Content marketing has hit the ground running in recent years, with more salespeople and sales organizations producing digital content and written media. It has the potential to be a very successful marketing strategy if done correctly. John Hall, interviewed by John Golden, discusses the influence of content marketing.
This expert sales interview explores content marketing, including:
- Defining content marketing
- How to break through the noise
- Creating IDEA content
- Why distribution is so crucial
What is Content Marketing?
Many people think that content marketing is an industry that just came about, but it has been around for years. Whether you go back to caveman times with writing on stone tablets, or John Deere in the early 1900’s producing a magazine, content marketing has been done forever. However, it has gotten popular in the last few years because the way marketing has been looked at recently is based on earning trust and adding more value to the customer. It’s shifting away some of the more traditional advertising in exchange for more educational, authentic ways to engage with target audiences. “Content marketing is the forefront of all of that,” said Hall. “Content marketing is only going to go up from here, and change in different ways, be it changing the distribution of it or the format of it, but it’s here to stay and grow on.”
Breaking Through the Noise:
In this era of information, there is so much content available to potential customers, consumers, and sales professionals. Individuals get so flooded by this overwhelming amount of data that everything becomes noise, and all of it gets ignored. Part of successful content marketing is ensuring that you present your content as unique enough to cut through the noise, and become something meaningful and relevant. “You have to make it truly valuable and engaging,” said Hall.
IDEA Content:
One of the ways to ensure that your content isn’t just noise in the very loud world of content marketing is to ensure that your content is “IDEA content.” I stand for industry leading. D stands for data-driven. E stands for emotional or educational. A stands for amusing. “These are all the valuable traits of content that form a good content strategy,” said Hall. “It has to be valuable. If it doesn’t fit into that realm or guideline, then we shouldn’t be producing it.”
Distribution:
Distribution is another key to making sure your content is seen as valuable. “Making sure that the right people are seeing you at the right time is key,” said Hall. Part of making this happen is ensuring that you have a proper, thought-out strategy to distribute your content efficiently and effectively. Often, people throw up a blog and post some content, and think that the inbound leads will roll in when in reality you have to work hard at it for content marketing to work. Content marketing is a great way to influence and connect with people, and engage with those that matter to you, but it only works if it’s distributed correctly and to the right people.
To learn more about the influence of content marketing, watch the expert sales interview!
About our Host:
John is the Amazon bestselling author of Winning the Battle for Sales: Lessons on Closing Every Deal from the World’s Greatest Military Victories and Social Upheaval: How to Win at Social Selling. A globally acknowledged Sales & Marketing thought leader, speaker, and strategist. He is CSMO at Pipeliner CRM. In his spare time, John is an avid Martial Artist.
Pipeliner CRM empowers salespeople and marketers to fully specifically target prospects.Get your free trial of Pipeliner CRM now.
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