The document outlines the importance of having a documented content marketing strategy, highlighting how it can enhance effectiveness and align with business goals. It emphasizes leveraging existing content and conducting audits to identify gaps before drafting the strategy. Additionally, it stresses the need for clear audience targeting, content purpose identification, and measurement for successful content marketing.

1. The Content Cart
Often Comes Before The Horse
(aka) Content Marketing Strategy
How to Document a Content Marketing
Strategy When You Already Have
Content
Ann M. Gynn
Editor, Content Marketing Institute (@CMIContent)
Consultant/Trainer
IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

2. Content Marketing Defined
A strategic marketing approach
focused on
creating AND distributing
valuable, relevant, and consistent content
to attract and retain a clearly defined
audience
— and, ultimately, to drive profitable
customer action.
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

3. Is Your Strategy Written?
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

4. It Makes a Difference
O 60% of marketers with a documented
strategy say their content marketing is
effective
O 32% of marketers with a verbal only strategy
say their content marketing is effective
O 62% of most effective marketers follow
documented strategy “very closely”
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

5. Why More Effective?
O Share with the team (internal, external, adjacent)
O Onboard new employees more quickly
O Create and distribute content more deliberately
O Have platform to secure executive support
O Ensure your content marketing strategy aligns to
business goals
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

6. Don’t Start from Scratch
O You already have content …
O Newsletters (print and digital)
O Blogs
O Social media posts
O E-books
O White papers
O Videos
O Podcasts
O Infographics
O Collateral (brochure, sell sheet, etc.)
O Magazines
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

7. What You Will Discover
in Reverse Engineering
O You already have all the elements – now
you have a documented content
marketing strategy
OR
O You know what elements are missing –
now you can document your content
marketing strategy AND start filling
holes
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

8. It’s Audit Time
O Take 5-10 pieces of content in different
formats and distribution channels
O Choose what you consider to be your
most effective and most representative of
your content (TIP: Analytics can be helpful in selection.)
O Now Ask: What is it? What is its purpose?
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

9. Checklist Part 1:
What is Content?
Can’t easily answer? Go general or note with a “?” and move on.
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

10. What is Content?
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

11. What is Content?
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

12. What is Content?
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

13. What is Content?
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

14. Checklist Part 2:
What is Its Purpose?
Can’t easily answer? Go general or note with a “?” and move on.
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

15. Content Purpose
WHO WILL WANT TO VIEW?
O Identify a primary target audience
O Add secondary audiences as necessary
TIP: Be as specific as possible for each piece.
TIP: Some businesses develop personas to
describe audience.
NOTE: Your content marketing strategy may
have an umbrella audience and multiple niches
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

16. Content Purpose
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

17. WHAT’S THE POINT?
O Identify key message, news, information
being delivered in content
WHAT DOES USER GET FROM IT?
O Detail the benefit or takeaway that users
receive by consuming the content
Content Purpose
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

18. Content Purpose
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

19. WHAT DOES THE BUSINESS GET FROM
IT?
O Reason for content investment
O May reflect the call to action or indicate
need for call to action
NOTE: Remember call to action most frequently is a
communication or content marketing goal, not direct business goal
Content Purpose
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

20. Content Purpose
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21. 1 Audit Line Complete
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

22. Now What?
O Repeat process 7-9 more times
O Write a draft content marketing strategy
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

23. Reminder:
Content Marketing Defined
A strategic marketing approach
focused on
creating AND distributing
valuable, relevant, and consistent content
to attract and retain a clearly defined
audience
— and, ultimately, to drive profitable
customer action.
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

24. Cohen & Co.
Content Marketing Strategy
Audience:
O Business owners/decision-makers (could
add geography)
Create and Distribute:
O Craft content in formats friendly to busy
business executives that can be
repurposed across multiple channels,
including print and digital magazines, and
website
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

25. Cohen & Co.
Content Marketing Strategy
Content (Valuable, Relevant, Consistent):
O Regularly reveal opportunities, inspire with success
stories, and share accounting/tax insight to help
business owners thrive and their companies to
succeed.
Action (Profitable for Business):
O We invest in content marketing to position the firm as
a great resource for helpful information and expert
insight. We use it as a vehicle to increase the
frequency with which we interact with clients,
strengthen our connections, and introduce ourselves
to prospects.
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

26. Cohen & Co.
Content Marketing Strategy Statement
Cohen & Co. reaches out to business owners and leaders through useful
content in formats friendly to busy business executives that can be
repurposed across multiple channels, including print and digital magazines,
and website.
Its content regularly reveals opportunities, inspires with success stories,
and shares accounting/tax insight to help business owners thrive and their
companies to succeed.
Cohen & Co. invests in content marketing to position the firm as the go-to
resource for helpful information and expert insight in these matters. It uses
the content as a vehicle to increase the frequency with which it interacts
with clients, strengthens its connections, and introduces Cohen & Co. to
prospects.
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

27. Now What?
O Does this content marketing strategy reflect the
company’s intention?
O Does it align with the company’s business goals?
O Investigate, adjust, seek approval as necessary
O Get final documented content marketing strategy in
writing, secure approval, and SHARE!
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

28. Two More Columns:
Measurement & Promotion
O Identify what you want to measure with
your content
O Set content goals and benchmarks
O Explain how they relate to business goals
O Detail how target audience will find out
about your content (content promotion
or amplification)
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

29. You really want to test it?
O Have others on your team, in your
organization, or even your customers or
prospects complete the chart
O You’ll see what they know, identify areas
are the weakest, and take steps to
improve communication of the strategy
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

30. Resources
O ContentMarketingInstitute.com
O The Essentials of a Documented Content Marketing
Strategy: 36 Questions to Answer
(http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/the-essentials-of-a-documented-content-marketing-strategy-36-
questions-to-answer/)
O Simplify Your Strategy With One-Page Plan
(http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2015/01/simplify-content-marketing-strategy/)
O Hootsuite’s How to Create a Content Marketing
Strategy
(http://blog.hootsuite.com/how-to-create-a-content-marketing-strategy/)
O QuickSprout: The Advanced Guide to Content
Marketing
(http://www.quicksprout.com/the-advanced-guide-to-content-marketing/)
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15

31. Thank You
O Questions, thoughts to share now?
O Questions after we leave?
O anngynn@gmail.com
O www.twitter.com/AnnGynn
O www.LinkedIn.com/AnnGynn
O 216.235.4566
Presented by @AnnGynn IABC Heritage Conference 10/19/15