Amy Nicholson - Content Marketing

© Sticky Content Limited

Amy Nicholson

@StickyAmy

#EdgeFinance

Who’s taking care of your

content?

https://twitter.com/StickyAmy

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This month we’re working with…


Finance clients include…

‘Content marketing is all the marketing that’s left’

Seth Godin

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Investec Treasury

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7 things you need in your kitbag

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1. Why are you here?

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1. Mission statement

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• WHY is this copy going on the site? How will this copy help advance your business goals? What will users do after reading this copy? How will you measure the success of this copy?

• WHO is the copy for? What can you say about how busy they are, their motivation for reading the copy, their knowledge about the topic? When, where, how will they be coming to this copy?

• WHAT is the key message of the copy? What questions will readers want the copy to answer?

Ginny Redish, Letting Go of the Words

Before you start writing…

© Sticky Content LimitedDate| Course Title | 15

You need your pole star


“Welcome to Inc.com, the place where entrepreneurs and business owners can find useful information, advice, insights, resources and inspiration for running and growing their businesses.”

An example…


2. User personas

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For ‘killer content’, you must accept 3 things:

1. Driven by millions of years of conditioning, your customers focus on their own needs and those of their families and loved ones

2. Making your customers feel special means understandingwhat they really care about

3. What they really care about can sometimes be the oppositeof what you really care about

The first and most vital step in creating killer web content is to create a small set of living, breathing readers. People you can think of as you write. People you have empathy for and can care about. People you want to design the best (content) in the world for.

Taken from a blog post by Gerry McGovern, author of Killer Content| copyright Sticky Content Ltd

© Sticky Content Limited| Digital Content Strategy copyright Sticky Content Ltd


Content personas

• User personas translate your business goals into real content needs

• Your personas need to work as creative tools

• Not necessarily a full representation of your entire market

• Pen portraits of representative groups

• Throw in telling details to help you sharpen your content


3. Writers’ guidelines

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The 3 elements of a tone of voice:

1. What you choose to say –messaging/content strategy

2. How you present those messages – information design

3. The actual words you use to do this – language/style ©PAImages


1. Establish a consistent approach that all writers

can follow

2. Improve brand recognition – consistent,

repeatable and distinctively yours

3. Make your written content more usable and

even boost your sales

4. A benchmark to keep your communications

on track, and to ease the stakeholder sign-off

process

Tone of voice guidelines


Nationwide


4. Your editorial calendar

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Plan like a publisher

• Maintain an editorial calendar confirming agreed frequency, timelines, volumes, content owners, formats, channels etc

• Create content departments and give them owners

• Cultivate subject matter experts and other content sources

• Capture ideas regularly

• Develop guidelines: style guide, tone of voice, format guidelines

• Put in place an editorial board to review content effectiveness


5. Build on good ideas©PAImages


Harness the hivemind

Trust they will come

Ask around internally

Make use of data and insights

Work your beat

Where do ideas come from?

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Your domain of expertise

Your users’ information

needs


ISA investing tips

ISA investment ideas for a

falling market

ISA investment ideas for a rising

market

Saving for your child

Cash v Stocks and shares

10 of the best ISAs


6. Briefing forms©PAImages



What goes in a briefing form?

destination of content eg position in IA

source material or stakeholders to provide input

audience (eg customer segments or user personas)

deadline

parameters and constraints egwordcounts, keywords

format eg case study, Q&A, video tutorial

additional guidance to consult egsocial media policy, style guide, format guidelines, compliance guidance

list of named approvers

CTA: what you want the audience to think, feel or do as a result of this content

metrics: what will success look like and how will you measure it (egdownloads, sales enquiries, seotraffic, etc)?


When to use your brief…

When you’re planning content

• To help you crystallise your goals and intentions.

• To how a piece of content fits within your whole activity.

When you’re writing

• To keep you focused on the desired outcomes and the

task at hand.

When you’re commissioning content

• To give writers a clear, agreed understanding of what

their content needs to achieve and the form it should

take.


When to use your brief…

When you’re checking content

• Check you've got all the content elements you need in

place.

When you’re submitting content

• Get approvers to check copy against the briefing form –

seeing the thinking will help them appreciate the

execution.

• If you're managing a lot of stakeholders, do they all need

to sign off on the final content? Can some approve the

brief instead?


7. Formats and processes©PAImages


‘Recipe book conjures up a specific image complete with format, structure, content, organisation, context and purpose.” Peter Morville, Ambient Findability

Form makes content usable

| Digital Content Strategy copyright Sticky Content Ltd


Tried-and-trusted digital formats

• FAQ

• Step-by-step

• Q&A

• Document summary

• Timeline / chronology

• Product page

• Case study

• What is… ?

• How to… ?

• User guide

• Facts at a glance

• Menu

• News story

• Testimonial

• Top 10 tips

• Factfile

• Buyer’s guide

• Destination guide

• Checklist

• Biography



Format guidelines: job ads

Section Content Format

Title Job title Title

Standfirst Engaging description of what the person

will be doing

1 sentence

We’re looking for… Top-level description of the ideal candidate 1-2 paragraphs

What’s the role? What the person will be doing day-to-day. The

responsibilities and opportunities of the job

2-6 short paragraphs

You are someone who… Personal qualities, attitudes and skills of the

successful candidate

Bullet list (up to 10 bullets)

Boxes to tick Necessary experience/qualifications in order to

apply for this job

Bullet list (up to 10 bullets)

What’s in it for you? Practical benefits of the role 1 paragraph

Why now? Why Fortune Cookie? Compelling reasons to choose the company

and explanation of current need to recruit

1 paragraph


© Sticky Content LimitedNationwide


Deloitte



• Email subject line


• Homepage teaser

• Tweet

• Related products link


• Landing page snippet / A-Z entry


• Mobile site


• Tablet site


In your content toolkit:

1. Mission statement

2. User personas

3. Writers’ guidelines

4. Editorial calendar

5. Good ideas – and ways to capture

them

6. Briefing forms

7. Formats


Who do you need on your side?

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The Content Strategy quad

People

components

© Brain Traffic 2011

Content

componentsCore

strategy


The guard

Most likely to say:

‘No, I can’t move your deadline.’

Do delegate:

Looking after the calendar, scheduling

Don’t delegate: social media

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The captain of the quiz team

Most likely to say:

‘I think you’ll find…’

Do delegate:

Managing your style guide, proofreading

Don’t delegate: stakeholder engagement

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The teenager

Most likely to say:

‘That’s really boring.’

Do delegate:

Idea generation, platform research

Don’t delegate: scheduling ©PAImages


The safety officer

Most likely to say:

‘Have you read the FCA guidance?’

Do delegate:

Approval, compliance, final sign-off

Don’t delegate: Idea generation

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1 thing to stop doing – right now©PAImages


Thanks! [email protected]@stickyamy

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mailto:[email protected]

https://twitter.com/StickyAmy



@stickycontent

Content strategy workshop

for FS June 2015:

(1/2 day) An introduction to content strategy

for senior executives in FS: framework,

business case and operational implications

(Full day workshop) Content strategy for

Financial Services

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