Create content that is valuable in customers’
eyes using data learned from community.
◻ Write for a Millennial and post-Millennial
generation (aka “bathroom copy”).
◻ Be Involved buy responding to comments and
possible future articles.

21. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
◻ DISCOVER. What the customers are talking
about. Thinking about. Concerned about.
◻ What’s being commented on in local
newspapers?
◻ Utilize surveys
◻ Examine your own website (Google
Analytics)/social media data
◻ Google Alerts, Google Trends, BuzzSumo,
and other online tools
◻ What’s being asked in the store?

25. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
RESEARCH. Learn what your customers wants
from you.
◻ What questions are they asking when they
call?
◻ What are they asking the employees
◻ What are they talking about in social media?

26. What are they complaining about?

27. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
CREATE. What article would best represent your
message
◻ Utilize good and bad examples. Represents the
hero and the villain.
◻ Utilize visuals. reinforces the main points (people
skim… remember “the bathroom”) and leaves an
impression.
◻ How to videos. Helps explain processes or
instructions easier than written (HowToPlay).
◻ Q&A. With your customer. Especially those that
are “connectors”

28. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
• Make a Predictions Post
• Things You Might Not Know About Me
• Why I Don’t Do ‘X’
• (Famous Person Guide) To (Blank)
• Case Study
• Product Showdowns
• ‘X’ Things You Must Do After (Blank)
• The Tools of the Trade
• Ask / Involve the Reader!
• Debunk Industry Myths
• Comment on Industry Gossip
• New Product, Course, or Book Launch
• Celebrate An Anniversary

29. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
• How To (Blank) In (X Number of Days / Hours)
• Experimental Posts
• Comprehensive Pillar Posts
• (Insert Desired Benefit) That No One Talks
About
• Blog Post Roundup
• Things I Wish I Had Done Differently
• Special Announcement Post
• Year In Review
• Goals for the Year Ahead
• Tips For Newbies
• Insider Interviews
• Q&A Blog Post

30. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
WRITE. Target a 5th/6th grader reader
• Small words and short sentences
• Short paragraphs with a introduction and
summary
• Bulleted Lists to help readers skim the copy.
• Copy broken by headings and subheads.
• Target 400-640 words but don’t be afraid to
write longer.

31. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
• Headline. Clear, concise.
• Introduction. Simple summary of the article,
nothing fancy, move the reader into the article as
quickly as possible. Ensure the main take away is
included.
• Image(s). Use an image that reinforces main
takeaway. Ensure the “alt tag” is accessibility
requirements.
• Subhead. Each Main Copy block needs a
subheading that summarizes the block.
• Main Copy. Short, concise sentences and
paragraphs.
• 20 words or less per sentence.
• 3-4 sentences per paragraph, 3-4 paragraphs
per Main Copy.
• Easily digestible words
• Bullet out topics for easy skimming.
• Utilize Links to allow the customer to move
other articles. Link to other sources
• Closing/CTA. Summarize the article and include
a CTA (call to action) or next action for the reader
to take.
• 640 is the ideal word count. Minimum 400 words
(but take that with a grain of salt.

32. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
Build your social media
post form your content.
• Subheads become a
social point.
• Bullets become a
social post
Each post should link
back the article.

33. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
BE INVOLVED. Don’t just talk to your customer,
engage them.
◻ Respond to comments left by your customer.
◻ Don’t be afraid to deny/remove comments if
they go against your “community standards”.
◻ But don’t be afraid of negative comments.
They give you an opportunity to learn and
engage in discussion.
◻ Write future articles based upon their comments,
and give them credit for their contribution.

34. Don’t forget to track
it.
BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT

35. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
◻ Remember those goals?
◻ Utilize Google Analytics and campaign track
to see which articles are connecting
◻ Socially
◻ Most comments, Shared, Liked (least
important)
◻ Website
◻ Comments, visits, articles read per visit
◻ Will help identify what is working and what is
not.

37. BUILDING TRUST
THROUGH ENGAGING CONTENT
Exercise 1
¤ Brainstorm 10 topics to write content around.
¤ Why?
Exercise 2
¤ What keywords would be best.
Exercise 3
¤ Create Headlines for each.
Exercise 4
¤ Create an introduction for each.
Exercise 5
¤ Create a Facebook post for each.

38. What’s Next?
• huonks.com
• linkedin.com/in/brianhuonker
• slideshare.net/bkhuonker/
brian@huonks.com
(email me for blog post templates)
Building Trust
Through Engaging Content