15 Content Marketing and Social Media Keys To Success

I put this post together for a couple reasons.

First, I’ve participated in 15 interviews over the past three weeks, and I’m starting to dream this stuff. Putting it in a blog post helps me get sleep. Second, today is Junta42‘s third anniversary (4/2/2007).

Junta42 was officially started with this blog post on April 26, 2007 entitled “Why Content Marketing?” Here is the last paragraph from that post:

One thing is for sure, it is the organizations, not individual users or publishers, that have the greatest opportunity (and possibly learning curve) to create valuable content that makes an impact on people. Smart organizations are doing it now. More will come. Things are going to get interesting.

That statement was true then, and is even more so today. You are the publisher, and you can and will do great things. Here’s a few points that may help.

1. Who owns the brand story? You will have trouble being successful with content marketing unless someone in your organization champions the brand story with customers and throughout your organization.
2. Your problem with social media – part 1: If you don’t have anything interesting to say, you probably shouldn’t be doing anything proactive in social media.
3. Your problem with social media – part 2: If your legal department and your employees don’t understand the basic rules for engaging with customers online, how can you manage the process? Social media guidelines will help, and are necessary.  See these from IBM.
4. Viral isn’t one big content hit. It’s a consistent drum of compelling content that hits a tipping point. Viral is rarely just the one, but the one after the many.
5. Finding the measurement silver bullet. How do you measure your traditional marketing efforts (PR, display placement, direct marketing)? Use your current measurement practices to measure your content marketing and social media, then revise from there.  So many are trying to recreate the wheel, looking for silver bullets. Ask yourself “what’s different in one year?” Then create objectives from that question.
6. As good or better content. If your content marketing is not as good or better than the “real” publishers in your industry, you are going to have trouble hitting your goals. There is no reason your content shouldn’t be the best…there are too many other information choices for your customers to engage in.
7. Don’t expect travel. Do you have family members that want to see you but don’t want to travel? The same thing happens online with your customers. Great content, in and of itself, isn’t enough online. Go to where your customers are at online and take your content with you.
8. Don’t forget print. Watch teenagers with their media. With texting they have fleeting moments, with computers it’s to get specific tasks done, with print it’s a love affair. Ever watch how a teenage girl covets a magazine (I see this in airports all the time)? Don’t overlook the opportunity to engage in print.
9. Never, ever turn down a content opportunity. Over the three years since launching Junta42, I’ve rarely (if ever) turned down an interview, a webcast, an article. I can’t tell you how important this has been.  If someone is willing to let you into their community so you can dish out some great information, you make time and do it. And, get over yourself, no opportunity is too small.
10. Waiting for perfection. Never is, never will be. Start with a plan, and then execute the heck out of it. There are no more excuses (time, the right content, the right niche, the right technology, the right people). If you have something important to say that can impact your business, why are you waiting?
11. Your customers don’t care about you. I remind myself of this every day. Keeps the content focused on them, not me or my brand. If you are in charge of your brand story, paste this above your computer.
12. Content marketing is not product or service content.
13. Advertising is a luxury. Content is survival.
14. We don’t just do content marketing for altruistic (selfless concern) reasons. Some companies (and individuals) forget that content marketing needs to maintain or create a profitable behavior for your business. Although I want you to succeed, I also want you to try Junta42 (last day for contest by the way), sign up to the Content Revolution enewsletter or this RSS feed, so I can ultimately have a business relationship with you and keep creating great content. Remember that content marketing is marketing, not just content.
15. Your point-of-view. What makes your content marketing different is that you take a stand, you have an opinion. Really great content marketing (like this from IBM) uses research to take a stand. So should you. Content marketing that never gets noticed stays on the sidewalk. Great content marketing plays in traffic.

If you need more guidance, try this content marketing white paper. It’s still my favorite and you’ll find it helpful. Now go out and be the publisher in your industry to grow your business.

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