The CONTENT COMPETITIV
E ADVANTAGE
Credit
Winning Content Wars With Business Strategy Principles
@scottcowley
Scott Cowley•Marketing strategy instructor•PhD student•Digital marketing researcher•SEO consultant
scottcowley.com@scottcowleycontact: [email protected]
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ZERO COMPETITIONINFINITE TIME
UNLIMITED CUSTOMERS
REALITY
THE MODERN ARMS WAR
Content strategy comes down to one word:
ADVANTAGE
“That’s not fair!”- The competition
CONTENT STRATEGY IS NOT…
A planA blog
A collection of tactics
A content calendar
“Good content strategy combines competitive advantage principles with content psychology.”
- Chinese Proverb*
*Not really a Chinese Proverb
What Makes Content Marketing Work?Content
Exposure
Content
Liking
Brand
Liking
Purchase Intention
Source
Advertising Content
Non-Advertising Content
ZAGG Blog Traffic vs. Revenue
Source
VRIO
Valuable
• Brain Dump
VALUABLE1.Proprietary Technology / Data2.Financial Resources3.Physical Resources4.Human Resources5.Organizational Resources6.Managerial Knowledge7.Learning Curve Cost Advantages (1st Learner
Advantage”)
RareRARE
Most companies have resources that are valuable, but common. Where do you differ?
(A “RESOURCE BRAIN DUMP” AUDIT SHOULD TAKE DAYS)
Audit Example for Human Resources
What are you passionate about?What are you particularly good at?What extracurricular activities are you involved with?What have others hired you for or asked you to speak about?Do you have special access to something cool or unusual?Who do you know that our customers would care about?Who do you know with unusual talent?
INIMITABLE
Few companies can compete purely on a text-based content strategy because of one word: inimitability.
OrganizedORGANIZED
FeaturesComplexityTimingLocationCustomizationReputation
Product differentiators you can translate into content differentiators
1.Bootstraps2.Kickstarter3.Digital Content Tools
ERIC WHITACRE’S VIRTUAL CHOIR
E-commerce + Photography w/ Barrier to Entry
Work For Good Content Partnerships
Source
Vividness: How Many Senses Does Your Content Appeal To?
Source
The Stupid Law of High Numbers
Source
“Longer” Content = More shares, more comments, more links
"If you just graded [SAT essays] based on length without ever reading them, you'd be right over 90 percent of the time."
Dr. Les Perlman, MIT
Source
SourceCredit
Content By Risk
Link
Risk Tolerance
$1000 - RED camera rental$2500 - 5X iPad 2’s
Removed Due To Shareholder Complaints
Seeding Science
Source
Hubs & Bridges > Friends & RandomIncentives > Network EffectsYour e-mail list is a good place to start
Create a Content Test FunnelNews, company activity, ideas
Blog posts & tweets
Facebook &
Google+
Promoted post, Email, Video
Static
How Does Content Rank?URL
H1 Tag
Body Content
Page Title
Meta Description*
Keyword Research w/ Google Suggest
One blog post showing ZERO search volume in Google’s Keyword Tool
Soovle.com extends G SuggestGoogle Keyword Tool
Competitive Social Analysis
Link
Worth tracking: follower counts, brand mentions, post frequency, reach, growth rate
Tools to help: SocialMention.com, Tweetreach.com, SimplyMeasured.com
RSS Social Analyzer
Source
Measure & Track “Share of Shares”
70% of HubSpot’s leads come from old blog posts
Does client have analytics installed?
What are competitors using that I am not?
Does my competitor have any hosting or architecture advantages?
Do I need everything my website has in the code?
Does client have Webmaster Tools tracking correctly?
THE FUTURE OF CONTENT
Training agencies in BuzzFeed-style storytelling
Public Service Ads as Content
More Planned Real-time Newsjacking
TAKEAWAYS• Pick your content battles
• Focus on your resources and advantages• Infuse content with an understanding of
human nature• Take calculated risks• Reinvest some winnings
Thank You!
scottcowley.com@scottcowleycontact: [email protected]
Have some interesting content data? I want to talk to you!.