What is content marketing?

This post is the first in the series of four detailed posts on content marketing by Nischala, a content marketing expert.

As much as it is a promising solution, content marketing is also a jargon in itself for those of you who haven’t been able diagnose the problems that it can solve for your business. I am going to use the Simon Sinek’s approach to dissect this jargon for you. Over the article, you need a pen and paper to answer a few questions about your business. This is an exercise for you to figure out when do you need content marketing, why do you need it, if you need it, then how would you use it for your business.

Firstly, take down the following equation in BOLD. If you like it and the equation makes sense, then go ahead reading the rest of the article.

CONTENT MARKETING = GREAT RESULTS OVER LONG-TERM DURATION

Simon Sinek has recommended an approach that helps in evaluating your business offering as a solution to a market problem. He advocates ‘answer the WHY?’ , to be able to understand the HOW and WHAT of it.

WHY do you need CONTENT MARKETING?

Content marketing builds mindshare for your brand among potential customers across the internet and digital community. If this is what you aim to do then, you should seriously consider Content marketing. However, move a step behind and find out why do you need mindshare across people using internet, when you are already using paid advertisements to capture their attention. Paid advertisements majorly offer only basic information and are perceived as an announcement by consumers. It does not serve the purpose of grabbing your potential customer’s attention with credible information that leads to convincing him/her in making a purchase decision. Content marketing serves the purpose of building mindshare in your consumer’s’ mind.

Content repeats itself in various forms across different digital media to create mindshare. Stop there, before you say “I do content marketing”. First, answer these questions.

• Do you know what is Content?
• Do you know the places on internet, where your target audience is dwelling?
• Do you care about what your target audience is consuming?
• Do you care to listen to what there are asking from you?
• Do you know what drives your target audience to make any decision that relates to your brand? It could be Yes/No/ Maybe.

 

HOW CONTENT MARKETING?

Content marketing, is an integrated approach. It is a team effort and not something that can be accomplished by one person or one process. So, how should you start content marketing? Read this equation below:

Content writing or Content production or Content distribution or Measuring Content does not = Content Marketing.

This is the right equation –

Content writing + Content production + Content distribution + Measuring Content = Content Marketing.

There could be more variables added to the equation but the above mentioned are must-haves.

In the next post, let’s review the questions mentioned in the earlier section to create a process for yourself.

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