Here’s another secret that most “social media experts” don’t want you to know; even if you have the best content on the web and consumers share it with one another there is still a strong probability that those same consumers are going to purchase your competitors products”. That’s right! I may turn to you for information and share it within my social media circle, but that information is not going to make me a customer unless you give me a really good reason your product is better than everyone else’s.
Content should not be general enough information so that consumers can come to your site, absorb what you are telling them and go to another site or competitor to purchase the product. When you write content you must have conversion as the destination. What I mean by that is that your content should not be a “hard sell” but should lead people to the conclusion that your brand is going to solve their problems or make them feel better about themselves.
Frankly, anyone who suggests that you should “invest” in great content without a strategy of how that content is going to lead to conversion is a fertilizer salesperson.
I have been writing content for clients for over 3 years now and before I start I always want to know the following:
1ne: Who is our target audience and what are their beliefs around the product category/brand?
2wo: What benefits does my brand offer over the competition?
3hree: What are our competitors saying about us and the product category? (What reasons are they giving to bring consumers over to their brand?)
4our: How important is content to the purchase decision? (I.e. How much time are people going to spend reading our content and is it important to them ?)
5ive: How are they consuming our content? (web, mobile, etc..)
6ix: Is there confusion within the category and we help eliminate this confusion with great content?
7even: How can I get them from consuming my content to becoming a customer. Probably the most important discussion in any content strategy implementation.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]Don’t fall for the BS of developing a content media plan or purchasing content without first asking the basic question “how is this going to lead to more business”. Engagement does not always lead to marriage.[/inlinetweet]
