How	to	Come	up	with		
Cracking	Content	Ideas	
Stacey	MacNaught	
Tecmark	
@staceycav	#learninbound
The	world	is	full	of	products	that	started	with	a	shit	idea.	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Via	h<p://paradoxoff.com/files/2012/04/canned-whole-chicken.jpg
And	the	internet	is	full	of	content	that	started	the	same	way…	
@staceycav	#learninbound	 @staceycav	#learninbound
And	the	internet	is	full	of	content	that	started	the	same	way…	
@staceycav	#learninbound	 @staceycav	#learninbound
And	the	internet	is	full	of	content	that	started	the	same	way…	
@staceycav	#learninbound	 @staceycav	#learninbound
I’m	not	saying	bad	ideas	are	the	only	
reason	that	content	fails	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
But	starOng	with	a	shit	idea	makes	the	
journey	much	tougher
And	not	everyone	always	agrees	on	
what	consOtutes	a	good	idea	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
I’ve	got	an	idea…
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Great!	Let’s	hear		
it…
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Flamingos!
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Flamingos?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Yes,	you	know	those	
	“spot	the	hidden	thing”	
	images?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Yes…	aren’t	they	
a	bit	done	to	death?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Maybe.	But	right	now	
the	media	is	eaOng	them	
up.	Here’s	my	research.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
InteresOng.	
		
And	the	flamingos?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
A	hidden	ballerina		
in	a	sea	of	flamingos.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Ok….	I	sOll	worry	this	is	a	li<le	
unoriginal,	not	necessarily	
worthy	of	top	Oer	publicaOon	
and	possibly	tough	to	pitch	to	
the	client.	Costs?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Two	hours	design	Ome	
and	half	a	day	in		
promoOon	Ome
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Ok.	Let’s	go	for	it.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
3	days	later….
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Plus	30	other	pieces	of	global	
coverage/links
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Drinks	on	you,	Stace?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
So,	why	do	we	bother	with	ideaEon	
process	at	all	if	we	can	just	distribute	
flamingos?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Because	most	projects	
are	more	costly	than	
this.	And	for	every	
flamingo	there	are	
several	failed	
experiments.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Failure	is	devastaEng.	
	
And	it	pisses		
clients	off.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
We’ve	invested	a		
heavily	into	the		
ideaEon	aspect	of		
content	markeEng
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
But	it’s	perhaps	not	as	simple		
as	that	looks….
@staceycav	#learninbound	
IdeaEon	is	challenging
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Challenge	1:	The	Brief
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Challenge	2:	ParEcipaEon
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Challenge	3:	QuanEty
@staceycav	#learninbound	
“Nothing	is	more	dangerous	than	
an	idea,	when	it's	the	only	one	we	
have.”	
	
(Émile	CharOer)
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Challenge	4:	Assessing	Quality
1
WriEng	a	Solid	Brief	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
The	brief	is	all	too		
oTen	ignored.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
The	brief	isn’t	that	brief!
@staceycav	#learninbound	
It	should	contain:	
	
1.  ObjecEves	
2.  Audience	Info	
3.  Examples	of	successful	pieces	you’d	like	to	emulate	
	
4.  Key	limitaEons	(compliance,	Emescale,	budget)
2
Overcoming	ParEcipaEon	
Issues	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Not	everybody	feels	comfortable	
pung	their	ideas	out	there	for	the	
criEque	of	colleagues
@staceycav	#learninbound	
How	many	amazing	ideas	do	you	miss	
because	your	ideaEon	sessions	
alienate	them?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
For	quick	ideas	gathering,	we	allow	
people	to	choose	anonymity
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Try	getspeakup.com
#ttlpresents @staceycav
h<ps://getspeakup.com/
#ttlpresents @staceycav
h<ps://getspeakup.com/
@staceycav	#learninbound	
For	tougher	verbal	brainstorms,	we	
use	the	‘Worst	Ideas	Method’
@staceycav	#learninbound	
“You	want	my		
shiest	ideas?”
@staceycav	#learninbound	
We	give	people	preparaEon	Eme.
3
Overcoming	QuanEty		
Issues	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Confession:	I	hate	(most)	
brainstorms
@staceycav	#learninbound	
How	we	hope	brainstorming	will	be
@staceycav	#learninbound	
The	reality.
h<p://blogsession.co.uk/2014/03/635-method-brainwriOng/	
@staceycav	#learninbound	
635	Method	of	
BrainwriEng
h<p://635.tecmark.co.uk/	
@staceycav	#learninbound
4
Assessing	Quality	
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
What	makes	an	idea	“good?”
@staceycav	#learninbound	
It	isn’t	simply	the	fact	that	you	like	it.
#learninbound	
We	are	oTen	
not	the	target	
audience	for	
our	content.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Instead,	the	quality	of	an	idea	should	
be	determined	by	the	likelihood	of	it	
achieving	its	objecEves.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
NUF	TesEng	to	cut	a	long	list	to	10	–	20	
ideas	
h<p://blogsession.co.uk/2014/04/nuf-tesOng/
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Verbal	shortlisEng	
and	development	
sessions	to	get	to	a	
top	5	using	“Succes”	
Principles
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Simple	
Unexpected	
Credible	
Concrete	
EmoEonal	
Stories
@staceycav	#learninbound	
For	press	targeEng	content	we	
use	our	“is	it	a	story?”	criteria
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Timely	
Relevant		
Unexpected	
New	
Close	to	Home	
Human	Interest
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Before	going	into	
producEon…
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Get	external	
opinions
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Ask	your	key	influencers	
(journalists,	bloggers)	for	
their	opinion
@staceycav	#learninbound
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Warning:	It’s	tough	
having	everyone	in	
your	team	believe	in	
an	idea	for	it	to	be	
shot	down	at	this	
stage.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
But	it	could	save	you	
a	pricey	error
@staceycav	#learninbound	
But	what	did	Google	
Consumer	Surveys	think	of	
the	Flamingos?
@staceycav
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Why	did	it	work?
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Not	parEcularly	
original.	But…
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Simple.	
	
Unexpected.	
	
Annoying.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Lesson	1:	SomeEmes	
you	should	skip	
process	in	the	name	
of	experimentaEon
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Lesson	2:	It	doesn’t	
maler	if	you	believe	
in	an	idea	as	long	as	
the	key	people	in	
the	project	do	and	
can	back	up	why.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Lesson	3:	There	are	
excepEons	to	every	
rule.	SomeEmes,	
things	“just	work”.
@staceycav	#learninbound	
Lesson	3:	There	are	
excepEons	to	every	
rule.	SomeEmes,	
things	“just	work”.
#ttlpresents @staceycav@staceycavstacey.macnaught@tecmark.co.uk

Generating Ideas for Content Marketing by @staceycav