Content Marketing

January 14, 2019 Content Chat Recap: How to Enable Your Sales Team with Content

January 17, 2019 by Alek Irvin 1 Comment

Content is crucial in enabling sales success. If your sales reps don’t have the right resources to engage with their leads at various stages of the sales cycle, or if your potential customers can’t find the information they need from your site, you may risk losing that lead to your competitor.

In this #ContentChat, we were joined by Pam Didner (@PamDidner) – who recently released a book on sales enablement – to dive into what sales enablement is, why it’s important, and how your content and sales teams can align to decrease sales cycles and increase close rates.

Shameless plug it is!! LOL. Check out the book on Amazon. https://t.co/FIuKf9Sx0N Effective Sales Enablement. How to better enable your sales team as a marketer. https://t.co/UwYc3E1UM4
— Pam Didner (@PamDidner) January 14, 2019

Q1: So Pam, tell us… What Is Sales Enablement?

Sales enablement involves equipping sales teams with the resources they need to work more efficiently and increase success rates.

A1 Traditionally #SalesEnablement is onboarding and training. I expanded the definition to: “Deliver a positive customer experience by equipping sales with knowledge, skills, processes and tools through cross-functional collaboration to increase sales productivity.” #ContentChat
— Pam Didner (@PamDidner) January 14, 2019

A1: Sales enablement is the act of enabling sales using tools of the trade… like #marketing #contentchat
— Maureen Jann (@SuperDeluxeMo) January 14, 2019

A1: Sales enablement is providing content and resources to help streamline the sales process and make it more effective. #ContentChat
— Patrick Delehanty (@MDigitalPatrick) January 14, 2019

A1 Sales enablement is making sales self-sufficient so they don’t disrupt their selling by running to marketing #contentchat
— Dan Goldberg (@Jonas419) January 14, 2019

I’ve used (and written) about this expanded definition of @SalesEnablement. It means:

1. Sales onboarding training
2. Providing and creating sales tools.

#1 is traditional, #2 was caused by digital tecnologies blurring the lines between sales and #marketing.
#ContentChat https://t.co/TsYoR2cnwf
— Tod Cordill (@todcordill) January 14, 2019

This increased sales efficiency should also lead to a better customer experience.

A1. When incorporated into a cohesive content strategy that spans the entire customer lifecycle, sales enablement content provides a more consistent storyline and value prop, and gives customers a better experience. #contentchat
— Carmen Hill (@carmenhill) January 14, 2019

The exact phrasing is up for debate, but the meaning stays the same.

A1: Anybody else dislike the word “enablement”? What about “sales empowerment” or “sales acceleration”? #contentchat
— Shelly Lucas (@pisarose) January 14, 2019

@pisarose: I like empowerment and acceleration. That’s what Marketers should do. Empower sales. I should have talked to you before I finalized my title. LOL. #ContentChat
— Pam Didner (@PamDidner) January 14, 2019

Or funnel greaser! #ContentChat
— Maureen Jann (@SuperDeluxeMo) January 14, 2019

I’ll take “sales enablement” over “funnel greaser” in a hot minute… #ContentChat
— Derek Pillie (@derekpillie) January 14, 2019

Or simply sales HELP? 😄 #contentchat

I agree that “enablement” is a fluffy (non) word.
— Judy Gombita (@jgombita) January 14, 2019

13 Blogs and Resources for Content Marketers and PR Pros

December 28, 2018 by Alek Irvin Leave a Comment

A large part of professional success comes from a curiosity to learn more and a resilience to constantly adapt to the ever-changing landscape of our tech tools.

Whether you’re working in-house and needing further training than your company offers, or you’re a solopreneur needing resources to stay on top of your game, there is a well of great blogs and resources online to keep content marketers and PR pros in the know.

These 13 websites come highly recommended by our #ContentChat community. Check them out for yourself, and comment below if you have others you’d add. [Read more…] about 13 Blogs and Resources for Content Marketers and PR Pros

December 3, 2018 Content Chat Recap: How to Drive Organic Growth Through Content Marketing

December 10, 2018 by Alek Irvin Leave a Comment

Content plays a vital role in connecting consumers with brands, but simply pushing out random acts of content won’t drive company growth. In this #ContentChat, we were joined by Noah Kalson (@noahkalson), head of organic and growth marketing at Tailor Brands (@TailorBrands), to discuss how you can drive organic growth through your content marketing strategies.

Q1: We keep reading that content marketing is dead. Convince us otherwise!

Content marketing is far from dead. Content is the link that connects you with your audiences, and without it, they would probably never find you.

People say content marketing’s dead b/c they’re not really doing it! They’re using content for marketing purposes, which is completely different. Content marketing is about creating content assets that are aimed @ a clearly defined audience, not multiple audiences. #ContentChat
— Noah Kalson (@noahkalson) December 3, 2018

A1: While #contentmarketing may no longer be the trendy new topic everyone is talking about, brands are continuing to invest in it because it is consistently showing positive business results over time. #ContentChat https://t.co/viXVxhun1X
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) December 3, 2018

Hardly anything declared dead is dead. Print isn’t dead. Email isn’t and neither is content marketing. #ContentChat
— Christoph Trappe (@CTrappe) December 3, 2018

A1. Content marketing is FAR from dead! Content marketing is great for SEO, it educates, informs and entertains your audience (and shows you off as an industry expert). Content provides value for your audience which builds trust in your brand #contentchat
— MeetEdgar (@MeetEdgar) December 3, 2018

A1: Content marketing is far from dead! If anything, it’s grown into something a little different from its start with more social traction. People want more authenticity and a look into how brands are operating, and content marketing is the way to do it! #ContentChat
— Click Ctrl Marketing (@ClkContrl) December 3, 2018

You could maybe argue that the term ‘content marketing’ has lost some allure. But that’s simply because ‘content’ and ‘marketing’ have converged. Today, content IS marketing. Content shape-shifts into many different forms & is fuel at every stage of the buyer journey #ContentChat
— @matchacontent (@matchacontent) December 3, 2018

A1. Absolutely not. We need content for organic visibility, without it, we may not as well exist because content attracts, informs, and converts our target audiences. If you don’t have it, search engines can’t find it, and searchers can’t find you. #ContentChat
— Patrick Delehanty (@MDigitalPatrick) December 3, 2018

WHAT? Who said content marketing is dead? LOL — the KING is dead? It was king, now it’s dead – hogwash – -never. Content marketing has never been dead even before it was content marketing#ContentChat
— Ivana Taylor (@DIYMarketers) December 3, 2018

Again, the emphasis is on your audience and creating assets that are of value to them.

A1. It’s not possible for content marketing to be dead. Buyers need to make informed choices and it’s content that educates them! I think the focus is shifting from content creation to being smarter about how we deliver and measure it. #contentchat pic.twitter.com/dfbeDKOHxi
— PathFactory (@pathfactory) December 3, 2018

A1: I don’t even know where to start. Content marketing is the KEY to creating meaningful interactions between brands and potential customers. Provide value. Always. #ContentChat
— Caitlin Kinser (@caitlinmarie89) December 3, 2018

A1 You mean consistently delivering valuable insights to build and serve an audience over time is dead? News to me. #contentmarketing #contentchat
— Bill Skowronski (@BillSkowronski) December 3, 2018

A1: Content marketing is certainly not dead in our eyes. As long as people search the web, Google maps, on social media, for information, for ideas, for educational assets, etc. content will be there to guide them to brands, products, and services. #contentchat
— Brafton (@Brafton) December 3, 2018

A1: It is alive and well and even more important when you know who your customer is so that you can deliver content that is more personalized and 1:1 – use data and insights on your customer to deliver content and experience on your channels #ContentChat
— Bernie Fussenegger 🐝✌️the7️⃣ (@B2the7) December 3, 2018

Content marketing also blends with other vital functions in your organization.

Not to mention #contentmarketing integrates nicely with #PR & #socialmedia. Not at all dead. #contentchat https://t.co/RymmNi9uY1
— Michelle Garrett (@PRisUs) December 3, 2018

If you need evidence, look at the data and case studies of content marketing success.

Might be a little bias in this as it’s Hubspot, but lots of great data here showing more content = more leads / conversions. #ContentChat https://t.co/nlxYACvumH
— Patrick Delehanty (@MDigitalPatrick) December 3, 2018

A1: For #SMBs, the best example of how to use content marketing is @RiverPoolsBlog. He created a blog with a single focus – to be the go-to place for info about fiberglass swimming pools. That blog helped him skyrocket his business to the no.1 spot in the U.S. #ContentChat https://t.co/L2yrXfPdkI
— Noah Kalson (@noahkalson) December 3, 2018

November 26, 2018 Content Chat Recap: Best Practices for Using Social Media to Promote Your Content

December 3, 2018 by Alek Irvin Leave a Comment

Social media can give your content the exposure it needs to drive actual results for your company, but navigating the multitude of channels can be an extensive exercise in trial-and-error. In this #ContentChat, we were joined by Laura Roeder (@lkr), founder of Meet Edgar (@MeetEdgar), to discuss everything you need to know about using social media to promote your content.

Q1: What social media channels are the best for promoting written content?

The ideal channel will depend on your audience. Pay attention to the sites they use and how they like to consume content on those sites.

A1. It’s important to know your audience, no matter what content. Pay attention to what channels they like best. But overall without knowing your audience Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook are great for written content. Pinterest too depending on your topic #ContentChat
— Laura Roeder (@lkr) November 26, 2018

A1: I think that “best social media channels” is a deeply subjective question… and it elicits the dreaded “it depends” answer. What works best for us is twitter and LinkedIn because our market actually sees them due to employee and partner sharing. #contentchat
— Maureen Jann (@SuperDeluxeMo) November 26, 2018

#contentchat A1
The channels you choose for promotion depends less on the type of media (written/graphic/video) and more on the audience. Where do your users spend their time? https://t.co/1HbccvVNhp
— K. (@KaylaNaab) November 26, 2018

A1: I think it depends on the type of written content we are talking about. Different audiences on different social platforms want different kinds of written content #ContentChat
— Alex Crump (@alcrump12) November 26, 2018

A1: As with most channels and content, it is best to know where your customers are, what channels they are using and then develop the content for them in that format/channel. Each channel will have it limitations so each needs a goal to be planned for differently #ContentChat
— Bernie Fussenegger 🐝✌️the7️⃣ (@B2the7) November 26, 2018

Different companies will find their audiences react to content differently across channels.

A1: For us and most of our clients, Twitter is tops. For B2B, Linkedin is pretty strong as well. Facebook has gotten less and less important. Reddit is a slept on but smart place to promote written content depending on your industry. #contentchat
— CHARGE (@CHARGEgoforward) November 26, 2018

A1: Twitter and LinkedIn are great for us for promoting blog posts as they tend to be more educational/professional development in nature. FB is good for informational downloads as those tend to be more general public-facing. #contentchat
— Caitlin Kinser (@caitlinmarie89) November 26, 2018

It depends on where your audience is! We love LinkedIn, Twitter, and even Pinterest in some cases. Facebook is certainly falling off for most of our B2B clients. #contentchat
— Brafton (@Brafton) November 26, 2018

If you can, look at hard data to guide your strategy.

Yes! Tracking the performance of different content asset, formats, etc on each channel can give you great insight into what works. You can even just use a spreadsheet to track and see patterns. #contentchat
— SqueezeCMM (@SqueezeCMM) November 26, 2018

Facebook especially has changed in value over the years. As the algorithms change, video content and groups may be your best bet to reach new audiences. If you choose to develop a group, ensure it stays active by assigning a moderator that can keep engaging with the group.

A2b. With that being said, algorithms are changing now. Facebook especially, is prioritizing video content so you want to really focus on headlines and images in addition to great content. #ContentChat
— Laura Roeder (@lkr) November 26, 2018

I’ve found that using videos or infographics on Facebook that connect to/compliment the written content and can get attention to direct to the content on our site is a strong strategy. #contentchat
— Caitlin Kinser (@caitlinmarie89) November 26, 2018

Agreed on Facebook. there’s a place for it but it’s harder than ever to be seen organically, especially for written content! #contentchat
— Laura Roeder (@lkr) November 26, 2018

A1. I feel that Facebook’s changing algorithm has made it fruitless when it comes to promoting content organically. But groups earn good points when it comes to promoting content. Been hearing Pinterest is excellent for driving traffic and promoting content though. #ContentChat
— Masooma // Content Writer (@inkandcopy) November 26, 2018

Absolutely, you can make Facebook work if you study the algorithm. They LOVE videos these days! #contentchat
— Laura Roeder (@lkr) November 26, 2018

That’s been my ongoing advice for clients… if you want to use Facebook to reach your audience, build or participate in active communities. #contentchat
— Maureen Jann (@SuperDeluxeMo) November 26, 2018

Love Facebook groups! I think they’ve been a great solution to the decline in organic reach on Facebook. #ContentChat
— Laura Roeder (@lkr) November 26, 2018

Facebook groups are either too quiet or too noisy for me. Either nothing happening, or all the notifications all the time. I guess finding a stable balance is hard – especially if you want to grow a community. #contentchat
— David McGuire (@McGuireDavid) November 26, 2018

November 19, 2018 Content Chat Recap: Building an Effective Guest Blogging Program

November 25, 2018 by Alek Irvin Leave a Comment

Running a blog can quickly become resource intensive, especially if your team hasn’t first taken the proper planning steps. Scrambling to push out content, some teams may default to inviting guest bloggers to fill the content gap. While this can be a great idea, it’s not the best for every blog, and not every guest blogger is a fit for your brand.

In this #ContentChat, we explore how to tell when your blog is ready for guest bloggers, and how to approach the relationship.

As we gather for #ContentChat please introduce yourself and share your experience with guest blogging.
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

Q1: When is a blog ready to start inviting guest bloggers to contribute?

Your team first needs to develop the objectives and goals for your blog before you can bring on guests (we explored how to start your planning in this content chat). Also, ensure you have an established brand voice to find contributors that complement this.

A1: Everyone hates this answer, but, it depends. Specifically, it depends on the objective and goals you have for your blog. For most of my/client blogs, I’ve waited until the site had a well-defined editorial voice before inviting guests. #ContentChat https://t.co/1IYNGsSS3I
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

A1. Once you have a clear voice, message and direction for your blog. It’s important to really establish the mission of the blog before inviting others to contribute or else it feels all over the place! #contentchat
— MeetEdgar (@MeetEdgar) November 19, 2018

A1: A blog is ready for guest bloggers when it has defined it’s voice and brand so it knows what guests will be a fit.#ContentChat https://t.co/rtTxfMUqB1
— Kathryn Lang (@Kathrynclang) November 19, 2018

Double check your blog traffic to make sure that you are already meeting your goals and that there is a value for any guest contributors.

It definitely does. After all, have you really defined and honed your editorial voice if no one is engaging with your content? #ContentChat
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

A1: I guess the answer really depends on the blog or site and what the goals are for that blog. Does it have a good following and how are they promoting of the blogs/content out to other channels? Plus, is the blog content of interest to others to want to contribute? #ContentChat
— Bernie Fussenegger 🐝✌️the7️⃣ (@B2the7) November 19, 2018

A1b: However, we also need to look at it from the guest blogger’s POV. If you have a domain authority of 1, for example, what’s in it for the blogger? #ContentChat
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 19, 2018

To make a long story short, Tod recaps it well:

Lessons learned on #ContentChat: A blog is ready for guest bloggers when it has:
(1) Defined Goals,
(2) Defined Audience,
(3) Defined Voice and POV, and
(4) Traffic that interests guests.
— Tod Cordill (@todcordill) November 19, 2018

November 12, 2018 Content Chat Recap: A User-Generated Content (UGC) Primer

November 18, 2018 by Alek Irvin Leave a Comment

User-generated content often lends authenticity to your brand and its messages, but there is a right and wrong way to approach UGC. In this #ContentChat, we were joined by Olga Egorsheva (@egolya) to weigh the pros, cons, and pitfalls of a UGC strategy.

Q1: What is user-generated content (UGC)?

UGC is anything your audience creates that showcases your brand, most often online (but it can be offline as well). Think everything from photos and videos to comments and reviews.

#UGC is any content created by everyday users. It doesn’t have to always be branded and often times works a lot better when it’s not.
All the photos and videos you post daily on #Instagram, #Facebook, #Youtube etc is all considered #usergeneratedcontent #ContentChat
— Olga Egorsheva (@egolya) November 12, 2018

A1: User-generated content is any piece of content that was created by users of a website or platform for the benefit of the user community and their needs. #ContentChat
— Patrick Delehanty (@MDigitalPatrick) November 12, 2018

A1) it’s content generated by consumers that marketers hope will provide positive consumer advocacy for the brand. #contentchat
— Jenn 💙💖⚪️💖💙 (@Renoe) November 12, 2018

A1: UGC is any content created and submitted by your audience, like blog comments, product reviews or testimonials, and more. #contentchat
— Brafton (@Brafton) November 12, 2018

A1 #UGC is when your brand’s fans create and share content that showcases your brand. This happens frequently through social media channels, but can happen offline as well. #contentchat
— Erika Heald | Content Strategy (@SFerika) November 12, 2018

A1. I would say that there are two types of user-generated content. The first is anything created by someone outside your organization that reflects on your brand. The second, which is more powerful, is content co-created with your users and the general public. #UGC #ContentChat https://t.co/ZrX2Ggm6iq
— David Simanoff (@dsimanoff) November 12, 2018

A1. UGC is content created by consumers/users. It’s anything from product photos shared from a buyer or reviews on Yelp or testimonials. It just has to come from the end user. #contentchat
— MeetEdgar (@MeetEdgar) November 12, 2018