BUILDING CONTENT STRATEGY SEMINAR
The tips, tools and advice you need to build an effective content strategy
Whether you’re looking to get into content marketing, are responsible for your company’s website and social platforms, or want to use information and advice to better connect with consumers, you need content strategy to be successful. But what is content strategy and how do you build a successful one?
In this seminar, you will learn about the exciting new discipline of content strategy and a step-by-step method to build one — all with a focus of putting people -- those that will be consuming, commenting, and sharing your content -- first. You will learn how to develop a well thought out strategy that satisfies business objectives. Plus, you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at how one of Canada’s leading content agencies crafts award-winning strategies for some of Canada’s biggest brands.
In this full-day session, participants will explore key concepts of the discipline of content strategy and how apply these ideas to your own business.
@ariadcomm February 2015 Content Strategy Seminar
@bstat
@kieranmiles
@michaudmark
11. Good content
• Meets a customer need
• Nothing is more engaging than content the customer is
ALREADY looking for
• Helps rather than sells
• Customers pay more attention when you are HELPING them
not SELLING to them.
• Is different from your competitors
• Your brand wins when your content isn‘t just like your competitors
or any media outlet
• Is actionable
• Good content should always show the customer WHAT TO DO NEXT
• Is engaging
• A GREAT STORY, empathy for the customer, humour and humanity
all draw your audience closer to your message
11
12. MICHELIN created guides to encourage
a love of motoring
Helps rather than sells
Is different
Is actionable
Is engaging
12
13. RIMMEL brings its unique London brand
positioning to life with multichannel content
Helps rather than sells
Is different
Is actionable
Is engaging
13
14. VOLKSWAGEN offers highly functional
content and customers‘ love of its iconic brand
Meets a customer need
Is different
Is actionable
Is engaging
14
17. Define business
objectives
Define and
document your
customer
Define their
content needs
Create a
strategy
statement
Do your creative
discovery
Create a
content plan
Consider
maintenance +
measurement
17
22. The makings of a good objective:
1. Measureable. Within a reasonable degree of
accuracy.
2. Focused. Emphasizes on a single goal.
3. Business impact. Moves the business forward
in a meaningful way.
22
28. Profiles or personas?
“an archetypal representation of
an actual user group whose members
share similar needs and goals”
28
29. Why profiles or personas?
• Understand your content from the customers’
perspective.
• Prioritize the most important needs of the most
important customers.
• Make content decisions based on research
insights.
• Filter out personal biases of the marketing and
creative staff.
29
35. Why customer journeys?
• Customer experience matters like never
before.
• More complex: multichannel, multi-device,
mobile.
• Consumers are demanding more bespoke,
personalized and social interactions.
• Forces us to create content that truly serves
customers’ needs.
35
42. Where the strategy lies
Audience
Goals
Business
Objectives
Finding overlap
42
43. Our brand will engage with first time homebuyers
by providing them with a comprehensive source of information
and advice on all aspects of home buying – integrating real estate
information with financing education.
To ensure they can access this resource when they need it,
we will provide it on the web and through a mobile/tablet app.
They will be able to customize it and store info on their specific
situation so it acts as an essential tool to facilitate the purchase process.
Spell it out in a statement
43
44. Our brand will engage with first time homebuyers
by providing them with a comprehensive source of information
and advice on all aspects of home buying – integrating real estate
information with financing education.
To ensure they can access this resource when they need it,
we will provide it on the web and through a mobile/tablet app.
They will be able to customize it and store info on their specific
situation so it acts as an essential tool to facilitate the purchase process.
audienc
ebudget
mandate mobile
functiona
lity goal
The detail matters
44
45. Why a formal statement?
• Defines the scope of your content strategy.
• Identifies the implications for budgeting,
planning, resourcing and governance.
• Provides a yardstick to judge all content
initiatives.
45
55. “For the love of flavour…
Because cooking delicious and
nutritious food should be within
everyone’s reach”
ESSENCE:
Provide real value to
your customers’ lives.
55
57. EXERCISE 8
Define the essence
and substance of your
brand’s conversation
with customers.
57
58. What is a content territory?
An aspect of the brand’s conversation that
can come to life in multiple ways, in many formats,
across many channels.
58
59. What is a content territory?
RECOGNITION
AWARDS
SUCCESS
STORIES TESTIMONIALS
SAMPLING
COACHING/
NEW
PRODUCTS
EVENTS/
CONFERENCE
ROLE OF
SALES FORCE ACADEMY
BORROWED
TRUST
(EXPERTS)
“SWITCH
ROLES”
59
61. Create a content plan
“How do we get more out of the content we have?”
61
62. What is a content plan?
A formalized way to translate all the content
opportunities and possibilities into doable,
fundable, compliant, sustainable plan of action
…that is aligned with business priorities.
62
63. Why a content plan?
• Creating one allows you to be realistic about
resourcing and sustainability.
• Ensures that content is spread across the
year for business impact.
• Allows you to align with other in-market
activities: product launches, promotions,
events, etc.
63
64. Story ideas and channels
• Each story idea can be examined to identify
the best channels and formats.
• Look for ways to alter and extend the idea so
that it is applicable for a number of channels.
• These ideas should then be evaluated against
the profile to ensure they are likely to be
valued by the target audience.
64
66. Content plan/calendar
Planning the frequency of your content projects
on a calendar helps in several ways:
• Coordinate with aspects of your full plan:
promos, marketing, communications, events
• Spread out the activity for reach and efficiency
• Ensure that the plan is doable with the
resources available
66
69. The “day two” problem
• Measurement: how will you ensure that your
content is performing against business
objectives?
• Maintenance: what is the sustainable work
process for ongoing creation, review, launch?
• Did you budget for day two? Take 20% of
launch budget off the top for ongoing efforts.
• If you have “real time” content like social, how
do you create and react quickly?
69
71. Define business
objectives
Define and
document your
customer
Define their
content needs
Create a
strategy
statement
Do your creative
discovery
Create a
content plan
Consider
maintenance +
measurement
71
72. Good content
• Meets a customer need
• Helps rather than sells
• Is different from your competitors
• Is actionable
• Is engaging
72