How to Create Irresistible Content - Al Biedrzycki #6
03/11/15 • -1 min
Content marketing is all the rage - but how do you get started? What do you write about? How will it be found? We interviewed Al Biedrzycki, Channel Marketing Manager at HubSpot to find out. What he shared with us will help all business owners who want to generate more leads for their businesses. Oh, and we were dying to know which piece of HubSpot's content is the most popular and effective - and why. He spills it all!
What is content marketing?
Right click here to download the mp3 file to your desktop.
Al sees it as the practice of developing useful, valuable, original content to educate your client as well as the way you promote it on a blog and with social media.What is the difference between inbound and content marketing?
Add lead nurturing, lead generation, sales and marketing alignment. Content marketing is a COMPONENT of inbound marketing.What makes a good piece of content?
Great content is useful and should be unique and creative - it makes people want to share it and do something more with it than just look at it.What is HubSpot’s Most Popular Piece of Content? Why?
Released in 2009, the Step-by-Step Guide to Internet Marketing. It was very timely. People just started talking about internet marketing a lot. It got a lot of organic traffic from search and has search clout.
They used the word “Internet marketing” even though it was about “inbound” - no one would search for it because they didn’t know what it was. It was their way to teach readers about inbound marketing.
What is a “Top of the Funnel” Offer?
When someone has a vague idea of a problem they need solved. They will search for more information, but they don’t really know the information. Example: funny sound in my car - might search “strange car noises.”
Middle of the Funnel
When someone knows what is wrong, they have identified the problem. Then they start looking for the solution.
Bottom of the Funnel
When the problem is identified and the solution chosen, they just need to pick a supplier and buy!
Creative and Effective Uses of Content Marketing
ROI calculator for an accountant - enter in your financial information and it spits out your information. Preparing for tax season.
Beyond Ebooks - Creative Formats for Content Marketing
Videos can be useful, but it always depends on your product or service as well as your audience.
Whitepapers and ebooks with .pdfs were the beginning of content. Now instead of a static .pdf there are some interactive website experiences. It’s the evolution of the ebook.
What Makes a Good Title?
Don’t be misleading? Nothing causes people to lose trust in you faster than a bait and switch. This goes for the more “spicy” titles, too. If you have a spicy title, you’d better have a spicy article!
If you can add a little wit to the title, that’s great, but it is more important to be clear about your topic AND your intended audience.
What Tools and Programs Should You Use if You Aren’t a Design Expert?
PowerPoint and even Microsoft Word are pretty easy to use. Start with one of their templates. They can make a nice looking ebook! HubSpot has some, too!
Buyer Personas
Understand who you are trying to target. Map out your sales cycle and figure out where your content is going to fall. Download HubSpot's template to get started!
JUST DO IT!
Resources:
- Free Template: Create Buyer Personas For Your Business
- Free Templates: How to Create Beautiful PowerPoints
- HubSpot's Step-by-Step Guide to Internet Marketing
About Al
Content marketing is all the rage - but how do you get started? What do you write about? How will it be found? We interviewed Al Biedrzycki, Channel Marketing Manager at HubSpot to find out. What he shared with us will help all business owners who want to generate more leads for their businesses. Oh, and we were dying to know which piece of HubSpot's content is the most popular and effective - and why. He spills it all!
What is content marketing?
Right click here to download the mp3 file to your desktop.
Al sees it as the practice of developing useful, valuable, original content to educate your client as well as the way you promote it on a blog and with social media.What is the difference between inbound and content marketing?
Add lead nurturing, lead generation, sales and marketing alignment. Content marketing is a COMPONENT of inbound marketing.What makes a good piece of content?
Great content is useful and should be unique and creative - it makes people want to share it and do something more with it than just look at it.What is HubSpot’s Most Popular Piece of Content? Why?
Released in 2009, the Step-by-Step Guide to Internet Marketing. It was very timely. People just started talking about internet marketing a lot. It got a lot of organic traffic from search and has search clout.
They used the word “Internet marketing” even though it was about “inbound” - no one would search for it because they didn’t know what it was. It was their way to teach readers about inbound marketing.
What is a “Top of the Funnel” Offer?
When someone has a vague idea of a problem they need solved. They will search for more information, but they don’t really know the information. Example: funny sound in my car - might search “strange car noises.”
Middle of the Funnel
When someone knows what is wrong, they have identified the problem. Then they start looking for the solution.
Bottom of the Funnel
When the problem is identified and the solution chosen, they just need to pick a supplier and buy!
Creative and Effective Uses of Content Marketing
ROI calculator for an accountant - enter in your financial information and it spits out your information. Preparing for tax season.
Beyond Ebooks - Creative Formats for Content Marketing
Videos can be useful, but it always depends on your product or service as well as your audience.
Whitepapers and ebooks with .pdfs were the beginning of content. Now instead of a static .pdf there are some interactive website experiences. It’s the evolution of the ebook.
What Makes a Good Title?
Don’t be misleading? Nothing causes people to lose trust in you faster than a bait and switch. This goes for the more “spicy” titles, too. If you have a spicy title, you’d better have a spicy article!
If you can add a little wit to the title, that’s great, but it is more important to be clear about your topic AND your intended audience.
What Tools and Programs Should You Use if You Aren’t a Design Expert?
PowerPoint and even Microsoft Word are pretty easy to use. Start with one of their templates. They can make a nice looking ebook! HubSpot has some, too!
Buyer Personas
Understand who you are trying to target. Map out your sales cycle and figure out where your content is going to fall. Download HubSpot's template to get started!
JUST DO IT!
Resources:
- Free Template: Create Buyer Personas For Your Business
- Free Templates: How to Create Beautiful PowerPoints
- HubSpot's Step-by-Step Guide to Internet Marketing
About Al
Previous Episode
How Small Businesses Can Use Google Hangouts On Air for Brand Awareness and Marketing – Jeff Sieh #5
The power of video is undeniable and Google Hangouts On Air are free, easy to use, and don’t require a polished presentation or any special equipment. But, how can people get over their fears and become a go-to resource for helpful information? Jeff will help us with that!
People tend to be afraid of video – even more than with audio, we seem uncomfortable watching ourselves. Jeff suggests you try it anyway! You may find you get used to it – or that the results are so amazing you can’t stop even if you want to.
Right click here to download the mp3 file to your desktop
Hangouts On Air The Best Value For Your Marketing Time?
You can turn your Hangouts on Air in to blog posts, short video, podcasts, and more. There is just nothing else that gives you such ability to repurpose.
Some Practical Ideas for Your First Hangout
Don't start huge. Have a hangout with a few friends who make you feel comfortable. Get used to the technical snafus and audio glitches that WILL happen. Get comfortable with all your options. Just hang out a bit!
When you're ready, consider just answering a commonly-asked question by your customers and prospects. Nothing fancy needed. We even had ideas about funeral homes and pest control companies in the episode!
Get Your Audience Involved
As you get more comfortable with hangouts, you can add in features like comment tracker, which allows you to monitor comments and pull up people's questions and their images so all attendees can see. People LOVE that kind of engagement. It really makes them feel like part of the show and Jeff does it so well.
Until you're ready for that, you could have a "wing-man" (or woman!) who can handle the monitoring of questions and feed them to you.
Resources and People to follow:
- Ronnie Bincer the Hangout Helper
- Learn how to convert hangouts to podcasts
- Mia Voss – the Mia Connect
- Wade Harman – Relationship Show
- The Comment Tracker
About Jeff Sieh
Creative brain for hire • Visual storyteller • Social media consultant • Speaker • Humorist
That sums it up well, but Jeff is also well known for "Adding testosterone one pin at a time" on Pinterest and with his Manly Pinterest Tips show (don't miss it - it's helpful and funny) and for his amazing "yeard".
Connect with Jeff on Google Plus.
Check out Manly Pinterest Tips
Like Manly Pinterest Tips on Facebook
Next Episode
The Value and How-to of Business Storytelling - Katherine Kotaw #7
Storyteller, published author and CEO of Kotaw Content Marketing. Lover of polka-dots, Dr. Seuss, and all things furry.
I apologize in advance for the audio issues in the first minute or two. We are getting a new microphone - and what Katherine shares is more than worth a listen!!
Right click here to download the mp3 file to your desktop
Why Businesses Should Use Storytelling - Will it Impact Your Bottom Line?
People’s brains are chemically formed to think of businesses as people – and we are predisposed to think of them as unlikable. Storytelling makes you likable, someone we can relate to.
There is almost nothing completely unique anymore. If nothing else distinguishes you, you can compete on price, or you can have a story. Katherine has seen the latter work beautifully and quickly!! Listen for the details.
Storytelling and Engaging on Twitter – Exactly How to Do It
You can make a connection on Twitter faster than pretty much anywhere else. Try using social media outreach to find people who will be interested in your content and your products or services. We got Katherine to spill all the details about how she found people to talk to and even what kinds of tweets she sent to start making friends for the brand and take sales from $0 to $10K just from Twitter in just 30 days.
Why People Hesitate to Tell Their Stories
“That’s not very corporate!” Yeah, exactly. People don’t love corporations – they love a business with a personality. Be memorable. Trust us – there is something about you that makes you special.
30Rock references were made.
Oh, and if someone respects you less because you let your human side show (appropriately, of course), you probably don’t want to work with them!
Does Every Company Have a Story?
I thought for sure she would say yes. Well, sometimes they don’t – and that’s because they have no passion – and those businesses won’t last. There is so much duplication of everything, you MUST have a passion.
Katherine reveals why she decided to work with a MLM client.
Get to the core of your “why.” Katherine can help with that. Get excited about your story and learn how to tell it in your own voice.
Why Dr. Seuss?
Dr. Seuss is one of Katherine’s loves. We wondered why. Her explanation will have you reaching for the tissues. AND it will help you see how something so small but so meaningful can be part of a truly compelling brand story.
Where Should You Tell Your Story?
Well, since 80% of buying decisions are made before any kind of person-to-person conversation, put it out there on your website first. If you can tell your story in person, that’s great, but don’t count on always having that opportunity.
Learning to Be a Storyteller
Katherine always comes home with a story? Can you try to find the story in your day? You don’t have to be James Bond to have fantastic stories. It’s how you approach things. Find something interesting.
Storytelling and Pinterest
Pinterest gives Katherine and Kotaw Content Marketing more traffic than anything else. She doesn’t get a lot of repins, but people repin and click.
She thinks the secret is the gorgeous images her daughter creates and the way they tease the viewer to click to get the rest of the story.
They started using Pinterest as a showcase to brand the company visually. An online portfolio of sorts. You might want to follow her!
Visit Katherine // KOTAW Content Marketing's profile on Pinterest.Counting Conversations – Not Tweets
Sometimes business owners will say, “If I could only get people in the room, I could sell them.” Well, guess what? With social media, they ARE in the room. So, talk!
No one cares what you are broadcasting if you don’t care about people and you don’t talk to them, share their content, or answer them. So, don’t ask her how many tweets a day she’s going to send out for you. If you’re not in the mood to be social, go away. If you’re just flying your flag – get off!
When you see how quickly a conversation can turn into something meaningful, you’ll be amazed at this new, glorious way to reach out to people. Katherine reminds us that you wouldn’t be amazed if you saw her doing this in a room full of people. It’s just a new medium!
When you make a person feel special or look smarter, they will remember you.
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