The document discusses the importance of a strategic and long-term approach to content marketing in the life sciences sector, highlighting that it should be managed similarly to product development. It emphasizes creating valuable content that educates and inspires potential customers, which can lead to increased sales and brand trust. The article also outlines key steps to develop effective content marketing plans, including defining goals, understanding customer personas, and continuously updating content offerings.

1. Content Marketing
for the Life Sciences
Managing content like a
product for long term success

2. Does this make sense?
You wouldn’t redesign a product from scratch for each new release.
So why do we do that with our marketing campaigns?

3. Wouldn’t it make more sense to have a long term plan for
developing an audience of potential customers just as we do
for developing products?

4. What would that
plan look like?

5. It would start with a process
• Process like those for products
• Makes Marcom a leader
• For example
• Lays out what the competition are doing
• Gathers info on target customers.

6. It would start with defining who you
wanted to influence and a specific
outcome you wanted to achieve with
your marketing.
You’d gather requirements. What
features (marketing assets) would
help your target customers be more
successful?
?

7. You’d create a product (a collection of assets) to help customers
do their job better. It would educate them. And spark new ideas.
You would continually add functionality (new assets) to your
collection to keep it up-to-date and make it even more useful -
just as you would with a product.

8. Examples of content marketing
Have you:
• Downloaded a guide to choosing a digital camera?
• Read a finance blog?
• Seen The Lego Movie?

9. These are all examples of
content in action.
Businesses use content to
interest, educate, and
inspire a targeted audience
with the intent of driving
them toward a purchase.

10. Content marketing doesn’t rely on stirring up excitement around
every new launch. (It doesn’t prohibit it either.)
Instead, the intent of including content marketing in your mix is to
grow an audience that would benefit from buying your products by
providing content that is useful to them and helps them do their
job.

11. Imagine delivering content so valuable to your prospects that you
would pay to advertise alongside it. Except now you don’t have to.
Because you own the channel.

12. Because what your customers really want is to see themselves with
fewer problems and more successes.

13. What kind of content?
• Industry trends
• Technology comparisons
• Workplace tips
• Application information
• Instructional videos
• Thought leader interviews
• Customer reviews
Multiple topics Multiple formats

14. Sending emails with links to brochures or application notes is not
content marketing. At least, it’s not likely to be successful content
marketing.

15. Content is successful when:
• Helpful for your prospect
• Delivered (or available) at
the right time
• There is a plan to achieve
specific outcomes such as
leads or sales
• Content moves customers
towards those outcomes
with specific calls to action
It is wanted It is helpful

16. Why content marketing
makes sense

17. Make your company a trusted resource
By solving problems or answering questions for prospects when
they are looking for help, your company becomes a trusted resource
for people who could benefit from your products.

18. It’s more efficient
Your promotions will be more effective when you have audience
that looks forward to hearing what you have to say.

19. It provides market intelligence
Data on content performance and prospect
interests provide intelligence in addition to
leads, helping you better understand your
customers’ needs and identify qualified buyers.
(Image shared by Creative Commons 2.0)

20. You’ll reach customers earlier in the cycle
With access to huge amounts of information and data, customers
are more than half way through the buying cycle before contacting a
supplier.
Content marketing lets you reach them earlier in the cycle (and
ideally persuade them to identify themselves).
Who do you want to educate them? You or your competitors?

21. Did I mention it’s more efficient?
A well thought out plan will show you how to repurpose content so
you can maximize the return on everything you create.

22. 3 things you need
to get started

23. A clear goal
What do you want to happen as a result of your marketing?
1

24. Setting a clear goal will keep you from wasting time. It ensures that
everything you do is directed toward achieving a specific outcome.
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Timely
Make it
SMART:

25. For example:
Increase traffic to our site from social media by 30% over the
next 6 months.
Increase qualified leads from Europe by 5% this year.

26. A publisher mindset
As a content marketer you will still produce individual content
assets to sell your products (application notes, brochures, video),
but in a different context.
2

27. You’ll be publishing a stream of media (articles, videos, podcasts
etc.) so valuable to your prospects you would pay to advertise
alongside it.

28. A customer persona
In order to create the right content, you need to know who you
are creating it for.
The first step is to create a detailed customer persona. This will
save you from wasting your time and money developing content
that your customers don’t care about and doesn’t help you reach
your goals.
3

29. Even if you don’t go “all in” with content marketing, developing a
customer persona will help you create marketing assets that are
more relevant and engaging for your prospects.

30. Ready to get started?
You’ll:
• Learn how a persona differs from a segment.
• Do a fun exercise to describe your target
persona
• Meet “Molecular Meg” – a detailed example
• Find out how to use your persona(s)
effectively
Download the Life Science Marketing Persona Guide.

31. If you want more help, email me and tell me what you’d like to
accomplish with content marketing.

32. Create a manageable content marketing
plan to get more leads with less effort

33. Still here?
OK. Check out these inspiring examples.

34. Air New Zealand safety videos = marketing content
2.3 million views. Click to play.

35. Volvo understands that showing is better than telling
75 million views. Click image to play.

36. It’s time to go home now.
Call me.
+1.925.322.1451