THE WRITE STUFF: CREATING ENGAGING

ONLINE CONTENT!

By Ben Keenan. !

@warmcola | ben@thethoughtpolice.com.au

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YOU

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ME

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WHY?

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THE LAW OF RECIPROCATION

People feel obliged to give back

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YOU ARE BARTERING FOR PEOPLES ATTENTION.

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YOU ARE GUILTING THEM INTO BUYING FROM YOUGary Vaynerchuk

“People read what interests them, and sometimes, that’s an ad”Howard Luck- Gossage

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THE INTERNET IS A RELEVANCE ENGINE.

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SAVE ME TIME, MONEY OR FACE.

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PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO BUY INTO, NOT SOMETHING TO BUY

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SUPER BLOGGERS

Can you be as interesting as these people?

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THE DARK TRUTH.

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BE AN AGITATOR.

Because everyone loves a stoush.

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AN EXERCISE.

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PEOPLE DON’T CARE ABOUT BRANDS AS WE MUCH AS

WE THINK THEY DO.They do care about each other.

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BE A GONZO JOURNALIST.

And put yourself in a place where you’ll find a story

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JUST SHOW ME THE GOOD BITS.

So I can say smart things in meetings.

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YOU MUST HAVE A ACTIVE POINT OF VIEW.

The why is now more important than the what.

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HOW MANY WAYS IN?

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FREE RANGE RUNNING

Gyms have turned us into battery hens. They are evil soulless places. The role of this campaign is to encourage anyone who goes to the gym to break free and experience trail running. In this campaign we could encourage trail runners to evangelise the sport –like we are an activist group such as PETA. !The outtake being: We sell trail running as an escape from modern clinical indoors life to something more free, natural and liberating.

The story:Use  the  language  of  activism  to  free  people  from  the  trap  of  modern  living.

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UNPLUGGED There is an irony that you are sitting in front a computer when looking and buying products or experiencing our content. We can use this situation to creative relevant content and messaging. The outtake: Get out, disconnect from technology and the virtual and connect with yourself, your environment, the trail running community and what’s real. The story:Attacking  a  common  enemy,  and  rousing  people  towards  a  cause.    

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BATTLING NATURE

This area is about the tension between respecting the environment, but at the same time be pushed and challenged by it in the most extreme way possible. Executional ideas: Trailcore.com: “Our job is to supply you with the best gear, your job is to destroy it”The Outtake: This is the personification of “Trail Slayers Unite” it celebrates the tension that everything you buy from Trailcore is the best, yet used properly, you’ll be giving it a great deal of punishment. The story:It’s eco-sport with a touch of rock n’ roll.

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!EXTREME BOY SCOUTSTrail running has some parallels to scouting and guiding, it’s about being challenged by the wilderness and having a sense being in a community and being rewarded; progressing with each achievement.The outtake: The community aspect, it’s communing with nature, and the journey of learning, progressing and getting rewarded for your achievements makes scouting/guiding a nice analogy for the Trail Running community – albeit a much cooler more contemporary one.The story: Having some fun with semantics and mnemonics and behaviours of scouting.

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STRAIGHT EDGE

You could sum up the spirit and defiance of Trail Running as a kind of purity with a punk rock spirit. Just like the no drugs, no drink, no sex, no stage diving, no over 18s shows in straight edge band culture. We could shine a light on the lifestyle of Trail running and create a similar manifesto or set of rules/morals.

The outtake: This idea celebrates the extreme subcultural elements of the sport and the kinds of people it attracts. If you agree with some of these lifestyle choices/disciplines, it may be the sport for you. The story: A series of manifestos and beliefs of an emerging subculture.

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FIRST PERSON GAMING There is a great deal of parallels between console gaming and trail running. It’s first person, you are competition with yourself to outdo your score – technology/gadgets measure your performance and energy levels adds to the appeal. And you are ranked in a leaderboard when you get to seriously competitive level. The Outtake:Trail running has many gamified elements that would appeal to gamers, and could inspire them off the couch while satisfying their love for challenge, discovery and nerdish analysis.The Story:We have the whole culture of gaming to reference, copy and analogise.

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ENDORSING A CAVEMAN Trail running is the most ancient of sports, so let’s bring this to life by endorsing the remains of an actual archeological find (Fred the caveman). This person becomes Trailcore.com’s Michael Jordan. We use his image in the same you’d expect a sports star to be used in product endorsements. !The strategy: Trail running is the original sport. We are made to run, we are hunters and gatherers.The story:A  character  (Caveman)  reacting  to  the  modern  world,  a  >ish  out  of  water  premise.

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CONTENT ENGAGES,

COPY SELLS.

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PEOPLE DON’T BUY QUARTER INCH DRILL BITS,

THEY BUY QUARTER INCH HOLES

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YOUR CONTENT CANBE IN YOUR FUNCTIONALITY.

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USE DATA AT THE FRONT AS WELL AS THE

BACK OF YOUR PROCESS.

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COULD YOU COMPETITION BE YOUR COMMUNITY?

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YOU ARE IN A SCENE, FIND IT, CONTRIBUTE TO IT.

SO YOU JUST GOT ALL THIS FOR FREE

• The Internet is a relevance engine.

• Have an active point of view that demonstrates your values.

• To have a story, you need to find a tension.

• Copy sells, content engages.

• Look to the left.

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• You are a part of a scene, find and add to that scene.

HAVE I GUILTED YOU INTO LEARNING MORE?

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THE WRITE STUFF:CREATING ENGAGING ONLINE CONTENT

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