Content marketing 101

by Gordon Graham, Editor, SoftwareCEO.com
 

Many marketing gurus believe that today, more than ever, "content is king."

Today's buyers will find you, if you have effective content that deserves their attention.

To be successful, firms have to ditch the old "interruption marketing"—cold-calling, mass-media advertising and pushy salespeople—and switch to the "permission marketing" enabled by the web.

But if you're still not quite sure what "marketing with content" is all about, here's an online animation you can watch in two minutes.



Here are three take-away tips from this animation:

♦ 1. Get content

Create high-value, relevant and compelling content in multiple formats... text, blogs, audio, video and so on.

This is where white papers come in, since these are the most compelling and often-used content for B2B marketing in many sectors.

♦ 2. Use social media

Publish your content on various social web sites. Join the conversation with people there.

Yes, this can work for B2B when you find the right sites. Or you can set up a forum for your own users and prospects.... that counts as social media, too.

♦ 3. Apply SEO

Apply search engine optimization so that prospects can find you on search engines.

If your company or software doesn't show up high in the Google search results, you don't exist.

Developing useful content and publishing it effectively is probably the single best thing you can do to show up in Google.

To do that, create useful content that engages prospects and positions you as a trusted advisor who's truly looking out for their best interests.


Check out the other articles on this site for more specific tips on marketing with content.

Copyright © Computing Technology Industry Association, Inc. Reprinted with permission.