MARKETING SMARTS: Is Your Content “Thank You” Worthy?

By Lanelle Henderson

In the current marketing industry, it’s no longer about who has the biggest budget or the loudest voice. It about engagement, and a company’s ability to create meaningful content that connects with its customers. The content that will have the greatest impact makes customers stop, pay attention and realize that this was written for their benefit.

All of that considered, there is one key question all content marketers should ask themselves as they sit down to put pen to paper: Will my network thank me for this?

What type of content is “thank you” worthy? Consumers now expect more from the businesses they interact with online and off.

With so many brands competing for their attention in all the places they visit every day — whether it’s through TV, email, or social media — consumers have gotten better at filtering out messages that aren’t relevant to their needs or interests.

People do business with brands they know, like and trust. As a marketer, you need to create content that helps build that relationship. When you deliver something of value, your customers will not only open your emails, visit your website, and pay attention to you on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, but they’ll share. This is where you’ll have the opportunity to reach your next great customer. If your network is thankful for the content you create, they’ll be more likely to share it. Because your network’s network likely has plenty in common with the people who shop at your store, visit your website, and attend your events, there’s a good chance they’ll want to do business with you too.

When you create content for people, rather than creating self-serving content, you’ll have more opportunities to grow customer relationships, more opportunities to drive repeat business, and more opportunities to reach new audiences.

Overcoming challenges

If you’re feeling discouraged about the results you’ve seen from your own content marketing efforts … don’t. You’re far from alone.

According to a recent survey of B2B content marketers, only 36 percent of brands who are using content marketing think that they’re doing it effectively.

If you get stuck, try this approach: pretend you’re writing a letter to the customer you’re trying to reach. What would you say? How would you say it? What type of message would get through to him or her and make them say thanks?

When your network says thanks to a piece of content, they’re essentially thanking you for relevant marketing or better yet, a meaningful conversation. That’s why content marketing matters and that’s why we all need to look for ways to get better at it every single day.