Avoiding Content Dead Ends (April 2014)
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Content marketing is essential to engaging small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). When content marketing is done right it attracts prospects, nurtures them, and leads them to purchase. Done wrong, though, content can lead SMBs off the purchase path to a dead end. How do you keep SMBs on the purchase path with content? How can you make sure that your content is a facilitator, not a distraction? Based on original Bredin research and our award-winning content development programs for leading SMB marketers, you'll learn: • What content formats SMBs prefer • How to avoid common mistakes that lead to content dead ends • How to engage in conversations with your customers when they want to hear from you
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Avoiding Content Dead Ends (April 2014)
- 2. www.bredin.c 2 1. When the path stops 2. When there are not the right paths 3. When you send a prospect to a competitor’s path What is a Content Dead End?
- 3. www.bredin.c 3 • Don’t be shy • Have a CTA for every SMB • Pack them for travel • Test them Use CTAs to extend the path 1. When the Path Stops of SMBs learn about products via online resource centers50% of SMBs say product information is the most important aspect of content marketing77 %
- 4. www.bredin.c 4 Think about potential pathways on your site and rid them of dead ends 2. When There are not the Right Paths Awareness Interest PurchaseResearchLearn / Engage
- 5. www.bredin.c 5 • Use content formats that appeal to SMBs • Focus on topics of interest / relevance • Have enough content • Make the content actionable Keep SMBs on your site by offering the educational content they want 3. Don’t Send Prospects to Competitor’s Paths
- 6. www.bredin.c 6 Make sure you develop content for all visitor paths through your site Talk to the SMB content experts at Bredin Audit your content to be sure there is a CTA for every element Ensure your content provides unique value relevant to your brand and offerings Four To-Do’s Stu Richards, CEO stu@bredin.com ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔
Editor's Notes
- Thank you for attending our Fastcast today on Avoiding Content Dead Ends. We know you’re busy, so we’ve designed this webcast series to give you quick tips in just 15 minutes that you can put to use in your small and mid-sized business-focused content marketing efforts. I’m Stu Richards; I’m the CEO of Bredin, a consultancy that helps SMB-focused marketers from ADP to Wells Fargo to plan, develop and promote content to help them achieve their SMB engagement goals. I also want to thank those of you who took the pre-webcast survey. What we heard from you is very consistent with our previous research and client experience, which is that it is very hard to hard to develop quality content and hard to develop a comprehensive content strategy that drives SMBs to the business outcomes you want. And that gets me to today’s topic. One of the things we are all trying to do is to use content move SMBs through the sales cycle, from awareness through purchase to retention and cross-sell. Today I’ll discuss a few ways to remove roadblocks from the path to purchase.
- What are those dead ends? There are three types: First, when the path stops because there is no call to action, or CTA. A CTA is simply what we want to get our SMB site visitor to do – for example to call your call center, visit another page, provide their contact information or even make a purchase. And by the way, this can apply to your print content as well. Second, when your site does not offer either a learn, nurture or buy path from each piece of content. Third, when you send a site visitor to someone else’s path. Let’s take a look at the first dead end.
- CTAs bridge the gap between your site visitor’s goals and your objectives. One of the biggest mistakes we see with CTAs is simply not having one at all. In some cases, this is because marketers want to take a “soft-sell” or advocacy position; they want the content to educate, not promote. For example, we recently reviewed a client’s infographic which had great content, but only the client’s logo – no phone number, not even their URL. Our research shows that SMBs want to learn how your offerings can help them better manage their business (3 out of four, inn a recent Bredin survey); don’t be afraid to sell to them. And educational content is a great way to educate SMBs about your offerings; our survey also found that 50% of SMBs learn about new products and services through online resource centers, as opposed to the product pages of your website. Another common mistake is just to have one CTA, such as an URL or a phone number. Different SMBs have different preferences; make it easy for them to continue to engage with you via the path they prefer – whether it is to learn more about the topic, or about your offerings, proactively; or to encourage them to provide contact information so you can reach out to them. Packing your CTA for travel really means ensuring you have a CTA on every content element. For example, if someone shares your videos socially or embeds them on their site, you want to ensure that your URL or phone number remains displayed, or that contact info they collect continues to flow to your marketing automation system. Finally, ideally you’ll test your CTAs to determine which work best – not only the channel but the message and offer.
- Regardless of where SMBs enter the sales path when they engage with your content, you want to be sure you enable them to continue on that path. For example, each piece of educational content should link to other related content, and a page that showcases all of the content you offer on that topic. It should also link to any relevant product information. For SMBs who are interested but not yet ready to buy, ensure they can opt into a nurture stream to keep your brand top of mind – such as an email newsletter or social media. Likewise, make it easy for SMBs to research your products. Provide them with easy access to configurators, pricing and especially online ordering. Don’t force them to deal with a salesperson if they simply want to buy online. Finally, ensure you have ongoing communications to keep customers engaged, and aware of your other offerings.
- One of the perils of a content dead end is that your prospect might jump the track, so to speak, and get onto a different path – and that might be your competitor’s path. For example, if a site visitor is interested in learning about the difference between a loan and a line of credit, make it easy for them to learn about your offerings once they’ve read your educational content. Alternatively, if they simply want to learn ore about financial management, make it easy for them to dig in on your site. Specifically, in the context of educational content: Use formats hat work with SMBs. Our research shows that good old onsite articles and printed pieces are actually the most preferred formats for educational content, but video is growing fast. A variety of formats works best, since SMBS have varying media consumption preferences. Be relevant. If you’re a bank, you should lead with content on financial management. If you’re a telecommunications company, lead with content on collaboration, networking and online marketing. Choose your “lane” of content and then commit to it with in-depth material. Have enough content to keep them on your site. You don’t need to recreate the library of Congress, but you do have to have enough content to make the experience robust and to merit repeat visits. Make your content actionable. Our rule of thumb for good content is to provide tips that the reader can put to work in their business right away. One very effective format is worksheets and checklists, Another key point is to create unique value. A site that is simply syndicated or curated content doesn’t bring much value to an SMB. A great way to develop high-value content is to conduct a survey; the data allows SMBs to compare themselves to their peers. A thought-leadership survey can be great fodder for a PR campaign as well.
- So if the path to purchase is paved with content, to continue my driving metaphor, your job as a content marketer is to ensure your visitor’s ride is smooth. Here are four to-do’s to help you on your way.