6. A social platform without content is like a glass without
wine.
(And yes, the glass enhances the body of the wine, so you should use the right glass.)
(Not to mention, bad wine, like bad content, will leave the drinker with a bad aftertaste.)
7. âContent marketing is the only marketing thatâs left.â
Seth Godin, 2008
iâm quoting this
guy seeking your
validation, but
youâll understand
why this is ironic
later on...
8. why content marketing?
⢠It focuses on the customerâs needs
⢠it creates and sustains long term bonds
⢠it encourages sharing and word of mouth
⢠it cuts through the noise
⢠itâs more fun for both you and your customers
⢠you can see the impact instantly
⢠people arenât listening to/believing/giving a darn about advertising anymore
9. good content informs, listens & responds, tells a
story, entertains and enhances your customersâ
lives.
10. here are some examples (my
favorite little company who uses
content brilliantly + two of my
own works of content art) ...
17. pinboards to inspire
and share research
foursquare lists to
guide users to
locations + leave tips blogging to provide deeper
information + inspiration
in home design
19. more than doubled likes, signed
up 165,000 supporters, 11,000+ growing a personal/
volunteers and raised $1.2M (in 4
months). No ad buy.
political brand
22. ďŹickr for on the road google+ hangouts for live/
coverage of the tour interactive broadcasting
instagram hashtags
encourage audience soapbox for great
participation policy ideas
24. types of content
PRODUCT BRAND
(that thing you are selling + the
(how it will change your life/how you
facts: who, what, when, where,
identify with the product)
how)
the balance of these content types
depends on your audiences preference
LIFESTYLE COMMUNITY
(associated common threads - ie. (highlighting your customers, your
holidays, current events, etc) vendors, your employees)
but if you are spending most of your time on
this, you are using cheap tricks and it wonât
sustain...even Oreo will get old soon. ;)
25. magical content needs to be:
⢠consistent (pick a schedule and stick to it as ⢠quality (means more than a fancy camera and
close as possible) set...means you give your audience an
experience)
⢠frequent (some platforms require more
frequency than others - Iâm not talking 5 ⢠evolving (improving every single day)
posts/day...but donât post every few months)
⢠authentic (not manufactured authentic.
⢠balanced (how much are you selling and how authentic authentic)
much are you listening?)
⢠/have personality (donât be a machine or a
⢠interesting (goes without saying) PR bot)
⢠relevant (do you know your audience? do you ⢠positive (positivity always wins. defensiveness
know your own brand?) loses)
⢠pro-active (understand the trends and needs ⢠right for the platform (donât cross-post
of your audience before they happen) unless itâs applicable. PLEASE)
⢠reactive (take feedback with a grain of salt. ⢠awe inspiring (when you can, inspire and take
listen. improve) it to the next level.)
⢠interactive (get in there and have ⢠GOAL ACHIEVING (at the end of the day,
conversations) doesnât matter how awesome you do, if you
arenât achieving your goals, you need to
rethink your strategy)
26. learn plan
too many people get hung up
here + even more people start
here scratching their heads.
truth is...you need to plan to fail.
plan a few weeks out with some
ideas from research...test them.
be consistent. see what works
and what doesnât.
and remember...it takes time.
keep your eyes and ears open for
opportunity and listen more than
anything in the ďŹrst few months.
listen post
28. case study: luxy hair vs. traditional beauty brands
888,355 subscribers
126M+ video views
zero advertising $$
29. how did they grow this channel?
1. consistency - they committed to posting a video each week
2. relevancy - they started by watching trends - what their potential audience
liked/wanted (oscar hair?), then as feedback came in, they answered
requests
3. balanced - they do not make this about their extensions, but if you want
those quadruple braids, it helps to use them! ;)
4. interactive - they acknowledge their audience (thanking individuals for
suggestions)
5. quality - they take time to create great content. yes. it looks good. but itâs
warm and genuine, too.
30. and the traditional beauty brands?
a custom YouTube
template like this costs
$50,000 in advertising
(because itâs Canadian)
majority paid for
high views
low subscribers a custom YouTube
mostly paid for template like THIS costs
$200,000+ in advertising
(average 90% paid)
31. how did they f&*k it up?
1. (over) produced a bunch of adsvideos up front to throw up over a campaign
period.
2. didnât do much to listen. hired an outside ďŹrm to do âcommunity
managementâ which consisted more of management than community.
3. threw a bunch of money at the adsvideos so theyâd look like they were
super popular
4. focused solely on product, themselves and their own needs (screw the
customer, she is there to buy my product!)
5. thought quality meant high-paid fashion models and celebrities and HD
cameras...didnât think about what the ânewâ quality means. donât care, really.
32. lots of people ask me, âbut, Tara,
what brands do it well?â and instead
of giving you the same list of 5
companies youâve already heard of
and are getting tired of hearing of, let
me offer this additional metaphor...
33. are you a are you a fox?
hedgehog?
https://www.etsy.com/listing/60007735/woodland-animal-pair-hedgehog-and-fox
34. best at getting best at
cushy, highly HEDGEHOGS FOXES content +
paid corporate social era
marketing!
brand job!
severely
reasons why
foxes leave
Focus in on one thing Look at lots of different things misunderstood
and undervalued
those jobs or
in corporate
drink heavily
america
Take a new approach to every
Like formulas
situation which
is why
very very
Learn from others, but say, âIt few brands
Mimic what others are doing âget itâ
dependsâ a lot when asked what
(âbest practicesâ)
is the best way show me a
successful
Specialized, stalwart, stubborn, Multidisciplinary, adaptable, self- corporate social
campaign and Iâll
order-seeking, conďŹdent and critical, tolerant of complexity, show you a big,
ass ad budget
ideological. cautious and empirical. behind it.
May seem to people to be a little
Seek out information to support
scattered...not ever *quite*
beliefs.
satisďŹed.
Old school traditional marketing Emerging social era of
way of thinking. marketing way of thinking.
35. here is a great example of those
unemployable foxes that are doing
it right...outside of corporate
america...
36. In less two years:
945,392 subscribers
142M+ video views
$0 advertising
...make a living on YouTube ad revenues
37. how do they do it?
1. work their friggin tails off - they were either âonâ and ďŹlming or editing the
entire time I saw them.
2. ďŹlmed everything they did and made it interesting because they were
interested in it
3. were ruthlessly critical of their own work - always improving, listening to
feedback and growing
4. hardly planned anything - took advantage of the moment
5. pumped out content like a factory - but with a great deal of respect for their
audience (asking them what they wanted)
38. when asked about the secret sauce, Roman said something to
the tune of:
âif you start using rules, you stop using your
instincts.â
(actually, it was more like, âthatâs a dumb question. we just do stuff and some stuff works and some
stuff doesnât, but we learn from it and donât follow any stupid formulas. Just our guts. Formulas are
for out of date marketers who have lost their common sense.â but my interpretation is snappier. ;)
39. how to hone your instincts + become foxier
⢠Put down the content calendar, the Seth Godin book and any blog post that
lists best practices.
⢠Stop thinking of your audience as consumers. They arenât sitting with index
ďŹngers hovering over the like button, eagerly awaiting your next witty post. Itâs
your job to earn their attention.
⢠Get outside of your industry and your comfort area. Talk to strangers. Read
books about stuff that has nothing to do with your work or industry.
⢠Let go of fear. Donât be afraid to fail. Embrace criticism. Lose control.
⢠When you fall on your face, celebrate it. You just learned something.
rinse and repeat until you are completely lost. then get drunk + write insane
babble (donât publish it online). read it sober. you may start to see an inkling...
41. the truth is:
there is no magical content wand.
there is only authenticity, hard work, trial and error, consistency, humility, empathy,
passion, desire and love. go ahead and pay for it if you want, but what you are
buying isnât real and comes at a higher cost than you think.
if you want real magic, put that money into making a better product and spend
more time and effort on becoming a fox. hone your instinct. love your customers.
donât think of it as a content marketing strategy, think of it as the most delightful
thing in the world because you get to interact with the people who can help make
your product better. this is the worldâs best, most interesting, most accurate focus
group. and itâs free.
now thatâs magical.
42. tara hunt (@missrogue)
author. speaker. entrepreneur. karaoke
lover. pug owner. mom. digital &
social strategist. boat rocker. fox with
a hedgehog façade. dabbler. rambler.
tara@buyosphere.com
www.tarahunt.com
twitter.com/missrogue