A 10 Step Guide guide to enable content marketing for a company and enabling the right audience with content for higher brand engagement

1. How to not be this marketer
by building a 10-step content marketing engine

2. But first…
…here’s what we already know.
•Content marketing leverages existing consumer
behaviour, provokes conversations and helps brands
develop deeper connections
•People don’t want ads when making purchase
decisions, they want useful content
•Content, when timely, moves quickly across social
networks and generates word-of-mouth
•Only the most engaging content makes it to page
one of Google search
•Content, not advertising, is what gets users to know,
like and trust a brand
So, let’s get to it.

3. 1. Define your audience archetypes
Who is your prospective consumer? A twenteen looking for
adventure or a professional looking for business success?
What kind of people does s/he follow more? Politicians and
entertainers or peers and influencers in relevant industries?
What content does s/he actively seek? News that informs and
updates or trends and analyses that educate and engage?
How does s/he want to find out about something new? As it happens
or on demand, in context, with search/sort buttons?
When is s/he likely to buy more? After seeing an ad or when s/he
recalls your brand’s content for enabling and empowering?
Next, how can you help this audience instead of selling to them?

4. Find a category that is a knowledge gap
for all your target audience archetypes
Pick a topic that will connect instantly +
be their currency on social networks
Use an author whose name/designation
conveys expertise in the subject and
your brand’s association with it.
Note how FedEx, instead of selling its
courier services, is helping its biggest
client segment — ecomm businesses.
Create the content in a way that clearly
shows your brand’s thought leadership
in this and related spaces.
Next, how can you show up where your
audience is Instead of forcing them to
come to your party (read brand site)?
2. Produce a useful piece of content

5. 3. Move from ad boxes to content streams
They want content,
not ads. Be part of
the space in focus.
You are now playing
native advertising.
Align with the format,
context and purpose
of the platform’s
editorial content.
Note how Kawo’s
sponsored post
integrates with the
site experience, in
fact contributes to it.
Next, how else can
you ride content?

6. 4. Get links back from publisher content
Sponsored content is part of the site, which means it goes
everywhere our content goes.
Your content can now get links back from channels like the
related stories section under our articles, and all our
social pages, email newsletters and alerts on mobile.
Note how Kawo’s story on Chinese tourism is now a
sponsored link on Facebook, after its debut on the site.
Next, how can you use multiple pieces of content?

7. 5. Go supernative, upgrade to the widget
Why should your content be just text? Try
multimedia content like infographics,
photos, videos, live chats, ebooks, more.
Note how IBM chose power of data as the
single theme for content pieces in various
formats, then aggregated them in one unit.
Sponsored widgets are a tremendous way
for your brand to build a reputation as a
source of useful content in your niche, by
delivering collections of shareable assets
and an engaging user experience.
Next, how can your content evolve into a
bigger and stronger narrative on the same
platform as our wide-read writers?

8. 6. Build an all-in-one brand channel
You have both niche
content and a very
interested audience.
Now, push to scale.
Become a firehose
in your niche. Build
brand leader profiles
of your best people.
Promote your best
performing content.
Your audience will
search for and
demand an archive.
Next, how can you
drive more tune ins?

9. 7. Set up a content marketing calendar
Like TV, your brand channel needs
programming. Recurring themes or series
can build audience habits over time.
Plan in layers. Assign weekly cycles to
content formats like charts and videos,
then produce them in weeklong themes.
Your marketing calendar may be product-
centric, but your content calendar needs
to have only buyer-centric campaigns.
Sync the two. Got a product launch
coming up? Publish a related whitepaper
to generate leads in the month before it.
Next, how can you make sure that your
content contributes to other functions
across your organisation and vice versa?

10. 8. Integrate with non/marketing functions
Convert everything that your brand and
organisation does into shareable content.
From job posts and new hires to financial
reports and acquisitions, research and
reports to company plans and history,
everything has the potential to engage.
So, source content from all marketing
and non-marketing departments. Build on
the expertise of senior employees across
functions. Let younger ones get creative.
Show how everyone behind your brand is
focused on your customers’ needs.
Next, how can you assess the impact of
building a content culture for your brand?

11. 9. Measure, analyse, optimise, repurpose
Segment your content and audience. Set
goals and benchmarks for your brand’s
traffic and engagement in each segment.
Establish clear loops for user feedback.
Adapt to their needs and numbers. Test
new content formats and post schedules.
The ROI is more than just quantitative. A
healthy content marketing channel
impacts everything — brand reputation,
prospect education, client retention,
employee training, network growth,
customer trust, innovation, much more.
Next, how can you build content that
enables better tracking and targeting?

12. 10. Innovate with structured content
Break content pieces into
smaller assets with clear
relationships between them.
Track changes, identify
patterns in how these
values change over time.
Note how, by breaking each
acquisition story into cost,
sector, acquiring company,
the content was reused to
create this interactive chart.
Structure is what makes
content adaptive and future
ready. But let’s get from
step 1 to 9 first.

13. Recap
1. Define your audience archetypes
2. Produce a useful piece of content
3. Move from ad boxes to content streams
4. Get links back from publisher content
5. Go supernative, upgrade to the widget
6. Build an all-in-one brand channel
7. Set up a content marketing calendar
8. Integrate with non/marketing functions
9. Measure, analyse, optimise, repurpose
10. Innovate with structured content

14. Lead with content.
PawanGupta
ChiefExecutiveOfficer,Wirefoot
ContactNumber– +9190087 88500
Mail Address– pawan@iamwire.com