6 winning content marketing moves (and 6 slippery mistakes to avoid)

I was prompted to write this a while ago, because of something I learned from Product Launch Formula creator Jeff Walker.

He reminded me that 90% of people in any market are beginners. Obvious maybe, but when you’ve worked in an area for a long time, it’s easy to get caught up in ‘the next big thing’ and to forget that for most people, it’s those first crucial, early steps that are the hardest to take and most important to get right.

This blog pulls together what I’ve learned from doing and teaching content marketing over the past 15 + years. It’s a ‘things I wish I’d known when I was starting out’ piece. So if you’re just setting out, these tips will get you off on the right foot, and help you avoid some of the key pitfalls that can scupper your success. If you’ve been on the journey for a while I hope it’s a good reminder of the principles underlying the approach.

What is content marketing and why invest your energy in it?

Content marketing is a very human way to do business. In essence, it’s about sharing your story online, sharing what you know and giving value to your audience.

“Content marketing is really just about people using empathy to help other people and that in turn delivers better business results.”

Michael Brenner, CEO, Marketing Insights

It works for business because the content gets found by people who are looking for the knowledge you have and the help you provide. Get content marketing right, and selling becomes a lot easier. You’ll find the right clients coming to you, already feeling that they trust you, and wanting to work with you.

Pushy sales techniques just don’t work well these days – we switch off when it feels like someone is selling us something we don’t want. Content marketing is a way that fits the way we like to buy.

So how do you do it? Here are my top tips if you’re just starting out on the content marketing journey.

Six early steps for valuable content marketing success

Do this

1. Do the thinking first. Content marketing is not a case of writing a few blogs and waiting for buyers to ring you up. Understand why you’re doing it, and what you want to change in your business and your life.

   Know exactly who you want to help. Go beyond standard personas and listen to your customers.

   Know who you are as a business. Getting clear on your own purpose and values, will help you tell a better story, and attract the kind of customers that believe what you believe. They’re the best kind!

2. Put your customer at the heart of everything. Their questions = your content.

   Keep a real person in mind with every piece of content you create.

3. Help, don’t sell. Develop an attitude of generosity, It can feel hard at first to give away so much of what you know, for free, but it works. It’s the most straightforward, human and accessible way to demonstrate your expertise, strengthen your reputation, and build the relationships your business needs to thrive. We like people who help us.

4. Get the proposition clear. Have a compelling and easy-to-buy offer at the heart of all this generously given valuable content. Make it clear how people can take the first step to become a customer.

5. Get the website platform right. Content marketing won’t work without a website, It doesn’t have to be super slick, simple is good. Design it with your ideal customer and her challenges in mind.

6. Start building your list. Content is a brilliant conversation starter, and you want yours to kick off useful conversations for you and your business. Your newsletter is the place where you can talk one-to-one with the people in your community, delivering value to them consistently. Not everyone on your list will become a customer, but if what you deliver is useful enough, they’ll become your champions – willingly sharing your content and helping more potential buyers find their way into your world. Make email sign up irresistible on your website.

Six content marketing pitfalls to avoid

Don’t do this

1. Don’t forget that it’s all about people and relationships. It’s about you and your customer.

   It’s easy to get overwhelmed. You might hear that content marketing is a matter of finding the right keywords and exploiting SEO search power or producing tons and tons of content every month, or that it has to be video or else. Those aren’t helpful places to start and that can lead you off track.

   Successful content marketers share the same mindset, not the same tactics.

   Create every piece of content with one person in mind. It’s never ‘we need some content for x, y, z’, it’s ‘our customer needs help with x, y, z.’ Make helping your people the focus of your content marketing activity and you’ll stay on track.

2. Don’t try and outsource it all from the start. Writing blogs and guides, or creating videos or podcasts IS hard work, and it can be tempting to think ‘I’ll just get someone else to do it for me.’ If it’s your business, you need to do the thinking and listening work upfront. You’ll gain so much crucial insight from the process in terms of what your ideal clients want, and the challenges that you can help with, that you really want to throw yourself into it wholeheartedly. As you get further down the line, and your content strategy is clear it’s possible to get others to write/create your content for you, but you need to understand the process inside out before you can commission others to help.

3. Don’t let being a perfectionist hold you back. For example, don’t put off working on your website because you want it to be the best ever. You can start marketing your business without a website – blogging on Medium for example, or LinkedIn, but to make a real success of it you need your own website, where people can buy from you.

   Website projects are notoriously tricky, but it’s worth making your site as clear, accessible and people-friendly as you possibly can. But don’t wait until it’s absolutely perfect (because it never will be). Get the best site you can up as quickly as possible, and iterate as you go.

4. Don’t worry about imposter syndrome. Fear that you don’t know enough, or that you’re not expert enough, or that you’re not interesting enough can stop you from writing. If you make ‘helping’ your main goal it takes the pressure off.

   There may well be other people who are more expert than you, but they don’t have your unique perspective, your experiences or your desire to use what you know to help your ideal clients.

5. Don’t make it all about you. Nothing kills content marketing flatter than self-orientation.

6. Don’t give up when you’re not an overnight sensation. Content marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. Your credibility and reach will develop over time, as you share more valuable content, and develop more relationships.

   If your blog post helps somebody or generates a useful conversation (even one Twitter exchange) then it’s a success. Measure connections with people, not social media ‘likes.’ Creating and sharing valuable content drives business success.

The decision to focus on sharing helpful, inspiring content over other ways of marketing your business is the start of a journey that can transform your business and your life. Getting the mindset and foundations right makes all the difference.

This blog originally appeared on the Valuable Content website.

Snakes and Ladders illustration by Lizzie Everard, from the book: Valuable Content Marketing. How to Make Quality Content the Key to Your Business Success.