The document outlines a content marketing strategy, emphasizing the importance of understanding buyer behavior and creating relevant content that addresses their specific needs. It highlights the necessity for brands to adopt a publishing mindset to align content efforts with business objectives, while also discussing challenges in content marketing, audience understanding, and effective distribution. Key components include content planning, creation, optimization, and metrics to measure success against business goals.

1. Content Marketing Strategy
AMA Baltimore
Will Davis
@willdavis
@rightsource
#AMABaltCM

2. ABOUT ME
• Right Source Marketing Managing Partner
• Content Marketing Institute CMI Consultant
• Dad, BBQ Fan
• @willdavis, @rightsource
• 5’11” 1**

3. THE GAME HAS CHANGED

4. THE GAME HAS CHANGED
• Buyers are educating themselves
• 60% of a buyer’s decision-making process in
B2B is complete before they even talk to a
salesperson*
• Marketo cites that number as closer to 70%
• Enterprise organizations download an average
of 10 informational assets during the purchase
process.**
*Corporate Executive Board
**IDG Research

5. WHAT IS CONTENT MARKETING?
“Content marketing is the art of understanding
exactly what your customers need to know
and delivering it to them in a relevant and
compelling way.” – Joe Pulizzi, CMI
Demonstrating Expertise
vs.
Speaking of Expertise

6. CONTENT MARKETING PILLARS
• Content Planning
• Content Creation
• Content Optimization
• Content Distribution
• Content Reporting and Analysis
6

7. WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?
• “Brands have to become publishers”
• …but brands have different business models
and business goals than publishers

8. CONTENT SUPPORTS BUSINESS OBJECTIVES
• Yours probably isn’t selling ad impressions
• How does your content marketing strategy fit
in with the business strategy to drive business
results?

9. CONTENT SUPPORTS BUSINESS OBJECTIVES
Business Objectives
Business Strategy
Marketing Objectives
Marketing Strategy
Content Objectives
Content Strategy
Content
Tactics
Content
Metrics Credit: Jay Baer/CMI

10. CONTENT STRATEGY COMES FROM:
• Business objectives (business plan)
• Marketing objectives (marketing plan)
• Content objectives (content plan)

11. CONTENT MARKETING CHALLENGES
View full CMI Research
11

12. UNDERSTANDING YOUR AUDIENCE
• Who are your buyers and influencers?
• What do they care about?
• What problems do VP
they face? Marketing
• How can you help
solve them?
IT
• What are their Director
CFO
objections?

13. EXAMPLE: CONSULTING FIRM
• Helps clients solve complex challenges across
the industry spectrum
• From public companies to private companies
to investors
• A nimble, experienced, unique team of expert
advisors, analyzers and problem solvers

14. BUYERS/INFLUENCERS
• Large Company BD (VP Strategy or BD)
• Smaller Firm C-Level Exec (CEO, COO)
• Investors, VCs (Managing Partner)
• Chief Financial Officer
• Chief Technology Officer
• Chief Medical Officer

15. WHAT ARE THEIR QUESTIONS? ADDRESS
• Who can help us commercialize our tech?
• Who can we acquire that does XYZ?
• What is their background?
• Who have they worked with that’s like me?
• What are their specialties?
• How do they understand my company’s
unique challenges?
• How do they work?

16. …AND SO MANY MORE FROM:
• Talking with your clients
• Talking with your prospects
• Talking with your got-aways
• Talking with your sales team
• Reviewing analytics
• Reviewing industry trends
• Online research
• RFP Questions

17. INFORMED CONTENT - KEYWORDS

18. INFORMED CONTENT – KEYWORD TRENDS

19. ADDRESS QUESTIONS WITH CONTENT
• Different content topics for different buyers
• Different content topics for different stages
• Different content types for different buyers
• Different content types for different stages

20. EDITORIAL CALENDAR

21. CONTENT PLAN

22. CONTENT PLAN

23. CONTENT CREATION RESOURCES
• Building the content marketing team
• Internal resources
• On-call resources
• Participation and perspectives from SMEs
• Participation and amplification from
employees, partners, advocates
• Regulation/Compliance factors

24. CONTENT OPTIMIZATION
• Not just for search engines (the robots) but
buyers (the humans) too
• What do you want them to do?
• What calls to action (CTAs)
should you include?
• AKA – “Uh, Now what?”

25. CONTENT OPTIMIZATION - LEAD CAPTURE
• “Forms are the enemy of spread” – but…
• “You can’t have a prospect if you don’t know
who they are”
• Determine what information is worth a “gate”
(fewer, but known readers) and what isn’t
• Determine follow-up process – be helpful but
not creepy

26. CONTENT DISTRIBUTION
• Where does your target audience live, online
and off (Google, Compete, Alexa)
– Social media as part of your content strategy
– Guest blogging
– Co-branded webinars, seminars, events
– Email (don’t miss out on this one)
– Print
– Mobile

27. REPORTING AND ANALYSIS
• Measure everything that you possibly can
• But - report very few, very business-focused
KPIs
• Discard vanity metrics wherever possible
• How do your KPIs align with business
objectives?

28. KPI EXAMPLES
• Overall Site Traffic > Top of Funnel Awareness
Visits, page views, visitors
• Referral > Spread
Search, referred sessions, social sharing
• Inbound submissions > Lead Generation
Form fills
• Sales - $$
• Know which tools play a role in each place

29. ADDITIONAL BENEFITS
• Recruiting
• Client Retention
• Employee Retention
• Sales/Marketing Relationship
• Raising Capital
• Reinforce Company Messaging
• Public Relations
• …and more

30. THANK YOU!
Will Davis
Right Source Marketing
@willdavis
will@rightsourcemarketing.com
www.rightsourcemarketing.com
www.marketingtrenches.com
Free eBook:
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