Do we really need more marketing like the ad to the left? Don’t give me the excuse “it converts”. First, I doubt it does. Second, who cares? Porn sells, but do you really want to create more porn?
I also don’t like the second ad on this page. Do we really need more “stuff”, more conspicuous consumption? Does a phone work any better because it’s gold plated?
Tim Malbon of Made by Many, a UK-based creative agency, gave a “deliberately provocative” presentation at the Silicon Beach conference earlier this year titled “Let’s Kill Landfill Marketing”. I viewed the presentation recently, and it struck a chord with me.
Who wants to make ads or promote things that people don’t need or want? Why do some advertisers seem to think they have to “trick” people into buying their products?
So what’s the alternative? Seem pretty straightforward – provide stuff that people want and need, and do so in a way that encourages them to trust you. In short, do Content Marketing, not Landfill Marketing.
The term Content Marketing was coined by Joe Pulizzi in his book “Get Content, Get Customers” to describe a non-interruptive marketing approach. Rather than interrupt customers with bad ads like those above, content marketers seek to educate and engage prospects and customers, knowing that this will lead to business.
I taught a course in E-Marketing this fall, and one of the textbooks I used was “Content Rules” by Ann Hadley and C. C. Chapman. The book is great and well worth reading in its entirety. Here, however, are 7 reasons to embrace Content Marketing, derived from their content rules:
- Content draws eyeballs - Some people may watch the SuperBowl solely for the ads, but on the internet, Content is King. People come to your web site not to be sold, but to find content which helps them. Maybe it’s to help them make a decision about your product or service, but sometimes it’s because they need help in other ways. And when they’re ready to buy, who do you think they’re more likely to buy from, the guy who helped them last time, or the guy who is only interested in your wallet?
- Insight inspires originality - The more you know about your product, your industry and your customers, the more likely you are to provide the insights that customers are looking for when they’re buying. Lately, my wife has been buying some office furniture for the library where she works. One salesman came in and barely knew anything about his own products, and provided no value in helping her think through the design and how different furniture options might work in her library; the other salesperson gave her some interesting options to think about, and clearly knew his products and how his customers used them. Who do you think she bought from?And it’s not just about insights. If you know your product, industry and customers well, the knowledge breeds originality, and originality differentiates you from your competitors.
- Buyers don’t mind if you’re purposeful in promoting your product if you also provide value - Sometimes people new to content marketing think that you have to stop selling. No. You can still promote your product. But only after you’ve provided value. When we go the car dealership and we get a helpful salesperson who listens to our needs, help us think through the options, and walks us through the process – we’re not fooled. We know he’s there to sell cars. But we buy from those we know, like and trust, and helping customers through providing great content builds up that knowledge, liking and trust.
- Speak Human - Content marketing encourages you to speak to prospects like you would another human being that you met at a party, rather than using the jargon-filled, corporate-speak that fills so many company web sites today, particularly those selling to businesses rather than consumers. PR agencies are particularly prone to generating this kind of Gobbledygook:
“The amended telecast rights marketing procedures will enable the Dodgers to establish a specific revenue stream and enable prospective owners to have greater visibility concerning the value of the telecast rights. This critical information will make clear the enhanced value of the Dodgers and we expect that this will result in a purchase transaction of the Dodgers that will maximize the value of the debtors’ estates and achieve maximum long-term return success of the Dodgers.”
-The second paragraph of a Dec 8, 2011 press release from a PR agency representing the LA Dodger’s baseball team celebrating a judge’s decision in court
- Content Marketing allows you to re-package and re-imagine your content in multiple ways - let’s say you make some interesting predictions for the coming year in your industry. You can promote it in social media, create an infographic about it, post a video on your web site with the author being interviewed, etc. The same content, pushed through different channels, reaching more people.
- Share or Solve; Don’t Shill - This relates to item 3 above. To engage with people, you either have to share something that they find insightful, funny or moving; or you have to solve a problem for them. Sounding like a carnival barker, shilling your wares, is sure to turn off your audience.
- Show; don’t just Tell - Content Marketing takes the point of view of the reader, who doesn’t want you to preach at him. It allows you to demonstrate through case studies or other examples the benefits of using your product. A good story, well told, engages visitors and encourages them to come back.
