I spent my lunch hour today enjoying this video from Jason Calacanis about entrepreneurship. Toward the beginning of the video, Jason makes this comment:
There are two types of people: Entrepreneurs and everyone else.
Jason then goes on to talk about how entrepreneurs are Samurai’s and that people who work for other people without aspirations are like rice pickers. They settle. Tell us how you really feel Jason!
For whatever you think about Jason’s comments, he is trying to make the point that the two groups, in general, have significantly different attitudes about what’s possible.
I see the same attitude difference in marketers all the time. One of the main tenets of content marketing is the belief that the brand (led by the marketer) can and should create and distribute the best content in the industry. That means developing better information about the industry and what’s important to the brand’s customers than any trade magazine or media source in the business.
When I bring this up in small group settings with marketers, most just shake their heads. ”Not possible,” says one. “Unlikely,” says another.
And there is the problem. Creating the best content marketing in your industry is rarely about skills, resources or budget. The best always find a way. It’s almost always about the want, need and passion that it can be done, and that it’s both good for your customer and your business.
Companies like Hubspot, Miller Electric and Pinsent Masons are market leaders because they take this belief seriously. The rest just…settle.
10 Comments
Thank you for this ~ Old ways die hard, but once you employ a good content marketing strategy, you’ll never go back. It’s not just the business that you get, but the good will, kudos and positive branding that make it both fun AND profitable.
My sentiment exactly.
I was just thinking that without the rest of us, the entrepreneur cannot succeed, and that today’s employment figures will show that the rest of us cannot get working without entrepreneurs!
Thanks Joe, great post. Attitude and orientation are definitely critical; lots of companies spend big bucks on content without even thinking about, never mind trying to be the industry leader in ideas and insight. And they end up with just lots of random content.
On the other hand, skills, resources, and budgets definitely matter if you have the orientation. I don’t know your other two examples, but HubSpot clearly spends a lot of time and money hiring and supporting skilled people specifically to do content marketing – seemingly much more than other companies its size.
So, can’t get there without desire and a map, but you need the gas, too!
Hi Rob…thanks for the comment. I completely agree with your point on skills and resources, but you have to have the desire to be great first. Gas without direction doesn’t do you any good.
Nice post. It’s nice to see PTC getting on board this train with the desire and will. (And of course the reality of the resources & budget follow after that.)
Nice post, Joe. I believe some of the hesitance marketers have is due to a lack of faith in their product or brand. All too often, people just do their job instead of invest themselves in a company they truly believe in. When you believe in the value of your company and its products, you have a hard time seeing how you *can’t* contribute expertise, as a brand, to your industry.
Cheers,
Teresa
People love to learn and find out information and a good piece of content is loved for those reasons as well. Personally, if I am reading content that is short, messy and does not have a valid point or argument, then I have no interest in the company that wrote that article. If a title says that I am going to learn something, know something or find out something, then the article or piece of content better live up to that title.
Great content is king of the marketing world. Key word being Great, of course.
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