This presentation is #1 in a series – others
are
• Content marketing and teams
• Content marketing thru case studies and
stories
• Content marketing thru images

For the Twitterati
@bobcraw
#auscontentm

Content is…
Information which communities value because
it makes them smarter, more productive,
successful, knowledgeable or
hits an emotional sweetspot
“Your content doesn’t have to be
earth shattering just useful”
US author: Joe Pulizzi

The machinery behind preparing and sharing
content and consistently involving ourselves
with communities of interest
Content marketing strategy is …

Content marketing is here because …
• We are busier than ever
• The overload & disruption of 24/7 lives
• Trust in large organisations is low
• Media landscape is fragmented
• Attention grabbing activities are expensive

Australians are busier than ever
• Work interferes with our lifestyles
• Australian women caught in a double day paradox
• 32% believe we have too much work for one person
• We work from home - unpaid - 12 hours
every month
2012 Australian Work Life Index

Australians are super-connected
• 65% of Aussies use social media
• We spend 7 hours per week on Facebook
• Nearly 80% check social media at home
• 6% check social media on the toilet
• Multi-screen economy and community
Yellow™ 2013 Social Media Report

Australians don’t trust big organisations
• 60% of us don’t trust government leaders to tell the truth
• Gap between expectations of government and delivery
• CEOs are the least credible spokespersons
• Very low trust media will do the right thing
• Most trust experts, academics
& people like us
2013 Edelman Australian Trust Index

Communications have moved
from proclamations & declarations
to conversations & relationships

Continuous conversations Often run by episodic campaigns
Seeks relationships Seeks immediate results
Focus on common interests Focus on target audiences
Shares the conversations with others Wants to be the only conversation
Communications are in transition

What’s in it for audiences
Simplifies complexity with good writing
Uses traditional and social media
Entertains where possible
Relies on trusted sources
Uses storytelling
Focus on design and layout
Uses imagery extensively
But some similarities remain

6 steps in content marketing

Have Vision
• Identify fundamental business objectives
• What type of relationships do we aspire to?
(results, frequency, engagement, interaction)
• Is it all about us or can we balance our needs with
community needs?

Communities
Identify communities of interest
What relationship do we want with them
What content would they value or need
Find out their habits of consuming content online & offline

What relationship do we want
• A single transaction (a sale, a vote, a subscription)
• Ongoing transactions (ongoing support, using programs)
• Ongoing support or one-off backing for issues
• Temporary or permanent behaviour change

External Sources Internal Sources Online
Market & consumer research Customer feedback Search
ABS & other government data Frontline feedback Social media
commentary
Media exposure Complaints & compliments Own web stats
Polling and prediction Letters to the Minister/CEO Curate others’ data
Expert advice Results from past campaigns Media and online
monitoring
Learning about communities from

Types of content
• Declaration
• Product knowledge
• Thought leadership
• Case studies & stories
• User generated content
• Curated content

Content using product knowledge
Skill people to use products &
services
How to tools
Virtual & counter help teams
FAQs & tip sheets
Brand recipes
Manuals & help videos
Demonstrations & site visits

Content using thought leadership
Use expertise to engage communities to
• Deliver insights
• Forecast trends
• Explain complex issues

Content using case studies
Very effective
case studies show
People benefitting from what we do
Respected 3rd party endorsing our work
Effective
case studies show
Work of staff members & volunteers
Support from donors & sponsors
Independent experts & analysts
Least effective
case studies show
CEOs & Ministers
Corporate PR people
Anonymous spokespersons
Representative examples

Content using stories
Stories motivate, inspire,
educate, warn, foretell,
simplify and …. entertain
Storytelling humanises
leaders, ideas, brands &
products
Stories create curiosity,
spur action and invite
sharing

What’s my hope?
That brands start reinvesting in great
stories instead of investing in people to
simply blog, tweet and update their
Facebook page.
Author Mitch Joel

Sourcing content from …
• Our people
• Others
• Online curation

Sourcing content from
our people
• Frontline staff
• First line managers
• Policy makers
• Technicians & in-house experts
• Third parties we fund/support
• Downstream organisations
• Contractors & suppliers

Show how content is
important
Get management support
Brainstorm ideas
Repurpose existing work
Provide feedback & thanks
Allow time for deadlines
Create easy templates & tools
Interview staff
Approach those we fund
Incentivise people

Sourcing content from others
In 2013 an ACT Government tourist campaign
invited 500 visitors to Canberra
to visit and share their opinions with others

Appliance maker Thermomix invites
Australian buyers to share recipes

Sourcing content thru curation
No need to create all the content
Use free online tools to gather relevant information
& share with communities

Use images in content marketing because
they….
• Transcend literacy, learning & language
• Shortcut understanding
• Break down complexity
• Attract attention
• Support an issue

Common content tactics
Apps
Advertising
Blogs, podcasts & vidcasts
Competitions
E-books
Events
Games
Infographics
Influencers
Media
Mobile platforms
Newsletters
Online discussions
Personal contact
Site visits & demonstrations
Social media channels
Videos & images
Website
Webinairs
White papers

Tactics Australians use
• Australians now use an average of 12 content marketing
tactics
• B2B & B2C marketers use an average of 4 social media
platforms
• 97% of marketers tailor content at least one way
• A minority rate themselves as effective/very effective
at content marketing

Finally, measuring content marketing
Reach
• Who were we exposed to, how & when
Engagement
• Level of interaction with you, by you & around you
• Online & real world support
• Commentary
Outcomes
• Initial business objectives
• Audience reaction, attitude & behaviour
• Sales, conversions & support

Maine Street Marketing
61 2 6288 0796
61 0401 063 387
@bobcraw
Bob Crawshaw on Linked-in
bobcraw@webone.com.au
Need help creating content
or want to share an idea?
Contact us