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Marketing is perceived as an art by many. Yet it is a strategy; one that can be designed through powerful techniques, practiced, and mastered. And among such techniques lies content marketing: the most modern and effective online storytelling and inbound marketing approach for all types of organizations. Check out our latest blogpost: http://www.metavallon.org/how-to-win-over-customers-and-grow-your-startup-through-content/
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How to “blow the lid off” your startup with Content and Inbound Marketing
According to Content Marketing Institute
Content Marketing is “a marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action”.
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In fact, it is all about storytelling.
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Unknowingly, the average person receives an average of 360 commercial messages on a daily basis. We don’t appreciate advertising any more. We appreciate organizations that tell nice stories.
Why content marketing is useful for startups
Startups produce a wealth of useful and valuable information on a day-to-day basis. Publishing this material allows them to:
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Build an active online community and generate ORGANIC LEADS
Establish brand + product/service
awareness
Create a trustworthy profile
Become opinion leaders
Engage with prospects
“Listen” to their market through their social media
and make a product or service more competitive
Is a lot cheaper than native advertising
Is the basis for inbound marketing
and leads generation
Allows modern customer service
operations
Helps companies increase customer
loyalty
Is the perfect tool for
advanced and dispersed sales
teams
Is the most efficient way to build a proper
community
In general, the major benefits of content marketing are:
Original and informative content with careful keyword selection and “white hat” approach to SEO. This makes the webpages (+ blog) of a startup extremely friendly towards Google search engine. Also content marketing:
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Example: How they get Customers at MOZ?
~18% of signups come via paid channels (in blue); the rest are via inbound channels
Paid Channels
Inbound
Visitors you can buy. Customers and partners you can never buy.
The “secret” is to educate, inform, entertain people. Oh yes, and make
people feel good.
YOU EARN THEM
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Only quality and informative content will take prospects from top to the bottom of the funnelWhy? Because it is the most effective way of 1. Creating
prospects and leads
2. Maintaining their interest in your business
3. Making them trust and appreciate you
4. Making them “buy” again or recommend you further.
What “mediums” can be used?
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The core platforms for organizations to implement a content marketing strategy are the blog (+website) and of course the social media channels.
Startups can publish: Blogposts, social media specific posts (comments, images etc), eBooks, Newsletters, infographics, White Papers, interviews, Press Releases, Videos, Surveys, Webinars, Podcasts.
What should startups publish?
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- “How To’s” for their product or service - Talk about the way they work-Talk about their team - Express opinion on industry trends- Hijack the news by adding extra value and
info.- Answer customer questions- Raise new industry issues- Explain future plans- Provide useful product or industry insights- Give their partners a voice (i.e through guest blogging)
Tools for content & inbound marketing
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It all starts with having a company blog, well organized social media profiles and a search engine optimized website. A CRM and/or a marketing automation system is important when leads start to multiply quickly. Not compulsory at the beginning.
For easy email marketing practices we suggest Moosend
Hootsuite is ideal for enhancing social media
efforts
Visual.ly and Infogram allow users to browse infographics and create data visualizations
Storify Collects social media
mentions on a chosen topic,
trend, or event
SEOmoz – Enables users to monitor social media, manage SEO campaigns, and more
There are thousands of tools like these on the market. These are proven, very useful and enough to start with.
R
Blogs + Blogging
Comment Marketing
News/Media/PRSEO
Social Networks
Word of Mouth
Q+A Sites
Forums
Online Video
Podcasting
Webinars
Research/White Papers
Infographics
Social Bookmarking
INBOUND MARKETING!(AKA all the “free” traffic sources)
Direct/Referring Links
Type-In Traffic
Local Portals
Every One of These Marketing Tactics
Helps Every Other One
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Lead generation tricks (on websites and social media)
1. Create offers limited in time and/or quantity(element of Scarcity) or use the Bandwagon effect.2. Use CTA’s that rock. Eye-catching and persuasive.
Avoid usual wording. Use senses. 3. Create landing pages that convert. 4. Use majestic headlines everywhere. 5. Remember that less is more.6. Always encourage social sharing. 7. Leverage traditional media.
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Enhance inbound with traffic coming from the mainstream media• The media are starving for startup stories. • You have to give them news and staff that interests
their audience.• They are very busy. Anything you send them should
be ready to be published. Make things easy for them.• Once you set up a few useful contacts, keep them
engaged with valuable material. • Give them info, stories. Make them feel that you
chose them and you give hot insights only to them. Don’t bomb them. • A simple but engaging media outreach strategy may
include (1 PR/month, 2 personal emails with plain gossiping, a media event, introducing them to selected partners).
How small and big companies use content & inbound marketing
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•Startups to look at:
Prezi
Infogram
•Giants to look at::CISCO
Coca Cola
IBM
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THANK YOU!
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