AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: What is your 2011 Content Marketing or Social Media Prediction? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: what-is-your-2011-content-marketing-or-social-media-prediction CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 11/18/2010 10:01:20 PM ----- BODY:

Well, we are at it again.

Last year's 2010 Content Marketing and Social Media predictions post was our most popular by far...and we'd like to continue the madness.

Would you like to give your take on what the future will hold? If so, complete this brief form by December 4th.

And, if you have some down time, check out our predictions from 2009 as well. Amazingly fun reading.

On with the content marketing revolution...

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Barb Sawyers EMAIL: barb@barbsawyers.ca IP: 69.159.194.244 URL: http://www.stickycommunication.ca/blog DATE: 11/19/2010 08:21:38 AM I think this year's surge in e-books and e-readers will encourage us to re-imagine what books can be. So far, it has been a mostly passive, one-media experience. I hope we'll see more multi-media integration, with books that include video clips, music and all sorts of creative combinations. Or books you can personalize. Endless possibilities. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matt EMAIL: matt@parthenonpub.com IP: 75.145.49.105 URL: http://parthenonpub.com/blog DATE: 11/19/2010 04:16:02 PM I think we'll see growth in online content marketing as ex-journalists get hired on at various agency and publishing outfits, as well as an increase in branded entertainment. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alan Brind EMAIL: brokers@bizbrokersny.com IP: 63.164.47.229 URL: http://www.bizbrokersny.com DATE: 11/20/2010 10:25:17 AM I think that Facebook and Google will face-off (no pun intended)...with Facebook's new SMS service and their emphasis on business and commerce, it will be inevitable. E-commerce will especially benefit and the the traditional bricks and mortar retail will be negatively impacted more so than at present. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Are Brands Ready to Be Media Companies? 4 Steps to Yes STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: are-brands-ready-to-be-media-companies-4-steps-to-yes CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: journalists CATEGORY: publishers DATE: 11/18/2010 08:56:20 AM ----- BODY:

Read an interesting article from MediaPost this morning entitled "Are Media Brands Ready to Be Brands?"

The question about whether or not media brands are like real brands has been asked every since I've been in the media business. The answers varied, but the consensus from publishers was usually that media brands were different in some way, and didn't have to follow the same rules.

There are a number of areas that most media brands are simply inferior at this point to non-media brands: data capture, lead nurturing, social media, campaign tactics, integrated marketing and more. Ellen Oppenheim from MediaPost offers a number of helpful solutions for media brands including:

Leveraging data outside of content creation
Not be so tied to legacy revenue streams and experiment more digitally
Reach out to more readers and customers (listen)
More content promotion across platforms (market the content, not just through the channel the content is in, i.e., an email newsletter)

All good points, but easier said than done for most media companies.

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But let's put the orange shoe on the other foot. There are a number of things that media brands do that non-media companies should learn from and have a significant advantage.

Media brands have set up elaborate content factories to create and curate innovative industry content. Large organizations like P&G, American Express and others have been working to replicate the content creation models of companies like Meredith and trade publishers like Penton Media for years.
Media brands still have the primary mindset of thinking like journalists or publishers, not like salespeople. That means the content they create is automatically more credible than most non-media brands. Why? Most non-media brand content processes are filtered through some marketing or sales person that adds the sales speak and destroys the credibility and engagement factor inherent in the content.
Even though many media brands have caused their own death by getting rid of some of the best journalists on the planet, non-media companies have not cornered the market on this yet. Media brands still have the edge when it comes to market knowledge from a storytelling standpoint. Someday, this will not be true and non-media brands will have the edge in most niche markets...but that day has not yet come.

So, if you are a media brand, you need to think more like non-media brand. Listen to customers and start to develop products and services (that are not media) that make sense for your readership.

If you are a non-media brand, you need to

Continue to develop your content factories.
Think consistency of content and stop thinking so much about campaign-oriented content. Campaign mentality is usually the death of great content.
Hire more journalists or partner with outside agencies that can help you tell your story.
And finally, don't settle for also-ran content. If you are going to develop content for your industry, for your customers to drive your business, it has to be the best. It must have a point of view. It must stand for something.

Everything else is just clutter.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: non-media brands, journalists, content factories ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 11/18/2010 10:41:28 AM Joe... If campaign mentality is direct response campaign (ie. measurement and designing the content to produce a tangible outcome -- like a lead) is it still bad? Would you still encourage people to NOT think this way? Because I think what you're saying here in this analysis is really smart. But I often see you suggesting that a less analytical approach works best/better. This is very David Meerman-Scott, of course. And David's "get the content out there and don't wall it off in any way" as a means to sell approach is popular. I admit. But I question if the Web is just another place to broadcast -- versus collect leads in a reliable, measured way. Thanks for considering. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.114.163 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/18/2010 10:57:15 AM Hi Jeff...you are right, there is always a place for campaign-oriented content, but we also need consistent compelling content (free and gated). I see so many brands create compelling content as part of a campaign and then stop when the campaign is over. It's like saying "hey, we care about you but heck, our campaign is over so we'll try something else, sorry." That's where campaign content goes wrong. Old Spice comes to mind recently. Awesome content for just one week, then poof, it stops. We need both, but non-media brands have lots of the campaign content ready to go and not as much of the consistent, build relationships type content. And, while I do agree with David that content should be freely given, there is a time and a place to gate content (premium content) where there is enough shared value (my information for your content) that is makes sense and the relationship can be further built. As always, great thinking Jeff. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 11/18/2010 11:03:25 AM Fully agree (and I practice this too!) with free+gated. Re: Old Spice... absolutely. There's a long list of brands using Facebook this way. Building up an asset and walking away. Chase http://bit.ly/9wI0xx comes to mind. Hmm. Ok. I understand your perspective much better now. Which brings me to this: I'm begging you to please consider allowing me to get alerted to replies to comment threads on your blog! :) Many thanks for your good thinking too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matt EMAIL: matt@parthenonpub.com IP: 75.145.49.105 URL: http://parthenonpub.com/blog DATE: 11/18/2010 01:03:16 PM That Old Spice example is perfect. Fast Company ran a great piece comparing Old Spice to Dos Equis' "Most Interesting Man in the World." One thing the piece doesn't talk much about, however, is Dos Equis' commitment, whereas Old Spice's campaign was one and done. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.114.163 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/18/2010 01:30:07 PM Good point Matt Jeff, I'm switching over the WordPress in a month, so all will be well very soon. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brandon Cox EMAIL: brandonacox@gmail.com IP: 70.183.18.4 URL: http://bcox.me/s DATE: 11/18/2010 06:13:40 PM Jeff, you make an excellent point about the credibility of media companies, and an equally great point about the lack thereof when it comes to non-media companies' motives being questioned. I've tended to see it just the opposite way - that non-media companies, as newcomers, have a bit of credibility because they're willing to think outside the parameters of traditional journalism, but you've helped me nail another side of the story! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter Applebaum EMAIL: info@tickyes.com IP: 58.163.175.134 URL: http://www.tickyes.com DATE: 11/19/2010 03:01:24 PM Excellent post, Joe. It's a fascinating moment in marketing time to see previously linear product / service providers being forced to re-purpose themselves as publishers. It's not easy to turn the aircraft carrier around after decades of just selling burgers, fuel or breakfast cereal. But it's great fun to see - and help - companies do this successfully. Equally, it's slightly frustrating to see that many marketers still don't get that the world has changed and that the unchallenged reign of the 30 second TVC and double page spread has passed. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Does Your Content Hit the Mark? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: does-your-content-hit-the-mark CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 11/12/2010 12:25:33 AM ----- BODY:

Robin Koval, co-author of The Power of Small, talked today about how small things can make all the difference in your life and in your marketing.

One example she gave was in solving the problem of spillage. More specifically, spillage is a rampant problem in public restrooms where men just "can't hit the mark" (I think you get the point).

One creative solution to solving this problem was to put a small sticker of a fly (see picture) inside the urinal to serve as a target for men to shoot at. Research found that just by simply inserting a target like the fly decreased spillage by 85% (I feel sorry for the researcher who had to measure this).

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In content marketing terms, it's fighting the natural instinct to create content without a clear purpose. When developing a custom magazine strategy we call this the one page mantra, which means that every page of content in a magazine needs to have a call to action - a purpose.

The same goes for your web content.

What is the purpose of your content?

Why was the content created in the first place?

What specific action do you want your customer or prospect to take as a result of engaging in the content?

The next time you start on a content project, blog post or video story, be specific with your content team about what the real reason is for why the content exists.

In simple terms, what does success look like?

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tracy Gold EMAIL: tracy@rightsourcemarketing.com IP: 12.167.132.26 URL: http://www.marketingtrenches.com DATE: 11/12/2010 09:14:00 AM Wonderful. Laughed out loud (really)--but also great advice. Even if thinking about the purpose of the content isn't going to determine whether or not you write it, purpose trickles down through every part of the project. Keywords, metatags, where you distribute the content, how you promote it--it all ties in to what the purpose is. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Keith Wiegold EMAIL: keith@nutlug.com IP: 64.134.197.3 URL: http://www.nutlug.com DATE: 11/12/2010 11:41:34 AM Joe: Ah, nothing like a little bathroom humor to make a point! But an important point - one of the very first steps in laying down a content strategy is asking yourself what the purpose is for the content itself. I always suggest writing two: one, for you (the brand/company); and the other for the customer persona/target -- specifically, Why should they want to read it? Now, amend the 'specific action' to include a measurable element and you've laid down the key planks to building a content strategy. Thanks for a(nother) great post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Redlincook | Content Strategy EMAIL: elisec@verticalmeasures.com IP: 72.215.194.132 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com/content-development DATE: 11/12/2010 01:24:15 PM Nice analogy Joe and even better point! I don't think that one can emphasize the absolute need to define the purpose and metrics to measure for success too much! Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Marcus Sheridan-The Sales Lion EMAIL: marcus1@thesaleslion.com IP: 64.181.62.10 URL: http://www.thesaleslion.com DATE: 11/12/2010 10:42:37 PM Joe, my first time on here man, and love what I'm reading....and the fly story really was the perfect 'target' analogy....I think that one's going to stick ;) Look forward to more posts in the future. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vee Sweeney EMAIL: itmdirec@gmail.com IP: 207.255.167.219 URL: http://www.theinternettimemachine.com DATE: 11/12/2010 11:52:25 PM First time I have seen content and urinating in the same article, but nicely done! I think in the case of writing content, the "sticker" can simply be the goal that the writer or website owner has in mind. Success happens when that sticker is hit or it is missed if it strays too far to the right or left. Thanks for the laugh! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adrian Grossett EMAIL: adrian@creare.co.uk IP: 86.157.241.104 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 11/17/2010 05:02:04 AM Yes good info I will be passing this one across to the content writer team - Thanks ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Use Different Media to Accomplish Different Goals STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: use-different-media-to-accomplish-different-goals CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: entertainment marketing CATEGORY: video DATE: 11/12/2010 12:06:10 AM ----- BODY:

Listened to an excellent overview from Ann Marie Kelly from Gfk MRI today who talked about consumer research and magazines.

One piece of research that stood out was focused on how consumers engage in different media for different reasons. Television, radio, the Internet, magazines and newspapers were discussed in detail. Each one of these distribution outlets are used by consumers in the following primary ways.

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Television - for entertainment
Radio - puts me in a good mood
Internet - a key source of learning
Magazines - keeping up-to-date with the latest styles and trends
Newspapers - to be informed with the latest news

Although buyers use each source of media for different reasons, marketers can focus on packaging content in certain ways to accomplish specific marketing and engagement objectives. Abe Peck from the Medill School of Journalism, suggests that print magazines are important to "give people what they really didn't know they wanted". If that's your goal, choose print over the Internet. If your content needs to help consumers solve a specific problem, then choose the web. Entertainment? Your choice is video.

Choose wisely.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Strategy vs. Content Marketing vs. Inbound Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-strategy-vs-content-marketing-vs-inbound-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 11/04/2010 10:37:40 PM ----- BODY:

I had the opportunity to present at Hubspot this week for the New England Content Strategy meetup. During the presentation (slideshare below), the group of content strategists and marketers spent over 30 minutes discussing the differences and similarities between content strategy, content marketing and inbound marketing.

You'll see how I define each of them in the presentation, but this was offered by Kyle James at Hubspot:

"There is a TON of overlap, but each has a slightly specific mandate. Coming from a long line of southern Methodist ministers you could also probably say that Baptists, Methodists and Presbyterians make a pretty good analogy. They are all Christians who follow and believe in what the Bible says, but they all 'interpret' the exact doctrine a little differently. The biggest difference here is that Christianity is thousands of years old. Content strategy/content marketing/inbound marketing is all of about what 5% that age."

By the end of the conversation, here was the consensus:

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"Content strategy / Content marketing / Inbound marketing...let's all get over ourselves. It's pretty much all the same s**t."

Personally, I use content strategy when I'm talking to journalists and content strategists.

I use content marketing when I'm talking to sales and marketing professionals.

I use inbound marketing when I'm talking to small businesses.

There are another 30 names for this including branded content, customer media, custom publishing and the list goes on. Frankly, we should use whatever name that resonates with a company enough that they motivated to do something about it.

Here's my stab at what content marketing inbound strategy would look like as combination soup:

How a brand creates, delivers and governs original or curated content to attract and retain customers, positioning the brand as a credible expert and, ultimately, motivating a change in behavior.

We are indeed all media companies today and it really doesn't matter what you call it.

State of Content Marketing - New England Content Strategy Meetup

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, content strategy, inbound marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jim Pennypacker EMAIL: jpennypacker@dancecommunications.com IP: 71.224.230.69 URL: http://dancecommunications.com DATE: 11/05/2010 10:19:55 AM Joe, It's easy for folks to say all these terms mean the same thing (or almost the same thing), but I'm happier when we don't jumble meanings and create confusion and/or miscommunication. I prefer to differentiate content strategy (thinking about goals, plans, measures of success) from content execution (research, writing, editing, design, production). Also, I think you narrowed your definition of content marketing inbound strategy a bit too much with the phrase "positioning the brand as a credible expert." I consider that to be thought leadership marketing, a subset of content marketing. If you simply removed that phrase from your definition I think you're on the mark. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Taylor EMAIL: grtaylor2@mac.com IP: 98.177.243.154 URL: http://www.grt2studios.com/blog DATE: 11/05/2010 11:13:03 AM I agree with you - Content Marketing seems to be the big buzzword of 2010. When speaking to clients about interactive marketing, rather than losing them with the jargon "content marketing," I stress that we are creating marketing content and broadcasting it through multiple channels as dictated by their audience. Thanks for the blog, I enjoy your blog. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Roy Russo EMAIL: rrusso@loopfuse.com IP: 72.145.249.244 URL: http://www.loopfuse.com DATE: 11/05/2010 12:10:38 PM Hi Joe, What I feel is important for marketers to understand is how "content marketing" is employed across channels. I wrote a few articles recently that discuss the interrelation of Content, Channel, and Customer. http://www.loopfuse.com/blog/2010/11/01/4cs-of-b2b-marketing-campaign-customer-channel-content/ This one has a pretty picture: ;-) http://www.loopfuse.com/blog/2010/11/04/b2b-marketing-where-does-the-funnel-begin/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.126.115 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/05/2010 03:03:30 PM @Jim...thanks. Interesting your position on thought leadership marketing. I guess my take on content marketing is that, if done right, it's inherently thought leadership. You've given me something to think about. Thanks Greg and Roy...I'll check out the articles. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lee Odden EMAIL: lee@toprankmarketing.com IP: 173.165.235.193 URL: http://www.toprankblog.com DATE: 11/07/2010 10:57:18 AM As always, great discussion Joe. I like to keep it simple: "Aligning customer & brand objectives through content." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: @redlincook EMAIL: elisec@verticalmeasures.com IP: 68.3.224.23 URL: DATE: 11/07/2010 05:10:44 PM I agree that these three terms are related and often have overlap. I think that your slideshare presentation was on the mark, but going as far as stating that the three are all essentially the same is one step too far into oversimplification. Additionally, stating that using different terms depending on whom you are speaking with and what resonates with them, should be a given. You should do this, regardless of what you are talking about. Don't we all do that? It shouldn't make that person's individual lack of understanding of terms or vocabulary the new standard. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.126.115 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/07/2010 07:57:10 PM @Lee...perfect. @Redlin...I actually do agree with you, but I think it's more important that customers start thinking this way than worrying about what to call it. Some of this is just inside baseball, and gets in the way of helping customers in my opinion. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: @redlincook EMAIL: elisec@verticalmeasures.com IP: 68.3.224.23 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com/content-development DATE: 11/07/2010 10:05:10 PM I have to agree there-- for the customer it doesn't matter a bit and thanks for the clarification. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Z. Cordell EMAIL: scordell@szccommunications.com IP: 69.254.232.153 URL: http://www.SZCCommunications.com DATE: 11/08/2010 10:47:56 PM Content strategy, content marketing and inbound marketing — they're all different phases of the same s**t. Your strategy, which was created to support your inbound marketing (and, typically, a bunch of additional) goals, drives the creation and publication of your content. Thanks for the presentation and post. Good stuff to chew on! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Corey Eridon EMAIL: coreyeridon@gmail.com IP: 173.162.197.146 URL: DATE: 11/12/2010 09:30:50 AM This is an interesting post to read in conjunction with your Feb. 22 post on Inbound vs. Content Marketing (and the ensuing debate in the comments section). I appreciate the humor in saying these three things are all the same s**t, and also agree that for many of our clients, they very well may be. I'm on the side that says content marketing is a subset of inbound marketing, but I also believe inbound marketing is rendered mostly ineffective without content marketing backed up by a good content marketing strategy (Jim P., I agree with your differentiation of content strategy and content marketing). In a marketing forum, I think lumping the three terms together is a bit too general, but I think I see the spirit behind doing so; who cares what we call it as long as it works? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alex EMAIL: buzz@sahelmarketing.com IP: 75.36.215.212 URL: http://sahelmarketing.com DATE: 11/20/2010 10:19:49 AM All those concepts and terminologies are so new that at this point there are just nuances but mean pretty much the same thing. It's like the same goods using difference packages but each with a little surprise added in the box. As everything else in marketing, it's all about public perception. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Strategy and the Dying Art of Execution STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-strategy-execution CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 11/04/2010 05:40:08 AM ----- BODY:

Don't get me wrong, content marketing strategy is critical to the success of a content marketing project. Not having a content strategy is like playing baseball without the bases (envision people running everywhere...not a pretty site).

That said, I've seen a multitude of content strategies die for the following reasons.

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Lack of support from the executive team. They fail to understand why they can't talk about themselves all the time. They don't "get" the idea of content marketing. The brand ends up producing mediocre content without real organization and continues to think that content marketing doesn't work.
Lack of setting success criteria. This happens more often that you think. Ever hear the "we want to do a blog" request? The response to that request is "Why?" Understanding why you are creating and curating content seems like a "yeah, duh", but you'd be surprised how many times corporate content creators have no idea of the strategy behind their content execution. Result: the execution fails.
Lack of talent. Content marketing takes new skills. Combine a content strategist, a journalist and a marketer, a salesperson, a touch of Walt Whitman and you're halfway there. Just because we can doesn't mean we should with the talent we have. Hire more journalists.
Lack of consistency. Creating a content marketing plan is a promise to your customers that you are going to deliver information that helps them solve their pain points. Starting the plan, and then stopping it is like sewing up a wound halfway. Painful. Marketing agencies around the world have blogs where the most recent posts are from March. Ouch!
Lack of integration. There is no such thing a just a blog, just a custom magazine or just a webinar. These things work as part of a content marketing system, which works inside of your entire marketing program. Do me a favor...take the content creators out of the basement and get them talking with your marketing team. If content indeed is the center of your marketing strategy, you need to act like it and show your employees (and C-level) that it matters.
Lack of promotion. No, if you create information on your website in the form of a blog, article or ebook, people won't just come naturally and neither with Kevin Costner (Field of Dreams reference). You have to work it.
Lack of effective outsourcing. Outsource effectively or be effectively outsource. The majority of brands outsource portions of their content marketing. Outside expertise is mandatory for truly great content. We need people on the outside that don't have OUR brand or sales hats on. Find them, use them, make them part of your team.
Lack of a call to action. What do you want people to do when they engage with your content? If you don't know, how do you know what success looks like?

Yes, content strategy is critical, but execution is king for content marketing. Frankly, you need both.

Where is your "lack of"?

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content strategy, content marketing, execution ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Saar EMAIL: jonathansaar@gmail.com IP: 76.240.22.136 URL: http://jonathansaar.com DATE: 11/04/2010 09:43:10 AM I particularly liked point 4 on consistency. (not that I did no like the others) Even though I blog for my company a couple times a week I have the biggest challenge with my editorial list of topics. Something that I am trying to get disciplined at by keeping a book where I can jot thoughts down. Great reminders so I shared them on my personal FB page. Thanks Joe. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.126.115 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/04/2010 10:47:10 AM Thanks Jonathan...consistency is where most companies fall down...probably because it's the hardest. Anyone can create great content once in a while, but to do it consistently...that's another thing. Keep at it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christina Pappas EMAIL: cpa@zmags.com IP: 209.48.54.2 URL: http://www.zmags.com DATE: 11/04/2010 11:22:30 AM Enjoyed the post Joe! Although we post consistently, or rather are on target to, I feel the topics are inconsistent at times. While we 'talk' to marketers, there is just such a broad range of topics that we can discuss. How do we pick a theme and stick to it? We do, but its hard! My consistent 'delivery' issues are with Feedburner. We cannot be successful if the tool doesn't work. Trying to switch now... I would also love to see some ideas on promotion. How are people doing this? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chad Butz EMAIL: cbutz@wearebourne.com IP: 86.15.9.73 URL: http://www.wearebourne.com DATE: 11/05/2010 07:01:28 AM Hi Joe - nice article. I'd add one more point: Inappropriate technology choices. Many large businesses are too dependent on IT for the publication of content because they are overly tied to 'enterprise technology' or they are not using it correctly. Business must either 1) configure it correctly so that the people who need to get content out quickly can do so without getting in the IT queue, or 2) take a two tier approach to technology where enterprise technology is mixed with platforms that allow non-tech individuals to get content programs out quickly and easily, such as blog engines or marketing automation tools. Both involve marketing wrestling back some control of the technology planning process from IT - a particularly difficult challenge in large corporates. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.126.115 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/05/2010 09:01:45 AM @Christina...not sure if you already have something, but an editorial calendar is a must here. This post might help. http://www.contentmarketinginstitute.com/2010/08/content-marketing-editorial-calendar/ And, regarding promotion, although this is for contractors, some really helpful tips. http://socialtract.com/2010/10/blogging-guide-hvacr-contractors-ebook/ @Chad - love the addition. This is so true. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jim O'Hare EMAIL: johare@biomedia.us IP: 75.187.212.234 URL: http://www.biomedia.us DATE: 11/05/2010 09:11:32 AM Perhaps the best boss I've ever had, the VP of Global Marketing for a Fortune 250 company, used this quote over and again: "No strategy ever failed in the PowerPoint." Everything always works in the "PowerPoint" phase - the speaker is enthusiastic, heads in the audience bob - but unless it's executed, well, it remains only a well-intended strategy. Thanks, Randy Freeman. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: @redlincook | Content Development EMAIL: elisec@verticalmeasures.com IP: 68.3.224.23 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com/content-development DATE: 11/07/2010 05:30:01 PM I love this post! Neglecting the task of determining the tools and criteria for success measurement is where I see many companies struggle today. I couldn't agree more that "Frankly, you NEED both". The content strategy and execution must both be in sync for success to happen. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: D Custom EMAIL: kristen.bohn@dcustom.com IP: 66.226.212.82 URL: http://blog.dcustom.com/ DATE: 11/09/2010 05:18:13 PM We find that sometimes the lack of consistency comes from the fluctuation of clients’ marketing budgets. It’s paramount to the process that the client understands how hard it is to gain momentum for your content and how easy it is to lose momentum for your content. You can't overstate the importance of consistency. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Daniel Oyston EMAIL: danieloyston@gmail.com IP: 124.171.108.185 URL: http://theoysterproject.cblogspot.com DATE: 11/11/2010 05:59:13 AM All very good points. I work for a SME providing services to government departments. We are involved in a lot of shaping the market and so I have employed a thought leadership strategy which has a very nice synergy with content marketing. I created a guide to thought leadership within my company to help educate staff as there isn’t much of a marketing culture. I just sanitised it and posted it as a 3 part series on my blog. Maybe your readers would find it useful. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 64.115.220.149 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/11/2010 06:31:08 AM Sure Danial...would love to see it. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 1-how-did-you-come-to-consider-content-as-a-maketing-tool-many-of-us-were-used-to-look-quite-exclusively-to-images DATE: 10/29/2010 03:57:52 PM ----- BODY:

1 – How did you come to consider “Content” as a maketing tool? Many of us were used to look quite exclusively to images, or just specific baselines (or promotional messages) to take interest in products, companies, or services? Content has been used as a marketing tool for hundreds of years....it's only now getting it's due with the rise of social media, search engine optimization and lead generation tactics. Here's the real key though...it's almost impossible to get customers' attention today. They are bombarded by messages. If your brand message is promotional, they have to want to receive that message in order for it to work. But what if the message is truly valuable, relevant, educational or entertaining. That message, a content marketing message, cuts through all the sales clutter and can connect with customers. Why? Because it's valuable to the customer...not that you want to sell them something. Also, regarding social media...social media doesn't work without valuable, compelling and consistent content. No one is going to share your sales message. 2 – There is a real crisis in the world of media and publishing (newspapers, TV) despite their pertinent work of commenting actuality. On the other hand, new networks as Twitter, Facebook, but also blogs seem to grow with success in the public audiecne? What is the difference? Do you think people is going more to “close” or personal media” and does not feel anymore involved or concerned in global media? I si ti only a question of cost of the traditonal media facing a new “free” information era? Not sure I would agree here in the states. Media is flourishing. There has never been a time when more media of so many different types have been engaged with. The challenge is that traditional publishing business models don't work as well anymore. That said, brands are picking up the slack and creating their own magazines, online video shows and more because they have the budget to underwrite these initiatives and don't have to support it with advertising. I believe that people engage in the media they want to go either get what they need to get done or learn/be entertained with something new. There are just more of these choices than ever before. Different media for different things. People still want sports updates on ESPN, but want to talk to their friends on Facebook, connect with business people on LinkedIn...it all depends. 3 - How do you define the role of a “Content Manager” today? I would probably say "Chief Content Officer". This is the person who is responsible for the customer and prospect messaging from all media...most of which is online. This is the person that really has to understand the informational needs of the customer, and how the brand can develop interesting content to position that brand as the expert in the industry. Every employee has a little bit of "content manager" in them because many employees today create content for the company, but only one is responsible for the overall messaging and process. 4 – You are defending a content which is not “selling” but telling about an experience of life (tasting, travelling, listening, feeling healthy, ...), but how to position your business with that way. Is new content more trustfull and stimulating for sales than an objective information on what you do? Sales content doesn't go away, we still need it, but consumers can find out 99% about a company on their own without guidance from salespeople or sales content even. So, in order to be interesting and inspire people, the content cannot be all about the company's products and services. It has to be about the customer - their pain points, their struggles, and the company needs to provide solutions for those in the form of text, graphics, video, audio, social media and more. If a company understands the needs of the customer, and can deliver solutions to them through content, they ultimate position themselves as the go-to resource for that kind of information, and when they are ready to buy, they'll be much more likely to buy from the company that provides that kind of information. 5 – Are we leaving the “Age of Journalism” to enter “the Age of Suggestive Writers”? I would say the Age of Content Marketing - which ultimately is Corporate Journalism - exceptional content - the best content in the world on a subject, but from a brand. Pure journalism will always have its place, and their also will be a lot of bad content marketing, but good content marketing scales and builds businesses. It is now the center of most marketing programs because, ultimately, the customers have complete control. Brands never really had control, they only thought they did.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 13 Content Marketing Commandments STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 13-content-marketing-commandments CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/29/2010 01:33:26 PM ----- BODY:

I've had multiple versions of Mark Fletcher's startup commandments on my wall for years now. Whenever I get a little lost in our startup model, I review these. It keeps me sane.

I've modified a few of these related to content marketing. If you're stuck on your content marketing strategy, I hope these new commandments will help.

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Your content isn't new. Get over your stunning brilliance and realize that execution matters more. Do it better, in more channels where your customers are than anyone else.
Stealth content sucks. You're not working on the Manhattan project, Einstein. Get something out and promote the heck out of it (before creation, during creation, post creation).
If you don't have scaling problems with your content marketing, you're not moving fast enough.
People will tell you they know more than you do. If that's really the case, you shouldn't be doing content marketing.
Perfection is the enemy of good enough. Leonardo could paint the Mona Lisa only once. If you wait for perfection, you'll never distribute content of any kind. Great content doesn't have to be perfect. Frankly, there is no perfect.
Being a content strategist will teach you what it's like to be a manic depressive. They, at least, can take medication.
Your content marketing isn't working? You have two options: go home with your tail between your legs or do something about it. What's it going to be?
If you don't pay attention to your competitors' content marketing, they will turn out to be geniuses and will crush you. If you do pay attention to them, they will turn out to be idiots and you will have wasted your time. Which would you prefer?
Content marketing is not a democracy. Want a democracy? Go run for class president, Bueller. Someone needs to be running the strategy (chief content officer).
You will have at least one content catastrophe every three months.
Outsource effectively or be effectively outsourced.
People will think your content ideas suck. They might even be right. The only way to prove them wrong is to succeed.
Content marketing requires complete attention and devotion. Thought your first love in high school was clingy? You can't take out a restraining order on your content marketing. It never ends (content promise).

Now go get 'em tiger! For more, here's 30 content marketing truths to live by.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing commandments ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matt EMAIL: matt@parthenonpub.com IP: 75.145.49.105 URL: http://parthenonpub.com/blog DATE: 10/29/2010 05:20:17 PM Great post. 5. Especially online. 9. Amen. With too many hands in the pot, content marketing efforts can quickly dilute a brand if not reined in. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eddie Gear EMAIL: editor@theapptimes.com IP: 59.164.51.26 URL: http://theapptimes.com DATE: 11/02/2010 08:27:23 AM Great post! I'm taking a print out of these commandments and putting it up on my wall! I could relate a lot to point 5 on Perfection. Sometimes i get so obsessed with perfecting what I do, I never get the thing done! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Elise | Vertical Measures EMAIL: elisec@verticalmeasures.com IP: 68.3.224.23 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com DATE: 11/03/2010 04:19:59 AM I love these! I might have to post these on my wall too. I tend to like to build concensus, and I need to remind myself of #9 every now and again. Much appreciated. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adrian Grossett EMAIL: adrian@creare.co.uk IP: 86.157.241.104 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 11/04/2010 05:35:57 AM Great info - thanks for sharing I am passing it on immediately! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Kidder EMAIL: jonathan-kidder@bethel.edu IP: 75.146.33.113 URL: http://priorityresults.com/blog/feeding-the-web-content-monster/ DATE: 11/10/2010 12:34:09 PM I love this post! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Value of Not Having to Explain STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-value-of-not-having-to-explain CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: measurement CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 10/28/2010 07:18:20 AM ----- BODY:

Read an interesting post from Seth Godin today on measurable media. It's worth a look.

The point: You can be successful by only doing things that are measurable, but, there may be a huge opportunity in unmeasurable media. This is where the risk-takers go.

Here's an example. I talked with one of our clients this week about the impact of their content marketing program. Basically I asked the question "what is it doing for you?"

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Here was the response:

We measure traffic, conversions to contact us, signups to the enewsletter...those things are all doing well and would justify the program. BUT, the biggest impact is this - I don't have to explain what we do anymore. I don't have to spend multiple conversations positioning our value. In most cases, they've already engaged in our content online, which tells them the best story about how we can help them. It's hard to measure that, but it's been simply amazing. I can't tell you that the ultimate lead or business is only because of the content, but I'm not sure it could have been possible without the content either.

What is the value of not having to explain what you do or what you stand for? And even beyond that, what is the value of connecting with someone that likes the content you are creating so much that they don't know what you do and want to figure out ways to work with you anyway.

Measurable?...maybe, maybe not depending on how you look at it. Opportunity? Yes.

Content Marketing.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: explaining with content ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott Paley EMAIL: scott@abstractedge.com IP: 173.64.124.176 URL: http://blog.abstractedge.com DATE: 10/28/2010 09:30:54 AM This is a huge benefit of content marketing. I have a post that expands on this idea, showing some of the immediate benefits of blogging, including credibility, self-selection and cross-selling. I'd say the first and last of those applies directly to your post. http://blog.abstractedge.com/2010/10/blogging-is-for-closers/ You're absolutely correct. Anything that helps a potential customer understand the breadth of what you offer and adds to your instant credibility will greatly help your business, whether or not those efforts are directly measurable. In fact, we just won a new client and I know they spent a good amount of time reading our blog content. Do I know 100% that the content was a factor in their decision? No, not yet (though I intend to ask). But I'm pretty sure it helped. I can say definitively that they came back with some follow-up questions that came directly from things they had read on the blog. Our content, at the very least, helped to move along the conversation, which ultimately led to the deal. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: viaggi sportivi EMAIL: sfaf@gmail.com IP: 93.36.97.140 URL: http://www.viaggisportivi.it DATE: 10/29/2010 04:12:05 AM I am a risk-taker and do agree with you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Trinity EMAIL: bizlaunch.ca@gmail.com IP: 110.55.235.22 URL: http://www.bizlaunch.com/ DATE: 10/31/2010 10:10:22 AM Content has a great impact on readers, on personal level I usually spend time reading a content provided before deciding to engage. It plays a big part on your online success. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Kidder EMAIL: jonathan-kidder@bethel.edu IP: 75.146.33.113 URL: http://priorityresults.com/blog/feeding-the-web-content-monster/ DATE: 11/03/2010 02:05:52 PM Web Content will always be king! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Save the Date - Content Marketing World 2011 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: save-the-date-content-marketing-world-2011 CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 10/21/2010 11:05:19 PM ----- BODY:

Okay content marketers...here's your event.

Junta42 and the Content Marketing Institute are launching the premiere international content marketing event entitled Content Marketing World 2011. The event will be held in Cleveland, Ohio September 6 - 8, 2011.

For three days, the best and the brightest from the content marketing industry will converge on the Rock 'n' Roll capital of the world to share the latest industry trends, success stories, best practices and more.

And, we are going to have some major fun, C-Town style.

If you'd like to receive more information, click here. Otherwise, save the date and spread the word.

Looking forward to seeing you in Cleveland in September!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing world ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Your Content Strategy Mission Statement STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: your-content-strategy-mission-statement CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 10/20/2010 11:39:17 AM ----- BODY:

In my presentations lately, I've been talking about developing content that stands for something.

Basically, content marketing is not about "what you sell" it's "what you stand for". This becomes the basis for your content marketing strategy. This is your content mission. It's based on the informational needs of your customers and prospects, and also inherently drives your business (interest in you as the expert in your industry).

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Some examples perhaps:

How about Gary Vaynerchuk and Wine Library TV?: It's not about selling wine. It's about the idea that everyone, everywhere deserves to understand the wine experience. That's what Gary talks about all day long and why he draws such an audience.

How about Southwest?: It's not about selling plane rides (what they do), it's about the idea that everyone deserves the freedom to fly...to travel.

How about Junta42?: It's that all marketers need to think and act like publishers to attract and retain customers.

So what is your content strategy mission?

As you plan for 2011 and beyond, be sure you are aware of what your content really stands for and how you can make a difference in your customers' lives. That will set the tone for your entire content strategy.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Robert Samuel EMAIL: bbblueprint@gmail.com IP: 74.160.197.92 URL: http://www.beautybusinessblueprint.com/ DATE: 10/20/2010 02:44:03 PM Great content mission examples here. This makes me realize that I need to take a look at my mission statement and see if my content really expresses who we are as a business and a team. :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Mitchell EMAIL: sarah@globalcopywriting.com IP: 59.100.233.220 URL: http://www.globalcopywriting.com DATE: 10/21/2010 08:12:52 PM Hi Joe, I love the idea of a content strategy mission statement. I hadn't thought about it in these terms before but as soon as I read your post I knew I had one. My content strategy mission is: Content should be asset to your business, not an expense. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.98.203 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/21/2010 08:19:25 PM @Robert...thanks for the comment @Sarah...I really like that one. I may steal it. Good stuff. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vijay EMAIL: goldencityjaipur.com@gmail.com IP: 59.95.183.203 URL: http://www.goldencityjaipur.com DATE: 10/22/2010 08:08:01 AM I like these lines most because this inspires me to changes live with content strategy. "How you can make a difference in your customers' lives. That will set the tone for your entire content strategy" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan Hutson EMAIL: dan@pokethebeehive.com IP: 64.47.116.130 URL: http://www.pokethebeehive.com DATE: 10/22/2010 11:36:58 AM We're in the midst of a rebranding initiative, and I can tell you that content marketing will play a key role in our communication and marketing efforts. We're a nonprofit provider of senior living communities and other supportive services. My unofficial (at this point) content marketing mission statement: We provide a platform for successful aging. Delivering useful information, products and services that help seniors and their families understand the key factors behind successful aging and assist them in making the right choices are all part of that platform. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.98.203 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/22/2010 11:39:01 AM I love this Dan...you've always been a big supporter of content marketing and love to see this mission statement. It truly serves a purpose. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tia Peterson EMAIL: tiapeterson@webbedinkinc.com IP: 70.190.222.104 URL: http://www.webbedinkinc.com DATE: 10/22/2010 07:58:38 PM Thanks for this examples. It seems much harder to do than it probably is; I'm preparing to get started on a project using content marketing for a specific e-course, and hadn't even thought of coming up with a mission statement for the strategy. It makes total sense, though, and I can see how having one and using it as the cornerstone, developing content around that mission statement, makes complete sense. Thank you! Tia ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nenad EMAIL: nenad.senic@p-m.si IP: 82.192.55.88 URL: http://www.p-m.si DATE: 10/23/2010 11:53:18 AM Thx, Joe. My mission this weekend: "What is our mission?" :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Douglas (Watkins) EMAIL: douglasadams@allwellbeing.com IP: 66.87.2.125 URL: http://allwellbeing.com/ DATE: 10/24/2010 02:52:23 PM A content strategy mission statement is a great idea. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Useful Content Marketing Resources STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-useful-content-marketing-resources CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/14/2010 10:03:04 PM ----- BODY:

We've been working on a web content inventory and ran through a number of oldie-but-goodie content marketing resources. Hope they're helpful.

The Content Marketing Playbook
Our most popular eBook...42 different ways to leverage content marketing. Includes over 50 case studies. Here's the Spanish version.

20 Questions to Ask Before You Launch Your Content Project
Before you launch, be sure to read these 20 important questions.

100 Social Media & Content Marketing Predictions for 2010
Almost ready to dig into the 2011 edition. This one is a classic. Some are even right.

30 Content Marketing Truths
One of my favorite posts of all time. Print and save.

42+ Social Media Marketing Tools
Still the 2nd most popular post in Junta42 blog history.

2010 B2B Content Marketing: Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends
Incredibly powerful research from MarketingProfs and Junta42.

7 Reasons Print Will Make a Comeback in 2011
I still believe this. One reason why we are launching a magazine.

How to Put together an Editorial Calendar for Content Marketing
One of my favorites from Michele Linn with the Content Marketing Institute.

How to Effectively Manage the Content Marketing Process
Struggling with content marketing madness? This will help.

Five Reasons Why Content Strategy Comes Before Social Media
It was right then, and right today...social media doesn't work without a story.

Enjoy!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing resources ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cindy Lavoie EMAIL: clavoie@soundwebsolutions.com IP: 98.232.51.13 URL: http://www.soundwebsolutions.com/blog/ DATE: 10/15/2010 04:59:23 PM Great collection - thanks for the list. The more I work in Internet Marketing & SEO the more convinced I become that Content Marketing is both the more strategic form of SEO and also the future of the profession. It's the natural evolution of SEO from its early technical orientation to a core marketing focus. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eddie Gear EMAIL: editor@theapptimes.com IP: 59.164.50.167 URL: http://theapptimes.com DATE: 10/16/2010 10:12:57 PM Excellent resources. Thanks for sharing them. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chrise EMAIL: chris.mon91@yahoo.com IP: 196.201.217.253 URL: http://www.kenya-travel-packages.com/kenya-economy.html DATE: 10/17/2010 12:21:30 PM I would add Ken Evoy's Make your content presell. Wonderfully explains why content is king and although a little dated, it is an excellent resource. And you can download it free here: http://mycps.sitesell.com/freedom84.html ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Taylor EMAIL: grt2@grt2studios.com IP: 98.177.243.154 URL: http://www.grt2studios.com/blog DATE: 10/17/2010 11:53:05 PM This list is a great resource for content marketing. Thanks for compiling the list and posting. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Mills EMAIL: info@stevemillsmarketing.com IP: 81.187.17.86 URL: http://www.stevemillsmarketing.com DATE: 10/18/2010 06:38:50 AM Great site, very interesting articles. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing Ginger Ale STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-ginger-ale CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/13/2010 11:38:44 AM ----- BODY:

The Texas Rangers won the division pennant last night in five games over the Tampa Bay Rays, and will move on to face the New York Yankees for the American League championship.

One of the star hitters for the Texas Rangers is Josh Hamilton. Josh won the AL batting title this year, hit 32 home runs and drove in 100 runners. He's one of the most feared hitters in the game. He's also had major issues with alcohol and drug abuse for years.

Upon winning the pennant, the majority of teams would normally douse each other in showers of champagne. Josh was prepared to celebrate in seclusion so his teammates could party like teams have done for hundreds of years. You see, Josh can't even be close to alcohol.

But back in the locker room, the Rangers put away their alcoholic beverages and substituted them for Ginger Ale so that Josh could be part of the celebration. A few of the Rangers' teammates placed goggles on Hamilton, escorted him into the locker room, and in unison, the Rangers yelled "Ginger Ale," covering Josh in the non-alcoholic substitute.

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“It was the coolest thing for my teammates to understand why I can’t be a part of the celebration, and for them to adapt it for me to be a part of it says a lot about my teammates.”

So, what did the Rangers do?

They clearly understood Josh's needs, situation and pain points. (define informational needs)
They wanted Josh to be part of the celebration. (set objectives)
They mobilized the team around the event, purchased the ginger ale, appointed the key players. (planning)
They executed on the plan. (execution)
They talked to him after the celebration to make sure he was okay with it. (feedback)
They documented, spread and repurposed the story. (repurposing, word-of-mouth, social sharing)

Now, we can't go around showering our customers with ginger ale (not necessary, not possible and frankly, some just won't like it), but we can shower our customers with content marketing ginger ale every day, creating content gifts that solve their pain points, both personal and business-related. We can create information that's seemingly created just for them...and for that you will be rewarded with loyalty and business.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Josh Hamilton, content marketing, ginger ale ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: bill pryor EMAIL: billpryor@comcast.net IP: 24.60.163.87 URL: http://www.contentmarketinginstitute.com DATE: 10/15/2010 10:04:29 AM In an era of scandalous atheletic knucklehead behavior --- what a joy to read something like this. These guys "figured it out" ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing R&D STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-r-d CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/07/2010 08:41:04 AM ----- BODY:

We've just added a new budgeting line item in our marketing plan: Content Marketing Research & Development (R&D).

What's the idea?

Let's start with the content marketing strategy. Of course, we have:

Customer Personas
Their Informational Needs
The Content Strategy
Calls to Action
Content Creation and Sourcing
Key Distribution Points
Syndication/Repurposing Opportunities
Community-Building Activities
Feedback Mechanisms
and more

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That's our standard content marketing strategy. But over the past few years there have always been certain "test" projects that fall outside the scope of the strategy. Experimentation for growth let's call it. These include:

Second-Tier Prospect Content Strategies
Online Content Products that fall outside the main .com sites
Data-Driven Tools
Intense Repurposing (testing new online channels with content pockets)

These are not primary activities, but could be someday. But we need to test them, and they need funding, just like you would fund a startup company. They also need attention.

So, we've allocated funds for 2011 specifically for these activities. We now believe that these activities should be part of the content marketing process. We are planning about 10 - 20% of our content marketing budget to go toward content marketing R&D.

How about you?

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing R&D, content marketing research and development ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Taylor EMAIL: grt2@grt2studios.com IP: 98.177.243.154 URL: http://www.grt2studios.com DATE: 10/12/2010 07:20:42 PM I've recently developed a Content Marketing Scorebook to analyze and evaluate client's content vs. the competition's - that's where GRT2 Studios R7D budget went to in Q2 & 3 of 2011. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Barry EMAIL: steve.barry@forum.com IP: 66.31.66.247 URL: http://www.forum.com/blog DATE: 10/27/2010 11:39:05 AM Do you have any more info on putting flesh around these bullet points of the strategy? Questions to answer, etc? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 64.197.96.194 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/28/2010 04:03:19 AM Hi Steve...thanks for the question. Here are a couple to check out. Content Marketing Process http://www.contentmarketinginstitute.com/2010/06/managing-content-marketing-process/ BEST Content Marketing Strategy http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/09/the-best-method-for-content-strategy.html ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The 80/20 Rule of Corporate Content STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-80-20-rule-of-corporate-content CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/06/2010 07:06:19 AM ----- BODY:

I was reading a book last night with my two boys right before bedtime. In the story was a girl named Jan. Jan was new at school and was trying to make friends with the other children.

Unfortunately, no one wanted to play with Jan, as she was left alone on the swing by herself during playtime. Why? Jan only talked about herself. She told the other children what a nice house she had; how many video games she had; about her cool dog who could do tricks; about how she was the most popular girl in her former school.

It was all about Jan. And the kids didn't just ignore her, they went out of their way to avoid her.

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It's obvious, right? Marketers inherently know that the more they talk about themselves the more they are ignored by customers. And yet, even though we know this, most companies actually do talk about themselves.

The 80/20 Rule of Content

The more we work with brands the more we find this to be true. Let me explain.

80% of the information (content) we develop inside companies is about our customers. We write proposals trying to solve customer challenges. We develop customer service FAQs to answer questions. We pen emails across the enterprise about how this customer needs this and that customer needs that.

20% of the content we create is sales-related content. It talks about our products and features and how wonderful we are. This is Jan.

So, the internal content we develop on a daily basis is almost exclusively focused on our customer.

Then a horrible thing happens. Before we let all that 80% of goodness be shared with our customers (through traditional/social media and other distribution outlets), a marketing expert strategically blocks it to focus on how wonderful we (the brand) are.

So, even though 80% of our content is actually about our customers and will help solve their challenges, live better lives, do better at work - in reality, the real 80% of content we share is about us and how great we are.

It still amazes me why companies don't understand why their social media programs are ineffective.

Are you Jan? Are customers trying to avoid you?

Want to learn more? Try this free white paper on attracting and retaining customers with content marketing.

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----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christine EMAIL: christine@onlineprnews.com IP: 76.83.220.55 URL: http://www.onlineprnews.com DATE: 10/06/2010 08:47:04 AM HaHa! This story of Jan is perhaps the best, simplest, yet most clearly illustrated example of why it is so important to be customer-centric with your messages. Even in that 20% that you talk about, there are still probably ways to frame how your knowledge/ experience/ accomplishments are a customer benefit. (We've worked with hundreds of clients over the years and what that means for you is... ) Thanks for this Joe - I love it! What ever happened to Jan? Did she eventually change her ways? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patricia Martin EMAIL: pat@litlamp.com IP: 99.63.179.95 URL: http://www.litlamp.com DATE: 10/06/2010 09:06:10 AM Clever use of narrative to lead into your harder hitting message. It's so true. I suppose the 80/20 formula was always true, but social media empowered the user and gave their eyeballs someplace else to go for the content they do want. Now brands are forced to engage and listen. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.98.203 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/06/2010 11:18:31 AM Thanks Christine and Patricia! @Christine...I'll find out tonight when we finish the book. I sure hope she does or it's going to be a sad ending. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rachel Nislick EMAIL: rnislick@ptc.com IP: 166.137.138.29 URL: http://www.PTC.com DATE: 10/06/2010 11:50:05 AM Great post Joe. Keep it super simple like that and it demystifies content marketing for those who are new to it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: K. Mayer EMAIL: kathrynmayer@charter.net IP: 24.151.116.71 URL: http://returntoworkmom.blogspot.com/ DATE: 10/06/2010 12:47:34 PM It is that simple. Get other people talking about you -- they'll do the selling! Do you have any idea how hard it is to convince old schoolers of this? AGGH. I'm done trying. Screw 'em, can't let him hold me back. Am taking what I'm learning and applying it to myself and letting bossman stand by his branding identity rules. See ya, cuz guess what? People are talking about me. Oooh, this is good. I like this. A lot. http://returntoworkmom.blogspot.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Kirstein EMAIL: skirstein@onprocess.com IP: 64.80.225.68 URL: http://www.onprocess.com DATE: 10/07/2010 09:15:50 AM Don't forget about the common variant: "But enough about me, let's talk about YOU. What do YOU think of me?" Thanks for the timely reminder. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jackie Ross EMAIL: jross@walkerinfo.com IP: 64.72.143.190 URL: http://www.walkerinfo.com DATE: 10/08/2010 02:13:40 PM I don't know whether to laugh or cry. You've nailed it. And my company is Jan. Sigh! First step - get everyone in our Marketing department T-shirts that say, "Don't be Jan." Second step, act on it. Thanks, Joe. Great read. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eddie EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 72.190.65.117 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 10/14/2010 10:24:35 PM This is a great comparison to a great point. Thanks for sharing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Frank Dale EMAIL: fdale@compendium.com IP: 70.236.76.249 URL: http://www.blogging.compendiumblog.com/blog/acquisition-marketing-blog DATE: 11/08/2010 03:54:27 PM Joe, well said! This is a consistent issue with many of the marketers I speak to around the country. As the wise Mike Bloxham says the best perspective to take is "why should they (he customer or prospective customer) care about you?" ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Is Quality Content Enough? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: is-quality-content-enough CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketers CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 10/01/2010 06:42:52 AM ----- BODY:

Brian Solis and Vocus just released a research report about what marketing executives think of online influence. When asked what the single most important action a brand can take to increase their influence online, 50% of marketers answered - create and share compelling content.

This research is in line with our recent findings that marketers are increasing their spending on content marketing.

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Just Create Content?

At first glance, the solution looks simple - create lots of compelling, valuable content and customers and prospects are drawn to you. Two points on this...

Creating compelling content is THE most challenging issue for marketers today (36% cite it as the biggest challenge). It's not easy.
Creating quality content by itself is not enough.

There is still a belief with many marketers that if they create quality content, the customers will come. Yes, content is at center of our marketing today, and definitely at the center of our social media.

Go out and create great content. Be the leader in your industry because you consistently share value. BUT, share it. Find out where your customers are hanging out and be there. That means online, offline and even in print. Get involved in authentic conversations.

You simply cannot be the trusted leader or content partner without actively being a part of the conversation. This is easy to say but hard to do (this is incredibly difficult for large brands).

Quality content is not enough. There is no silver bullet.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christina Pappas EMAIL: cpa@zmags.com IP: 209.48.54.2 URL: http://www.zmags.com DATE: 10/01/2010 09:34:51 AM I have seen a lot of debate on quality vs. quantity. I strongly believe that marketing and sales is on the same page (or almost there) in regards to the 'cease and desist' effort on talking about their product and are now focusing on producing content that helps customers, propsects and brand fans. Joe - what are your thoughts on quality vs. quantity? Do you think that companies should put out content to simply put out something with a few gems mixed in? Or do you think a few really great showstopping pieces is enough to gain traction? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: MaKenzie Birchell EMAIL: makenzie@bluewaterdirect.com IP: 69.11.130.18 URL: http://www.bluewaterdirect.com/blog DATE: 10/01/2010 10:12:07 AM Fantastic post! I'm a firm believer, both personally and professionally, in the importance of balance. Compelling content plays a large role, but balancing your quality and quantity will also improve effectiveness. Each company or individual should strive to find the right formula that works best for them, but will need to listen to their audience and make continual adjustments. Great information and thoughts, as always, Joe! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Taylor EMAIL: grt2@grt2studios.com IP: 98.177.243.154 URL: http://www.grt2studios.com DATE: 10/01/2010 03:49:30 PM Creating great content is just a step in the right direction with content marketing. The other half is finding and sharing other valuable articles and distributing them throughout your network. In my opinion, quality will always trump quantity when it comes to the value of content as long as the the time between content creation isn't too long. Thanks for the post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.98.203 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/01/2010 08:40:15 PM Thanks MaKenzie and Greg for your comments. Christina...to answer your questions, quality always comes first. There is no reason today why a brand can't consistently create great content. If it's just so-so content, there is no reason to put it out there with the other bad content that exists. Now if you can great lots of great content, that's fantastic. So, if I'm a brand, I'm focused on daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly content that is always stellar. Best in the business. If you can't do that, do what you can that is quality. If not, don't do it. Thanks again ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christine EMAIL: christine@onlineprnews.com IP: 76.83.220.55 URL: http://www.onlineprnews.com DATE: 10/04/2010 03:09:55 PM This is such an important post Joe. I believe that a company's attention to the quality of their content is such a reflection of the level of quality that customers perceive they will receive from that company. Thanks for this! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Gabriele Maidecchi EMAIL: maido@esimplestudios.com IP: 78.134.16.22 URL: http://blog.esimplestudios.com DATE: 10/04/2010 04:44:43 PM I agree that content is fundamental, however in today's world it's not just content that matters, but also how you present it. Awesome content presented in a sucky form often doesn't get the visibility it deserves, or doesn't get the deserved hits due to lack of a careful SEO work behind it. Let's face it, sadly, content is *not* everything. On the other side, SEO can be fixed, blog design can be enhanced, but if your contents suck, you're kind of doomed from the beginning. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Watkins EMAIL: douglasadams@allwellbeing.com IP: 71.83.13.241 URL: http://allwellbeing.com/ DATE: 10/05/2010 11:52:31 AM Quality of content is in direct proportion to the quality of your visitors user experience. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 35 Ways to Market Your Blog STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: ways-to-market-your-blog CATEGORY: business blogging CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 09/27/2010 10:53:00 PM ----- BODY:

It never fails. Almost all the businesses we come in contact with continue to look for ways to promote their blog. Here is a handy list of common and some uncommon ways to market your blog.

Promote it on your website. It's surprising the number of small and large companies that actually have a blog, but it's not promoted anywhere on the main site. We like Top 42 blogger PR 20/20 that not only has the blog on the navigation, but also lists the latest three blogs along the right side of the website.
Include the blog URL in your email signature. All employees are part of your marketing team today. Every time they send an email, it's a marketing opportunity.
Blog on Print. Put your blog address on your business cards, direct mail and print advertising.
Fan Yourself. Many business owners forget to tell employees to fan their own sites on Facebook and Follow on Twitter. Be sure employees know that you’d love if they shared relevant posts with their networks as well.
Leverage Twitter Hashtags. When you promote your blog via Twitter, use relevant hashtags (i.e., #marketing) that prospects may follow (try Twitag for more).
Post your blogs on Facebook.
Post to your LinkedIn status.
Submit to directories. Here's a huge blog directory list from TopRank).
Include in any press releases. By using services such as PR Newswire, Marketwire or PR Web, you can get your blog link placed in sites like Google, Yahoo! and sometimes hundreds of other sites (select the SEO option where they embed the links into the releases).
Post regularly. The more you blog, the more opportunity you have to be found. Consistency is key.
Guest post. Find blogs where your customers are hanging out and volunteer to blog. Be specific with the subject when you approach the blogger. It shows you did your homework. Also, bloggers are always looking to take a breather...as long as the information is relevant and valuable.
Interview. Bloggers love to be interviewed. Doing a post about them is a sure way to get your post spread around.
Submit your site to Google. Just in case your site isn't getting picked up.
Put your blog on company invoices as well as other correspondence to customers.
Showcase your employees on your blog (see Indium). Employees love to promote their own blogs (remember, they are your most important asset).
Develop an opt-in eNewsletter out of your weekly blog posts.
Talk about your blog when you speak at events.
Listen to customer issues on Twitter and respond with links to blog posts that answer their problems.
Be human. Stop talking like a company and start talking like a human. Write in your own voice.
Use the blog as your customer FAQ.
Focus on information your customers really need. If you provide valuable, relevant and compelling information via your blog, chances of success are good.
Use the right keywords. Leverage Google's keyword tool to find the terms that your customers are looking for.
Post your blog on social bookmarking sites like Digg, Reddit and Sphinn (Here's 233).
Don't hide your RSS button. If prospects like your blog, they might want to subscribe via email or RSS. Don't hide those buttons.
Create a list of bloggers. Then notify them that they made the list. If the list is good, they'll promote it, and possibly comment.
Use numbers in your title. Jay Baer found that his most popular posts almost always included a number in them (i.e. 9 steps, 4 types, etc.).
Comment on other blogs. It's hard to be a blogger if you don't share. Show your expertise on other blogs and leave valuable feedback.
Link to your other posts within your current post.
Go back to older posts and add new links to current posts.
Don't over complicate your site. Make it easy for people to get around and share.
Try a contest.
Find relevant forums to add your input (like Google Groups). Add your blog link to your signature line.
Have a point of view. If your posts are the same as everyone else's posts, who cares? Be different and get noticed.
Define your niche. Focus on an area that you can be the leading expert in. If your topic is too broad, you'll never be able to make a dent.
Never ever stop. Your blog is a promise to customers. This post is my 500th post over the last 3 1/2 years and it has, without question, been one of the main reasons for our success.

What did we miss?

Good luck! For more, check out 37 reasons to blog and these other helpful posts:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: blog marketing, market your blog ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Commodity Tips Online EMAIL: sharetips33@gmail.com IP: 122.177.110.11 URL: http://www.sharetipsexpert.com/Commodity_trading_tips.aspx DATE: 09/30/2010 03:16:59 AM Here are 5 uncommon methods that work well: Comments Social Networks Blogroll Widgets Offline Thank you ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adrian Grossett EMAIL: adrian@creare.co.uk IP: 86.159.245.18 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 09/30/2010 03:59:24 AM More great advice - you really do have to put the little extra in to Market your Blog successfully - but the benefits out way the extra time. Doing it correctly - by following your 35 steps - you will integrate with customers on all levels understanding what they exactly want from your service - its also a good way to encourage client feedback via social networking - in a more relaxed way. Thanks for sharing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lexa EMAIL: lexx13mua@gmail.com IP: 67.70.89.147 URL: http://makeupormorte.blogspot.com/ DATE: 09/30/2010 04:43:16 AM Excellent, helpful post. Thank you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: andrew EMAIL: ahanelly@tmgcustommedia.com IP: 4.59.151.66 URL: http://engage.tmgcustommedia.com DATE: 09/30/2010 09:06:19 AM #36: Create a list of great ideas that people will link to, bookmark as a resource, and share with their friends. Kind of like this one. Nicely done! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Clare McDermott EMAIL: clare@soloportfolio.com IP: 173.48.207.122 URL: http://soloportfolio.wordpress.com DATE: 10/01/2010 08:47:24 AM Awesome post. So many practical nuggets in here. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rob Berman EMAIL: rcberman2@yahoo.com IP: 24.61.65.201 URL: http://www.rob-berman.com DATE: 10/04/2010 09:40:07 AM A mix of reminders and new ideas. I have saved it and printed it out for my "To Do" list for the blog. Thanks, Rob ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rekrytering EMAIL: info@personalkontakten.se IP: 213.66.238.136 URL: http://www.personalkontakten.se DATE: 10/04/2010 10:01:51 AM this was an really intresting post. i will print this and read it on the plane. Keep writeing and i will follow u. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Elise Pitterle EMAIL: getinthemoneynow@gmail.com IP: 70.59.239.66 URL: DATE: 10/04/2010 12:38:15 PM Great list! I think that having a unique point of view so that visitors have a reason to follow you is extremely key, as well as having an uncomplicated site. Personally, when I land on a complicated site, it just makes me want to leave. Who else gets frustrated when they go to websites and blogs that are difficult to navigate? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adrian Grossett EMAIL: adrian@creare.co.uk IP: 86.160.1.115 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 10/12/2010 04:30:05 AM Yes brilliant information bookmarking and passing it on this one - thanks ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 4 Content Curation Ideas to Implement Now STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-curation-ideas CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketers CATEGORY: microsites DATE: 09/22/2010 07:52:23 AM ----- BODY:

I caught Paul Gillin's column in B2B magazine yesterday on how curation is the new creation. This quote hit home:

"...humans face a problem our species has never confronted before: We have too much information. Our challenge has shifted from finding what we need to filtering out what we don't. Today, curation is nearly as important as creation."

Paul also points out that curation is as old as collecting itself. It's NOT new (although it's the flavor of the month right now). Media companies have been curating content for centuries, but the idea of online content curation is something all content marketers need to consider as part of the content marketing plan.

Why? Brands must position themselves as the trusted industry experts. To do that, curation must be part of the mix.

Are you stuck on how exactly to do this? If so, here are some ideas to chew on.

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1. Lists
Generating the defacto list on something relevant to your customers is a good first step. For example, Junta42 has been curating the top content marketing blogs for over three years now. This list is one of our top 5 most popular pages, generates a number of enewsletter and blog signups, and has led to significant new business and lasting relationships. Since there are hundreds of excellent content sources out there on content marketing, the list helps marketers quickly find the best in just one click.

Your list could revolve around online resources, companies, buyer's guides, best practices and more. Find out what your customers really need to know and construct this helpful tool.

2. Curated Microsites
A curated microsite is a stand-alone website that brings in content from multiple sources around one niche topic. American Express has done this tremendously well with Open Forum (a mixture of new and curated content). Adobe (Omniture) has transformed CMO.com into the best digital marketing material for C-level marketers. Content Marketing Institute partner OpenView Venture Partners (a venture capital firm) has recently launched OpenView Labs, which seeks to become the ultimate resource for expansion-stage technology companies.

3. SmartBrief-Style eNewsletter
SmartBrief has created a business from developing curated enewsletters around dozens of business-related topics. You can too. Instead of creating and editing all original content, consider packaging the best of the industry each week in a tidy enewsletter. OpenView has done this with their enewsletter. So has Junta42, using a mix of original blog content and the best of the net (sign up here).

4. Curated Twitter Feed
The original concept for the Junta42 Twitter feed was exactly that - curating the best content marketing articles each day (now with over 350 listings). We get dozens, sometimes hundreds of people sharing this content each day, helping to position Junta42 as a leader in content marketing. The World Economic Forum does this perhaps better than anyone (with over 1.5 million followers).

Great content comes from almost anywhere these days. If your job is to position your brand as the leading expert in the industry, curation needs to be part of the equation.

What's your content curation idea? Would love to hear it.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content curation, ideas ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tony Karrer EMAIL: akarrer@techempower.com IP: 65.115.126.197 URL: http://www.browsemystuff.com DATE: 09/22/2010 12:40:05 PM Another way to do this is to reduce the curation effort by using Automated Filtering. That's the core concept behind Paper.li and Browse My Stuff. More ideas on this here: http://www.browsemystuff.com/wpblog/automated-filtering-human-powered-curation/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Harry Hoover EMAIL: harry@my-creativeteam.com IP: 66.157.121.31 URL: http://my-creativeteam.com/blog DATE: 09/22/2010 01:12:54 PM Each Monday on our blog, THINKing, we produce "Creativity 2010", a weekly curated round-up of creativity links. I'm considering starting "Thursday THINKing". In this post, I'd curate top content from my favorite blogs on PR, branding and social media. Not only is it helpful to our readers, it also provides some structure for the blog in that we have two days a week in which something new appears. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Taariq Lewis EMAIL: taariq@hivefire.com IP: 173.166.56.113 URL: http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com DATE: 09/22/2010 01:17:28 PM Great post Joe! You're quite correct that marketers must consider themselves as curators. However, most marketers aren't aware of the many critical business risks they face when they fail to leverage quality content curation. Here are 3 big ideas that I think marketers should consider if they don't curate: 1. Longer Sales cycles: The deluge of information for buyers means that sales people have to fight to nurture their prospects or risk losing to a smart content-marketing competitor. If marketers don’t curate, they risk losing an opportunity to SHORTEN the sales cycle for their sales team and help keep the attention of their prospects in a noisy marketplace. Here’s a blog post I wrote on that problem: http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com/articles/7552/three-ways-in-which-content-curation-helps-markete/ 2. Low Content Marketing ROI: Content Marketing ROI increases when marketers can take advantage of curated content to increase the impact of their marketing communication and marketing assets. Don’t curate? Well risk losing out on increasing the value of your marketing activity and lose out on fresh content, fast. I wrote a blog post on that, here: http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com/articles/14565/content-marketing-roi-3-ways-content-curation-opti/ 3. Lost Vendor Preference: How do you know that your customers consider you the VENDOR of AUTHORITY? That’s a competitive space and marketers that fail to establish comprehensive topic and issue authority will lose out to smart marketers who will move first and move quickly. If you’re not the vendor and absolute authority on your critical customer issues online, then your competitor is eating your lunch! I also wrote a post on that here: http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com/articles/4382/b2b-content-curation-adds-a-new-competitive-channe/ With www.getcurata.com, we remove these big online marketing pains because marketers are already overwhelmed and busy with new content solutions and new content channels. The risk to marketers for ignoring content curation is dramatic, but not everyone will get it, which is why not everyone will win. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matt EMAIL: matt@parthenonpub.com IP: 75.145.49.105 URL: http://parthenonpub.com/blog DATE: 09/22/2010 03:42:57 PM Great point and well made. In addition to the ones you mentioned, Techmeme has done an expert job here. The only addition to your list that I would make is curating offline sources. It may sound counter intuitive to be an online curator of offline information, but books, magazines, events, venue information, etc., offer a (sometimes overwhelming) wealth of information, and you can add real value by curating the best for your audience. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.159.75 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/22/2010 09:41:23 PM @Tony - really like the paper.li stuff. @Taariq - I've heard great things about your product and thanks for commenting. I agree with you, but I do believe introducing original content into curated content is necessary to truly positioning the brand as THE industry expert. @Harry - Excellent stuff. You've been a content marketing leader since I've been in the space. @Matt...love the offline curation concept. Would love to hear more best practices on that. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christy Barksdale EMAIL: christy@pr2020.com IP: 76.160.78.205 URL: http://www.pr2020.com/blog/ DATE: 09/23/2010 09:21:20 AM Joe, Excellent post with great examples of content curation in action. Curation has become such an important part of the content marketing mix, and we're seeing more and more companies taking advantage of the opportunities. I tend to agree with you that content curation must supplement creation. It is with truly original, compelling content that your company can establish thought leadership; curation helps to further this mission. By leveraging the two, your organization can become a hub of vital industry information, and, most importantly, develop those solid customer connections. Thanks again! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Liz O. EMAIL: SDtechcomm@gmail.com IP: 98.172.169.12 URL: http://www.twitter.com/openliz DATE: 09/23/2010 12:06:49 PM This is a great post! Online documentation and content curation are making and breaking the success of several companies right now. And frankly, people are going to have to come to terms with the emergence of this new frontier and either decide to "move west" or simply choose to get left behind. Last month Forbes came out with an article by MindTouch CEO Aaron Fulkerson that has some astounding statistics as to what kind of ROI online content can bring in. Well-curated content *is* a "sales tool"-- I definitely recommend giving the article a read: http://www.forbes.com/2010/08/07/customer-service-fulkerson-technology-documentation.html Cheers, Liz ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Thad McIlroy, The Future of Publishing EMAIL: thad@thefutureofpublishing.com IP: 173.180.201.30 URL: http://www.thefutureofpublishing.com DATE: 09/24/2010 05:01:59 PM Joe, The automation of content curation makes it possible to do something no human can do: cull all online sources in real time. However, the lack of semantic sophistication in software (and tagged content) means that curation software often fails to approach the quality of even a novice librarian. As you, Harry Hoover and others so well demonstrate, the best practice in content curation is adding a human eye (and brain) to filtering (and annotating) automated feeds. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.62 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/27/2010 07:29:08 AM Thad...you are right...the best curation is a combination of technology and human beings. I think that will be the case for some time to come. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sérgio Santos EMAIL: me@sergiosantos.info IP: 193.136.206.120 URL: http://sergiosantos.info DATE: 09/30/2010 08:29:26 PM One problem associated with automatic curation is replaceability. If the audience has access directly to the algorithm output, it will ignore the intermediaries and consume directly from the source. Value must be added by the publisher, or it will eventually be left out of the chain. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Are My Customers Interested in What I Have to Say? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: are-my-customers-interested-in-what-i-have-to-say CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: custom content DATE: 09/16/2010 10:27:14 PM ----- BODY:

Throughout the process of sifting through the data from our B2B Content Marketing study, a couple favorites stood out. First and foremost, we all believed the confidence gap (below) was the most interesting.

Just think about this for a second: 70% of b-to-b marketers of all sizes do not feel their social media marketing is effective. 60% aren't getting what they want out of blogs. 55% for videos.

Now take a look at this graphic below on marketers' biggest content marketing challenge.

It should be no surprise that the biggest challenge is producing engaging content.

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Now, let's go back to the confidence chart. The biggest problem with the majority of marketers' social media programs we encounter is that what they have to say, well, really isn't all that important or engaging to customers.

Usually, we find that:

Companies do not have a good handle on what their customers' informational needs are.
The majority of the content they produce and distribute through social media is about them, not their customers.

So, it's no wonder at the end of the day, marketers are scratching their heads on how to create content that will be interesting, drive engagement, and ultimately, behavior change.

To answer the question in the title of this post, our customers don't care at all about what we have to say...especially when it's about our products and services.

But when the information makes an impact on their lives...that's where the magic happens.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: b2b content marketing, confidence gap ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nick Stamoulis EMAIL: nick@brickmarketing.com IP: 24.60.172.120 URL: http://www.linkedin.com/in/internetmarketingnickstamoulis DATE: 09/17/2010 08:33:20 AM The biggest thing I tell clients, is stop trying to sell yourself on your blog, readers aren't interested in hearing about your products and services, write about something that will be interesting to them, engaging for them, give them something they will learn from and something that keeps them coming back. A valuable post goes a long way. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.14 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/17/2010 08:40:14 AM Nick...Amen to that. It's hard to take our sales hats off and just create great content. The great information is the sell, but most don't get that yet. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael Fox EMAIL: michael@tdagroup.com IP: 204.247.252.6 URL: http://www.tdagroup.com DATE: 09/17/2010 11:35:30 AM I also support Nick's comments. Customers and prospects are pretty sophisticated when it comes to receiving marketing messages. If content is delivered as an obvious sales piece, you are lucky to have a reader get past the first paragraph. If content is delivered as an insightful, informational piece, sharing news, use cases, other valuable information that is meaningful to a prospect, then a vendor has just scored some points on their credibility meter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Will EMAIL: will@rightsourcemarketing.com IP: 108.3.180.248 URL: http://www.marketingtrenches.com DATE: 09/30/2010 08:26:37 AM Great research and post as always Joe. Lots of good info in the B2B Content Marketing study. I wrote a bit about The Biggest Challenge and cited your research in my latest post: What Beer Taught Me About Content Marketing – Be the Most Interesting Man in the World http://bit.ly/9pQii6. Thanks, Will ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: B2B Brands Are Indeed Media Companies | Here's the Proof STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: b2b-brands-are-indeed-media-companies-heres-the-proof CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 09/15/2010 06:40:20 AM ----- BODY:

Did you know...

9 of 10 B2B marketers leverage content marketing as part of their marketing programs?
51% of B2B marketers are increasing their spending in content marketing over the next 12 months?
Over a quarter of the total marketing and communications budget now goes toward content marketing?

Junta42 and MarketingProfs, along with American Business Media and the Business Marketing Association, just completed the most comprehensive survey about the practice of business-to-business content marketing ever produced.

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Simply put, there are some amazing findings, about both what marketers are doing and the confidence they have in particular content marketing tactics.

Yes, if we didn't believe it before, we are all media companies.

Click here to see the full details and download the report for free.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: b2b content marketing, content marketing research, junta42 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Publishers - Give Content Away to Get STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: publishers-give-content-away-to-get CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: journalists CATEGORY: publishers DATE: 09/09/2010 10:06:14 PM ----- BODY:

This post originally appeared at the ASBPE blog and is strictly targeted at anyone that considers themselves a publisher. Marketers, you have permission to look away ;). Wait, you marketers may get something out of it as well. - JP

Publishers Need to Give to Get

Although our target (Z Squared Media) as a media company is corporate marketers, I get the opportunity to talk with publishers on a consistent basis. There is one constant that I find with publishers, no matter the size or industry – They don’t like to share.

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Let me explain. Publishers love to leverage content from editors to position as their own … that’s basically what publishers do. We leverage great content from multiple sources and sell against it (advertising or paid content). It’s been a great strategy for years, and should continue to be so. But if you asked publishers to promote content that is not theirs and does not reside in their print magazines or websites, you better put away the knives and torches.

But that’s exactly what publishers need to do more of.

Here’s the rationale. To excel, a publisher needs to be the industry expert. They do this through content. BUT, there are hundreds, if not thousands of experts in our industries that bang the industry drum through blogs, white papers, webinars and more. There is no possible way, in my opinion, that a publisher (or magazine) can position themselves as the industry expert without bringing those industry experts into consideration.

Let me give you an example. Our goal at Junta42, from the beginning, was to be the leading source of content marketing information on the planet. No matter how much great content in multiple formats we produced, there was always someone, somewhere producing great content marketing information as well. So, we decided to create the Junta42 Top Content Marketing Blogs.

The idea of the Junta42 Top 42 was to develop a list of the top content producers in our industry (content marketing) and keep it updated. We developed a rationale for judging, and every quarter we release a new list. We started with 81 blogs three years ago, and now have almost 400 blogs that we review. As you’ll see, we promote the best blogs in the industry and link out to those blogs. Yes, we actually send people away from our site, with no strings attached.

Why would any publisher in their right mind do that?

Since launching the list, that web page has been our most popular, with over 20,000 unique visitors to that page alone. The list also gets over 1,000 inbound links directly to that page. It has single handedly been responsible for the majority of our enewsletter and RSS signups, as well as signups to our matching service (our main revenue driver). Simply put, it’s a traffic magnet and core to our business model. It also positions us as the experts in the content marketing industry by highlighting the best content in the industry (even though it’s not ours).

You might say, “Joe, this has been done for years with directories” and you would be right. Except that directories are direct revenue generators. Our top blog list is definitely indirect. We give this information away freely.

Yes, this strategy drives business for us, but it also has driven opportunity. Junta42 now has relationships with the majority of the top industry bloggers simply because of the list.They love the fact that we promote them, and they always take our calls or open our emails.

My advice is this … if your goal is to be the industry expert, you’ll need help from freelancers, bloggers, associations and more. By helping the other content producers in your industry, you can solve a lot of your own web problems as well as reach your own goals.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: publishers, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: sewa mobil EMAIL: griyamobilkita@gmail.com IP: 118.136.218.63 URL: http://griyamobilkita.webs.com DATE: 09/10/2010 02:29:32 AM Nice article, thanks for sharing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: andrew EMAIL: ahanelly@gmail.com IP: 98.204.183.51 URL: http://engage.tmgcustommedia.com DATE: 09/10/2010 08:12:59 AM Great post. I've had this argument more than a few times with publishers over the years. They all wanted to be black holes - with no outbound links. But from my experience, people remember where they found the link, not necessarily where the link took them. Focusing on being the resource (whether you are providing the content directly, or providing a link to other great content) should be the goal. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://twitter.com/samuraiwriter99 DATE: 09/12/2010 04:14:42 AM Well done! A great way to position yourselves as an authority site who values top contributors in same industry. Do you outsource the review process - seems like a lot of work with 400 + sites... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.116.80 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/12/2010 11:38:14 AM Thanks Mark. Correct, our researcher, Janet Robbins, reviews all the sites and does a fantastic job. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing Infinity STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-infinity CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 09/07/2010 10:05:38 PM ----- BODY:

Last week, I chatted with a marketing executive at a small company about content marketing tactics. This was his comment:

We've been blogging for three months but haven't seen many results. When do we decide to stop and do something else?

So many times, marketers get into the content arena with great (and often realistic) aspirations, but their timetables are too short. When expected results don't come in a few months, they ditch the program to advertise, call more customers, or any other demand generation activity they can think of.

It's what I would call "resorting back to campaign mentality."

In our latest Top 42 Blogs release, did you know that over 20 blogs just stopped blogging. Just stopped. Unless they went out of business, there is no excuse for that.

I know it's difficult. Marketing has trained us for years to run time-based campaigns that have catchy headlines, cool creative, and costly media.

Content marketing is not about a campaign.

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The creation of relevant, valuable and compelling content delivered to your customers should never stop.

Repeat, it can never stop. Don't get me wrong, you continually evolve it based on the needs of your customers and changes in behavior, but delivering quality information to your customers (not sales information) means that you are trying to make a difference in their lives. Why would you stop that?

But to be honest, results take time. Most customers are skeptical when corporations begin to send them "essential and necessary information." They immediately try to figure out what the catch is. When they find out there is no catch, and you are still delivering this life-altering information to them, your brand changes in their eyes.

You become their trusted solutions provider. You are not selling, you are helping. It's easier to buy from a solutions provider - that's the payoff!

When that threshold is passed, amazing things can happen.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Content Marketing Infinity ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bret Simmons EMAIL: bret.simmons@gmail.com IP: 99.148.189.37 URL: http://www.bretlsimmons.com DATE: 09/08/2010 12:14:21 AM I hope people find this and take the time to read it, because it is spot on. So many people are looking for instant pudding, they want something for nothing. Excellence does not work that way. Well said. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/08/2010 08:22:15 AM Thanks for the post Bret. Impatience is a content marketing killer. Sometimes marketers forget to act like humans and continue the conversation. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: andrew EMAIL: ahanelly@tmgcustommedia.com IP: 4.59.151.66 URL: http://engage.tmgcustommedia.com DATE: 09/08/2010 12:24:13 PM Great post, Joe. In addition, a continued investment of time into content shows that an organization is dedicated and in for the long-haul, not just trying to turn over some quick sales. I am always impressed when I visit a corporate blog and find archives dating back several years - especially if the posts are consistent throughout. It says to me that they aren't just jumping on or off a trend, that they believe in sharing their voice and they are dedicated to providing it, regardless of how instant their gratification may be. That thought is what gets me motivated to keep writing, even if it doesn't feel epic in the moment, I know that down the road I'll be thankful that I kept the digital trail alive. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/08/2010 12:26:31 PM Good point Andrew. Also, really like what you are doing on the Engage blog. Keep up the great work. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nenad EMAIL: nenad.senic@p-m.si IP: 82.192.55.88 URL: http://www.p-m.si DATE: 09/08/2010 03:04:05 PM Thank Joe (God - too much?) for this entry. So true. However, you say in your comment: "Sometimes marketers forget to act like humans and continue the conversation." What I've been noticing many "progressive" marketers have a very hard time to persuade the senior management that content marketing may deliver great long-term results. I've heard many say, "I just give up." I've even heard directors say, "I want results now. This is all bulshit," and accept only work where their company is mentioned oh so many times. So, I think those marketers need some assistance too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: andrew EMAIL: ahanelly@gmail.com IP: 98.204.183.51 URL: http://engage.tmgcustommedia.com DATE: 09/09/2010 08:18:43 AM Thanks, Joe. Small, slow, and (hopefully) steady. If I was as consistent at writing as I am at reading, we'd be in good shape. But there's always room for improvement. Sigh... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan Hutson EMAIL: dan@pokethebeehive.com IP: 64.47.116.130 URL: http://www.pokethebeehive.com DATE: 09/10/2010 12:26:54 PM Hi Joe. If 20 of your top content marketing sites stopped blogging, then I humbly suggest they don't belong on the list. Feel free to check out www.pokethebeehive.com. I'll never stop! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/10/2010 12:46:24 PM I believe you Dan. The ones that stopped blogging are gone! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kim Kleeman EMAIL: kimkleeman@shakespearesquared.com IP: 64.199.40.150 URL: http://s2eo.com DATE: 09/10/2010 03:16:04 PM Amen to this Joe! Many companies feel that content is a burden and a bother. In most cases, content is a true testament of any comapny's dedication to their client base. Keeping content fresh, engaging and continual should be a top goal- and possibly something each organization should outsource. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Time to Build the Assets STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: time-to-build-the-assets DATE: 09/07/2010 09:32:37 PM ----- BODY:

I was on a webinar today when this question was asked:

"What is the biggest difference between content marketing and traditional advertising?"

Here was my answer:

With content marketing, you are never interrupted with unwanted messages. There are no outside advertisements, not 30 second ad breaks

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Holding the Content Clipboard STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: holding-the-content-clipboard CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 09/03/2010 07:47:03 AM ----- BODY:

On my way home last night I was listening to the Cleveland Browns post-game show on the radio. Being interviewed was Colt McCoy, former Texas quarterback and now Browns QB fighting for a starting spot.

This preseason, he hasn't had much time to play. Yesterday, he played half the game.

To sum up, Colt said the following:

It's been hard to improve standing on the sidelines.
Watching video and other players definitely helps, but getting in the game, trying and failing is when I learn the most.
Consistency comes from more playing time.

When it comes to content marketing, the biggest challenge isn't ROI, or more content or better content. It's doing something. It's getting into the game.

I wonder at the number of amazing companies in the world. I've had the opportunity to get to know many of them.

Most don't tell their story. Most are waiting on the sidelines.

Sure, more training will help. More backup information to show ROI will help. Watching others will help.

But, at some point, we need to get into the game.

Colt has two quarterbacks playing in front of him. For us, we only have ourselves to blame.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: colt mccoy, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Radu EMAIL: radu.chirvase@rapidresultsmarketing.ro IP: 86.107.246.133 URL: http://www.rapidresultsmarketing.ro DATE: 09/06/2010 05:59:45 AM Yes, there is a big difference between knowing what needs to be done and actually doing it. I just watched once again the Matrix trilogy and this phrase is there, as well: we need to roll our sleeves up and get in the game, putting in the effort. Another phrase from Matrix sticks with me: one gets to know the opponent by confronting him in "battle". No study can replace the race against competitors, in real time. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: In-source or Outsource Content Marketing? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: in-source-or-outsource-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 08/31/2010 12:22:41 PM ----- BODY:

The answer is...Yes.

According to a soon-to-be-released research report from MarketingProfs/Junta42, 55% of b-to-b marketers outsource some portion of their content marketing. Larger companies (1,000 employees or more) are 60% more likely to outsource than micro-companies (less than 10 employees).

Makes sense, right? Smaller companies with smaller budgets doing more with less resources.

It may make sense, but business-wise, it's not smart.

In my opinion, 100% of companies should be outsourcing at least part of their content marketing. Don't get me wrong...it's natural to want to do everything ourselves.

But get this...if we really want to position ourselves as the leading experts in our industry, we must outsource portions of our content marketing. Why?

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Someone out there has better ideas than you do (at least some of the time). What, you think you know everything? Find a content partner to help you develop the best content marketing in the world for your niche.
You don't have time to do everything. Content marketing is a complex beast. Don't be arrogant to think that you can control it. Focus on driving revenue and get some partners in to drive your content marketing goals.
Full-time concentration. What I really love about outsourcing to content marketing firms is that they spend 100% of their time telling stories for marketing success. Your full-time job is selling some product or service in your industry, probably not content marketing. Find a content marketing firm with expertise in your industry and content marketing and you've got a winner.

And let me make this point about investment. Many will point out that outsourcing costs more than in-sourcing. When I used to sell custom publishing for Penton Media, we used to go into meetings with charts showing that, ultimately, clients would be spending the same or less if they really looked at all the resources they were employing. Do the math yourself.

I'll finish with a plug...if you are considering outsourcing, Junta42 is the leading provider of content marketing matching services for leading brands. Give us a try.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing outsourcing, outsourcing, insourcing, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Radu Marketing Profitabil EMAIL: radu.chirvase@rapidresultsmarketing.ro IP: 86.107.246.133 URL: http://www.marketingprofitabil.ro DATE: 09/02/2010 02:54:52 AM Besides time, clients usually lack knowledge, expertise in the field, as well. Marketing specialists have tested what works and what doesn't work, while clients need to go through trial and error themselves. Costs? Let's make the costs based on success - pay the outsourced expert with a percentage of sales / profit growth. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/weekly-tweet-matsuri-2010-09-04-2 DATE: 09/05/2010 01:03:58 AM @Radu - the percentage of sales/growth is an interesting dilemma because not all (copywriting) clients will execute the provided material. Others will chop and change on delivery of final copy. Results vary beyond the copywriter's "control"... On the positive side, I've net clients/prospects who could write great copy for their own businesses because they know the stories and client 'hot buttons better than anyone. What holds them back is they lack the time and patience to create consistently coherent copy. As Joe says, it is a complex beast. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Luis Portiansky EMAIL: Luis@marketingoutsourcers.com IP: 205.188.116.6 URL: http://www.luisportiansky.com DATE: 09/23/2010 09:59:40 AM Totally agree with Joe. I deal primarily in the professional services space and can attest first-hand that most companies could benefit from outsourcing, and they know it - yet most don't do it. In my experience the biggest obstacle is the time factor. The professionals I work with recognize they do not have the time or focus to work on a content strategy consistently. Too many other firms though just don't get it. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Brian Solis Rocks Latest Junta42 Top Content Marketing Blogs STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: brian-solis-rocks-latest-junta42-top-content-marketing-blogs CATEGORY: business blogging CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 08/25/2010 10:54:23 PM ----- BODY:

This is our ninth installment of the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs. Since our first back in January of 2008, Brian Solis has finished in the Top 10 five times, including a second, fourth and fifth place. This time the popular author, speaker and social media blogger earned a clear first place. Congratulations Brian.

We started with reviewing 81 content marketing related blogs in 2007. Today's Top 42 contains nearly 400 blogs. For those interested, here's how we judge the Top 42. Special thanks to our lead researcher, Janet Robbins, who goes through each one of these blogs individually every quarter.

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Congratulations to each of the Top 42 content marketing bloggers. You can see the entire list here, as well as see our past winners, but below you'll find a handy list of just the Top 42.

1 Brian Solis
2 Copyblogger
3 Conversation Agent
4 TopRank Blog
5 PR 20/20
6 Marketing Experiments
7 Convince and Convert
8 Spin Sucks
9 Marketing Interactions
10 ConverStations
11 Simple Marketing Blog
12 Influential Marketing Blog
13 Direct Marketing Observations
14 Post Advertising
15 Web Ink Now
16 Social Media Explorer
17 Writing on the Web
18 Inbound Internet Marketing Blog
19 Rexblog
20 eMedia Vitals
21 Vertical Leap
22 Conversation Marketing
23 WeBlogBetter.com
24 Mack Collier
25 Buzz News
26 FASTforward Blog
27 IdeaLaunch
28 Site Booster
29 Freelance Copywriters Blog
30 Social Media Examiner
31 Priority Integrated Marketing Blog
32 Branding & Marketing
33 Shopper Culture
34 Vertical Measures
35 Proactive
36 Web Marketing Therapy
37 ContentMarketingToday
38 Servant of Chaos
39 Ducttape Marketing
40 TippingPoint Labs
41 Sparksheet
42 The MineThat Data Blog

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Junta42, content marketing, content marketing blogs, top 42, brian solis ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kwame EMAIL: kwame.boame@live.com IP: 41.190.88.249 URL: http://www.sociatic.com DATE: 08/26/2010 09:16:33 AM Congratulations to the Top 42 blogs. Kudos to Junta42 for planning and implementing this ranking. My blog ranked 97. I will be in the Top42 next quarter ;). Thanks guys. Kwame. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jen EMAIL: jcarlton@priorityresults.com IP: 75.146.33.113 URL: http://priorityresults.com/blog DATE: 08/26/2010 06:50:08 PM Thank you Joe, Janet Robbins and the rest of the Junta42 team who compiled the list of top blogs. We are tremendously honored here at Priority Integrated Marketing (#31!). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arnie Kuenn EMAIL: arniek@verticalmeasures.com IP: 72.215.194.132 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com/services/content-development/ DATE: 09/01/2010 05:57:54 PM Thanks for including Vertical Measures in the list Joe. It means a lot. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: C.B. Whittemore EMAIL: cbwhittemore@gmail.com IP: 67.83.44.16 URL: http://www.SimpleMarketingBlog.com DATE: 09/02/2010 12:24:05 AM This is very exciting! Thanks, Joe and Janet! Best, CB ----- PING: TITLE: Content Marketing and the Junta 42 URL: http://www.servantofchaos.com/2010/08/content-marketing-and-the-junta-42.html IP: 10.17.151.35 BLOG NAME: Servant of Chaos DATE: 08/29/2010 04:28:02 PM Back in 2008, Joe Pulizzi started looking in-depth at blogs that focused on content marketing. He found 81 blogs - and the Junta 42 were the viewed as the leaders in what was then an emerging field. Two years on... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing is like Social Work 101 [guest post] STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-is-like-social-work-101-guest-post CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 08/24/2010 08:22:28 PM ----- BODY:

The following is a guest post from Pam Kozelka, Junta42's Director of Operations.

My background is in social work. I know that makes absolutely no sense, but as I got older and had kids I realized it wasn’t for me anymore (at least full time). So now I dig content marketing and social media.

I just read a post from MediaPost called It's about the Consumer Stupid and it really resonated with me. Here’s why.

Lately a lot of the projects we have been getting at Junta42 are what we call content-only projects. They are successful brands who know that they need good content to demonstrate thought leadership, or maybe to enhance their search engine rankings or social media, but these brands are not ready to take the leap to a full content strategy or a full turnkey project.

It's the "time to go get the content" strategy. That means someone realized at the 11th hour that content was needed, but it wasn't part of the plan in the first place.

Why are we getting all these content-only projects? It's not because these brands have in-depth content marketing plans and strategies and only need content. Most of the marketers we talked to don't. The answer is Social Work 101.

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The first thing I learned as a social work professional is that you have to start where your client is. No matter what, you can’t do anything more than they are willing to do or work on. You can tell them they need to do something until you are blue in the face, but if they are not ready to accept it, it won't take.

The same is true for content projects. The content vendors (agencies or freelancers) may see that the client would benefit from a full content strategy or a better integration of content marketing into their marketing plan, but if the client is not there yet, there is nothing we can do but continue to educate and build trust in the hope that when they are ready, they will turn to us for their full turnkey project.

In social work, if we started where the client was, educated them and built trust we were able to help them grow and solve the issues that led them to the office in the first place. I think the same holds true with content. Start with where marketers are at, educate them and build trust, and they will (someday) see the value of the entire content strategy.

The good news is that there are A LOT of people at this stage right now. The bad news is that, until marketers become more educated about content marketing, we're going to see a tactical content that may not work very well. At least for now.

P.S. If you have people in your company that just aren't there yet, I highly recommend Joe's book.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, social work ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Suzanne Vara EMAIL: suzanne@kherize5.com IP: 70.189.253.222 URL: http://www.kherize5.com DATE: 08/26/2010 12:38:16 AM Pam So very well said here. What I find the most interesting is that as marketers we tell clients to go where their target is, where they hang out but yet so many cannot go to "where" the client is. Clients, especially the small biz need that extra time to build the trust as telling them that they have to do this is falling on deaf ears. They need to know that you recognize where they are and that you collectively can get to where you want them to be. Thanks so much for the reminder to all that in SM the agency, consultant, coach, etc need to go where the client is. @SuzanneVara ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Pam Kozelka EMAIL: pam@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: DATE: 08/26/2010 09:37:43 AM Thanks Suzanne! Trust and education are definitely key! Like your recent post, we have to focus on building those relationships and content marketing is the way to do that! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Radu Marketing Profitabil EMAIL: radu.chirvase@rapidresultsmarketing.ro IP: 86.107.246.133 URL: http://www.marketingprofitabil.ro DATE: 08/31/2010 08:01:48 AM Hi Pam, It took some search effort to find this blog. I mean, to find someone that is close to my line of thinking: giving, before asking for something in return. It's a lot about content, meaningful and valuable for the customer. Care. We are marketers, but sometimes, some marketers forget that they are also consumers. I am trying to give, as well, although there is a particular saying in Romania (where I am): "it's worth what you pay for it", i.e. if it is free, people overlook the value... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Joshua Steals Show at 2010 Junta42 Golf for Autism STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: joshua-steals-show-at-2010-junta42-golf-for-autism CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 08/20/2010 11:26:53 AM ----- BODY:

The 4th Annual Junta42 Golf for Autism on August 16th at the beautiful Acacia Country Club was indeed special this year.

Yes, we had more golfers this year. Yes, we had more sponsors this year. To date, we've raised almost $50,000 to support the Easter Seals Northern Ohio autism services (setting a record this year). So many people to thank. So many (see below).

But without a doubt, Joshua stole the show. This year, Joshua told his story. The video says it all. Transcript is below.

My name is Joshua Pulizzi and I am eight years old, almost nine. Thanks for coming to the Junta42 Golf for Autism. My mom and dad realized that when I was 18 months old that I was doing things a little different than the other kids. At age two I was diagnosed with autism. I had to receive speech therapy in order to talk. I had to have lots of people come to my house to help me learn to play. I also had someone to help me strengthen my muscles and help me not flap my hands so much.

Now I am going into the third grade at St. Mark's School. I LOVE LEGOs and playing with my brother Adam. I want to be a master builder for LEGO or an engineer when I grow up. Thank you again for being here, and helping other kids with autism. If they get lots of help like I did when they are little, their chances of success are awesome.

Special thanks to Todd Sheppard for the video.

If you would like to be a part of this effort, join our Facebook Causes page here. You can also donate at that location. All proceeds go to the Easter Seals to help kids just like Joshua. You can also send donations directly to:

Junta42 Golf for Autism

3317 W 155th St.

Cleveland, OH 44111

To see all the pictures from the event, see our Flickr page here.

Special thanks to our major sponsors this year: GIE Media, Petco, Cleveland Steel Container and Foster Printing Service. Our hole sponsors: North American Publishing, PR 20/20, T3 Publishing, OpenView Venture Partners, Interact Media, Talefoundry, SocialTract, Linn Communications, D Custom, Totem Brand Stories, Execution Matters, Ascend Integrated Media, Kevin and Lee Ann Lednik, Sue Hoffman, Mike and Michelle Pistillo and Jim and Laurel Clarke.

And a very special thanks to our volunteers: Mike and Lynne Pistillo, Joe and Pam Pulizzi, Lisa Francisco, Michelle Pistillo, Laurel Clarke, Angela Vannucci, Beth Brinton Orlando, Christy Barksdale, Christina Capadona-Schmitz, Barb Schmitz, Megan Spencer, Joe Kalinowski, Brianne Haddox - Billboard Connections (signage) and Duke Printing (programs).

And of course, a very special thank you to Joshua and Adam Pulizzi.

See all our sponsors on the Junta42 Golf for Autism page.

For more information about how to get involved in this event, feel free to contact me directly at joe[at]junta42.com.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eric Gervase EMAIL: egervase@nxtbookmedia.com IP: 72.25.2.130 URL: http://www.nxtbook.com DATE: 08/20/2010 12:06:40 PM That speech was fantastic Joe. Very cool. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sheila Dunn EMAIL: sdunn@noh.easterseals.com IP: 69.220.47.190 URL: http://www.noh.easterseals.com DATE: 08/20/2010 03:11:07 PM Thank you Joe, Pam, Joshua and Adam and all the golfers, sponsors and volunteers for making August 16th such an incredible day! You'll help kids like Joshua get a great start to life with our therapy services! Joshua, you added a lot of "CONTENT" to the outing! Sheila Dunn Easter Seals Northern Ohio, Inc. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bob Leonard EMAIL: bob@acsellerant.com IP: 72.91.178.118 URL: DATE: 08/20/2010 03:15:24 PM My hat's off to you, Joe. You stepped up to the plate and turned what some might see as a negative into a positive, not only for your own son, but for many other children. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Smaller Companies Spend More on Content Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: smaller-companies-spend-more-on-content-marketing CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 08/19/2010 09:59:36 PM ----- BODY:

Only a few weeks left until we release our findings from the 2010 B2B Content Marketing Study from Junta42 and MarketingProfs with assistance from the Business Marketing Association and American Business Media.

One thing that caught our attention was the difference in content marketing spending and tactics between small companies and larger business-to-business companies.

A few key highlights:

Small companies (those with less than 10 employees) blog more than large companies (over 1000 employees) at nearly double the rate (64% to 39%).
Small companies have been faster to adopt social media and eBooks.
The average B2B company spends 26% of their budget on content marketing. Small companies spend 34% of budget while large companies spend 21%.

But one thing did ring consistent within all company sizes and sectors...over 50% of B2B marketers are increasing their spend in content marketing for 2011. Of the more than 1100 B2B marketers we surveyed, only 2% were going to decrease their content marketing spending.

Not too shabby.

When the final report is complete, you'll hear about it right here. Thanks for your patience.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: b2b content marketing, small companies, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve EMAIL: steve@myonlinebusinessstrategyinfo.com IP: 119.172.121.128 URL: http://MyOnlineBusinessStrategyInfo.com DATE: 08/20/2010 07:26:43 AM That is some amazing figures, I was always under the impression that the larger companies were spending more for content. At least it is good to see that all companies are increasing their budgets. I am positive that they will find that is the best decision that has been made for their businesses. It will definitely be interesting to see how the final report turns out. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Katie McCaskey EMAIL: katiemccaskey@gmail.com IP: 71.63.89.130 URL: http://www.katiemccaskey.com DATE: 08/20/2010 09:48:52 AM Interesting stats. I've noticed this trend in my work, too. Smaller-sized clients [number of employees] seem to value custom content to a greater degree. Perhaps this is because they view it as less expensive and more results focused than traditional media marketing outlets, and they are nimble enough to jump on it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: kim Albee, Genoo Marketing Automation EMAIL: kim@genoo.com IP: 66.173.98.22 URL: http://www.genoo.com DATE: 08/20/2010 11:14:03 AM I think that larger companies are spending more DOLLARS on content marketing. But as a percentage of budget it's smaller than SMB's are spending. And that makes sense. It costs what it costs to hire good copywriters to produce content -- and SMB's will spend overall LESS dollars on content, but a higher percentage of overall budget. In my experience, SMB's have a lot of advantages over larger companies in how quickly they can move and adapt - and utilizing marketing technology to help them work smarter rather than harder could pay dividends as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rory EMAIL: rory@webdesignkc.co.uk IP: 81.149.233.145 URL: http://www.webdesignkc.co.uk/ DATE: 08/24/2010 07:13:05 AM I have noticed this trend as well. Our smaller web design clients seem to take ownership of their website, using social media and often publishing articles for SEO purposes where the larger blue chip companies don't get involved at all. Perhaps its because the smaller company has a lot more to lose if their online (& offline) campaigns don't work. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Say it ain't so! Advertising and Content Marketing Work Together STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: say-it-aint-so-advertising-and-content-marketing-work-together CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: custom publishing CATEGORY: get content. get customers. DATE: 08/18/2010 08:39:49 AM ----- BODY:

We received an unbelievable reaction to my post last week on why print will be making a comeback in 2011. The overall point was this: Print is still an incredibly important part of the marketing mix, even though it may have fallen outside of the spotlight for the past few years. (If you get a chance, take a stroll through the comments of the post.)

Joe Pramberger from NASA Tech Briefs was nice enough to point out some findings about how important the integration of advertising and content marketing are (findings in association with Lion Associates).

Here are some of the major findings in their 2010 reader survey.

After reading an article in the magazine or viewing an ad in the magazine...

75% visited the company's website
66% went to a search engine for more information

This means that the print communications, without a heavy dose of great content on the website and readily available in search engines, isn't going to be nearly as effective. The print and online content must work together.

The search engines point is critical. If someone is going to a search engine after engaging in a print piece, they are most likely going to learn more information. That information could come from the company featured in the print, or it could come from the competition. The point may be this: the best most findable online content may just win the buying recommendation.

And get this: when buyers go to the web (according to the survey), they are 77% more likely to click on a search engine or online directory result if they've seen that company in an ad. Publishers have been pushing this data for years, which they should.

Advertising and content marketing can't live separately. Heck, they share the bedroom!

I'll end with this...over the summer, a publisher came up to me with a copy of my book and asked why I hate advertising so much. To that I said this:

Targeted advertising can still be incredibly effective, but without an integrated content marketing strategy, it's a waste of money. Most people who see an ad and take action go online looking for content, for more information. So my point is this...get your content marketing house in order, and then unleash your advertising.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: advertising, content marketing, print content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Burgess EMAIL: mburgess@bluefocusmarketing.com IP: 68.193.110.33 URL: http://www.bluefocusmarketing.com DATE: 08/18/2010 09:06:40 AM Hi Joe, Great stuff. I'm not as bullish on print making a comeback. However, another opportunity may be the QR (quick response) codes that are being used in places like Japan. These simple codes that appear in magazine and newspaper ads can be easily scanned by a free app on the iPhone and will take the reader to the advertiser's destination of choice, e.g., website, landing page, etc. That may be the future of a print comeback. In a sense, the static print ad now becomes "interactive". Mark Burgess mburgess@bluefocusmarketing.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tom Martin EMAIL: Tom@ConverseDigital.com IP: 74.241.125.240 URL: http://www.tommartin.typepad.com DATE: 08/18/2010 01:47:13 PM Joe I think we had a Vulcan Mind Meld going on... I was just talking about this today on my blog. Advertising is evolving to be a "top of the funnel" acquisition tool with Content serving as the catalyst for the creation of ongoing conversations that convert to sales. Don't you think? Here is a link to my post if you want to check it out http://budurl.com/BreadcrumbMkting @TomMartin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jessie Johnson EMAIL: jessie.johnson@avenueright.com IP: 69.178.223.149 URL: http://www.avenueright.com DATE: 08/19/2010 10:08:14 AM Thanks for this, Joe. You're dead-on with the observation that advertising is a waste without an integrated content strategy to engage that target audience when they go online for more information. We work with a lot of small ad agencies that buy a mix of traditional and online local media for their clients - most definitely, no matter the industry, it's not an "either/or" question (paid advertising vs. content marketing). I agree with your comment, Tom, that advertising has evolved to be top of funnel (http://ht.ly/2rRej ) with online content pulling folks deeper into the sales cycle. Timely topic for discussion. Thanks, Jessie @jjhnsn @avenueright ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 7 Reasons Print Will Make a Comeback in 2011 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: print-custom-media-comes-back-in-2011 CATEGORY: custom magazines CATEGORY: custom publishing DATE: 08/11/2010 12:39:44 PM ----- BODY:

Okay...there, I said it.

You'll find no greater supporter of online content marketing than me, but marketers and agencies are talking up print for 2011. Yes, in the era of iPads and Apps, there is still a role for print.

Jeff Jarvis recently wrote about how media companies need to ignore print.

The physical costs of production and distribution are killing. The marketing cost of subscriber acquisition and churn are hellish.

He's right. And if you are a media company that relies on most of your revenue for print, you need to post Jeff's article on your forehead.

But if you are a corporate marketer, there is an opportunity here. Here's why:

----- EXTENDED BODY:

1. Getting Attention: Have you noticed how many fewer magazines and print newsletters you are getting in the mail these days? I don't know about you, but I definitely pay more attention to my print mail. There's just less mail, so more attention is paid to each piece. Opportunity? Less traditional publishers are printing magazines today, which leaves opportunities for content marketers.

2. The Focus on Customer Retention: In a soon-to-be-released research study conducted by Junta42 and MarketingProfs, customer retention was the most important goal for marketers when it came to content marketing outside of basic brand awareness. Historically, the reason why custom print magazines and newsletters were developed by brands was for customer retention purposes. We have a winner!

3. No Audience Development Costs: Publishers expend huge amounts of time and money qualifying subscribers to send out their magazines. Many times, publishers need to invest multiple dollars per subscriber per year for auditing purposes (They send direct mail, they call, they call again so that the magazine can say they that their subscribers have requested the magazine. This is true for controlled (free) trade magazines).

So, let's say, a publisher's cost per subscriber per year is $2 and their distribution is one hundred thousand. That's $200,000 per year for audience development.

That's a cost that marketers don't have to worry about. If marketers want to distribute a magazine to their customers, they just use their customer mailing list. That's a big advantage.

4. What's Old Is New Again: Social media, online content and iPad applications are all part of the marketing mix today. Still, what excites marketers and media buyers is what IS NOT being done. They want to do something different...something new. It's hard to believe, but I've heard many marketers talk about leveraging print as something new in their marketing mix. Unbelievable.

5. Customers Still Need to Ask Questions: We love the Internet because buyers can find answers to almost anything. But where do we go to think about what questions we should be asking? I talked to a publisher last week who said this:

"The web is where we go to get answers but print is where we go to ask questions."

The print vehicle is still the best medium on the planet for thinking outside the box and asking yourself tough questions based on what you read. It's lean back versus lean forward. If you want to challenge your customers (like Harvard Business Review does), print is a viable option.

6. Print Still Excites People: I talked to a journalist recently who said it's harder and harder to get people to agree to an interview for an online story. But mention that it will be a printed feature and executives rearrange their schedule. The printed word is still perceived as more credible to many people than anything on the web. It goes to the old adage, "If someone invested enough to print and mail it, it must be important."

Whether that's true or not, that is still a widely-held perception.

7. Unplug: More and more people are actively choosing the unplug, or disconnect themselves from digital media. I'm doing this more myself. I'm finding myself turning off my phone and email more to engage with printed material. A year ago I didn't see this coming. Today, I relish the opportunities when I can't be reached for comment.

If I'm right, many of your customers (especially busy executives) are feeling the same. Your print communication may be just what they need.

Online content marketing is definitely here to say. Yes to social media, apps and the rest of it. But don't forget that print can still play an important role in your overall content marketing mix.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eufémia Santos EMAIL: eufemia.santos.xxi.century@gmail.com IP: 85.27.55.44 URL: http://xxistcentury.wordpress.com/ DATE: 08/11/2010 01:40:09 PM Hey Joe, Great post, thanks. In my opinion what you're say it is true and make sense it is what I could call the after storm quietness. "What is new is interesting" people use to say and act on that but after a while they stabilize their choices. Nevertheless, print will never reach the same high levels again. I agree with you that people still like paper and printed stuff, however in little quantities. Obviously a lot of people is going to off mode more often, but realising that digital allows you to filter, save and categorize content for later use. Print will stay around because we like different stuff and "flavours" to consume in different moments. We like exquisite and unique stuff, like an unique 50-year-old vinyl, or a classic car to have ride when you have faster cars and latest models. Read a printed book instead of digital has its own charm and brings you something different. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Carrie Grove EMAIL: carrie@tpisolutionsink.com IP: 209.113.144.202 URL: http://tpisolutionsink.com DATE: 08/11/2010 01:51:04 PM #6. "Print Still Excites People" - I think this point is right on. A feature article printed in the paper or in a magazine does still feel more "real/legit". Probably because anybody can write something and publish it online but would have a much harder time getting their story in print. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Buscall EMAIL: jontusmedia@gmail.com IP: 82.182.22.232 URL: http://www.jontusmedia.com DATE: 08/11/2010 02:36:20 PM Hmm, I'm not sure on this one, Joe. As a fortysomething I do enjoy a real paper newspaper on my holidays, as a kind of nostalgic kickback to my youth. But from the look of the millennials here in Stockholm, print isn't making a comeback anytime soon. Perhaps you need a qualifier here? I'm sure some age groups will be looking to print for something different – especially as print is having to innovate to keep up. But I do think the digital generation will continue to ignore print for a good while yet. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Linda K. EMAIL: linda@marketingonq.com IP: 173.77.234.224 URL: DATE: 08/11/2010 03:18:26 PM Right. I've been saying this for two years as print brands have consistently declined or disappeared. Print will be the next big thing for all the reasons that you mentioned. And that's a good thing. The only way people are really going to become more educated/informed is through "push" content. Because if you don't know it's out there, you won't be able to "pull" it in! The good news is that hopefully this cycle will flush out the second-rate, me too pubs that no longer offer any relevance. Do I really need to wait a whole week to get my industry "news"? I think not. Let's leverage the mediums for what they work best for. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/11/2010 03:36:34 PM Good comments. 1. No, print won't ever come back to where it was, but I do think it can be an opportunity for some content marketers. It all depends on the strategy. 2. Jon, I hear you. But I'll tell you one thing about print and the younger generation. I've had the opportunity to fly all over North America and Europe over the past year...there is more print read in airports by young women than any other category...even while they are holding their smartphones. We engage in more media at one time that ever before. Print will serve a purpose for some brands, others not. We just shouldn't forget about it and miss out on an opportunity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mike Klassen EMAIL: mike@magalogguy.com IP: 76.28.214.114 URL: http://www.magalogguy.com DATE: 08/11/2010 11:16:38 PM I've been getting calls from businesses primarily marketing online who are adding print to the mix for a simple reason: Not everyone in their target market knows to look for them online. Or, in the case of some professionals (plastic surgeons and lawyers was a target of one company contacting me), they don't have the time or desire to be online looking for a product/service they don't realize can help them. (Maybe it's a new product or service.) For those marketers, print needs to at least start the conversation. Likely it will continue online, but you have to let them know you are online and where to find you. And some niches, like consultants, are finding themselves buried in search results. For one reason you mentioned, relatively empty physical mail boxes, a print piece helps them stand out from their competitors who are only marketing online. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 64.134.182.200 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 08/12/2010 07:12:05 AM Joe... Your reasoning seems solid. But proof's in the puddin'. I'm interviewing companies like Crutchfield (remember the 'magalog') lately. They're busy proving (ie. data analysis that tracks back to boosts in incremental sales) that their new print magazine can drive real results -- not just "engagement." I should say, print AND digital magazine. http://is.gd/eelaA Jeff ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeremy Victor EMAIL: jvictor@makegoodmedia.com IP: 63.117.225.136 URL: http://www.b2bbloggers.com DATE: 08/12/2010 08:59:53 AM Thought provoking post - this quote. "The web is where we go to get answers but print is where we go to ask questions." It's interesting though as we could argue that we just came to your blog and you have us asking questions. To me that publisher is still missing the point a bit. It seems a bit defensive. It is not about one medium (print) vs. the other (web). It is about providing integrated solutions - using both mediums. Print is not dead, nor is it dying. It is evolving. The sooner publishers adopt this thinking the better. And the 8th reason, I would add: Budget increases. Last year during the budgeting cycle for most companies, we were in the depths of an uncertain recession - will it end or continue? Purse strings were keep tight. I'm predicting budget increases - not super large ones, but definitely more than 2010. Thanks for keeping us asking questions. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brendon B Clark EMAIL: brendon@vulture.co.nz IP: 202.20.0.62 URL: http://www.bitesizedbrains.com DATE: 08/12/2010 07:41:26 PM Interesting stuff. We use print to drive engagement, but the content is as customised and personalised as we can make it, based on what we know and can infer from our data. And it's our data that drives it, the print is just part of the contact. It's not just print though as a couple people mention, but a paper based strategy for building relationships which I can then nurture in the digital and print space. Thanks for the post ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bob Rosenbaum EMAIL: bob.r@themarketfarm.com IP: 74.65.77.52 URL: http://www.themarketfarm.com DATE: 08/13/2010 08:35:39 AM Every point you make is valid - and has been throughout the recent decline of print. Problem is that the majority of marketers who are NOT leaders in thought or deed have abandoned print simply because they have come to believe that print doesn't work anymore. Why? They don't have the slightest idea; they're just following the crowd. In truth, print has never stopped working, but the marketing masses believe it has. They won't return to it again until they believe that there is some new reason why it works AGAIN. That's going to take a lot longer than 2011. And then there is still one thing that print doesn't do very well, and may NEVER do very well: It doesn't move people effectively over to the digital channel where their responses and reactions can be measured. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/13/2010 08:43:36 AM Hi Bob...thanks for commenting. You and I have had this conversation before, but a couple new points. 1. This post was based on conversations with CMOs, agencies and marketing execs. It frankly surprised me about the number of people focusing on print. 2. RE: measurement. It's very hard to measure ads, but it's not as hard to measure custom print. Whether by timing, unique URL, special offer, A/B testing or what not. I think that print took an unfair hit with the combination of digital and the recession. It needs to be a part of the mix...just will never come back to where it was. And that's okay. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ed Cleary EMAIL: ed@demandcreationspecialists.com IP: 74.109.248.190 URL: http://www.DemandCreationSpecialists.com DATE: 08/13/2010 09:10:53 AM I guess the proof will be in the ad index of magazines. Most of the (few)magazines I still receive have very small print advertiser bases.. and some have ceased publication altogether. If it comes back, we should see much thicker and more vibrant pubs in 2011. Folio Magazine just published an article yesterday (8/12)that stated the B2B print will continue to be sluggish through 2014. B2B Print Pubs will be down another 11.2% this year.... and this is on top of being down over 25% last year. Here is the Folio Magazine link for those that are intersted: News From Folio just out - Forecast: @FolioMag - Magazine Growth Sluggish Through 2014: http://bit.ly/drAR5G ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/13/2010 09:18:09 AM Thanks Ed. I actually don't think that traditional print will necessarily come back. I think that marketers will use custom, targeted print like newsletters and magazines more as part of their integrated programs. So, while one side of print continues to struggle, the other side will benefit (marketers publishing their own material instead of advertising). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Davezilla EMAIL: davezilla@gmail.com IP: 65.123.68.81 URL: http://davezilla.com/ DATE: 08/13/2010 09:35:36 AM "The printed word is still perceived as more credible to many people than anything on the web." Far too many studies show this not to be true anymore. People may *claim* they find print more credible, but ethnographic researchers says when asked a question, the first thing people do is run to Google—not the library. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/13/2010 10:08:40 AM Hi Dave...I agree with you on the perception of print, but when I talk to journalists, they talk about a more willingness from interviewees when the article is in print. Don't shoot the messenger. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alison EMAIL: alison.bolen@sas.com IP: 149.173.6.51 URL: http://blogs.sas.com/sascom DATE: 08/13/2010 10:09:25 AM Reason #8: Location, location, location. There are some places where people just like print better than mobile or audio: planes, trains, waiting rooms and (ahem) bathrooms. Every time we survey our print subscribers, we get a handful of people who mention the last location as the reason why they like print! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pramberger EMAIL: joe@techbriefs.com IP: 38.104.173.198 URL: DATE: 08/13/2010 10:22:02 AM Speaking of research, ours shows that print drives Google/Bing/Yahoo searches. When we ask our magazine subscribers how they respond to articles and advertisements, no surprise that #1, they go directly to that company's Web site. But more than 60% (consistently) tell us that they use a search engine to find out more about the topic or product. And over 75% tell us they are more likely to click on a company's listing in organic search results if they saw that company's ad in the magazine (print or digital edition). So print isn't getting enough credit for online actions. Searches don't happen in a vacuum. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Clay Forsberg EMAIL: clayforsberg@gmail.com IP: 24.72.218.246 URL: http://twitter.com/clayforsberg DATE: 08/13/2010 12:47:10 PM If I could add one thing. One the hottest new print technologies these days are QR codes. And the interesting thing is that to use it, you have to scan a printed piece. Full circle back to print. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jim O'Hare EMAIL: johare@biomedia.us IP: 75.187.212.234 URL: http://www.biomedia.us DATE: 08/13/2010 12:58:09 PM 1989: sent my first email 1990: produced company’s first desktop-published magazine; sent to printer via FTP (300 baud modem) 1991: subscriber to both Prodigy and CompuServe. 1995: launched my Fortune 200 company’s website 1996: published first of over a quarter million WebCD (complete website on a CD) 1999: broadcast first webcast in corporation 2001: corporate streaming video networks online – 20,000+ nodes. 2005: published first digital magazine 2008: published first on-demand hard-bound book via digital tecnology 2010, August 13: sent resounding “Yes” to Junta42, via online community, regarding the “new” medium of printing. Yes. We, too, have been an earlier adopter of all things digital as related to publishing. I consider publishing in the most broadterms: if you prepare media for a audience so that it can be - read - viewed - listened to - interacted with, then it's publishing. We remain bullish on electronic publishing - how can you not? - but we have never given up on print. Our friend Brad Nellis, the high-tech director of the nearly 1000 member tech organization NEOSA, made a similar prediction to Joe's. "I get almost no print mail anymore. If someone sends me a nicely printed piece, it gets my attention." Viva la online, viva la print, viva la difference. Jim O'Hare ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kevin Lund EMAIL: kevin@t3publishing.com IP: 76.104.235.187 URL: http://www.t3publishing.com DATE: 08/13/2010 01:20:40 PM Hallelujah, Joe! A little over a year ago, in our premier print release of SENTIMENT magazine (www.schaeffersresearch.com/sentiment) our client said it best: "If our communications had developed electronically, the next big thing would be the invention of the 'print' magazine; a completely portable communications tool that the reader could view on printed pages, touch, toss on his coffee table, file away, or pass along to a friend." As a producer of electronic financial newsletters and alert services, this was considered "risky" and foreign. But he saw an opportunity to engage with his audience in "the next big thing"-- offline marketing--which has been a great success for him in many areas, including retention, acquisition and good old-fashioned thought leadership. To argue that print has no place in today's online world is to have blinders on. There's no doubt that print is here to stay, and has its place alongside even the best online campaigns when done thoughtfully and meaningfully. It's the marketers and custom publishers who develop printed magazines to be more than just words on paper--rather, cultural experiences--who are destined for success. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael Fox EMAIL: michael@tdagroup.com IP: 204.247.252.6 URL: http://www.tdagroup.com DATE: 08/13/2010 02:28:54 PM This is EXACTLY what we have been finding - as traditional print media becomes somewhat of a novelty, savvy marketers are taking advantage and aggressively moving towards a portfolio of custom publishing. At TDA Group, we are bringing our best practices forward to educate sales and marketing teams how to make best use of blending print and on-line media, with emphasis on the effective application of items such as custom magazines etc. Results have been extremely positive for ourselves and our clients. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arnie | Vertical Measures EMAIL: arniek@verticalmeasures.com IP: 72.215.194.132 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com/services/content-development/ DATE: 08/13/2010 08:52:27 PM I have to agree with Jeff M. Print and digital is the best of both worlds. Even though I have a Kindle and an iPad, I still read industry focused stuff in print. And I confess I still read the local paper every morning. But all of that content should be made digitally available. And I look at every printed piece that is mailed to me at the office. Because I only get a few every week! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kevin Trye EMAIL: kevin@printnet.co.nz IP: 60.234.227.9 URL: http://www.printnet.co.nz DATE: 08/14/2010 06:18:44 PM Good reminder of prints value in the mix. There was a report by research company www.outsellinc.com back in 2006 when it was stated that 'print can be a legitimate spinoff to online communications'. Even back then someone was thinking outside the online box... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: OlsenNoelle EMAIL: barbarajackson@mail15.com IP: 91.201.66.6 URL: http://www.bestfinance-blog.com DATE: 08/15/2010 06:23:34 PM I took 1 st loans when I was 20 and this helped my business a lot. However, I need the bank loan once more time. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul Biedermann EMAIL: redesign2@optimum.net IP: 24.46.141.203 URL: http://www.redesign2.com/1/post/2010/06/for-real-change-keep-doing-the-same-thing.html DATE: 08/16/2010 12:37:49 PM Yes! What goes around comes around and I’ve been predicting this for a long time. After all, once everybody is up to speed with SMM, SEO and web optimized, the next great new thing will be... print! In the meantime, print is still the way to go because nobody is doing it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Victoria Blount EMAIL: victoria@creare.co.uk IP: 81.149.233.145 URL: http://www.crearedesign.co.uk/ DATE: 08/17/2010 04:28:13 AM I agree with this article but like the com mentors above i think print has a genuine quality about it, which is why big executives and more interested in a print article as opposed to a web one. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kim Tinkham EMAIL: kim@tinkinkpublications.com IP: 208.66.148.1 URL: http://www.TinkInkPublications.com DATE: 08/17/2010 10:28:56 AM Joe, As a publisher of several print magazines I can appreciate your thoughtfulness on this issue. Print is not dead but it has been going through a metamorphosis of sorts. Print is actually going through what online will be going through. It's not about the global quantity it is about the niche/local quality that you bring to the table. I love the online content that is out there but so many online publishers just blast information out there with no thought of their readership. The same thing will happen (is happening) to them that has happened to the larger non-niche print entities. I guess it will always boil down to quality of content for your readers - regardless of whether it is print or digital. Thanks for bringing this topic to the table. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Razlan EMAIL: razlan.manjaji@scmp.com IP: 202.22.242.243 URL: http://www.scmp.com DATE: 08/20/2010 05:57:52 AM There are more digital content compared to print content. When a commodity become more scarce, people assume it is more valuable. Print content will increase its importance, but will never return to its peak performance as yesteryears. Which puts digital folks in print media companies (such as yours truly) in a great place to be! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Kreuser EMAIL: jenniferk@vibrantgfx.com IP: 207.67.115.105 URL: http://www.vibrantgfx.com DATE: 08/20/2010 09:32:36 AM I can tell you that I have never seen greater results in my advertising efforts than when using print + online media in order to spread a message. When I researched the effectiveness of print about a year ago at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, over half of the students prefer to read a 'hard' copy newspaper and book versus online. Also, I can tell you that as a younger person, I also prefer this, and mostly spend my time online making business contacts, socializing, and researching. When I see a print advertisement or article, and also online, I am more immersed in that message because that company has reached me through multiple touch points. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Anna Marie Dunn EMAIL: amd@amdresearch-marketing.com IP: 65.32.97.36 URL: http://www.amdresearch-marketing.com DATE: 08/20/2010 10:23:58 AM I agree with you regarding the "print comeback." While we are aware of the need for information via technology, "the experience" using the senses(touch, smell, taste especially)will always be there and electronic mediums cannot deliver (as yet). Hurray for print! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Seymour EMAIL: seymour@seymourjacklin.co.uk IP: 89.240.105.237 URL: http://seymourjacklin.co.uk DATE: 08/24/2010 11:07:46 AM "Print still excites people", it really does and I think this point is well made. I think it will be a long time (if ever) before readers see words in a virtual environment as having quite the authority and bearing of a printed page. Perhaps, as one of your commenters suggested, it will become something of a novelty in years to come, to have something you can read and then scrumple up or pin to your fridge as you choose. I hope you are right. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Martina Jones EMAIL: martina_jones88@hotmail.com IP: 112.196.3.190 URL: http://www.promarketingteam.com DATE: 08/24/2010 10:25:29 PM "The printed word is still perceived as more credible to many people than anything on the web." Online Marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christa Huit EMAIL: xta2huit@gmail.com IP: 24.62.94.173 URL: DATE: 09/07/2010 04:13:09 PM Very good points in both the article and many posts. I think that truly the "everything in moderation" model works best. No one wants to be inundated with emails, web ads anymore; just as no one wants 50 pieces of unwanted mail in their physical mailbox. Everything must evolve, and I think this is print's biggest era for change. Quality over quantity? About the age range... looking forward to the techno generation looking to print as retro and cool. It will happen, just look at the 80's fashion return. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Spotlight Direct EMAIL: jeff@spotlightdirect.com IP: 66.117.205.99 URL: http://spotlightdirect.com DATE: 10/08/2010 08:28:34 AM once advertising firms develop a strategy to implement both print and online products under the same man power, then this debate will go away. print is not dead, it is a fact that offering digital products has almost no overhead cost other than the intellect to create the digital goods. thus, the trend continues to shout digital, yet that trend is not delivering the results promised for the most part. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tamara Jacobs EMAIL: tmr.jacobs@gmail.com IP: 213.123.214.51 URL: http://confessionsofaconfidante.wordpress.com/ DATE: 10/27/2010 04:48:42 AM There is absolutely no question that when preparing a piece of content for print, people pay more attention to their words, grammar, and opinions- so I would have to agree with point number 6. I also must agree with points 1 and 7- because we are so "plugged in" during our days, curling up with a magazine feels like a real breather, moreso then ever before. In terms of stimulating ideas and getting people to ask the right questions, I don't agree that only print is capable of achieving this. There is a ton of incredible content available online right now. By logging on to influencial social media channels like Twitter people have access to all things the people they follow think are interesting, cool and worth checking out. It almost negates the need to sift through papers and magazines yourself- assuming you're following people you like and trust. And with regards to point 3, I don't think that publishers existing mailing lists are quite enough- so there is the need to branch out and that will always cost money, no matter what form of media you are using. At least with digital though, you are able to reach many people at once. I like your article and your ideas. Thank you for sharing them. This is a very interesting topic of conversation and one that will get editorial coverage for many years to come I think. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: There are two types of marketers: Content marketers and everyone else STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: there-are-two-types-of-marketers-content-marketers-and-everyone-else CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 08/05/2010 10:12:02 PM ----- BODY:

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.

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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.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, jason calacanis, content marketers ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julia Stewart EMAIL: jscoach@gmail.com IP: 71.81.136.194 URL: http://www.SchoolofCoachingMastery.com DATE: 08/05/2010 10:27:02 PM 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. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Francis Walsh EMAIL: awewriter@gmail.com IP: 98.200.216.216 URL: http://www.powerfitz.com/blog/blog/wordpress DATE: 08/06/2010 01:21:24 AM My sentiment exactly. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Cass EMAIL: john.cass@paceco.com IP: 66.194.121.115 URL: http://www.pacecommunications.com/blog DATE: 08/06/2010 08:36:46 AM 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! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rob Leavitt EMAIL: robleav@gmail.com IP: 96.233.44.129 URL: http://www.reputationtorevenue.com DATE: 08/06/2010 09:34:40 AM 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! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/06/2010 10:45:04 AM 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. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rachel Nislick EMAIL: rnislick@ptc.com IP: 12.11.149.5 URL: http://www.ptc.com DATE: 08/06/2010 11:51:51 AM 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.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Teresa Basich EMAIL: teresa.basich@radian6.com IP: 76.87.25.156 URL: http://www.radian6.com DATE: 08/06/2010 04:20:35 PM 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 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vee Sweeney EMAIL: itmdirec@gmail.com IP: 207.255.167.219 URL: http://www.theinternettimemachine.com DATE: 08/11/2010 11:40:54 AM 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. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Taylor EMAIL: grt2@grt2studios.com IP: 98.177.243.154 URL: http://www.grt2studios.com DATE: 08/13/2010 01:49:10 PM Great content is king of the marketing world. Key word being Great, of course. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: amr mettwally abd elhafeez EMAIL: amrocrm@gmail.com IP: 86.51.213.105 URL: http://earning-onweb.blogspot.com/ DATE: 08/14/2010 07:45:15 PM Traffic is the currency of the web. The more traffic your website has, the easier it will be to achieve your objective, be it to make money, to spread your ideas, to connect with other people or anything else. That is why we decided to create a compilation with 100 ways you can use to increase your website traffic. Apply some (or most) of them and we are sure your numbers will go up! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Higher Purpose Content Marketing [the video] STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: higher-purpose-content-marketing-the-video CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 08/04/2010 10:31:34 PM ----- BODY:

The video presentations from Web Content 2010 are now available. Honestly, these videos are some of the best web content strategy thinking you'll find out there.

My presentation was a more light-hearted compared to most on something I've been calling Higher Purpose Content Marketing.

Basically, the six steps to higher purpose content marketing include:

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1. Create / Own Your Category

How can you tell your story differently than everyone else? New terminology may be necessary (i.e., content marketing).

2. Go Out to the People

Just like Jesus created a following by going to where the people were, so you need to as well. Find out where your customers are hanging out on the web and get involved in the conversation.

3. Then, Invite Them In

Invite your customers and influencers into your website and make them a part of the content (guest blogging, Q&A's come to mind).

4. Create Employee Rock Stars

Engaging your employees is critical. Employees are also the best source of marketing content you have. Get them involved.

5. Assign an Internal Evangelist

You need someone to not only be the cheerleader, but to help with the process flow and to keep your employees focused on your higher purpose content marketing strategy.

6. Create Something Remarkable

Your customers have so many choices when it comes to content. If your content isn't the very best, why should they engage or share your brand story?

Enjoy the video [45 minutes]

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: higher purpose content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brandon Croke EMAIL: brandon.m.croke@gmail.com IP: 72.241.169.176 URL: http://bcroke.wordpress.com DATE: 08/08/2010 04:42:13 PM Thanks for sharing your talk Joe, I really agree with you on the whole higher purpose content perspective. My question is how do you start a "higher purpose content conversation" call with a client when they come to you for "web or social marketing help"? I don't think the average person/company is ready for the paradigm shift required to be relevant in the world of post millennial marketing. I've worked with clients large and small and although the little guys may have some sense of higher purpose, often they don't have the time or chops to produce consistent content themselves. On the other hand working with the big boys, you've got the nightmare of dealing with a complex organizational structure. I've found the head of marketing for a large established company probably didn't get to their position by sharing up things on the corporate ladder for 30 years. I guess poor marketing is really more of a leadership problem , but that's a tough conversation to have with a client when you tell them, "your brand isn't interesting, you don't stand for anything, and you aren't a thought leader." Most consultants are probably cashing social media checks without helping to set a higher content strategy in place. Have you had any "tough" higher purpose content meetings with any of your clients in the past? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/08/2010 04:49:56 PM Hi Brandon...you make a great point. I think it has to be part of the discussion when you are looking at the type of content to create as part of the social media/web conversation. In order for social media to work, what do they have to say that people want to spread? From a business perspective, most senior marketers get that...it just takes a couple conversations about what they want to accomplish. If they want business results, this conversation can then be part of the roadmap. Have you seen this post about creating your own category? http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2010/07/create-your-own-content-category.html It might help... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arnie Kuenn | Vertical Measures EMAIL: arniek@verticalmeasures.com IP: 72.215.194.132 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com/services/content-development/ DATE: 08/31/2010 09:11:37 PM Joe - good presentation. I understand where Brandon is coming from, we have a hard time getting most clients to really commit to great content - especially when we give them the price :-) But I do feel the tide is turning. More and more success stories help build the case. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: How Much Should Brands Pay for Content Marketing? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-cost CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/29/2010 10:37:17 PM ----- BODY:

This cost of content marketing post was inspired by Kate Headen Waddell's post entitled Pay Peanuts Get Monkeys.

At least one time per day, every day for three years, someone emails us at Junta42 or submits a project looking for a content vendor wondering how much content marketing (both print and web content) should cost them. And who wouldn't want to know?

Before now, we've never put all our thoughts and answers together into one post, but here it is, quite lengthy, but important enough to discuss in detail.

The Short Answer

Question: How much should I pay for my content?

Answer: It depends.

Unfortunately, it always depends, but there are ways to determine a fair price for content.

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When most marketing professionals budget for content, whether that be for web content, blogs, editorial for print magazines, enewsletters and more, they go by what "feels" right. I'm not saying this is right or wrong...it's just a fact. Marketers inherently judge content pricing based on what they've paid for PR or other creative, or even the value of their own time. Content and copy are always subjective and there are always multiple steps. But the starting point is the Content Goal.

Look at it this way. I can pay $12 dollars to play eighteen holes of golf at a Sandusky, Ohio golf course. I can walk on and carry my bag (the gas carts have been known to die on the course, so I choose to walk). The course is not in good shape. There are brown spots in the fairway...big ones. The greens are bumpy. There are no places to get drinkable water on the course. Holes four and five kind of smell. Sometimes you get some people on the course that shouldn't be on a golf course.

I can also pay three-hundred dollars at Pinehurst in North Carolina. The course is immaculate. Every amenity you can think of. There is a caddy that will carry your clubs for you and tell you which club to hit and when. He or she will even rake the bunkers for you. Sometimes you'll see someone famous. You can feel the history of the course. Even four-putting a green still feels okay (hey, even the pros have done that on this course).

What did I get? If you really look at it, I overpaid by $288 to play eighteen holes by going to Pinehurst. The two courses are both around the same length. Both courses took about the same amount of time to play. I took about the same number of swings (= a lot). So what's right? 0.67 per hole or $16.67 per hole.

The difference was that my goal was not the same. There are times for each situation (just like content). If I just want to swing the club, the $12 course is perfect. Exactly what I needed. If I want an experience, or want to share an experience with someone else, I may take the rare occasion to play Pinehurst.

There is no right or wrong. I can purchase both and succeed depending on what I wanted to do.

The same goes for content. There can be a time for "cheap" content. There are also times for premium content. Just like playing golf where they both have 18 fairways and greens, 500 words is 500 words. What happens with those 500 words is where the price difference comes in.

First, a Word about Cheap Content

If you don't know the story about Demand Media, you should read this Wired article. Demand Media is the company behind much of the content you find on the Internet, including hundreds of thousands of videos you find on YouTube and even the content behind Lance Armstrong's Livestrong website about all things health, wellness and family. As a marketer or publisher, you should understand their model.

Without going into too much detail, Demand uses complex algorithms to try to predict what people will be searching for on the internet, whether that be for Banana Nut bread or a new crazy form of exercise. They then use those predictions to create content...lots of content around those topics. Articles, videos, how-to pieces...you name it. Although they've changed their writer-payment model a few times, it seems that writers get about $10-15 per 300-word post and videographers get about $25 per online video...maybe less.

Anyone growing up in the publishing business gets sick at these prices. When I was at Penton, it was not a rare occasion to pay $1 per word for web and print content. There were even times where we paid up to $2.50 to $3 a word for highly specialized content (more on this in a second).

In order for writers to make a living producing content in a model like Demand Media's, they need to write about a lot of topics very fast without much research, or be able to write many related posts about sub-topics in a limited timeframe. Gone are the days where we wrote an article, came back to it, proofed it, rewrote parts, and then presented final copy (at least not in this model). So, much of the content in this model includes:

Re-writes: One writer taking one article and rewriting it to a point where it can't be considered copying (there are some ethical issues here).
Content curation: Reviewing a number of sources and blending an article back together from those sources (think of a filter).
Industry experts not charging very much money for their work.

Most marketers and publishers I talk to think that this "cheap" content consists of writers doing rewrites and curation. What they can't understand is that there are industry experts/skilled writers and videographers that are creating much of this assembly-line type content. I'm not saying that it's right or wrong. I'm only saying that it's happening and we need to be aware of it.

With content marketing, using this model is dicey at best. Why?

You have a unique voice and your content needs to portray that. Getting writers to understand your voice takes time and expertise.
You have a marketing plan that has specific goals that need to be addressed. That means the content created has to speak directly to those goals. This takes time and expertise.
Your content needs to original, engaging, valuable and compelling. Developing this kind of content takes time and expertise. [even curated content must be valuable]
Your content serves multiple purposes in multiple channels. For example, a blog post might also be a video which might also need to be discussed on Facebook and delivered as a Tweet. Correctly integrating this message takes time and expertise.

Remember the Steps of the Content Process

Every brand's process of creating content is a bit different, but generally you have:

The marketing plan
The content strategy within the marketing plan
The specific tactics (i.e., a blog) within the content strategy
An editorial plan for the tactic (the managing editor's role)
Base content for the tactic (i.e., a blog post)
Review of the base content (expert review and proofreading)
The distribution of the content through the content management system
The optimization of the content for search engines (on-page and off-page)
Syndication of the content (i.e. though Facebook and Twitter)
Integration of the content (back to the marketing plan and with the other content marketing strategies and traditional marketing strategies)
Measuring the content (through analytics, conversions, direct/cross sales or other qualitative measures)
Reevaluating the content (based on the feedback about the content through analytics)

This is a simple version of a very complex process. Cost, or better said, investment is something comes at each one of these steps. Most marketers only look at content cost as the base content (the word or the video), something you might pay someone $25 a post, $100 an hour or even $2 per word, depending on the complexity of the content and the needs of the business. Let's say that you need to invest $300 for this particular blog post. Many marketers think they are done with the budgeting process (blog posts needed x $300). Oh no, not even close.

Who's creating the ongoing editorial plan?
Who's keeping the content fresh, cutting-edge and compelling?
Who syndicates the content?
Who repurposes the content?
Who measures the content?
Who's reevaluating the content?

The list goes on and on. This is exactly the reason why, if you outsource your content marketing process to a content agency or custom publisher, it's extremely difficult to break out just base content. Rarely do brands have all the other parts figured out and just need the base content. When brands come through Junta42 and want vendors for, say, blog posts every month, most haven't thought about 75% of the content creation process. Turnkey content creation costs more...but you need to remember what you are getting.

What's the Experience?

So what type of experience are you trying to create between your content and your customer? The answer to that question will determine what parts of the content process you need, and ultimately, what you need to pay for your content. Maybe you are at a point where you could pay someone $25 for a blog post. This model works for Demand Media. It doesn't work for most brands. We can't afford to focus all our attention on predicting what our customers will search for next and write content for that. We need to develop content that will help lead the conversation with our customers, and ultimately help our businesses profit from the content we create.

I don't necessarily agree with the idea of Pay Peanuts, Get Monkeys because I know some amazing writers that have been able to use the Demand Media system to their advantage, like it or not. And, there are customers that are achieving their goals with that model. But, as a marketer, you must understand what you are paying for in that model. Do you just want to take some swings and walk 18 holes? That might be enough. Or do you need Pinehurst.

Final note: It took me about two hours to write this post. Cost = priceless.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: how much should brands pay for content ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Carebuzz EMAIL: carol@carebuzz.com IP: 71.42.137.227 URL: http://carebuzz.com DATE: 07/30/2010 09:20:32 AM Joe, My company Carebuzz markets content to the senior care industry to help them gain qualified referrals. We are constantly looking for good strategic ways that make sense to our customers when helping them. Man are you right on, Joe. We have worked with umpteen marketing/internet marketing folks and you are one of the first that produces clear strategies and direction... Thank you! I appreciate the work and content that you produce. I will continue to read your stuff and refer you to my customers. Carol Marak Carebuzz ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ardath Albee EMAIL: ardath@marketinginteractions.com IP: 98.150.117.155 URL: http://marketinginteractions.typepad.com DATE: 07/30/2010 09:28:45 AM Nicely said, Joe. Definitely priceless! Content Marketing is about much more than the words. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dechay Watts EMAIL: dechay@sproutcontent.com IP: 68.221.160.250 URL: http://www.sproutcontent.com DATE: 07/30/2010 09:42:24 AM Thank you for this post. I love the golf analogy and may borrow it (with your permission) the next time we're faced with a client who wants 10 articles written for $10. I'd add that if you're going the route of cheap content, even if it is a short-term way to increase rankings, consider the impact you're making on the internet environment. We may have a pollution problem one day if we keep cluttering the web with "cheap" fluff. You may also have a brand problem one day if outdated fluff is tracked back to your site. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karen Marley EMAIL: karen@kmwordsmith.com IP: 70.101.3.132 URL: http://kmwordsmith.com DATE: 07/30/2010 09:49:47 AM Joe, you rock. You clearly articulated the difference between linking content to a marketing strategy and content written for eyeballs only. This is priceless. I'm hanging on to it and sharing it every way I can. Sending you a sincere thank you for those two hours. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate Headen Waddell EMAIL: kate@smartb2bmarcom.com IP: 72.70.100.232 URL: http://www.smartb2bmarcom.com DATE: 07/30/2010 09:59:34 AM Joe - thanks for the shout out on my Savvy B2B article.You are right that when a client understands how marketing communications support larger business goals their willingness to pay for quality goes way up. There is room in the marketplace for keyword articles; I am just afraid that the first five pages of Google results will soon be spun articles that make no sense and add no value to the conversation. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vince Giorgi EMAIL: vgiorgi@charter.net IP: 66.208.16.210 URL: http://www.touchpointcity.wordpress.com DATE: 07/30/2010 10:54:28 AM Great post, Joe. Read it while on the bus and for some reason was struck by this image of a neighborhood garage sale. A bunch of homes and driveways lining a street. Gaggles of people meandering the sidewalk. Scouting for finds and bargains, yes. But also looking for experiences. One garage seller has stacked odds and ends in a jumble near the bottom of the driveway, stuck a handwritten sign on a stick near the street, and is sitting inside, peering out a window, only coming out when someone appears to be looking seriously at an item. Next door, the family's tied a few helium balloons to their mail box. The kids have baked cookies and are serving kool-aid. One is giving away a stick of bubble gum for every 5 baseball cards purchased. Stuff is arrayed around the driveway's perimeter and in the neatly swept garage. There's music playing. The pool and foosball tables, and the portable basketball hoop, are not only for sale, they're set up so people can try them out, even play a quick game. Mom and Dad are greeting people and available to answer questions -- how long, how well, any problems, how much. Both of these homeowners are pursuing garage sale strategies. Stacking $25 dollar blog posts like cord wood might be considered a content marketing strategy. But you could argue that only one of these garage salers is striving to provide a differentiated, value-adding, brand-building experience. When next year's garage sale weekend comes around, which home will customers remember? Which will they make a point to revisit, or tell others about? And maybe there's this, which I think is too often overlooked: When you as the homeowner (the corporate marketer) close the door on you garage sale at night, how good do you feel about the experience you've provided for your customers and potential customers? Did you provide them with a lowest-common denominator. Or did you strive to create and deliver something special, truly relevant and useful, even unique? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Buscall EMAIL: jontusmedia@gmail.com IP: 82.182.22.232 URL: http://jontusmedia.com DATE: 07/30/2010 11:08:40 AM Joe, this is the kind of post prospective clients should be foreced to sit down and read through. No kidding! It's an excellent piece and illustrates one of the major problems with our industry right now. Thank you for sharing this. It's been my read of the week! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: dj davisson EMAIL: djdavisson@me.com IP: 24.113.156.39 URL: DATE: 07/30/2010 11:18:14 AM Joe, many thanks for your thoughtful post. i appreciate the time you invested to create a great framework for the kinds of client conversations we have every day. thankfully, many of our clients choose Pinehurst and the experience it offers. but sometimes it's a bumpy ride to the course. already sharing your post with colleagues. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: @lakey EMAIL: chris@econsultancy.com IP: 77.103.4.189 URL: http://twitter.com/lakey DATE: 07/30/2010 11:43:28 AM Good read Joe, all sound tips, and a nice checklist. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jennifer D EMAIL: radiohead_uk@hotmail.com IP: 84.45.24.46 URL: http://ensignjenpersonallog.wordpress.com/ DATE: 07/30/2010 12:02:36 PM Brilliant post. I couldn't agree more with all of your points - few people understand how much work actually goes into creating and maintaining decent site content. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/30/2010 12:29:12 PM Some amazing comments here...seems this issue is as important to others as it is to me. Initially, I thought about writing this from the standpoint of "you should pay x for y and z". Wouldn't we all like to see a rate card for this kind of stuff? Not possible in my opinion. Vince, I loved your analogy. We still have a long way to go. Maybe we haven't seen the bottom yet...but I feel the tide turning. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Josh Morrow EMAIL: Joshsmorrow@gmail.com IP: 134.197.105.242 URL: http://joshsmorrow.wordpress.com/ DATE: 08/03/2010 05:18:28 PM This post was awesome. I learned a whole bunch from it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christina Capadona-Schmitz EMAIL: christina@pr2020.com IP: 76.160.78.205 URL: http://www.pr2020.com DATE: 08/04/2010 01:35:55 PM Joe, thanks for putting together such a valuable post. You cover so many angles in this, but I think the main point is that marketers have options when it comes to content creation. By keeping the many steps of the content process in mind, as well as the questions you shared about what happens after the content is created, marketers can evaluate their individual situations and plan upfront for investment in the full life of the content piece(s). It's about finding the balance of quality and cost that is going to achieve marketing goals and work within a budget. Content strategies and activities should be designed with the end goals of generating leads, building loyalty, or both, and marketers have the power to choose for their organizations where resources (time included) toward content marketing can have the greatest impact on these areas. Thanks again for the useful post, great comments as well! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matthew Pattinson EMAIL: matt@creativepen.co.uk IP: 94.11.81.97 URL: http://www.creativepen.co.uk DATE: 08/08/2010 05:33:59 AM Great post which taps straight into the heart of the debate on content pricing. As a freelance copywriter, I'd have to say pricing is not a fixed science. To give my clients a fair idea of what to expect price wise though, I break down each individual task complete with projected hours. And, like you say, price totally depends on the type of service required by the client. If it's a simple rewrite, or making something sound pretty, the overheads will be notably cut. Whereas projects involving brand building - an extensive content strategy before pen is put to paper - will cost more. It's not rocket science, it's simple mathematics. Thanks for the post, really enjoyed!! Matt Pattinson - freelance copywriter at www.creativepen.co.uk ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: DJ EMAIL: OnlineMarketerBlog@gmail.com IP: 98.215.68.180 URL: http://OnlineMarketerBlog.com DATE: 08/31/2010 08:08:26 PM I know others have said it, but thanks for this post - you're right on. It's tough to explain this to clients. But you guys did a great job. Thanks man! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/31/2010 08:45:33 PM Thanks DJ. It's a tough question to answer...every day. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karla Campos Lopez EMAIL: klopez@giglogo.com IP: 174.49.185.116 URL: http://giglogo.com/guest-blogger-articles.html DATE: 09/06/2010 09:05:59 AM This is an excellent read, I couldn't agree more with the saying "you get what you pay for". I have come across different web sites where you can find article writers for hire. Usually the writer's with the proven skill levels and track record charge more per article than a less experienced writer. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Sales Is the Reason Your Content Exists - Content Marketing ROI STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-roi CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: measurement DATE: 07/26/2010 10:11:30 PM ----- BODY:

Before I launched my business, I read the Bootstrapper's Bible by Seth Godin. It was and is invaluable.

Every year or so, I dig it out of the file folders and re-read it. I always find something new...something I didn't realize the last time through.

But every time, this is the statement that resonates the most.

Sales is the reason for your business to exist.

Nothing more true can be said about running a business. With sales, all things are possible.

Don and Heidi Shultz, in their book IMC, the Next Generation, state, "For all the complexity of marketing and communication plans, firms want only four outcomes from them." Those outcomes are:

To acquire new customers
To retain and maintain present customers
To retain and grow sales volume or profit from existing customers
To migrate existing customers through the firm's product or service portfolio

The same thinking needs to be applied to your content marketing.

No marketer should be developing new content or curating content unless:

The content drives direct sales of a new customer (customer acquisition).
The content leads a current customer to an additional sale (cross selling).
The content attracts someone that looks like a customer (lead generation).
The content ultimately helps lead to a sale (lead nurturing).
The content keeps sales in the house (customer retention and loyalty).

This is the very essence of content marketing. In the formal definition of content marketing, the ultimate objective of content marketing is driving profitable action. That's content marketing ROI.

Do yourself a favor with these two actions:

If your content is not doing the above, stop doing it.
If you are not sure if it is or not, invest enough to find out.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing ROI ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Daniel Hindin EMAIL: dhindin@armentdietrich.com IP: 99.88.107.210 URL: http://www.spinsucks.com DATE: 07/27/2010 02:22:51 PM I love the reference to Don Schultz, Joe. He was one of my professors at Northwestern. A dynamic thinker with a shining personality. Don also preaches the customer-centric SIVA approach, which stands for solutions, information, value and access. Suzanne Aimee, president of Able Web Professionals (no affiliation), adeptly describes a portion of this approach on the Able Web Pro blog: "Solving problems is more than simply selling a product or service. Thus giving way to the next letter in the acronym, Information. In the SIVA Model it is the process of sharing information, engaging in a 2-way dialog and educating the market on your solution. Rather than trying to force suspects to see your message, you’ll enable them to find information later on when they have a real problem to solve." In my opinion, that's where the idea of community comes into play. I wonder what you think of that statement and how you might reconcile it with what you've written above. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 68.167.244.60 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/28/2010 06:19:35 AM Daniel...great stuff. I wasn't aware of the SIVA model. Thanks for pointing it out. Don is an amazing man. It's an education just to hear him talk. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: scott aughtmon @rampbusinesses EMAIL: recessionsolution@gmail.com IP: 24.4.237.57 URL: http://recessionsolution.wordpress.com DATE: 07/28/2010 09:39:10 PM Thanks for reminding me about "The Bootstrapper's Bible", Joe. I need to re-read that again! I also really liked... "5.The content keeps sales in the house (customer retention and loyalty)." I don't think most people think of content marketing being used in this way, but it's true. I can think of ways content marketing can be used for this. One way is to use your content re-educate your customers about the unique selling points of your product, service or business. Another way would be to use content to educate them on how to use your product or service to get the maximum out of it. Can you think you think of any little-known, or little-used ways to use content marketing for customer rentention/loyalty that most people overlook, Joe? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Bottom EMAIL: john.bottom@baseonegroup.co.uk IP: 86.189.3.90 URL: http://www.baseonegroup.co.uk/beyond DATE: 07/29/2010 04:28:59 AM Nice summary Joe. Good to keep our feet on the ground and remember why we're really doing this. John ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/29/2010 10:52:39 AM Thanks John...it's a good reminder for me as well. That's actually why I wrote it. Hi Scott...you are right, customer retention is the original content marketing goal (in my opinion). I can think of lots of ways, not sure they are little known. Blog posts, enewsletters, white papers, ebooks, content curated roundups, webinars (a big one), in person roundtables and events, luncheons and the list goes on. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Marketers Act Like Publishers, with One Exception STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: marketers-act-like-publishers-with-one-exception CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/22/2010 09:32:45 PM ----- BODY:

Jeremy Victor just published two excellent articles on how to think and act like a publisher (part 1 and part 2).

It's strange, all this talk about being a publisher today. Who would want to be a publisher today? I've seen many of my friends, both executives and support staff, lose their jobs in publishing over the past three years.

So why all this talk about thinking and acting like a publisher?

Believe it or not, people are consuming more information than ever before. Even as newspaper print circulation declines, more people are reading the news today. When cutbacks were made at any one of the magazines where my friends were downsized, in almost every case, readership and engagement was at an all time high.

Engagement has never been a problem for publishers. Today's issue for publishers is monetizing the content.

As a marketer, you don't have that problem. There is one clear exception between marketers and publishers. Marketers monetize their content by selling products and services, while publishers sell advertising or subscriptions.

NOTE: Have you noticed the number of publishers that are creating products and services.

As a marketer, you need to prepare for the following:

Your marketing department is transforming into a publishing department. Just look at the activities performed by a marketer today (blogs, podcasts, videos, newsletters, webcasts and more). Lots of publishing going on.
In the recent past, good content was enough to deliver on your marketing objectives. The bar is rising fast. Marketers who were early to the content marketing game only had to compete with publishers in their industry. Today, we are competing with everyone. Today, we need to own our content category.
Start understanding content curation. Our roles as publishers is not just to create content, but to position ourselves as the experts by being filters for our customers. Get used to hearing about content curation over the next many years.

Still need some more motivation? Check out this one minute clip on becoming a publisher.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: thinking like a publisher, content curation ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeremy Victor EMAIL: jvictor@makegoodmedia.com IP: 69.249.180.25 URL: http://www.makegoodmedia.com DATE: 07/22/2010 11:02:50 PM Joe, This is so right on: Marketers monetize their content by selling products and services, while publishers sell advertising or subscriptions. Great insight - Jeremy (and thanks for the kindness.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mick Dickinson EMAIL: mick@buzzedup.co.uk IP: 92.238.192.176 URL: http://www.buzzedup.co.uk/ DATE: 07/23/2010 08:04:34 AM I wholeheartedly agree that content as a marketing tool is a no-brainer given the context you outline. The interesting thing is that a lot of marketing teams don’t yet have the writing skills - or the publishing mindset - to fulfil a content calendar. Some are now employing ex-journalists or business writers, a smart move. Others outsource (praise be!) and keep their overheads down, even smarter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mary EMAIL: mary316@embarqmail.com IP: 69.68.33.37 URL: DATE: 07/24/2010 11:10:30 AM Mark, you are absolutely correct. In fact, I AM an ex-journalist who was just hired as a marketer. The president of the company told me I was hired because of my writing skills. He chose me over several candidates who had "real" marketing experience. Just thought I'd share. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mary EMAIL: mary316@embarqmail.com IP: 69.68.33.37 URL: DATE: 07/24/2010 11:12:19 AM Ooops. My apologies. I got your name wrong, Mick. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jody Pellerin EMAIL: Marketing@PhaseWare.com IP: 173.173.91.177 URL: http://www.phaseware.com DATE: 07/24/2010 09:38:15 PM Having now read many of the articles this one links to and the links from those articles, I would like to inject the observation that many of the responsibilities and activities being ascribed to content curators have been performed by librarians in the past and these may be the people with the training to participate in content curation. Librarians have always been charged with determining whether a resource was authoritative (reference librarian), gathering information about a topic (research librarian), and keeping the collection "weeded", among other things. Library and Information Science schools such as the School of Information at the University of North Texas teach and perform research about the very topics of most concern to those on both sides of the curation debate. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/25/2010 01:49:23 PM It's interesting that writers and (to Jody's point) librarian-type skills are key to our marketing departments. I love it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cody's Marketing Tool EMAIL: Shotkoski@live.com IP: 72.8.251.206 URL: http://wealthwizard.imoneycenter.com DATE: 08/15/2010 07:57:27 PM Hi Joe, I absolutely agree with you that we are competing against more and more people every day. I write articles for some of my marketing and submit them to article site's. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: James McKinnon EMAIL: james@webzine.com IP: 24.150.8.25 URL: http://www.ediweekly.com DATE: 08/22/2010 12:18:51 PM Very good stuff. I love the concept of owning the content category, though it's really difficult to do. Like owning top of mind when you sell something banal like plastic container caps. Thanks for the insights. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Are you developing the best content in your industry? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: best-industry-content CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 07/20/2010 02:50:22 PM ----- BODY:

This is just a one minute interview completed when I spoke at the Business Marketing Association conference, but it contains some important points.

Facebook, Twitter...yes, they are important. But they are just channels and may be gone tomorrow. What is the substance behind those channels?
How are you creating meaning for your customers every day? Are you?
Are you developing the very best information, the best content in your industry? Don't leave that to the media companies. If you want to be the expert in your industry to drive your business, you must be the expert. How do you do that? Hmmm...let me think.

What say you?

More here in my last post on creating your own content marketing category.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: best industry content, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Courtney EMAIL: cnelson@whitehorse.com IP: 12.191.102.2 URL: DATE: 07/21/2010 05:49:55 PM Great post Joe. I think these are questions that even companies that feel like they have a good hold on content marketing need to ask themselves. Sometimes you need to take a seconded and ask yourself, "Really?" Just to make sure that you haven't got too comfortable and prepare to push yourself. I think this would pair well with a new article on iMedia I saw today called, "The 10 commandments of content marketing." It really boils the subject down to the important parts that we all need to focus on. The idea that if you want to be seen as an expert than act like one or have the people in your company who are go out and talk in the space. We can't all be experts on everything. Feel free to check out the article here: http://bit.ly/bZKxj1 Let me know if there is anything you would add to the commandments. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/21/2010 09:27:05 PM Thanks Courtney...I'll take a good look at the article. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kimmo Linkama EMAIL: kimmolinkama@gmail.com IP: 90.190.223.136 URL: http://linkama.wordpress.com/ DATE: 07/22/2010 02:58:45 AM I don't want to be a spoilsport, but I think we're seeing this "be the very best" attitude a little too much these days, particularly in connection with social media. It's a statistical impossibility that we could all be the best. Of course, the best is what you should constantly be striving for. Let's not, however, depress the realists among us into inactivity through perceived futility. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/22/2010 08:11:15 AM Hi Kimmo...you are right, can everyone in the world be the best...maybe not. But I believe if businesses choose the right niche for their products, they should indeed strive to be the best. I've worked on many magazines in my day. The ones that made it were the ones that pursued giving the very best information to their readers and the best experiences for their advertisers. The others no longer exist. So, if we are willing to settle, we also must be willing to see our businesses go by the wayside. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: company logo design EMAIL: livefaq@gmail.com IP: 202.70.156.194 URL: http://www.logoforcompany.com DATE: 07/27/2010 03:44:46 AM Well don't know whats going on but its not a Good way to do this. in my opinion we have to look again about this issue ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Create Your Own Content Category STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: create-your-own-content-category CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/16/2010 05:19:59 AM ----- BODY:

One of the tenets to delivering higher purpose content marketing is to develop your own content category.

Let me explain.

I was talking to a web marketer a few weeks back who asked:

"I have seven competitors and we are all fighting for the same keywords. Every company blogs and is pretty much talking about the same thing. What do we do?"

If you are talking about the same concepts and content as your competitors, what value are you adding to the conversation? Are you truly providing anything that will differentiate you from your competitors, over the thousands of other messages out there your customers are possibly engaging with?

One of the ways to take your content marketing to the next level is by creating your own content category.

This is exactly what Citrix Systems, makers of GoToMeeting and GoToMyPC, has done with their concept of Workshifting. Workshifting is the idea that we can work from anywhere, anytime. The word didn't exist a year ago, and today there are over 500,000 mentions of it on Google and thousands of websites that discuss the concept.

Citrix created the category. They own this category.

We have tried to do the same thing with the term content marketing. I first used the phrase as Penton in 2000, but Junta42 aggressively used the term starting in 2007. The benefits of this strategy are too long to mention.

I believe Kristina Halvorson has done the same with the term web content strategy.

Can you change the conversation and help your customers at the same time? Think about it.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content category, higher purpose content marketing, workshifting ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Zack EMAIL: zack.miller@gmail.com IP: 98.64.48.57 URL: http://www.tradestreaming.com DATE: 07/16/2010 07:08:10 AM Good, smart post. I've done this as well and I have to see it's great in terms of creating brand and ultimately, awareness. I speak about Tradestreaming, which is the investors equivalent of lifestreaming -- using social media tools to add to and plug into the collective tradestream. I recently launched a book under the same brand. My website, http://www.tradestreaming.com, will also ultimately serve as the homebase for other content products using the same content category. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Doug Kessler EMAIL: doug@velocitypartners.co.uk IP: 217.41.2.184 URL: http://www.velocitypartners.co.uk DATE: 07/16/2010 08:47:30 AM Nice one. We often create new categories for our clients for just these reasons. The trick is to also use the accepted category terms so you're not trading a high-traffic term for a zero-traffic one. We like to use language on a website like, "[New category is much more than simple [old catgegory]". ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Clare Price EMAIL: clare@brandcubed.com IP: 65.78.167.239 URL: http://www.brand-flex.com DATE: 07/16/2010 09:46:33 AM Great post Joe! I am so frustrated with the "same note" content and conversation we see everywhere on the Web. I've also found that defining a new content category only works if there is true value for the client behind it. Also totally agree with Doug's comment. It is important to make sure there is a connection to an accepted category so that the client has some context to make the logical leap to the new category. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/17/2010 08:16:06 AM I like the conversation here. Clare/Doug, I agree with you about something that customers can connect with...but I also believe, that depending on how much time and investment a company wants to make, that a new term could work as well (as long as there is a hole/opportunity in the market). That said, your suggestion is much easier. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lisa Horner EMAIL: lisa.horner@citrix.com IP: 216.219.125.1 URL: http://www.citrixonline.com DATE: 07/19/2010 10:25:37 AM Thank you for your post Joe. When we talked about setting up a blog last year, we struggled with which way to go - more product centric, or more broad education. Because we always attempt to bring valuable content to our customers, and because we could see a shift in the way people were working, we felt we could help both workshifters & companies adapt to these changes easily. Thanks again for acknowledging our focus - and if you're ever workshifting, please shoot us a guest post with any insight for the community. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/19/2010 03:51:15 PM Very cool Lisa. Considering I will do about 50 in-person events this year, workshifting is my life! My big advice - set limits to when you are actually working and when you are not...if you don't, you are always working. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Old Spice Man Makes a Social Media Impact with YouTube Responses STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: old-spice-man-makes-a-social-media-impact-with-youtube-responses CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: social content marketing CATEGORY: video DATE: 07/14/2010 10:36:23 AM ----- BODY:

My friend Mike Balzano shot me a note this morning that I had to check out what Old Spice was doing on its Twitter account.

Then, thirty minutes and about 20 videos later, I started writing this post. And, I actually feel like buying some Old Spice now (okay, I'm now officially my dad).

That's how amazing Old Spice's social media is. Here's some background. Playing off the popular TV commercials, muscular Old Spice man is responding personally to comments on Facebook, YouTube and mostly those on Twitter. As of writing this post, the Old Spice YouTube channel is #1 in the US for total views. Pretty powerful stuff.

TechCrunch reported yesterday about Old Spice man's response to Digg founder Kevin Rose, who tweeted out that he was sick. Here's the response:

Kevin then responded to his over 1 million followers:

HOLY SH*T, best get well video EVER from the old spice man!:http://bit.ly/dpSeOs

How about this hysterical reply to Alysa Milano? And, it's not just celebs that are getting the more than 100 personalized video responses. Check out this response to Mason Vail:

It needs to be noted that the writing is utter genius. I'm literally cracking up after each one of these.

What do we know so far?

Thousands of online mentions, including big wigs like The Huffington Post, Starbucks and The Ellen Show.
Over 60,000 tweets and 600 blog mentions on July 13th alone.
1000% increase in Twitter followers.

But three main questions keep coming up:

How long can Old Spice man keep this up?
How about the writing team?
Will this, in the end, sell more Old Spice?

If Old Spice can show an impact, ultimately, in sales, you can bet we'll see a flood of brands move even more into this area. Hats off to Old Spice for trying something new, especially the smart integration between traditional and social media.

Hey Old Spice man, if you're listening, here's my question - "Does wearing the color orange AND Old Spice make you even more of a man?"

Below is a sample of the original TV commercial.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: old spice, social media examples, social content marketing, videos, case studies ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/from-goggle-box-to-google DATE: 07/15/2010 09:40:45 AM Old Spice Man is displaying an engaging mix of warm humor, gentle self-parody and a strong self-confidence in his appearance (thx to you know what!) Is this a US-only promotion? My memories of Old Spice in the UK are of women buying it for men at Xmas. Old Spice was one of the holy trinity of male presents - socks, underwear, after shave lotions! They've come a long way since! And yes, great writing. That process would make an interesting content creation post... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shodam Nuff EMAIL: shodamnuff@gmail.com IP: 67.164.201.19 URL: DATE: 07/15/2010 02:37:05 PM well..it still smells like old mice BUT if Axe can peddle their nasty crap and get teen tards to swim in it, then I'll guess Old Spice can swing an uptick in market share to the ladies giving an unwanted present to the men in their lives. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 12.21.246.131 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/16/2010 05:37:48 AM Mark, Shodam...good points. I guess we'll have to see what the sales look like. And, the actor got a movie deal out of it. Go figure. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nick Wright EMAIL: nwright@4th-e.com IP: 99.170.42.4 URL: http://www.4th-e.com DATE: 08/14/2010 12:23:31 PM The campaign is certainly engaging and entertaining but the true art of social media is being able to develop that one-to-one earned relationship with the consumer. There's little point in having 50 million Facebook fans or 30 million YouTube views if your relationship with the consumer stops as soon as the laptop is closed. In this regard, Old Spice still has the tough part of the job to do – converting those fans into loyal, brand evangelists and keeping that individual communication going. Social media, like any other type of media, requires a solid, long-term strategy if it is going to be successful. Read more about this campaign here: http://tinyurl.com/23jtk54 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sally EMAIL: info@morconfidentnow.com IP: 58.165.100.51 URL: http://moreconfidentnow.com DATE: 08/16/2010 09:42:30 PM I thought Old Spice was dead and buried before this campaign. It received some wide coverage here in Australia on the satirical advertising show The Gruen Transfer and the panel of advertising executives were all blown away by the script and production itself. However, being ever so slightly blinkered to the power of social media over here, they believed the publicity on You Tube was more a spin off of a truly great ad than a marketing ploy itself. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 3 Lessons from LeBron James, the Media Company STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 3-lessons-from-lebron-james-the-media-company CATEGORY: marketers CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: publishers DATE: 07/08/2010 09:22:52 AM ----- BODY:

Everyone here in Cleveland is waiting with bated breath for the news that will come at 9 PM ET tonight - will LeBron James come back to the Cleveland Cavaliers or go to Miami, Chicago, New York or New Jersey? (UPDATE 7/9 - Yes, he chose Miami. And in the words of Forrest Gump, "That's all there is to say about that.")

Since being named "The Chosen One" by Sports Illustrated while he was still in high school (age 17), LeBron James is, perhaps, the most popular sports figure on the planet who hasn't (yet) won a major sports championship. He is, for sure, the highest paid player (including endorsements) in the National Basketball Association.

Over the past few years as this moment has culminated into one great event, two things are crystal clear:

LeBron James will sign a large contract with some NBA team tonight, and
LeBron James is developing one of the most powerful media companies in the world.

It's this second point that gets overlooked. Let's review:

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The Book - Shooting Stars

LeBron James was the lead author of this book with the help up Buzz Bissinger of Friday Night Lights fame. Shooting Stars tells the story of LeBron and his friends going through hard times in Akron, Ohio to become the most famous high school team of all time at Akron's St. Vincent-St. Mary's.

The Movie - More Than a Game

The inspirational story of LeBron's high school career was made into a critically-acclaimed documentary movie about LeBron James and his high-school pals.

Online Presence

Although LeBron secured LeBronJames.com years ago, he is just starting to launch the site. One very important thing is happening right now on the site - LeBron is asking for permission to stay in touch with interested fans. I'm sure he's signed up thousands over the past few days.

LeBron has more than 2.5 million fans on his Facebook page. LeBron's staff regularly keeps fans updated with news and questions. For tonight's event, fans were able to ask a question that LeBron may answer at his press conference through his King James Vitamin Water brand.

A late-comer to Twitter, LeBron just joined, amassing over 200,000 fans in a matter of hours.

LeBron - the Media Company

As we are all media companies now (whether we like it or not), brands can learn a number of things from LeBron, the media company.

Tell the story. LeBron, a lover of cartoons and storytelling, loves to tell stories himself. The movie, the book, and the announcement tonight on ESPN about Decision 2010 is LeBron telling the story about himself and his fans. The more stories LeBron tells, the closer his fans can get to him, and the more he sells endorsements or creates opportunities for himself. As a brand, are you engaging your customers with stories they would find interesting?
Stand for something. Although LeBron has never been a media darling, LeBron is himself and that has added to his following. Whether it's wearing a Yankees cap to a Cleveland Indians game or mimicking King Kong on the cover of GQ, LeBron creates interest. Brands can learn a lot from LeBron...being interesting can take you places. How can you be interesting to your customers? Are you talking about the same things as your competitors? I thought it was interesting that Dwayne Wade, an incredibly talented player who is also a free agent, has only been mentioned by the media as it pertains to LeBron. Hmmm...
Diversify the Portfolio. The book, the movie, now online. Wouldn't be surprised if a magazine is coming soon. There's a TV special in the works (outside of the one tonight), on top of the SNL performance. He's held a number of events, including his annual basketball camps. Are you telling your story in multiple ways, where your customers are at? So many brands have become caught up with online marketing, and rightfully so, but are we forgetting that customers want to engage with us in different ways? It's interesting to me that LeBron has tiered his online media approach - Facebook, then website, then Twitter.

LeBron will turn 26 in December of this year and is already an incredibly savvy marketer. Although I'm hopeful (for Cleveland's sake) that he stays in Cleveland, it's a foregone conclusion that his business will grow larger outside of his sport that any other athlete we've ever seen.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: lebron james, lebron media company ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Larry Kunz EMAIL: lkunz@sdicorp.com IP: 64.132.140.14 URL: http://www.sdicorp.com/Resources/Blog/articleType/AuthorView/authorID/24/lkunz.aspx DATE: 07/08/2010 11:37:36 AM Joe, I think you nailed it. I've heard it said that James will have an advantage if he signs with a team in a major media market like New York or LA. But it looks like he can build a mega-empire from anywhere, by savvy use of the web and social media. If that's true, can other companies (and celebrities) looking to build their brands assume that access to the marketplace is a given, regardless of location? And with the question of access out of the way, can we say that it's now all about who uses their content most effectively? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/08/2010 01:04:01 PM Great points Larry. I actually think most business people should start to look at it this way as well. We are in a strange new world and we are all brands. LeBron is definitely aware of that, more than most perhaps. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Miller EMAIL: jmiller@wattnet.net IP: 65.204.104.66 URL: http://www.wattagnet.com DATE: 07/09/2010 10:36:12 AM I'm interested in seeing how Lebron & Co. deflect the HUGE amount of criticism for leaving Cleveland (http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/gilbert_letter_100708.html). Personally, I think his "brand" has taken a hit from fans like myself. I will ALWAYS remember how he became "disinterested" when playing against the Celtics. Jordan/Kobe/Duncan, etc. would had never done that. True NBA fans understand that fact and I am looking forward to seeing how Lebron's team reacts and what channels they use to further his brand. GO CHICAGO BULLS! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/09/2010 10:53:58 AM You know Jeff, I'm not sure how I would have written this post today versus yesterday. It's hard to think how one sports figure could go from most loved to most hated around the world in less than 5 minutes. When the Heat play the Bulls, I'll be wearing a Noah jersey. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Kidder EMAIL: jonathan-kidder@bethel.edu IP: 75.146.33.113 URL: DATE: 07/09/2010 11:24:37 AM To you think this will back fire in anyway? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/09/2010 01:17:35 PM Hi Jon...I think it depends on his goals. If he wants to become a super billionaire, I'm not sure what happened yesterday will affect anything. He just won't be getting his support from Cleveland. Also, it's way too soon to know anything at this point. We'll see I guess. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mike EMAIL: mikele@conabiz.com IP: 98.14.126.145 URL: http://www.conabiz.com DATE: 07/12/2010 12:22:54 AM I really like the idea "take a stand" and "tell a story". ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Leveraging Free Writing to Solve Content Marketing Block STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: free-writing-content-marketing-block CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/07/2010 03:16:50 PM ----- BODY:

Had an outstanding conversation with Mark Levy yesterday (who among other things is author of Accidental Genius).

Mark gave me a crash course in something called free writing. Free writing, also called stream-of-consciousness writing, is a writing technique where you write for a set period of time without regard for spelling or even topic. Mark uses this technique with his clients to unearth the raw content at the heart of the content creator.

From my quick conversation with Mark and a bit of reading on it, free writing is a staple of creative writing programs around the world. According to Natalie Goldberg, the rules of free writing include:

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Give yourself a time limit. Write for a set period and then stop.
Keep your hand moving until the time is up. Do not pause to stare into space or to read what you've written. Write quickly but not in a hurry.
Pay no attention to grammar, spelling, punctuation, neatness, or style. Nobody else needs to read what you produce.
If you get off the topic or run out of ideas, keep writing anyway. If necessary, write nonsense or whatever comes into your head, or simply scribble: anything to keep the hand moving.
If you feel bored or uncomfortable as you're writing, ask yourself what's bothering you and write about that.
When the time is up, look over what you've written, and mark passages that contain ideas or phrases that might be worth keeping or elaborating on in a subsequent free-writing session.

I took my first stab at free writing, a five-minute period where I first thought about the idea of integrating content into the marketing process. Here is my cleaned-up version:

Problems with integrating content into marketing plan
How to measure content marketing as part of the overall marketing plan?
How do I integrate social media as part of the marketing plan?
What tactics work the best depending on the buying cycle?
What internal resources are needed to content marketing effectiveness?
How do I tie in listening through social media with new content topics?
What department should oversee the content process?
How to I get the sales team to help us develop content?
How much freedom should employees have to be content spokespeople for our brands?
When should I outsource versus insource content marketing? Is there an assessment?
What's the difference between outsourcing $25 dollar articles and $500 dollar articles? Is there a difference?
How do I educate my CMO on the benefits of content marketing?
What if our CMO wants to sell too much in our content?
Should we start a blog?
How active do we need to participate on other sites?
Do we participate on our competitors' content sites?
What about content curation?
When do we decide whether to develop the content ourselves or curate the content?
How do I communicate what we are doing with our content across the enterprise?
Is there a worksheet that will help me construct my content marketing plan?
Is print still relevant in content marketing?
What's the minimum amount I need to segment my customers regarding content?
Do I need buyer personas? For all my buyers?

What I have as a result of this exercise is more than 20 possible blog articles for the near future. I'm sure I didn't do it perfectly, but it was a great start.

So, the next time you get content marketing block or writer's block, you could try this free writing exercise. This could also be used for people who aren't content creators, but you need to find out customer challenges as a core of your content marketing plan. You could use this exercise with customer service, sales, engineering or any other customer-facing staffer.

Thanks Mark!

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: free writing, content marketing block, mark levy, natalie goldberg ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Katherine Gray EMAIL: kgray@thenewcivilization.com IP: 76.115.2.176 URL: http://twitter.com/thiskat DATE: 07/07/2010 03:28:27 PM I love that you quoted one of my all-time heroes, Natalie Goldberg. Her books and techniques are typically used for fiction and memoir but I call on my dog-eared copy of Writing Down the Bones *all the time* in my content work. These techniques are great for getting to the heart of a story, which is so important even in marketing content today. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: nettie hartsock EMAIL: nettie@nettiehartsock.com IP: 70.112.238.184 URL: http://www.nettiehartsock.com DATE: 07/07/2010 03:32:13 PM Joe I love that you included the whole freewriting list that you created in this post! I really like the question about content curation and would love to hear more about how that applies to companies. Great post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/07/2010 04:21:19 PM @Katherine...just coming to know Natalie's work. Fantastic stuff. @Nettie...yes, I think it's a good start to an ongoing blog list. The content curation post will go to the top. Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Levy EMAIL: mark@levyinnovation.com IP: 98.221.245.45 URL: http://www.levyinnovation.com DATE: 07/08/2010 08:54:36 AM Thanks, Joe. I loved our conversation, too. The ideas were flying. I'm delighted you tried freewriting (and did an outstanding job, too). I use the technique every day. It helps me get clear about what's fuzzy, and forces me to see options in situations that seem closed. Very liberating. Looking forward to hear how your future freewrites go! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Parker Trewin EMAIL: ptrewin@genius.com IP: 66.7.231.34 URL: http://www.genius.com DATE: 07/09/2010 12:08:22 PM Nice tip. Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lynda Monk EMAIL: lynda@creativewellnessworks.com IP: 96.54.49.212 URL: http://www.creativewellnessworks.com DATE: 07/09/2010 02:19:30 PM Hi Joe, I use free writing all the time in my life/wellness coaching business and I teach other people how to crack open their ideas, creativity, intuition, and inner wisdom with Life Source Writing - which is a five step reflective writing practice I have created. I studied with Natalie Goldberg, who you mention, other great resources for free writing including anything by SARK, as well as Julia Cameron, author of the Artist's Way. Thanks for the great post. Lynda ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 14 Content Marketing Quotes to Live By STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 14-content-marketing-quotes-to-live-by DATE: 07/01/2010 10:20:00 PM ----- BODY:

Last month, I participated in Web Content 2010 (here is the presentation on higher purpose content marketing).

Someone (who asked not to be named) sent me a number of tweets from that event that they found inspiring from my presentation. I thought I'd share them here. Enjoy!

Create a brand message that people can rally around. @epublishmedia

Good content should have a higher purpose, have a point of view and takes a stand. @SproutContent @Robert_Rose

You don't want everyone to love you. People are loyal to POVs. Take a stand. @epublishmedia

How can I be interesting to my customers (content) if we (my competitors) are all talking about the same thing? @LifeFromAbove

So, @juntajoe's list of clear brands includes @SouthwestAir, @halvorson, @garyvee—as all three would say, CHEERS! @mbloomstein

It's not what you sell it's what you stand for. @SproutContent @meghscase

Content secret sauce - where your expertise & the needs of your customers meet. @SproutContent @tammie_egloff

Interesting content lives in the Venn overlap of an org's expertise and audience's interests. @mbloomstein @ahaval

"Social media isn't cheap. It's just a different kind of expensive." @juntajoe quoting @jaybaer via @mbloomstein

Why do you trust employees to communicate with customers via phone/email but not blogs/social media. @epublishmedia

Someone in your company needs to be your content ambassador @SproutContent

The more you blog, the more business you get. @tammie_egloff according to @hubspot

Any content that you put on your website is a promise to your customers in some way. @SproutContent

@chrisbrogan's time spent using social media: 25% listening, 50% commenting/interacting, 25% publishing via @bemydog

The body of the email was this statement...

"Joe, I couldn't attend this event but watched from Twitter and found the conversation fascinating. I keep many of these quotes at my computer as I develop content for my customers. It inspires me to think of the content I develop as a gift, not a chore...thank you Joe!"

Wow, talk about inspiration. This is why I do what I do.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Content Marketing Quotes ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jim Campbell EMAIL: Jim@In-The-Flow.com IP: 96.251.128.209 URL: http://In-The-Flow.com DATE: 10/09/2010 07:24:05 PM "It's not what you sell it's what you stand for." Pure genius and a great reminder. Thanks for sharing that.. Jim Campbell ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content is to marketing like ... STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-is-to-marketing-like- CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 06/30/2010 09:36:01 PM ----- BODY:

Junta42 ran a contest this week via Twitter and Facebook asking for the best, most creative answer to this statement:

Content is to marketing like [blank] is to [blank].

The idea was to have a bit of fun and try to show the importance of content within the marketing process. The winner with the best answer gets a $15 Amazon gift certificate.

Problem is, the entries were so good, we're having trouble picking a winner...so we're going to defer it to the community. Please review the entries below and then tell us which one you liked the best on the Junta42 Facebook page. Thanks for your help and thanks to all those who entered.

Content is to marketing like Valerie Bertinelli is to the Lifetime Network. via @rickuldricks
Content is to marketing like iPhone 4 is to Apple. via @arun4
Content is to marketing like the chewy center is to Tootsie Pops. via @juntajoe
Content is to marketing like conversation is to courtship. via @knowledgebishop
Content is to marketing like determination is to success. via @iamlucid
Content is to marketing like gas is to a car. It's a must to turn the vehicle on and to move forward. via @SummerH
Content is to marketing as customers are to business. via @CBWhittemore
Content is to marketing as magic is to bewitched. via @CBWhittemore
Content is to marketing as a mother is to her child. via @CBWhittemore
Content is to marketing as wheels are to an automobile. More people like to talk about cars, but take away the wheels and what have you got? via @JoshGordon
Content is to marketing like olives are to tapenade. via @TinaCassler
Content is to marketing as air is to tires. You can try to drive without it, but you sure wont get far :o) via @socialcity
Content is to marketing like salt is to sea-water. via Fahed Bizzari
Content is to marketing like mac is to cheese. via Joe Kapitan
Content is to marketing like blood is to a vampire. via Ann Sullivan Myers
Content is to marketing like (love) is to (marriage). The perfect match makes all the difference! (And hey, insert your own joke here: bad content is like a bad relationship, because...you can't wait for it to be over!) via Katie McCaskey
Content is to marketing is like Ying to Yang. Bad content to marketing is like Floridians with no AC! ;) via Dianna Kersey
Content is to marketing like peanut butter is to jelly. via Kristen Nelson Bohn
Content is to marketing like Arnie (Palmer) is to golf. via Nick Green
Content is to marketing like white fluff is to a Twinkie. via Morgan Hurley

VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE HERE or in the comments below!

We'll keep voting open until end of day Friday eastern time. Thanks again!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content is to marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kathy Hanbury EMAIL: KathyHanbury@Gmail.com IP: 70.68.141.24 URL: http://www.e3ContentStrategy.com DATE: 06/30/2010 10:01:11 PM My favourite: •Content is to marketing like conversation is to courtship. via @knowledgebishop I think this is a fantastic analogy! - Kathy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lisa Reis EMAIL: lisareis@rogers.com IP: 99.248.42.119 URL: DATE: 06/30/2010 10:37:47 PM My Pick is: •Content is to marketing like conversation is to courtship. via @knowledgebishop (it's the perfect analogy given the topic at hand)...and funny enough...I see that "-Kathy" picked it too! Seeee! :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Janet Traylor EMAIL: janettray@aol.com IP: 68.227.240.25 URL: DATE: 07/01/2010 08:33:07 AM •Content is to marketing as air is to tires. You can try to drive without it, but you sure won't get far :o) via @socialcity ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Trevor Stafford EMAIL: copywryter@gmail.com IP: 209.222.173.45 URL: http://www.twitter.com/copywryter DATE: 07/01/2010 08:57:20 AM I also like this fill-in-the-blanks question: Content without community is ____________ Community without content is ____________ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Marino Fadda EMAIL: marino@marinofadda.it IP: 79.22.215.163 URL: http://www.marinofadda.it DATE: 07/01/2010 08:58:31 AM •Content is to marketing like gas is to a car. It's a must to turn the vehicle on and to move forward. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Larry Kunz EMAIL: lkunz@sdicorp.com IP: 64.132.140.14 URL: http://www.sdicorp.com/Resources/Blog/articleType/AuthorView/authorID/24/lkunz.aspx DATE: 07/01/2010 11:08:34 AM For me, the clear winner is: Content is to marketing like conversation is to courtship. via @knowledgebishop ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Z. Cordell EMAIL: scordell@szccommunications.com IP: 68.119.226.245 URL: http://www.SZCCommunications.com DATE: 07/01/2010 10:02:19 PM What a hard list to choose from! My favorite is "Content is to marketing like conversation is to courtship," but "Content is to marketing like salt is to sea-water" (Fahed Bizzari) is a close second. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rachel Agheyisi EMAIL: rachelagheyisi@yahoo.com IP: 75.82.43.135 URL: http://www.reportcontentwriter.com DATE: 07/02/2010 02:43:02 PM I vote for "content is to marketing like conversation is to courtship" It's deep and clever! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tristan Bishop EMAIL: KnowledgeBishop@gmail.com IP: 108.106.125.236 URL: http://www.twitter.com/knowledgebishop DATE: 07/03/2010 10:16:00 AM I appreciate the encouragement. I find the content of these comments has effectively courted me. So I'll be off to Twitter to follow you all! Thanks, Junta42. - @KnowledgeBishop ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michele Smorgon @maxOz EMAIL: michele@maxoz.com.au IP: 122.107.223.126 URL: http://www.socialmedia-max.com DATE: 07/04/2010 05:38:50 AM I'm sorry I missed out on the comp this week, I would still like to add my own here: Content is to Marketing, like Identity is to Brand ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Hey Content Publishers - Custom Media Day 2010 NYC is Coming STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: hey-content-publishers-custom-media-day-2010-nyc-is-coming CATEGORY: custom publishing CATEGORY: custom publishing council CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 06/24/2010 05:30:21 AM ----- BODY:

Junta42 is excited to announce Custom Media Day 2010 in New York on Wednesday, July 28th. This is our third annual event and we are again partnering with our good friends at American Business Media and the Custom Content Council.

Custom Media Day is a one-day event specifically designed for custom publishers, content agencies, journalists and other content providers that are looking to grow their businesses.

Highlights of the event include:

Exclusive custom media research from Junta42, MarketingProfs, ABM and the Business Marketing Association on the state of B2B custom media.
Special guest Jeannine Rossignol from Xerox will go under the hood regarding Xerox's content strategy.
Jim Hopkinson from Wired magazine will discuss opportunities for custom publishers and the changing nature of content.
Dan Blank, an expert in editorial strategy for publishers, will discuss how custom publishers can create real social media tactics that your clients are asking about.
Ian Alexander, content master at Eat Media, will detail the growing industry of online content strategy, and how custom publishers can profit from this.
A panel including experts from Adobe and Nxtbook Media talking about content on new media devices like the iPad and smartphones, and where the opportunities really are for custom publishers today.

We've made plenty of time for questions and networking as well.

Custom Media Day will be held at the Scandinavia House, 58 Park Avenue, NYC from 8am to 4pm. Junta42, CCC and ABM members can attend for $95. Regular admission is $125.

Register today at American Business Media or here at the Custom Content Council. Attendance is limited to 100. I hope to see you there.

Thanks to our sponsor Nxtbook Media for supporting this event.

Any questions? Just let me know.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: asad EMAIL: saimalvin@yahoo.com IP: 119.153.107.191 URL: http://www.authorsmania.com DATE: 10/07/2010 04:04:02 PM Very educating post, saved the blog in interest to read more information! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 7 Reasons NOT to do Content Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 7-reasons-not-to-do-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 06/22/2010 08:10:49 PM ----- BODY:

It seems everyone is jumping on the content marketing bandwagon these days. Even though we are indeed all publishers today, and that content marketing is now a core and growing part of the marketing toolkit for the majority of brands out there, there are times when brands need to say no.

Yeah, I said it.

There are quite a few reasons why some brands just shouldn't be creating content as part of their marketing programs. Here they are...

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Reason #1 - No Content Marketing Strategy

We should be blogging. We need an enewsletter. Let's do a custom magazine Does this sound familiar?

For years (and into today) this is how the content marketing conversation was started. All tactics and no strategy.

Before you launch any content marketing tactic, ask yourself why. What's the objective? What outcomes would you like to see? What are the customer behaviors?

Reason #2 - Lack of Executive Buy In

Even the best content marketing programs get killed because someone in the c-suite just doesn't get it. Before you start your content marketing, make sure your bosses understand the why of content marketing. Probably the best reason to buy Get Content Get Customers is to help your key executives understand the fact that they need to be acting like publishers.

Reason #3 - No Plan for Consistency

Content marketing is not a campaign. It's more like a love letter to your customers and prospects. It's you, helping them, do something better. This positions you as a trusted expert.

If you launch a blog, an enewsletter, a webinar series...this is a content promise to your customers. It's a pact. Breaking that promise is the worst thing you can do. Better not to have started at all.

Reason #4 - Content that's Just Like All the Rest

If your messaging is just like your competitors, you have a problem Houston. What are you offering that is any different from what your customers can get elsewhere? Your content needs a higher purpose...it needs to take a stand. If it's same ole same ole, kill it.

Reason #5 - It's Great Information, But Has Nothing to Do with Your Product or Service

If you are a chip company, why are you aggregating pictures of babies and puppies? Why are you spending time and resources on content marketing that will have no hope of generating more revenue or cost savings in some way? Know who your customers or influencers are and help them, not everyone else.

Reason #6 - Me, Me, Me

Content marketing is not advertising. Stop talking about yourselves. Realize that your customers really don't care about you. Your ISO certified gizmo magic machine really doesn't solve world hunger. Make customers care by focusing on them, not you.

Reason #7 - Content Suffers Due to Lack of Resources/Expertise

Especially during this great recession, more companies have decided to put content marketing on the backs of marketing or communications. Write the blog. Create the video. Author the white paper.

Sometimes this works. Many times, it's just plain awful. It's bad to have no content marketing. It's a tragedy to have crappy content that just clutters up the Internet.

Focus on what you do well and outsource the rest. That's why Junta42 was created. If you can do it internally, great. Most brands outsource at least a portion of their content marketing. You should too.

I'm sure I missed a few. What are they?

If you need a kick-start getting started, try downloading this complimentary white paper on attracting and retaining customers with content marketing. You'll see that it all starts with Why.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: reasons not to do content marketing, say no to content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John EMAIL: johndj22@gmail.com IP: 24.87.14.105 URL: http://magicsubmitterexposed.com DATE: 06/22/2010 10:22:20 PM Good article -- I especially agree with the point about content like all the rest. It seems as though somewhere along the road "more is better" became everything with content marketing. Too many marketers just jump over each other to try and grab specific keywords. It really leaves a bad taste in my mouth when I am looking for something, and it is just the exact same points everyone else is making regurgitated over and over again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Hans de Groot EMAIL: hans@ceekue.com IP: 81.58.2.163 URL: http://www.ceekue.com DATE: 06/23/2010 02:34:01 AM You are wrong, Joe It should be '7 Problems You Have To Solve Before You Are Able To Do Great Content Marketing'. Read your book! :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Buscall EMAIL: jontusmedia@gmail.com IP: 94.234.220.248 URL: http://jontusmedia.com DATE: 06/23/2010 04:54:53 AM I totally agree with the "No executive buy-in". It can be hard to persuade the C-suite that eyeballs / visitors aren't as effective as genuine connections with content. Old school interruptive marketing still has a lot of true believers out there. Good metrics are a way of persuading the C-suite so I think us content marketers need to embrace the geekier side of online marketing to help persuade. Great post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Larry EMAIL: lkunz@sdicorp.com IP: 64.134.190.210 URL: http://www.sdicorp.com/Resources/Blog/articleType/AuthorView/authorID/24/lkunz.aspx DATE: 06/23/2010 10:33:46 AM Absolutely agree that tactics without a strategy are worse than nothing at all. But....Would you agree that it's a good idea to get started before the strategy is completely fleshed out? You can establish a presence, and then develop and refine the strategy as you go -- and as you receive feedback from the community. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Delfeld EMAIL: mark.delfeld@gmail.com IP: 173.76.86.179 URL: http://www.b2bthoughtlead.com DATE: 06/23/2010 02:19:16 PM Great point Jon, I recommend Charlene Li's recent book "Open Leadership" on this subject. Basic premise is that for Social Media to make an impact senior management needs to open up more. I somewhat disagree with the reason #7. For social media (or content marketing) to work, the internal SME's need to be brought into the fold to help produce relevant content. I believe 4, 5 and 6 could be lumped into the category of firms that produce content but don't map it the needs of the customer. If content isn't linked to a high priority need that the company can solve, its irrelevant except for branding purposes... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 12.199.9.16 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/24/2010 05:49:09 AM @Jon...thanks and good points. @Larry...yes, I believe you are right for a small company or startup. Larger businesses need to develop this as part of their marketing plan. @Mark, good points. I see your point on making sure the process is integrated internally. Indeed it should...but we are seeing a number of organizations benefit substantially from managing editors and content experts to guide them as they transform their marketing departments into publishing departments. Nice discussion! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Daniella Santos EMAIL: daniella@uprinting.com IP: 125.5.54.154 URL: http://blog.brochuresprintingonline.com/ DATE: 06/25/2010 01:18:08 AM This is an interesting post! I like how you enumerated points of what a content marketing is about. There may be people who uses such strategy, because they think of how it can help their business. This will help a lot of people, especially those who just use this strategy because of its efficiency and not how it really works. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arthur Charles Van Wyk EMAIL: arthurcvanwyk@gmail.com IP: 196.213.65.38 URL: http://www.jackofalltrades.co.za DATE: 06/25/2010 08:05:14 AM One that I would add is: You are unable to conduct a normal conversation (chronic academics for example)and therefore unable to communicate conversationally.. At the same time I'd like to say that the opportunity exist to diseminate content,market to and build a community of these drone-like people, because that there is itself a niche. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Pawan Deshpande EMAIL: pawan@hivefire.com IP: 66.92.75.33 URL: http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com DATE: 06/26/2010 12:15:20 PM I have written a blog based off of this one entitled "6 Reasons why Content Curation May Not be for you: http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com/articles/11618/6-reasons-why-content-curation-tools-may-not-be-fo/ If you are considering using content curation as a part of your content marketing strategy, you may find my post relevant. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nenad EMAIL: nenad.senic@p-m.si IP: 82.192.55.88 URL: http://wordpress.p-m.si/ DATE: 06/27/2010 03:40:03 AM Great points, Joe. Lately I've encountered most of what you wrote here. #3 - an organisation is thinking of quitting publishing its 16 year-old custom monthly due to current financial troubles despite it is its most recognisable brand! #5 I am still receiving custom magazines that are a hybrid between content marketing and plain internal magazine with babies and puppies and has nothing to do w/ helping their customers/readers, rather it's more about #6, and they absolutely sincerely believe that is how it's supposed to be done. Regarding #6, in a costum magazine we published (for a reason, described in the strategy, concept of the magazine and that specific issue) a really top-notch interview that any magazine would be more than proud of, however the company complained that they (by name ...) haven't been mentioned at all in the interview published in their own magazine! It hurt them a lot! But the upgrade to your post, dear Joe, is what I am having trouble with, would be how to "persuade" companies they should change their behavior/actions/way of thinking? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 74.87.91.2 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/27/2010 06:01:47 PM Nenad...very interesting indeed. To answer your question with a question...how are they measuring their activities based on their marketing goals? In my experience, the only way to persuade companies is to base it on as many facts as possible. For example, if we can tell what the readership is of their puppies and babies article, we can measure the engagement of that article versus the other, more relevant articles. Can that be done? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mick Dickinson EMAIL: mick@buzzedup.co.uk IP: 92.238.192.176 URL: http://www.buzzedup.co.uk/ DATE: 06/29/2010 10:56:24 AM Excellent post, as ever. Reason #3 is the one that is driving me crazy ATM. Getting budget to fulfil a runway of content - a content calendar - seems more difficult then getting buy-in to the idea of marketing with content. Keep on keepin' on! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Jenkins EMAIL: john@johndjenkins.com IP: 24.87.14.105 URL: http://johndjenkins.com DATE: 07/01/2010 11:48:20 PM Great post. I especially agree with #6. When you promote your own products you are advertising (taking) not content marketing (giving). Unfortunately most companies don't have any grasp on the law of reciprocity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jorge Sandrini EMAIL: jsandrini@comcast.net IP: 67.106.222.194 URL: http://jsandrini.wordpress.com/ DATE: 07/12/2010 12:06:58 PM This is an excellent post, mainly because it is so relevant to the real issues faced by marketers attempting to launch and manage successful content marketing programs. I personally have found that executive buy-in is extremely important if not THE most important element, because once you secure that, the resources organizational become more available to carry-out the rest. Without it, you can only hope to limp along. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Roger Wilson EMAIL: rwilson@conferencedepartment.com IP: 24.147.21.104 URL: http://www.conferencedepartment.com DATE: 08/05/2010 07:23:21 PM One real reason not to do (too much) content marketing is that content selling might be more cost effective. At one point in my career I did a quarterly newsletter in my field of event marketing but spent most of my time working directly with prospects. A buyer once told me that "its not what you sell me but what you tell me that is important." Telling not selling thus became a motto. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Where's the Branded Content? Why OPA Research Falls Short STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: wheres-the-branded-content-why-opa-research-falls-short CATEGORY: branded content CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketers CATEGORY: publishers DATE: 06/17/2010 11:40:33 AM ----- BODY:

Jason Fell from Folio: Magazine was nice enough to send me some new research from the Online Publishers Association.

The goal of the OPA research was to help brand marketers understand the value of placing advertising of branded media sites (like WSJonline.com or ESPN.com - not AOL or Yahoo! which are portal sites). Here's what they found:

Consumers are more likely to trust content from media sites (72%) as opposed to portal sites (60%) and social media sites Facebook (23%).
Consumers are more likely to purchase products from brands advertising on media sites (8%) versus portal channels (5%) or social media (3%).

This is all fine and good, and probably makes OPA members (which are big media sites) very happy.

But (here's a very big but), the OPA research misses the big question on the minds of marketers we talk with on a daily basis. Here's what I told Jason who reported this in Folio:

If the goal of the research was to help brand marketers understand the value of placing advertising on branded media sites, the research still leaves a lot of questions unanswered. The challenge for brand marketers is not necessarily whether they should advertise on a media site versus a portal versus a social network. They are trying to decide whether they should advertise, or whether they should invest more of their marketing dollars into their own engaging content.

"Why and how do I (the brand) develop my own engaging content to my customers that will grow my business?" That's the question.

I would have loved to see the OPA include content from brands as well...brands like P&G or Eaton Corp. or General Electric or Motorola. More and more consumers are relying on brands and bloggers for their information and education. If that is the case, and more consumers are trusting (as well as expecting) brands to deliver expert information to them, then if I'm a brand, I have some serious choices to make.

What if the study said that consumers trust brands close to as much as media or portal sites (when compared together - apples to apples)? For example, if you are looking for information on energy saving tips for the home, would you go to a manufacturer like Lennox for information? I sure would (and have).

Advertising, done right, is a very effective part of the marketing mix. The big question is, do you allocate more money and resources to content marketing and branded content instead of advertising, sponsorship and other marketing initiatives. According to Junta42's recent content marketing research, this is happening, where 33% of budgets are now dedicated to the creation and distribution of content, and that six in 10 marketers are increasing their budgets for the third year in the row.

If I'm OPA and have the interests of media sites at heart, I probably wouldn't be thinking this way (so we'll give them a free pass). But if I'm a marketer, I want to know this information. Do I "rent" the message by advertising around good content that's not mine, or do I "own" the content and position my brand as a trusted industry expert? Should I create valuable, relevant content that can be found on search engines, spread through social media, and work to attract and retain customers?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: branded content, online publishers association, opa research, folio, jason fell ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Whose Business Are You Developing? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: whose-business-are-you-developing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 06/15/2010 09:22:31 PM ----- BODY:

CB Whittemore wrote a fantastic post last week for the Content Marketing Institute about how to think like a content marketer.

Graham Kilshaw, president of ITEM publications, wrote a response to CB's post that was, as CB put it, simply delicious. Here is the comment in its entirety:

I'm a recent CM (content marketing) convert, with a bit of a push from Joe and the Content Marketing Institute - nice work folks, keep it up. But my Aha! moment came a couple of weeks ago, when I was thinking about how do I communicate this shift in our thinking to our sales folks. It's no good me pumping the CM machine if sales and marketing are not aligned- and then it came to me.

So I asked our sales manager "Hey, Bob - what is your job title?"

"Business Development Manager" he replied.

"Right - but who's business are you developing?"

"Well, ours of course" he says.

And then he paused and said "Ahhhhh, I see!" and immediately he got what I was alluding to.

By the end of the day the rest of the sales team were talking about their "new old" job titles....

So, is it your business or your customer's business that needs developing?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: business development, content marketing challenges ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: C.B. Whittemore EMAIL: cbwhittemore@gmail.com IP: 67.83.44.16 URL: http://www.SimpleMarketingBlog.com DATE: 06/16/2010 09:39:40 AM Thanks, Joe, for highlighting this magnificent Aha! moment that Graham shared. It truly is 'simply delicious' and highlights that fundamental yet subtle shift in thinking from the traditional inward perspective to one focused on our customers and their businesses. Best, CB ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/i-see-white-papers DATE: 06/19/2010 08:17:27 AM Joe, that's a fantastic story to start a speech with! Wow, talk about seeing the light... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/19/2010 09:55:39 AM @CB - thanks for starting the conversation on this one. @Mark - I've been thinking about that myself. Really gets you focused. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Higher Purpose Content Marketing in 6 Steps STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: higher-purpose-content-marketing-in-6-steps CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 06/09/2010 07:11:13 PM ----- BODY:

Below is the presentation I gave at the Web Content 2010 conference, the leading US conference covering the art and discipline of content strategy.

First, how do we develop a higher purpose for our company? Our brand purpose should:

be elegantly simple
be crystal clear
be innately inspirational
have a point of view and stand for something

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(note: kudos to Eduardo Conrado from Motorola for his thoughts on this)

If you notice, the same four points are critical for your higher purpose content marketing strategy. Your content marketing should:

be elegantly simple
be crystal clear
be innately inspirational
have a point of view and stand for something

Often I get asked the question - how can I be interesting to my customers (content) if we (my competitors) are all talking about the same thing?

The answer to this is in the question...you can't!

With your content marketing, it's not what you sell (in the case of Southwest - plane rides), it's what you stand for (everyone deserves to fly, no matter what).

Once you figure out your higher purpose, try these seven steps:

1. Create / Own Your Category

How can you tell your story differently than everyone else? New terminology may be necessary (i.e., content marketing).

2. Go Out to the People

Just like Jesus created a following by going to where the people were, so you need to as well. Find out where your customers are hanging out on the web and get involved in the conversation.

3. Then, Invite Them In

Invite your customers and influencers into your website and make them a part of the content (guest blogging, Q&A's come to mind).

4. Create Employee Rock Stars

Engaging your employees is critical. Employees are also the best source of marketing content you have. Get them involved.

5. Assign an Internal Evangelist

You need someone to not only be the cheerleader, but to help with the process flow and to keep your employees focused on your higher purpose content marketing strategy.

6. Create Something Remarkable

Your customers have so many choices when it comes to content. If your content isn't the very best, why should they engage or share your brand story?

Here is the full presentation. Enjoy...and for more great how-to stories like this, sign up for daily posts from the Content Marketing Institute.

Higher Purpose Content Marketing / Content Strategy

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: higher purpose, content marketing, content strategy, web content 2010 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Courtney EMAIL: cnelson@whitehorse.com IP: 12.191.102.2 URL: DATE: 06/28/2010 08:08:06 PM These are great ways to take your blog to the next level. Especially if you feel like you are just talking to the void. I would like to speak to 2 and 3 because they are great ideas that seem easy but take some extra time on your part. You need to know your customer well enough to go out to them. Then you need to know their language enough to invite them in. If this isn't working sometime you need to look at your content and revamp with the 6 options you gave here. I would like to re-enforce your ideas by offering a Webinar from White Horse that talks about some of these points and making your content more social friendly. You can download it here: http://bit.ly/bSUF3q Let me know if you have any questions as I do work for White Horse, I just thought you might be interested in the Webinar. Thanks for the great blog post! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: A Must-See Social Media Video: Social Media Ammunition STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: a-mustsee-social-media-video-social-media-ammunition CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 06/08/2010 10:52:57 AM ----- BODY:

If you need ammunition for your social media or online content marketing programs, here's two videos that you must view (courtesy @scottabel). The corresponding social media statistics (numbered in order) and the references to show your senior executives can be found here.

The second (the original social media video) can be found here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 06/08/2010 11:19:09 AM zzzz... more 'do it because it's quantitative' noise. Why isn't there a video that highlights the qualitative business outputs of social media? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 128.135.111.123 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/08/2010 11:52:05 AM Jeff...they are all over the place. I just talked with Paul Dunay at Avaya who got a $250,000 order by listening on Twitter - a total of a couple tweets. That's just scratching the surface. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: faith dalton EMAIL: faithzdalton@yahoo.com IP: 69.40.254.226 URL: DATE: 06/08/2010 09:49:38 PM Joe, thanks for posting. I will definetly share with my folks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lea Curtes-Swenson EMAIL: leaswenson@mac.com IP: 75.72.79.38 URL: http://www.leawrites.com DATE: 06/11/2010 11:08:33 AM Great video - thanks for sharing, Joe! While this is great, I am also in need of results-oriented data for my doubting-Thomas clients... they want ROI measurements. Is anyone out there working on getting that info? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 71.50.127.136 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/11/2010 12:03:07 PM Hi Lea...I think ROI is overused because it's different for everyone. Where Dell has used social media to land direct business, and Avaya as well (both well documented cases of sales growth through social), Comcast has used it to lower customer service costs and increase customer satisfaction. Social media ROI depends on the what the marketing goals are. Social media, in itself, does not have a specific goal independently outside of the marketing plan. I think that's where most people run into trouble. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 06/21/2010 07:53:04 AM Hi, Joe... and thanks for mentioning Avaya. Is there a place where we can learn more about that case? What I'm commenting on here is the incessant use of "it's big, it's growing and it's... really big..." as a business case (to invest in social media). My feeling is that Chief Officers need **anything but ** this kind of a video to build a case. Their skepticism is an under-appreciated asset by marketers who seem willing to follow anyone (ie. "social media gurus") -- even those who have a financial stake in the game. Thanks again, Jeff ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 06/21/2010 08:00:20 AM Also, here's my 2 minute video response to this post http://vimeo.com/11424809 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 172.19.131.155 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/21/2010 03:39:53 PM Hi Jeff...good discussion. I'll check out the video. Here is the details on Avaya's social media sale through listening. http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/it-pays-to-listen-avayas-250k-twitter-sale/ I agree with you that "social media" is more gas than facts. Jeff Hayzlett from Kodak and I were talking to a workshop in LA today about this exact issue. Here was the point. - If your customers are hanging out somewhere, should you be there? If your business dictates that you don't need to, then you don't need a presence in social media. But if your customers are using social media, and more importantly, increasingly want to engage with you with social media or talk about you using social media sites, then what marketer in their right mind wouldn't be there - at minimum to use these channels as listening posts. I talked to a CMO about six months ago about this - he said we have a website and an 800 number for our customers to contact us. I told him - the problem is, some customers want to contact you in different ways...and worse, they expect it. I don't view social media as separate from marketing...I look at a marketing plan and how you can integrate social media tools to be more social. Thanks Jeff! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Engage and Inspire Employees First, Customers Second STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: engage-and-inspire-employees-first-customers-second CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: internal marketing DATE: 06/04/2010 06:29:13 AM ----- BODY:

The recent Business Marketing Association conference in Chicago was focused on engagement. The leading marketers from around the world came together to talk about it...and how engagement is the key to success for your brand and your customers.

The overwhelming takeaway was this...while customer engagement is critical, employee engagement must come first.

We always talk about the content that we develop to attract and retain customers. What type of content and platforms are you developing to engage and inspire your employees?

Brands cannot get marketing to a strategic level without both customer engagement AND employee engagement - Eduardo Conrado, Mototola

Inspire employees first, customers second - Jim Stengel, former CMO, P&G

GE believed in this so much that they created MarkNet, and internal community of General Electric marketers. MarkNet is a social network inside the company solely for GE marketers. Over 2,000 marketers regularly use MarkNet, with each one sharing (and tagging) their expertise. MarkNet is being used for ongoing training, information sharing across the organization and, according to CMO Beth Comstock, has "put a focus on it's people." A combination of Facebook, YouTube, Linkedin and Twitter, MarkNet was specifically built so that marketers could learn from each other and network. Today, they are inspiring each other.

Did you know that even in a company like GE, over 60% of their 5,000 marketers have no formal training and 66% have less than five years experience? If this is what's going on in a company like GE, what are the numbers in your company?

GE is not alone.

A few years back, Xerox developed Competipedia, a wiki-based social networking tool specifically for the Xerox marketing team to share competitive intelligence. Competipedia is now a critical part of the Xerox sales and marketing process, being used for intelligence, proposal planning, training and networking.

Can you be the best in your industry without first inspiring your employees? Companies like Motorola, GE and Xerox don't think so. What do you think?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: internal marketing, ge, xerox, employee engagement ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sandi EMAIL: smccann@heinrich.com IP: 72.16.193.185 URL: http://www.heinrich.com DATE: 06/04/2010 12:47:32 PM This is an excellent point about inspiring and engaging employees first, before clients. Even in small companies, (like ours) everyone is so diligently focused on the client work, keeping our heads down and meeting deadlines. This post reminds me (in addition to sharing this with the leadership team) to call on and encourage a community mindset to share expertise and viewpoints from everyone in my organization. Thank you. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Think Like Your Customers Think STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: think-like-your-customers-think CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 06/01/2010 09:25:46 PM ----- BODY:

There's a very important line at the beginning of the movie The Godfather II.

Just after Michael Corleone, The Godfather (played by Al Pacino) gets shot at, he sits down his brother Tom Hagan and talks about an important lesson from his father.

One thing I learned from my father is to try to think as the people around you think...and on that basis, anything is possible.

If marketers only lived by just this one lesson.

Do you truly understand the pain points of your customers?

Do you understand what kind of information they need to solve those pain points?

Are you hanging out where you customers are hanging out online, so that you are in a position to help?

These things are not easy, but when executed, all things are possible.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: think like your customers ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Maranda Gibson EMAIL: mgibson@accutalk.com IP: 76.183.215.201 URL: http://www.accuconference.com DATE: 06/02/2010 09:58:11 PM What a great post! Absolutely, you have to think like your customers do, otherwise you're just going to be feeding them something they don't want. Always remembering what their needs are, and what you can do to fill that need, is the most important thing you can do in marketing or customer service. How can I help you is not just a phrase, it's a philosophy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vim EMAIL: vimal@creare.co.uk IP: 81.149.233.139 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk/ DATE: 06/03/2010 04:31:16 AM Awesome Post short and sweet, knowing your customers and putting yourself in your customers shoes is important to know what you want to achieve. The Godfather series has some great quotes and a lot to learn from. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Barbara DePompa EMAIL: bdepompa@comcast.net IP: 69.250.231.222 URL: http://www.linkedin.com/in/barbaradepompa DATE: 06/04/2010 09:12:49 AM In working with so many different clients over the years it never ceases to amaze me how many simply DON'T take this simple advice to heart. Customers really don't want what I lovingly refer to as 'vendor fluff and puffery.' And if there's no meaningful/credible information on a vendor website, or in white papers or other published documentation, customers will go elsewhere to help resolve their major ongoing challenges. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dewita EMAIL: somethingsorganic@gmail.com IP: 158.59.127.87 URL: http://somethingsorganic.com DATE: 06/04/2010 12:22:44 PM Right on Joe. Though, sometime it's easier said than done. I try to hang out where my potential customers are.. online and offline.. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Lay's Happiness Exhibit Makes Me Sad STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: lays-happiness-exhibit-makes-me-sad CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 05/27/2010 10:31:37 AM ----- BODY:

I was sent a link to the Lay's chips Happiness Exhibit today. After the experience, I'm sad.

Before I review, I do want to give Lay's credit for experimenting with this. It's easy for me to be critical of them from my office chair. They put themselves out there, and I like that.

That said, I have a couple concerns/questions.

First, I'm having trouble with the brand connection. What is the connection between eating chips and displaying photos around happiness? "Wow, look at all the great pictures of brothers hugging and puppy dogs. I'm hungry for some chips now."

I came away with wondering why this was a Lay's project and not a Nikon or Kodak project. If you are going to develop a social media campaign, shouldn't the product, or relation to the brand experience, be involved. Ford is a good example of this. Or Travelpod's Traveler IQ test. Or even BK's Subservient Chicken. At least they were trying to sell chicken.

That aside, I'm willing to give this a try. But before I get started, they ask me to link up with my Flickr account. Okay, I'm used to that. STOP. The message below startles me.

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Access to my Flickr account. That's okay. Do I give Lay's permission to upload, edit and replace photos and videos in my account? Holy crap no. Can they interact with my friends? Stop, it's hurting.

Honestly, I stopped there. It's not that I don't trust Lays (I don't), but this stuff was written by the Facebook privacy team.

If they're open to it, a few words of advice for the team at Lay's:

Instead of directing people to a new site, maybe start out with where your customers are at...possibly Facebook. Create a Facebook Movement, and see where it goes from there. It's easier to meet customers where they are instead of having to drag them to your new site. They could have also done this directly on Flickr and probably saved a hundred thousand dollars.
I think at the end of the day you want the campaign to what you actually do for your customers, or something of relevance to the brand. Do chips make someone happy? How about cheese? I like LEGOs, this could have been their project as well...but LEGO would have talked about being happy is building LEGOs with your family. Let's upload pictures of our family playing with LEGOs and get featured in our magazine. Families could earn LEGO prizes (okay, I'll stop).

How about getting the family together for a DVD and some chips? How about experimental dipping sauces and Lay's chips?

I think what Lay's was trying to do is creating something remarkable...something worth talking about? Considering the barriers to entry and the missing brand connection, I'm thinking the Lay's marketing department will call this the Sad Exhibit.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate Wilson EMAIL: katherinefaith@gmail.com IP: 66.64.103.2 URL: http://katherinefaith.typepad.com/blog/ DATE: 05/27/2010 10:51:48 AM I have less problem with the brand connection argument as I would contend that a food product like Lays is all about something that makes you feel good and therefore, happy since no one is ever going to argue that it's a food product that benefits the healthy side of your life, just the happy side of your life. And tieing them into the happy moments of your life does make some sense, like family reunions, family picnics, the bag of Lays that you get out of the vending machine at the neighborhood pool during the summer, all happy thoughts... I do have to agree that they have made it more difficult than it needs to be and have given all those with a "fear of the internet" just one more reason to be afraid to interact with a program. But then again it doesn't take much to make me want to eat chips. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.70 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/27/2010 10:56:53 AM I hear you Kate (thanks for the comment)...but still seems like the long way around for me, and I think most people. I completely get your point about family reunions and picnics, but the pictures are walking on the beach and baby pictures for the most part. Can't place the whole "chips" thing. I guess the key thing is this - will this create such an engagement with Lay's customers or prospects that they ultimate eat more, prefer more or talk more about the product. I'm not sold. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Larry EMAIL: lkunz@sdicorp.com IP: 64.132.140.14 URL: http://www.sdicorp.com/Resources/Blog/articleType/AuthorView/authorID/24/lkunz.aspx DATE: 05/27/2010 11:02:09 AM I completely agree with you, Joe. But at least you can feel happy that you stood up for yourself and held your ground against the intrusion. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Danielle EMAIL: danielle@rambow.com IP: 216.170.182.114 URL: DATE: 05/27/2010 01:18:55 PM The site lost my attention due to the load time. I'm not going to sit around for 30 seconds between clicks just to look at photos of other people. I agree that they missed the mark - the expectation is to have fun but the reality is a disappointment! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeremy Morris EMAIL: jezmos65@gmail.com IP: 68.43.197.49 URL: http://www.understandandserve.com DATE: 05/28/2010 07:59:53 AM This is exactly what's wrong with 'digital marketing'. Horrible. #fail ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 05/28/2010 08:07:11 AM Kate and Joe... Lays has failed to do more than "make a brand connection" and happiness is bunk. Here's why: It's not selling chips. Burger King used Facebook to drive customers into stores with its Whopper Sacrifice campaign. So why can't Lay's use "social media" to do same? The fact is that "branding" and "engagement" are acceptable excuses for campaigns that are novel and geared toward memory, recall or preference -- not behavior. Demand creation. And IMHO, that makes "branding" via "social media" worthless as compared to what a brand can do with it -- create behavior that aligns not with "brand" (the ghost) but customers' behaviors (that ultimately create sales/leads). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.70 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/28/2010 08:35:08 AM Jeff...love your comment. The first question you ask in a content marketing strategy is "What's different in 12 months?"...meaning, what's the behavior you want people to take. Even in this case, helping people get happy won't sell chips...although it doesn't make you happy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nancy Arsenault EMAIL: nancy@arsenaultprojectsolutions.ca IP: 96.50.98.5 URL: http://www.arsenaultprojectsolutions.ca DATE: 05/28/2010 10:40:04 AM I agree with your Lay's blog post. The best part of your message was that it led me to the Travel IQ site which did what Lay's failed to to: engage me, have fun, prompted some 'word of mouse promotion' of the Travel IQ, it was free, and yes, I downloaded the widget because I work in the tourism industry. As for Lays, I found it slow, not engaging, questioned the relevance - why would I want to share family photos with a potato chip company? And yes - while I'm an active online person, I am also a researcher and get very frustrated when I see an 'engagement tool' that to me appears to be a decoy to increasing their data base. Do give the Travel IQ a try though! Loved it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jan Schochet EMAIL: jannc01@charter.net IP: 24.162.231.6 URL: http://www.webtopiamarketing.com DATE: 06/01/2010 02:05:07 PM Hey Joe, I totally agree with what you wrote. I didn't go to the site. Not enough time today. But I like Lay's and I don't equate it w/happy, in particular. Why wouldn't they do a thing on "Send us your best recipes that include our chips AND a photo of people enjoying your recipe" ? THAT is happy! That is engaging. People love to see their folks smiling faces. And . . . eating the food THEY made and . . . THEIR recipe on some website. Oh well. They didn't ask me. Time for lunch. Jan Ellyn ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Junta42 Launches Content Marketing Institute STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: junta42-launches-content-marketing-institute CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 05/24/2010 10:20:23 PM ----- BODY:

I'm really excited to announce the launch of the Content Marketing Institute (CMI).

The idea of CMI is simple - while there are a lot of great blogs, books and experts out there in and around content marketing, there are still so many questions.

How do I develop a content marketing strategy?
How do I create content that my audience will find valuable?
What are the best content marketing tactics for my audience and expertise areas?
How do I best manage the content marketing process? If I decide to outsource, how do I do that?
How do I measure what's working (and what's not) to make changes?

Frankly, the questions will never stop. The answers...they will continually change.

The hope of CMI (what I call the great experiment), is to bring the best and brightest minds in the content marketing and content strategy industries together to help marketing professionals answer these how-to questions.

CMI is launching as a daily source of how-to content marketing information, followed this summer by a membership site dedicated to content marketing training and education.

In the meantime, please check out this inaugural post for CMI entitled How to Launch the Content Marketing Institute in 6 Steps.

What can you do? Sign up now to receive CMI updates and get notified as we move toward the membership portion this summer.

Thanks for being part of this important effort!

If you'd like information on contributing or possibly sponsorship, just shoot us a note here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: cmi, content marketing institute, content marketing ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: A blog post is like a miniskirt STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: a-blog-is-like-a-miniskirt CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 05/23/2010 10:16:14 PM ----- BODY:

A blog post is like a miniskirt.

It has to be short enough to be interesting, but long enough to cover the subject.

courtesy my friend Henry

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: blogs, miniskirts ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Suzanne Delzio EMAIL: sdelzio1@san.rr.com IP: 66.27.87.68 URL: http://www.veterinary-marketing.com DATE: 05/24/2010 12:31:47 PM Love it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alan Stransman EMAIL: alan@mycontentcreator.com IP: 99.226.247.45 URL: http://www.mycontentcreator.com DATE: 05/28/2010 08:23:13 AM I do not wish to offend, but a mini-skirt can often be improved upon by being removed altogether. Would you say the same for a blog post? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.70 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/28/2010 08:30:33 AM Alan...that is priceless ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mike EMAIL: mike@thesaltstudio.com IP: 98.237.140.233 URL: DATE: 05/28/2010 12:04:27 PM Even more basic... does the "subject" have attractive "legs"? Otherwise, the tendency is to look away. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karl EMAIL: kkleinbach@acom.com IP: 66.102.140.79 URL: DATE: 05/28/2010 04:57:18 PM "legs" are like the title, a quick glance will tell you if further investigation is warranted. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eran from Small Business Marketing TV EMAIL: eran@wwwm.com.au IP: 124.169.238.129 URL: http://smallbusinessmarketingtv.com DATE: 07/24/2010 10:54:56 AM Ahhh the miniskirt... source of great joy the world over for menfolk ;-) Of course, in this "modern" age, they're often called a belt! :-D ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: john krol EMAIL: johnkrol@black-swan-marketing.com IP: 67.177.251.185 URL: http://www.black-swan-marketing.com DATE: 07/24/2010 02:22:22 PM Thanks its a unique way to better understand "miniskirt" would never have thunk it. You make some good points looking forward to more. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Search Marketing EMAIL: mark@u2project.com IP: 208.100.134.67 URL: http://u2project.com DATE: 07/25/2010 05:15:28 PM Good point Mike. If the mini skirt is meant to expose a portion of the desired content, just enough to tantalize the taste buds, then it better be good enough to tantalize, or the content would be better suited with pants. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jason Oncor Solutions Fairfield EMAIL: jason.fairfield@oncorsolutions.com IP: 64.231.171.101 URL: http://www.oncorsolutions.com DATE: 07/28/2010 09:23:24 AM and sexy enough (cool content) to get looked at over and over again. Intriguing enough to make someone go hmmmm, I want to see more (again cool content). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Quaneshia Holden EMAIL: qhold@aol.com IP: 99.66.231.0 URL: http://www.QuickMLMSecrets.com DATE: 07/29/2010 04:09:17 AM LOL, I never really thought of it that way. But it's true because if your blog post looks like a novel I will put it off to read later. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: pat-brighton photographer EMAIL: beachgazer@hotmail.com IP: 81.111.33.28 URL: http://www.i-clic.co.uk DATE: 07/29/2010 12:37:53 PM Very good...spent the last 10mins trying to think of a better one...failed!P ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ecommerce software EMAIL: melmartinez01@gmail.com IP: 210.4.13.218 URL: http://5ecommercesoftware.com DATE: 07/30/2010 11:10:44 AM This post was not only helpful with the comment issue, but had also great links to other entertaining blogs. Some of them I will most likely keep visiting! Thanks and greetings from Berlin/Germany! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Groene lening EMAIL: info@zoekplein.nl IP: 81.243.174.22 URL: http://www.groenelening.org DATE: 08/02/2010 03:19:22 PM Wow, that is a good one ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: JJ Remington at My Online Business Strategy EMAIL: jjr@my.onlinebusinessstrategy.net IP: 70.190.141.119 URL: http://my.onlinebusinessstrategy.net/ DATE: 08/08/2010 03:52:16 PM Joe, that's got to be one of the most enlightening ideas I've ever seen online. Thanks. Can I repost that? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenifer EMAIL: gasper457@yahoo.com IP: 120.50.183.34 URL: http://www.rankingsolutions.com DATE: 08/09/2010 04:23:49 PM We also can compare this with other things which like too too miniskirt. It's save our words. Really interesting! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Marketer Matt EMAIL: matthewhall85@gmail.com IP: 24.11.205.163 URL: http://marketermatt.com/ DATE: 08/16/2010 08:13:37 PM It seems as if I've heard this before about something else... I'm sure it could applied to several things but blogging is a good one :-D ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Simon Novak EMAIL: novaksim@gmail.com IP: 178.58.33.3 URL: http://izdelava-spletnih-strani-1a.blogspot.com/ DATE: 08/29/2010 11:31:51 AM So catchy, and above all, very true! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: harlton stone EMAIL: monaguemarketing@gmail.com IP: 208.80.102.77 URL: http://www.articlecat.com/Article/Internet-Marketing-Made-Easier/430438 DATE: 10/04/2010 07:22:39 AM Great One, yeah i tried to think of something else too but my one track mind wouldn't allow me to. Be back with another one sometime. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nate P. EMAIL: a78superbu@frontier.com IP: 173.53.151.11 URL: http://make-cash-online-how.com/ DATE: 10/11/2010 11:33:01 AM That is great! Short and to the point. So very true. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Anne EMAIL: anne@homebusiness-ideas.info IP: 41.133.34.165 URL: http://www.homebusiness-ideas.info DATE: 10/17/2010 11:26:17 AM I love it - but I wonder if a longer skirt or a pair of pants isn't a little more intriguing - just 'cos you can't see all of the legs does not mean they're not worth looking at! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jason Halbert EMAIL: jhalbert@businessplanmaster.com IP: 68.4.56.144 URL: http://www.businessplanmaster.com/apply-for-a-business-loan.html DATE: 10/18/2010 07:29:31 PM For others, a blog post may be more like the fragrance of a great lasagna baking -- the scent will draw you into something much meatier. (Yeah, I'm a pushover for great Italian.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ty from Manchester EMAIL: tybell2121@gmail.com IP: 121.92.59.53 URL: http://www.bestmanchesterbuilders.co.uk/ DATE: 11/03/2010 02:21:06 AM I'm always tempted to make my own blog posts full-length ballgowns! It's worth bearing in mind that shorter is often better (especially in the case of minis!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Danielle Lynn The Clear Copywriter EMAIL: danielle@daniellelynn.com IP: 71.58.103.94 URL: http://theclearcopywriter.com/ DATE: 11/12/2010 03:46:28 PM Ha! This is perhaps one of the most brilliant posts I've read. And it really embodies the spirit of information with brevity -which comes up a lot for me in copywriting. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: harlton stone EMAIL: monaguemarketing@gmail.com IP: 208.80.102.76 URL: http://torontoonline.blogspot.com/ DATE: 11/14/2010 09:52:21 AM it was always said "sex sells" whether it's out of curiosity, perversion or obsession- it does ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kimberly EMAIL: km2kiwi@gmail.com IP: 205.201.208.203 URL: http://internetmarketerstraighttalk.com DATE: 11/15/2010 12:13:58 PM I think a mini skirt also has to be worn by a certain type or it's not interesting at all. It's just freaky! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adam EMAIL: adamsniper@hotmail.co.uk IP: 90.218.12.49 URL: http://makemoneyonlinetheeasyway.net/ DATE: 11/15/2010 12:18:57 PM haha great love this post, its so true your posts have to be short or the readers going to lose interest, i think i'm gonna go shorten my posts, be sure to check my blog http://makemoneyonlinetheeasyway.net/ ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Social Media Publishing Model for Publishers STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-social-media-publishing-model-for-publishers CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: publishers CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 05/21/2010 04:47:33 AM ----- BODY:

I delivered a presentation yesterday at the Minnesota Magazine and Publishers Association (MMPA) about how publishers can leverage social media channels to grow their online footprint (and revolutionize their business). Below is the presentation, but here are a few key takeaways.

Social media is not cheap, it's a different kind of expensive (Jay Baer). Publishers that just look to integrate social media as a distribution channel only will not deliver on their promise to become the industry expert everywhere their customers are. Committing to changing your processes as it relates to social media is not cheap...it takes a number of resources, time and energy to properly implement. Be prepared.
What business are you in as a publisher? If you believe that your core business is publishing, then you are competing with the entire world (we are all publishers today). As a publisher, you need to rethink your business (are you in the business of providing engaging experiences for your niche customers?).

5 Steps to a Social Media Model that Rocks

Find out where your customers are hanging out
Identify the blogs, social media niche sites, online portals and forums and any other place where your customers (readers) are hanging out. Read the discussion on the targeted sites. Assign resources to getting active in those communities and commenting. Continually provide helpful information, positioning you as a clear expert in those communities.
Sign up key bloggers and niche sites to align with your publishing brand
One of the reasons that MarketingProfs Daily Fix has been so successful is that they have partnered with experts from around the marketing world to contribute to their blog. Those contributors not only deliver assets to MProfs, but they share that content into their own social media networks. What MProfs has done is tap into a number of communities, without having to own those communities. This is something that all publishers should be doing.

Should we be thinking like AOL or Yahoo!? (gasp) Many people don't realize that both these organizations have been snapping up niche content sites for years (like AOL and Engadget), and those sites have become one of their most important assets. If niche publishers can start to build relationships with outside bloggers and niche industry sites, it opens the opportunity for partnership or possibly purchase in the future.
Changing the content process
Remember the days of being assigned as an editor to a story and having the output be the story? Those days are coming to an end. As Dan McCarthy suggests, publishers must change their content generation process. Instead of just a content output of a print story, content creators deliver content throughout the process - tweets, photos, podcasts, content packages, etc. Instead of one output, there may be 10, 20, or even 30 pieces of content. Readers are interested in being more involved in your brand. This opens up the hood, and lets your readers in.
Create employee rock stars
Like Indium, take your employees (all your employees, not just your editors) and turn them into content creators. Set up blogs for each of your employees. Develop a social media policy. Train each employee how to write effectively for the web and share their experiences through social media. Currently, most niche publishers have just a few key content creators. What if your entire organization told your brand story? What would that do for your business?
Assign an internal champion
This social media publishing plan won't just happen. You need an internal driver. Assign someone as your social media champion (someone with real passion for using social media). This person will be your lead trainer and cheerleader.

The presentation is below with additional social media ideas for publishers. The point is this...if you are a publisher, you need to truly act like one. These revolutionary changes will dynamically alter your future as a publishing brand for the better.

The Social Media Publishing Model for Publishers

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alison EMAIL: alison.bolen@sas.com IP: 65.185.167.153 URL: http://blogs.sas.com/sascom DATE: 05/21/2010 10:28:31 AM Can I order posters, mouse pads and desk-top signage of that image with #3, please. :) What a perfect image! At the very least, a blog post dedicated solely to that image would be wonderful to share with others who aren't quit there with us yet. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.99 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/22/2010 08:30:57 AM I love that Alison...very cool. I put your idea on my to-do blogging list and will spend some time on it soon. Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bryan the Social Media Management Ninja EMAIL: socialmedia@gnarlyzone.com IP: 68.13.88.201 URL: http://www.gnarlyzone.com DATE: 07/24/2010 12:24:30 PM So true, that social media ain't cheap. It's not all about just sending a status update or a tweet and expecting so huge ROI...focus Daniel son. Good article. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 3 Steps to Becoming the Industry Expert (Content Strategy, Water Cooler and a Book) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 3-steps-to-becoming-the-industry-expert-content-strategy-water-cooler-and-a-book CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 05/18/2010 09:59:06 AM ----- BODY:

This Ogilvy post reminded me that content without true innovation doesn't do much for your business.

A few months ago at the Online Marketing Summit national conference (where, by the way, I'll be doing content marketing workshops in 22 cities), one marketer stood up and said:

How do I differentiate myself with my content? My five competitors all talk about the same thing and we're all fighting for the same keywords. There's no where else to go.

I've heard this many times. Some marketing and communication professionals think that since the publishing of content is rather easy, there is little or no chance to truly create a remarkable message and unique story.

Wrong, Wrong, Wrong. If you believe this, stop right now and follow this plan.

----- EXTENDED BODY:

Your Content Strategy - The stories you tell as a brand do not just compete with your actual competitors. They compete with the niche trade magazines in your industry, the bloggers in your industry, Google and every other piece of content that your customers engage in. That means your content MUST be the best. It MUST be innovative. It MUST tell a unique and compelling story for you to be the industry expert. If it doesn't, you have work to do.
The Water Cooler - If only great content were enough. Content plus community is what gives fuel to the fire. Where are your customers at on the web or in person? That's where you need to be. Identify those key places, target the top five, and become a part of that community by offering consistently helpful information. Outsider content will bounce off your customers like a shield. Insider content engages, is accepting and creates real value.
The Major Tactics (book and blog) - It may sound cliché, but industry experts write industry books. Look at the key thought leaders in your industry. They all have books, don't they? They also have pretty compelling blogs. While both of these are tactical, these are "money in the bank" tools that show your expertise as an individual and a brand. If you (the brand) say that you are the experts in mechanical engineering for roller coasters, let me see the book. No book? Sorry, come back next time.

As the great Chris Rock says, "don't hate the player, hate the game." Are you an industry expert or not?

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content strategy, industry expert, content marketing, writing a book ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Clay EMAIL: claymorgan001@gmail.com IP: 66.38.119.241 URL: http://www.nashvillecopy.com DATE: 05/18/2010 12:44:09 PM A great post, but I think that your point number one is what really hit me. There is so much content out there that yours must stand apart if you are going to succeed at content marketing. So many times, what we all read (and I'm guilty of occasionally producing it myself - we all are) is nothing more than a rehash of a million other blogs or articles out there. Very well said! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why Small Content Wins Almost Every Time STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-small-content-wins-almost-every-time CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 05/14/2010 08:54:04 AM ----- BODY:

I've been all over the world over the past year talking with marketers about their content projects. In most companies, there is a focus on big content.

What's big content you say? Big content means large content projects such as custom magazines, lengthy newsletters, virtual events, large customer events, etc. These are content initiatives that are complex, take lots of time, planning and review and are dependent on many people for success.

There is nothing wrong with big content. They are essential for most brands. We need custom magazines to develop long-term relationships with customers and provide real solutions to our customers' needs. We need in-person events to meet with customers face-to-face and show them we appreciate their business. There is certainly a place for big content, but not at the expense of small content.

Let me give you an example. Men often save up for large presents for their significant others over critical dates. Birthday. How about some jewelry? Mother's Day. How about a spa day? Anniversary. Maybe a trip or cruise is in order.

----- EXTENDED BODY:

I'm sure most women love these big gifts. But that's not what keeps the relationship going. It's the small things. The note you left on the bathroom mirror. Doing the dishes without prompting. Cleaning up the house. Making the bed. Taking the kids out for an hour or two. An "I love you" or a "You're beautiful" that wasn't expected. That's the glue that holds relationships together. That keeps the love going. The small, unexpected gifts.

The same holds true for your content initiatives. The custom magazine is fantastic, but what your customer really likes are those daily blog posts, periodic Twitter updates, weekly enewsletters. It's the small content that truly builds the relationship that makes the big content that much more powerful.

While both big and small content is needed, if you had to pick, small wins out every time. Taking your wife on a cruise once a year without doing all the little things in between is a recipe for separation.

Don't get stuck on big content as the expense of small content. If there is one thing I see wrong with larger companies, it's this fascination that big content is better. It's not.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: big content, small content ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ingrid archer EMAIL: ingrid@spotonvision.com IP: 84.81.15.162 URL: http://www.spotonvision.com DATE: 05/14/2010 10:26:44 AM Nice post, and it is very true; and then as an extra argument to get started..many companies end up doing nothing with their content strategy because they don't know where to start, they only think BIG and are too much of a perfectionist. Just keep it simple and don't over-complicate is my advise. Just get started. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Elizabeth B. EMAIL: eh@iangilyeat.com IP: 72.201.88.174 URL: http://bit.ly/irgco2 DATE: 05/14/2010 02:33:48 PM Thanks for the post. Building relationships with customers take baby-steps. It's the small things that build the foundation of those relationships. I agree with Ingrid's comment, "Just keep it simple and don't over-complicate." Nice comment! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rinforsideweb EMAIL: rinforsideweb@gmail.com IP: 196.202.217.185 URL: http://www.rinforsideweb.com/blog/ DATE: 05/14/2010 06:01:58 PM Informative post and very true. Sometimes most people do not know where to start. In fact they complicate their content campaigns -- because, they want to start BIG. There is nothing wrong with thinking BIG. As long as it does stop you from starting. So "JUST START" your content campaign even it means starting small. Then watch and learn as it grows BIG. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brett Duncan EMAIL: brett@marketinginprogress.com IP: 99.107.243.196 URL: http://www.marketinginprogress.com DATE: 05/15/2010 08:54:21 AM Great analogy on how marriage makes this point (and so true!). Another benefit of keeping it small is that big gets overwhelming fast. As one of the comments mentions above, just starting, just jumping in, normally solves a lot of perceived issues. bd @bdunc1 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nicola Connolly EMAIL: nicola@creare.co.uk IP: 81.136.132.236 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 05/17/2010 08:48:20 AM So very true! Nice analogy :) Doing that little bit extra for your customers will certainly take you a long way. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul McKeon EMAIL: contentfactor@gmail.com IP: 75.93.138.34 URL: http://www.contentfactor.com DATE: 05/17/2010 09:37:39 AM Joe, I would add to your analogy that the content, big or small, has to be driven by what the buyer wants, not what we want. Big initiatives often fall into this trap. They come about because of our internal drivers, not the customer's. A husband has to give his wife the earrings she has her eye on, not a new lawnmower. http://bit.ly/bkVLkl With blogs and tweets, content is getting smaller, but keeping up is a challenge for marketing executives who like to think in terms of big satisfying projects, like a cruise. Continually generating small content, like weekly blog posts, is a shift companies are still wrestling with. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: khush-Adsense Information EMAIL: vaastu97@yahoo.com IP: 209.120.247.10 URL: http://www.AdSenseHome.com DATE: 05/17/2010 04:25:13 PM So true and the example perfectly illustrates the idea. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karol Zielinski EMAIL: me@karolzielinski.com IP: 217.98.91.230 URL: http://blog.karolzielinski.com DATE: 05/18/2010 03:45:00 AM Absolutely true. Great article Joe. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rick WAtson EMAIL: richard.m.watson@gmail.com IP: 216.27.89.92 URL: http://www.ecommercezen.com/ DATE: 05/19/2010 01:31:57 AM I really like this post. I think it's a good reminder for product marketers as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tiina Saaristo EMAIL: tiina.saaristo@eads.com IP: 80.156.46.68 URL: DATE: 05/21/2010 08:11:00 AM Great post. This really touched me, for applying the insight in my private life, too. Thank you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rachel Agheyisi EMAIL: rachelagheyisi@yahoo.com IP: 75.82.43.135 URL: DATE: 05/21/2010 03:40:58 PM Great reminder, Joe. Paul McKeon's comment above is spot on regarding the "proper driver" for content: focus on the recipient's needs. I'd add that case studies (less than 3 pages long) are also good stay-in-touch small content. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karilee the Marketing Coach EMAIL: karilee@outcomemarketing.com IP: 96.49.165.63 URL: http://outcomemarketing.com DATE: 07/30/2010 04:29:27 PM Nice analogy. The same applies to client contact. I've seen companies send out annual reports or fund raising packages, but never maintain contact during the year. While "big content" is great once in a while, missing out on the small touches really means there's nobody there paying attention. Small content (or contact) IS the glue that maintains the relationship. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Philsm EMAIL: osioutsource@gmail.com IP: 121.97.70.149 URL: http://outsourcing-services.net DATE: 08/04/2010 07:28:43 PM I agree with your example, small things is very important especially to a relationship. That's what keeps the relationship going. :-) Thumbs up! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Age of Conversation Back Again STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: age-of-conversation-back-again CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 05/12/2010 08:17:53 AM ----- BODY:

Age of Conversation is back. Drew McLellan and Gavin Heaton have again rounded up over 170 marketing experts to take a deep dive (or 171 quick dives) into the changing nature of social media, branding and marketing (of course, content marketing is included as well).

The first two versions of AOC have raised over $25,000 for Variety, an international children's charity close to Drew's heart.

So, buying this book will help you, your business, and some deserving children. What could be better?

You can buy Age of Conversation here now.

And a big thanks to all those who contributed to AOC3 (listed below). I'm proud to be part of this group.

Adam Joseph
Priyanka Sachar
Mark Earls
Cory Coley-Christakos
Stefan Erschwendner
Paul Hebert
Jeff De Cagna
Thomas Clifford
Phil Gerbyshak
Jon Burg
Toby Bloomberg
Shambhu Neil Vineberg
Joseph Jaffe
Uwe Hook
Steve Roesler
Michael E. Rubin
anibal casso
Steve Woodruff
Steve Sponder
Becky Carroll
Tim Tyler
Chris Wilson
Beth Harte
Tinu Abayomi-Paul
Dan Schawbel
Carol Bodensteiner
Trey Pennington
David Weinfeld
Dan Sitter
Vanessa DiMauro
Ed Brenegar
David Zinger
Brett T. T. Macfarlane
Efrain Mendicuti
Deb Brown
Brian Reich
Gaurav Mishra
Dennis Deery
C.B. Whittemore
Gordon Whitehead
Heather Rast
Cam Beck
Hajj E. Flemings
Joan Endicott
Cathryn Hrudicka
Jeroen Verkroost
Karen D. Swim
Christopher Morris
Joe Pulizzi
Leah Otto
Corentin Monot
Karalee Evans
Leigh Durst
David Berkowitz
Kevin Jessop
Lesley Lambert
Duane Brown
Peter Korchnak
Mark Price
Dustin Jacobsen
Piet Wulleman
Mike Maddaloni
Ernie Mosteller
Scott Townsend
Nick Burcher
Frank Stiefler
Steve Olenski
Rich Nadworny
John Rosen
Tim Jackson
Suzanne Hull
Len Kendall
Amber Naslund
Wayne Buckhanan
Mark McGuinness
Caroline Melberg
Andy Drish
Oleksandr Skorokhod
Claire Grinton
Angela Maiers
Paul Williams
Gary Cohen
Armando Alves
Sam Ismail
Gautam Ramdurai
B.J. Smith
Tamera Kremer
Eaon Pritchard
Brendan Tripp
Adelino de Almeida
Jacob Morgan
Casey Hibbard
Andy Hunter
Julian Cole
Debra Helwig
Anjali Ramachandran
Jye Smith
Drew McLellan
Craig Wilson
Karin Hermans
Emily Reed
David Petherick
Katie Harris
Gavin Heaton
Dennis Price
Mark Levy
George Jenkins
Doug Mitchell
Mark W. Schaefer
Helge Tenno
Douglas Hanna
Marshall Sponder
James Stevens
Ian Lurie
Ryan Hanser
Jenny Meade
Jeff Larche
Sacha Tueni and Katherine Maher
David Svet
Jessica Hagy
Simon Payn
Joanne Austin-Olsen
Mark Avnet
Stanley Johnson
Marilyn Pratt
Mark Hancock
Steve Kellogg
Michelle Beckham-Corbin
Michelle Chmielewski
Amy Mengel
Veronique Rabuteau
Peter Komendowski
Andrea Vascellari
Timothy L Johnson
Phil Osborne
Beth Wampler
Amy Jussel
Rick Liebling
Eric Brody
Arun Rajagopal
Dr Letitia Wright
Hugh de Winton
David Koopmans
Aki Spicer
Jeff Wallace
Don Frederiksen
Charles Sipe
Katie McIntyre
James G Lindberg & Sandra Renshaw
David Reich
Lynae Johnson
Jasmin Tragas
Deborah Chaddock Brown
Mike O'Toole
Jeanne Dininni
Iqbal Mohammed
Morriss M. Partee
Katie Chatfield
Jeff Cutler
Pete Jones
Riku Vassinen
Jeff Garrison
Kevin Dugan
Tiphereth Gloria
Mike Sansone
Lori Magno
Valerie Simon
Nettie Hartsock
Mark Goren
Peter Salvitti

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: age of conversation, aoc3 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 37 Reasons to Blog STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 37-reasons-to-blog CATEGORY: business blogging DATE: 05/10/2010 11:54:21 AM ----- BODY:

Today is my birthday. Lucky number 37.

As part of my birthday celebration, I'm committing to blogging more. Junta42 was started as a blog (this post is proof from April, 2007) and I still believe it is one of the most important things you can do as a business (as long as you have the right strategy). So, here's my 37 reasons to blog and blog more. I hope they inspire you.

A blog is just a tool, but it is the easiest, most effective publishing tool to share information with customers and prospects.
A blog can be the center of your content marketing strategy. As you widen your net to attract prospects and customers through social media, your blog is the place you point them to. It's your magnet.
You don't need a publishing degree to start a blog. There are no technology barriers. Wordpress first, then Typepad are two places to look. For larger corporations, Compendium is an interesting platform.
Thinking about writing a book? Then start the blog first. This blog was started on the idea that it would serve as the basis for our book, Get Content Get Customers. It did just that. Blog with the idea of chapters of your book in mind.
You can't be taken seriously in social media unless you have a robust, consistent blog. That's the truth. Deal with it.
Blogging may be the best way to showcase your employees. Check out Indium. How much more powerful is this brand with their employees consistently communicating helpful information? How much greater is the employee morale because Indium is embracing social media and conversations with customers? You have employees who are rock stars. Give them the platform to help you in the process.
A blog is search engine candy. Google loves blogs and Google is hungry. Feed the beast.
A blog is an industry game changer. When the buying decision comes down to three or four companies, the company website with consistent, relevant content is 60% more likely to win (Custom Content Council stats).
A blog is a great way to learn to stop talking about yourself and start focusing on what your customers need to hear.
Can you really be an industry thought leader without a blog? Think about that.
How can you be successful with Twitter, Facebook and other social media without generating consistently relevant content through a blog? Remember, content strategy comes before social media. That content strategy can be executed through the blog.
The blog is a great way for us to communicate with our customers on a regular basis without having to constantly pitch them on our products.
A blog can serve as the content hub for your enewsletter, print newsletter and company magazine.
Your customers want and need to be inspired. Is there a better way to inspire customers that than through consistent content gifts through a blog.
A solid blog will lead to speaking events. I've been invited to more than 30 speaking events specifically because they found me on the blog. No kidding. Five of those were international speaking events.
Since most websites suck, a blog is a great way to differentiate yourself from the rest of the online corporate brochures.
A blog is one of the best ways to share your point of view. You're take on the industry and customers is unique (or at least should be). Tell your story.
If you can't figure out how to tell a unique story, a blog is a great testing ground for you to find your corporate voice. Find your compelling story.
A blog removes corporate shackles. By opening yourself up to imperfection and transparency through a blog, you are actually moving closer to perfection.
Having a blog forces you to ask questions about your industry and your customers all day long and while you sleep. Having a blog forces you to become a journalist and think like a publisher. That forces you to become a more innovative business.
Your competition may be able to duplicate your product, but it's very hard, if not impossible, for the competition to duplicate your story. A blog will help tell your story.
You will meet more influential people and gain more contacts through a blog than almost anything else you do.
Listening and commenting is extremely important to any social media program. Without a blog, a listening program is more like eavesdropping. It just seems wrong.
A good blog will lead to blog guest posts on other sites and other free public relations efforts.
What other tool can enable you to have real conversations with customers, prospects and influencers?
Although a blog can work for any organization, it's simply the most cost-effective way to promote and market your business.
Blogging is fun. Who thought you could write about interesting things that affect your business and have it positively affect you and so many of your customers?
Your brand is what your people read and talk about online.
A blog forces you to keep abreast of what's going on with your customers and your industry. Remember, you are the industry expert. Act like one.
A blog promotes customer loyalty. Customers will look to you for expert insight to help them with their pain points. When they are ready to buy, they'll buy from the expert.
The blog can be the core of your search engine optimization strategy.
If you don't have anything interesting to say, why would anyone have a reason to talk about you or your company?
A blog can be your personal therapist. It's saved me thousands.
Traditional journalists love to interview bloggers. They know they'll get the information they need because they already see the proof.
A blog is a credibility machine. Any thought leader in the space needs two things - a blog and a book. One without the other is like Laverne without Shirley or Cafe without Mocha.
Everyone is an expert in something. Figure out the intersection between your expertise and your target audiences' needs and find your secret sauce.
Repackaging of blog posts will fuel white papers, ebooks, in-person events and just about all the other educational content you'll need for your marketing. A blog, can literally, do it all for your content marketing program.

For more, check out this free white paper on attracting and retaining customers through content marketing.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: reasons to blog, blogging, business blogging, junta42, joe pulizzi ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kristina Stiffler EMAIL: kstiffler@cwritingsllc.com IP: 65.60.235.187 URL: http://www.cwritingsllc.com/blog DATE: 05/10/2010 02:31:05 PM Happy Birthday! What a great list! The bottom line is blogs build better companies by moving important conversations (like what product to build, what things matter most, what needs to improve) outside of company meeting rooms and into the hands of those who have the answers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Khush-AdSense Information EMAIL: vaastu97@yahoo.com IP: 209.120.247.10 URL: http://www.adsensehome.com/articles/vital-adsense-information-to-get-your-account-approved/ DATE: 05/10/2010 03:46:08 PM Joe, Happy Birthday! This is a great post. Your point# 36 has appealed to me the most "Everyone is an expert in something...".Also I have great expectations from your book. I am going to buy and read it soon. Keep up the good work. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: francis shivone EMAIL: fshivone@gmail.com IP: 68.116.140.39 URL: http://www.ripsreviews.blogspot.com DATE: 05/11/2010 09:41:26 PM Joe -- love your blog, really, always informative. Have had a blog three years but really I'm just beginning to understand its strengths. I spent 25 years on the production end of the advertising business and I read your post on 30 content marketing truths often. Thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nicola Connolly EMAIL: nicola@creare.co.uk IP: 81.136.132.236 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 05/12/2010 07:24:07 AM Great list - some really key points in there. Blogs are such a fantastic tool to share information, ideas and opinions. They allow us to interact and have conversations with customers and peers alike in a positive and productive way. Happy Birthday! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 142.131.229.165 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/12/2010 07:59:12 AM Thanks Francis...you are right. The power of a blog sort of sneaks up on you... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lori Mahon EMAIL: lori@overture-media.com IP: 75.138.239.40 URL: http://www.overture-media.com DATE: 05/12/2010 11:22:30 AM Happy Birthday -- and thank you for a great post today!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Maranda Gibson EMAIL: mgibson@accutalk.com IP: 208.49.241.197 URL: http://www.accuconference.com/blog DATE: 05/12/2010 03:39:58 PM Happy Birthday -- thanks for the great list today! And yes, blogging is supposed to be fun, I think we forget that sometimes.. when the crushing defeat of writers block kicks in. Hope you have a great birthday! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Barbara Bix EMAIL: barbara@bbmarketignplus.com IP: 209.150.54.17 URL: http://www.bbmarketingplus.com/blog DATE: 05/14/2010 08:45:25 AM Happy, happy birthday, lucky 37! Joe, you've been a great support to the whole community so add two more: helping out your peers and colleagues and using writing to really clarify and sharpen your own thinking so that your insights will be easily digestible for other. Please keep up the good work! PS. I found that life got better and better after 37, and I wish you the same. Barbara ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.99 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/14/2010 08:59:11 AM Thanks so much Barbara...great additions. And I like that it will all continue to get better. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cindy Faith Swain - The Work Organizer EMAIL: cindy@theworkorganizer.com IP: 68.108.243.202 URL: http://www.theworkorganizer.com DATE: 05/14/2010 10:12:37 AM Thanks for the info and encouragement. I've posted you on my blog... I LOVE the bold - great effect. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rebecca EMAIL: r.ponce@waxcom.com IP: 38.100.206.190 URL: http://www.waxcom.com/impressions DATE: 05/14/2010 10:29:02 AM Great blog post. Number one really is so important. Having a means to be your own publisher is so powerful. Thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arnie | Vertical Measures EMAIL: arniek@verticalmeasures.com IP: 72.215.194.132 URL: http://www.verticalmeasures.com DATE: 05/17/2010 01:24:16 PM Hey Joe - happy belated birthday. Great list. We get asked all the time by our clients "what should we blog about?" so we created a post listing 50 ideas for a corporate blog. Your readers might be interested in it too. http://www.verticalmeasures.com/website-publicity/50-topics-to-help-you-get-started-on-your-corporate-blog/ Take care - and talk to you soon. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jethro Jean-Baptiste EMAIL: jethro@salesfuel.com IP: 96.39.4.162 URL: http://salesfuel.com DATE: 05/18/2010 01:46:41 PM Joe- Happy belated birthday. That list is pretty impressive. What I have are the20 reasons why you should consider SalesFuel. Accelerate your sales today and click here for a free trial and connect to 32+ million companies with in-depth profiles. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Is Your Social Media Policy Helping or Hurting Business? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: is-your-social-media-policy-helping-or-hurting-business CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 05/06/2010 12:55:39 PM ----- BODY:

Does your workplace have a social media policy? Thousands of companies do and you can view some of them here at Social Media Governance.

I picked a few at random – first Ball State University (since I just came back from a college graduation). It is three pages long, large type, easy to read, nice bullets. It has some great points – reminders about confidentiality and respect and a reminder to link back to the university site whenever possible. I expected a lot of jargon and guardedness from an institution like this, but was pleasantly surprised.

Next I tried Cisco Systems (I own stock in Cisco so I'm always interested in what they are doing). They state in the first paragraph that blogging, social networks and wikis are included in what's called Internet Postings. In the beginning of the post, they clearly state:

Please be aware that violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.

While I understand that they do not want employees releasing confidential information, which is more than fair, the tone of this policy is very different than that of Ball State. Cisco's policy is clear and to-the-point, but I perceived this as more about protecting Cisco's assets than helping employees to properly share the right kind of information that will benefit Cisco and Cisco customers. I'm wondering if employees get nervous after reading this or are empowered to spread helpful information and share the Cisco story. NOTE: This Cisco policy is from 2008. I could not find a more recent version.

For a different perspective, I checked out the community guidelines for Easter Seals, an annual fundraising partner of Junta42. This one is more for use of their online community as opposed to an employee policy, but it comes across as friendly and helpful. Again, respect privacy and protect confidentiality and a nice little note that they can remove inappropriate comments. It includes links to the blog and community sign ups as well (now there's a novel concept...nice job!).

And then there is IBM. Called Social Computing Guidelines, it directly states inclusion of blogs, wikis, social networks, virtual worlds and social media. This quote is out of their policy:

In 1997, IBM recommended that its employees get out onto the Internet—at a time when many companies were seeking to restrict their employees' Internet access. In 2005, the company made a strategic decision to embrace the blogosphere and to encourage IBMers to participate. We continue to advocate IBMers' responsible involvement today in this rapidly growing space of relationship, learning and collaboration.

Who wouldn't want to work at this place? They have the same guidelines about confidentiality, respect, not bashing the company, etc. as the others, but similar to Ball State, they do so in a way that promotes using these tools...to share stories, and not to be fearful about what might happen.

Social Media Policy Checklist

Do you have a social media policy?
Is your policy easy to read? Can you make it an engaging experience?
Is it welcoming to employees and customers, or does it sound like it was written by lawyers?
In addition to your policy, are you educating your employees on how to properly use social media in a way that will help them as well as help tell your brand story?
Are you continually updating your policy to reflect new social media channels?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: social media policy, social media, ibm, cisco, ball state, easter seals ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 10.17.141.117 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 05/06/2010 01:07:03 PM I think it must be easier, more efficient or more financially reasonable for large corporations to just outright ban employees from talking about the company in social media channels. Interesting to see Cisco's harsh stance on the subject. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 10.17.141.117 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/06/2010 03:02:30 PM I've talked to a number of large brands about it...almost across the board they see social media as a huge threat than an opportunity. After a few years, all this will pass. In the meantime, lots of scared executives needlessly scaring employees. All big brands need to create a policy and educate employees, but there are different ways to do it (hence, Cisco). Thanks Russ! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nicola Connolly EMAIL: nicola@creare.co.uk IP: 81.136.132.236 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 05/07/2010 12:18:50 PM Social Media is a fantastic opportunity for small and large businesses as well as individuals. It gives personality to the company and also enables their customers to interact with them on a fun and friendly platform. Interesting to see these 'policies' which you've highlighted. I think being too restrictive and having a harsh tone, as you say, would not empower employees to share information and ideas/opinions freely, which is afterall, the beauty of the medium. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Powerful Content Marketing Steps to Take Now STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: powerful-content-marketing-steps-to-make-now CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 05/04/2010 07:18:32 AM ----- BODY:

I attended a powerful presentation from Andrew Davis, Tippingpoint Labs at the American Business Media annual meeting yesterday. Although the presentation was geared toward publishers, it's amazing how many of Andrew's points need to be executed by non-publishing brands. Here are four key takeaways you can implement now:

Find the hidden players. Search and find those independent bloggers and thought leaders in the industry and get them involved in your brand. It's possible that you have assets to offer that would be useful to them. Likewise, it's probable you can offer a platform to give that blogger additional exposure. Find them, partner with them, and enlist them to help tell your story.
Make rock stars out of your rock stars. You know who your experts are. Help them set up their blogs and social media sites. Teach them how to tell their story (which will, in turn, tell your company's story). Take a page from Indium. Look at how they are showcasing their stars. Very powerful.
Where's your editor? Yes, your company experts have the knowledge, but it's likely not all of them can write well or communicate clearly. Hire an outside editor work with them and their content to position them like the pros they are. If you are asking your company experts to share content, you need to give them the tools to be successful...editor included.
More is better (as long as it's great and relevant to your customers and business). No matter how much online content you create, it's probably not enough. More content pages lead to more Google indexed pages equals more ways that buyers and prospects can find you. It's not rocket science. And, the more content you have being shared by more people will drive more interest in your products, as long as the content is relevant to your business (don't forget this last point).

Make doing the above a budget priority for this year and into 2011. ----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, andrew davis, indium, content marketing tips ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andrew Davis EMAIL: adavis@tippingpointlabs.com IP: 72.159.153.2 URL: http://blog.tippingpointlabs.com/2010/05/10-things-business-media-execs-should-do-today/ DATE: 05/04/2010 02:33:48 PM Joe, Thanks so much for taking the time to write this article. I'm such a believer in great content and content marketing and I'm glad you could help re-contextualize some of the salient points from the presentation for your audience. I posted the presentation and a quote from you on the website today. I also posted the promised ten-things list. Thanks again for your support. Here's the link to the presentation: http://prezi.com/yo7ziu82whsz/100503_abmparadox/ - Drew ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim Lloyd EMAIL: timlloyd150@hotmail.com IP: 212.183.140.3 URL: http://www.linkedin.com/in/timlloyd1 DATE: 05/04/2010 04:18:38 PM Great summary Joe. I particularly like point 1. It is so important to make sure you can bundle your content in small packets: images on Flickr, videos on Youtube etc. so that people can grab what they need and use what suits their platform or audience best. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Susan EMAIL: susan.stegemann@paceco.com IP: 66.194.121.115 URL: http://www.pacecommunications.com/blog DATE: 05/07/2010 05:26:57 PM And I'm partial to your point 3. I often think marketers need a good editor. But maybe I just think that way because I am an editor. Your point is clear--at least to me! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Headsets STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 0 BASENAME: content-headsets CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 04/28/2010 04:49:32 PM ----- BODY: Continental Airlines has changed their policy regarding headsets on most planes.

Before, you paid $3 for the headset while the programming was free. Most flyers hated buying the headsets. After a while, everyone remembered to bring their own. Continental saw headset revenues plummet.

Fast forward to today. Headsets are always free. While you're at it, take two. The programming (mostly DirecTV) costs $6. More than half the people on my flight to San Francisco purchased the option. That's about one thousand additional dollars per flight.

Are you charging for headsets when you should be giving them away for free? For example, are you asking prospects to register to get your white paper or ebook? Are you gating that research report, inhibiting anyone from sharing it with others?

While there is nothing wrong with registration (to a point), your very best content has to be free so they understand what product or service they are missing. Are you charging for content headsets and stopping customers in their tracks? Or worse, they bring their own headsets and find someone else (a competitor) who will help them without all the hurdles.

Painstakingly typed with my iPhone.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content headsets ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Robyn McMaster EMAIL: robynm@frontiernet.net IP: 70.100.152.131 URL: http://brainbasedbiz.blogspot.com DATE: 04/29/2010 08:44:45 AM Joe, you bring savvy to all of us about giving away something to benefit others. People take something of value and use it like good advice you give here about not pulling too tight a reign on sharing with customers. I have much to learn about content marketing and your site looks like a real treasure trove. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dave Martin EMAIL: dmartin@retailing.org IP: 75.148.5.130 URL: http://www.retailing.org DATE: 04/29/2010 09:35:26 AM Great post. One of the challenges for trade associations is determining what content you make available to members AND non-members. Members pay a fee for membership and content is part of the value proposition. If you give away all your content to everyone it really diminishes the reason to join in the first place. What are your thoughts here? By the way, the fact that you typed that entire post with your iPhone is amazing. Man, you must be patient! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 66.228.218.84 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/29/2010 09:45:11 AM Thanks Robyn @Dave...great question. We are working on a membership site on our end so I really get your challenge. I would say this...you need a consistent stream of free content to attract new members and nurture prospective members. This content should all be set up as free with no restrictions, and easy to share. That way you can widen the net to your premium content. Two different purposes, two different types of content. It's a balancing act...but most associations put most of their content behind the wall and don't give prospects a chance to taste what you can really offer. Thanks again! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Megan Zuniga EMAIL: megzee24@gmail.com IP: 58.69.84.202 URL: http://budurl.com/ynfr DATE: 05/03/2010 02:32:53 AM I don't like it either when you have to go through registration process just to gain access to free content or pay for something when you can get that for free. It's like paying for air. I don't know how to it works for blogs, but for businesses it always brilliant to give freebies to customers, like giving away toys with your Happy Meal. It's just the little added extra value that could keep your customers happy :D PS...Sharing more tips on customer relations. http://budurl.com/8egh ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dennis Brown EMAIL: dennis.brown@fahlgren.com IP: 74.203.231.228 URL: http://www.fahlgrenmortine.com DATE: 05/07/2010 09:16:21 AM Interesting post. I'm a big advocate of content markeitng, but I'm not sure I've come this far in my thinking. (Continental is still charging for content; they just got smart about how to do it.) If the content has value and is more than a glorified sales piece, why not ask for a simple exchange of information? It can be difficult to quantify the value of content without some sort of registration process and these kind of results help encouraging continued investments in content. The key is to make it simple and allow a single registration to open the door for future access, imo. Keep challenging my thinking. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.101.232 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/07/2010 10:03:39 AM Hi Dennis...thanks for the post. Here's my take. I'm all for gating content...when the time is right. Many brands gate most of their content and rarely share information. Consumers don't share gated content via social media...they don't spread that message. In order to widen the net to reach more people, share lots of great content and then lead them to your premium content. Information marketers have been doing this for years. Once you build a relationship with prospects with your content, then you can present them with opportunities to exchange information. Also, I will always say this...there are more ways than one to skin a cat. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mary Sullivan EMAIL: marysullivan@kickstartall.com IP: 71.245.101.87 URL: http://www.kickstartall.com DATE: 05/07/2010 11:05:36 AM You need to have different content for different stages of the sales cycle. I agree that educational White Papers should be free. Make it easy to get and easy to share at the early stage when people are sorting out who offers what they need. Then when the visitor wants to fine-tune the decision, registering to view a competitive comparison or even a demo video makes sense. Make sure you have content for every stage of the sales cycle. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: How do you use Social Media? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: how-do-you-use-social-media CATEGORY: Junta42 Events CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 04/26/2010 12:50:11 PM ----- BODY:

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know how dedicated we are at Junta42 to get consistent, relevant research to help you do your jobs better.

So, I'm again asking for your help and need five minutes of your time.

Junta42 is partnering with Kingfish Media and Hubspot on the research study: "Social Media Usage, Attitudes and Measurability."

In return for your five minutes, you'll get exclusive access to the results one week before we release them to the general public.

Please complete the survey now by going to this link! The survey will be closed at the end of April, so please do this now if you can.

Thanks for your help.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Junta42, Hubspot, Kingfish, social media, research ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Your Customers Don't Care About You - Take the Content Marketing Test STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: constant-reminder-your-customers-dont-care-about-you CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 04/21/2010 02:08:14 PM ----- BODY:

"We just launched this exciting new..."

"We have the best customer service in..."

"Our reps are the leading experts in..."

blah, blah, blah

It continues to bother me about the number of articles and blogs from brands and even individual bloggers that constantly talk about how great they are.

The first rule of content marketing is to understand that your customers only care about themselves. Once we realize that as content marketers, we can effectively develop a content plan to talk about valuable, relevant and compelling content that the customer would be interested in (focused on their pain points).

----- EXTENDED BODY:

Not following this rule is one major reason why many brands are failing at social media. Does anyone want to share information or talk about your brand? Not if it's about your corporate brand (90% off coupons aside), your new widget, or how awesome your CEO is. Creating something compelling and sharable that is all about serving the customers' needs is the only remedy.

Need an example? Look at this spread from MyFord magazine. All the highlighted areas are where Ford mentions themselves or one of their cars. Does this look like content that you would love to engage in or share? Nope.

Take the Test

Gather all your marketing content, print and electronic (make printouts) and place them on a conference table. Include brochures, newsletters, blog posts, reseller information, etc.
Get your marketing executives in a room.
Ask yourself, "Is our content more about our customers' pain points or more about us and how great our products or services are?"
If the answer is that the content is all about you and your brand, do something about it.

Not sure how to get started? Download this white paper on how to attract and retain customers with content marketing.

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, bad content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stan Phelps EMAIL: stan@9inchmarketing.com IP: 76.14.77.54 URL: http://marketinglagniappe.com DATE: 04/22/2010 09:29:43 AM "It's not you . . . it's me." Tremendous point Joe. You've touched on a distinction that many fail to recognize between traditional 'me'dia and social 'me'dia. Traditional media is one sided and all about the brand. It's usually all me, me, me the company. Social media is about me the consumer and the people + things that I'm interested in. It's a two way dialogue based on sharing. Content marketing bridges that gap. Create content that is relevant and helpful to your consumers. Instead of pushing out information, you are sowing seeds to attract potential customers when they have the appropriate need. Best, Stan @9INCHmarketing 'The average distance between your brain and your heart is 9 inches' ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.168 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/22/2010 11:59:13 AM Exactly Stan...that's why it's so hard for traditional brands to make the jump...it's a completely different form of communication. Opportunity for those you really get it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Ogden EMAIL: jogden@findnewcustomers.net IP: 71.167.11.166 URL: http://www.findnewcustomers.net DATE: 04/22/2010 01:06:56 PM Amen, Joe. I could not agree more with you. David Meerman Scott said the same thing. No one cares about your products except you. Yet 98% of companies violate this and blather on and on about how great they are. Keep up the great work. Jeff Ogden, President Find New Customers "Lead Generation Made Simple" http://www.findnewcustomers.net ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lindsay Berger EMAIL: lindsay@inkwell-marketing.com IP: 24.245.8.7 URL: http://www.inkwell-marketing.com DATE: 04/22/2010 04:31:23 PM Hi Joe, Great post and awesome reminder to think about clients first. It's funny how many people don't believe me when I tell them that their clients don't care about them. They get a little offended. Oh well. On a side note, you probably haven't seen it, but I wrote a similar article and published it about a year ago on Biznik.com: http://biznik.com/articles/no-offense-but-your-customers-dont-care-about-you Take a look if you're interested, just another way to reinforce this message! Thanks! Lindsay Berger Inkwell Marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.168 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/23/2010 01:22:24 PM Wow Lindsey...outstanding article. Thanks for sharing. I should have just copied yours to my post. Right on! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matthew Kramer EMAIL: matthew.kramer@improvingbusinesswireless.com IP: 114.73.6.49 URL: http://www.improvingbusinesswireless.com DATE: 04/25/2010 11:02:59 PM Thanks Joe, this is great info for someone starting out. I am just starting out and this info will hopefully send me in the right direction. Writing content is what I'm doing to attract clients to my business. I try to supply relevant information to businesses without worrying about myself, but sometimes its not easy. Matthew Kramer Improving Business Wireless http://www.improvingbusinesswireless.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Beth Carter EMAIL: Beth@FreelanceWritingSolutions.com IP: 96.24.112.182 URL: http://www.FreelanceWritingSolutions.com DATE: 04/26/2010 10:13:26 AM Love this article. What's great, though, is that it's so easy to change. Companies can still say the great stuff about themselves, just phrase it from the point of view of the customer. Tell the customer WHY it's important that the company has been around for 50 years, WHY it's important that the company is so innovative, etc. It's that critical "WHY" part that is missing too often -- but easy to include! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 76.229.144.57 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 04/27/2010 07:50:33 AM Thanks for the post, I have been telling people this for a while now. We bombard people with the same message over and over and over again, about how great our new line is. Everyone is tired of it, and everyone knows it's the same thing with a new, predictable twist. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul McKeon EMAIL: contentfactor@gmail.com IP: 68.217.50.42 URL: http://www.contentfactor.com DATE: 04/28/2010 04:06:31 PM Enjoyed this post, and had a similar observation recently. I noticed how many events on my clients' marketing plan were driven by internal events, such as a product launch, but not by any drivers a buyer cares about. Buyers want to be informed--they want news. "How great I am" is not news. http://bit.ly/bkVLkl ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cameron Carothers EMAIL: cameron@carothersphoto.com IP: 69.234.182.216 URL: http://www.carothersphoto.com DATE: 04/30/2010 02:21:38 PM Thank you Joe for an excellent post. And thank you Beth Carter for helping me figure out just what my prospects want to know about. Cameron Carothers ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why Aren't You the Industry Expert? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-arent-you-the-industry-expert CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 04/20/2010 08:31:03 AM ----- BODY:

Over the last few days I've been doing some research into how printers are using online content marketing. For the most part, almost all the websites were exactly the same. A few resource sections. A few inconsistent blog posts. For the most part, brochure-ware. Little activity in the right social networks. No content strategy.

I'm not picking on printers here. You could insert a number of industries in place of printing and find the same thing.

I started writing down some questions yesterday after my analysis...

If we are communicating the same information as our competitors, how do we differentiate ourselves?

If we aren't communicating valuable, compelling information to our customers on a consistent basis, how can they ever see us as industry experts?

Why would our customers ever consider sharing our content via social networks with friends and colleagues if we never have anything interesting to say?

If the majority of our content is focused on our products and services, how are we solving the everyday pain points of our customers?

Are we truly making a difference in our customers' lives and careers?

Why aren't you the industry expert?

If you were the industry expert, would you be able to sell more products and services? Would you be able to launch new products more successfully? Would you get covered more in the traditional trade press...talked about more on niche online sites? Would customers request your marketing material? Would it be easier for your sales reps to sell? Would your traditional marketing work better? Would you be sought after at trade shows? Would you be able to identify new market opportunities better? Would you have less employee turnover? Would you be able to sell your products at a premium?

Why aren't you the industry expert again?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan EMAIL: dan@marketingcontentwriter.com IP: 65.123.190.1 URL: http://www.marketingcontentwriter.com DATE: 04/20/2010 11:47:24 AM Great points. We used to be more dependant upon the media to build an authority platform. Now anyone can publish a white paper or start a blog that puts your expertise on display for your customers. Of course, if you do that consistently over time, the media will eventually take notice and help to raise your profile even more. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Debbie EMAIL: debbie@sproutcontent.com IP: 70.149.221.171 URL: http://www.sproutcontent.com DATE: 04/21/2010 11:02:38 AM Totally agree. Every business can become it's own source of "media" by by publishging directly. A big issue positioning and carving out a point of difference. Companies need to tell their stories through a consistent message and tone. Many organizations don't deliver non "sales" driven information or see the value in becoming a real resource of information in the area of expertise. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Z. Cordell EMAIL: scordell@szccommunications.com IP: 68.119.226.245 URL: http://www.SZCCommunications.com DATE: 04/29/2010 08:50:22 PM These are great questions, but I think one question that companies don't answer (which leads to all the questions you listed) is "What interesting things do we have to say?" Everything else should come from that answer. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Five Reasons Social Media Marketing Comes Last STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: five-reasons-social-media-marketing-comes-last CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: small business marketing CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 04/13/2010 06:47:29 PM ----- BODY:

My friend Shama Kabani's book, The Zen of Social Media Marketing, officially comes out this week. I was one of the lucky ones to receive a review copy and I can tell you it's worth the read.

I've been following Shama for the last three years, and what amazed me about her is that she consistently created and distributed excellent content, and tied that into her entire marketing and social media strategy to launch a successful business and an amazing book.

I asked Shama if I could share this portion of her book with you. Thanks Shama!

Five Reasons Social Media Marketing Comes Last

There’s been a lot of talk lately about companies that are abandoning a website in favor of social media marketing. To me, that’s an experiment I believe will fail, because if there’s one thing I’m certain about, it’s that social media marketing should come LAST. Why would someone who makes her living helping companies from Australia to New York City manage or outsource their social media marketing efforts say that?

Because it’s true. To start with, social media isn’t a marketing platform. It’s a consumer platform.

Marketing platforms like advertising, direct marketing, and telemarketing are one-way communication platforms. A company creates the message, and delivers it creatively in hopes that the consumer will respond. The company is in control of the message – and the only voice consumers have is to “vote with their wallets” by acting on the marketing message, or not.

Social media is a consumer platform, where teenagers in Melbourne, customers in Minneapolis, and prospective buyers in Midlothian all have the same opportunity to voice their opinions, ask questions, and share experiences. Consumers are in control of the message, and they revel in their control. Marketers can join in the conversation, and help to shape the dialogue, but it is definitely not a place where traditional marketing methods work, and it is definitely not a one-way communication platform.

So why bother with social media marketing at all? Because it’s where your customers are turning for information about the products and services they buy. Consider Facebook alone. If it was a country, it would be one of the 25 largest in the world – smaller than the U.S., China, and India, but bigger than Indonesia, Israel, Denmark, and Canada. Over half of all consumers say that they have already purchased something – or switched to another brand or retailer – because of a recommendation they got through a social media site.

It is no longer a question of whether or not corporate brands should be participating in social media – it’s just a question of how they can use the new online communities to help them get the word out. This is where the confusion comes in. Social media is where the customers are – and you have to be there. So why shouldn’t you just scrap the old methods and jump headlong into the new medium?

Because social media is a great place to share information, and introduce consumers to your company and your products, but there are five important reasons that it comes LAST in your marketing plan.

Customers look for recommendations and reviews on social media – and then head to your website to make a final purchase decision. Your website is the place where you can SELL your products and services. Social media is the place where you introduce a potential customer to your brand.
You own and control your website, but you don’t own or control any social media platform. I’ve known people who were banned from Facebook or another social media site for violating a rule or policy – and sometimes for no apparent reason at all. When you get banned, you lose it all. All of your content, all of your contacts, erased in an instant. That just doesn’t happen with a website you own – and you make your own rules for your website, so you’re sure not to inadvertently break them! Even if your host comes crashing down in an emergency, a back-up can have you back on line in minutes.
Social media is a great amplifier – and it does just that. For something to be amplified, it has to exist first. So your brand identity, your marketing message, your logo and your content all needs to exist separately from social media, and be based on solid planning and execution, so that social media can amplify it.
Marketing platforms – advertising, websites, email, e-newsletters, PR, webinars, special events, catalogs, etc. – reach the audience you define. Social media reaches an audience that defines itself. The Toyota Scion XB is a good example – Toyota marketed the boxy car to hip urban dwellers in their 20’s – but someone’s grandmother discovered that it’s design was perfect for her arthritic knees, and the 55+ crowd started raving about the XB on social media sites. Now 60% of Scion sales are to those over 50. There’s nothing wrong with that of course. But what if a club finds itself besieged by underage fans who want to see their favorite band because a viral campaign didn’t clarify that it wasn’t an “all ages show”? You need both the controlled message and the opportunity to benefit from a viral buzz.
Social media is a broad platform – but it isn’t deep. It’s impossible to go into much detail in a 140-character tweet. And it’s almost as hard to go into detail in most other social media platforms. The best social media campaigns refer people to great websites, downloadable content, memorable videos, or valuable information.

So, for now, I remain convinced that a great website (or blog for small businesses) is the hub of any great marketing campaign. Traditional marketing is far from over – but it has evolved, and social media is a huge part of that. When was the last time you got a piece of direct mail that didn’t have a website address for you to visit? Every morning I listen to NPR (National Public Radio), and every morning the broadcasters invite me to tweet them my questions or fan their Facebook page.

Marketing today is the art and science (dare I say the Zen?) of leveraging multiple platforms to get your message across so that you can motivate people to take action. The goal is the same now as it was in our parent’s day. Only the tools keep changing.

Shama Kabani is president of The Marketing Zen Group, and author of The Zen of Social Media Marketing, which hits store shelves this week.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: marketing zen, social media marketing, shama kabani ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Molander EMAIL: jeff@jeffmolander.com IP: 24.14.33.53 URL: http://www.jeffmolander.com DATE: 04/13/2010 07:25:24 PM I'm a big Joe Fan. Joe, love ya... but seriously? I must be living on another planet. I have never heard ANYONE discussing abandoning Web sites for social media. I hear a steady drum beat AWAY from use of social media for marketing. Anyone with me??? Secondly, I disagree: The WORST social media campaigns "refer people to great websites, downloadable content, memorable videos, or valuable information." The best social media campaigns produce SALES and LEADS. Am I just wacko? Anyone else tired of creating conversations, downloads and traffic and interested in sales and leads? Perhaps I'm in the minority, Joe http://budurl.com/utzk ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shama EMAIL: shama@marketingzen.com IP: 173.57.133.72 URL: http://www.MarketingZen.com DATE: 04/13/2010 08:15:09 PM Hi Jeff, Thanks for your comments. Actually, I get at least 2 emails a week asking me if they really NEED a website anymore because they have a Facebook profile. The question exists. In fact, Entrepreneur.com did an article on this exact subject last week: http://www.entrepreneur.com/ebusiness/expandingyouronlinepresence/article205808.html As for sales and leads - I am ALL FOR IT! However, people have mistaken expectations. They skip the business model, the website, the ummm - good product or service! In this regard, I think social media comes last and is part of the puzzle. It is unlikely that someone will see your FB fan page and buy. I'd LOVE to see that happen - and when it does it is luck. 99% of the time, it is the start of a relationship. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jesicca EMAIL: jesiccathompson.ldc@gmail.com IP: 221.132.118.27 URL: http://twitter.com/Logo_Design_Con DATE: 04/14/2010 02:11:56 AM Really nice article Shama. Informative and makes complete sense. Indeed social media is booming but you need to use it wisely. You must first have a brand presence in order to give away your message on social media so that people can actually go on and check what your business is all about. I find these days people all over social media but when I click on and go to their sites, they are not that pleasing or professional and thus that good impression is vanished in a jiffy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nicola Connolly EMAIL: nicola@creare.co.uk IP: 81.136.132.236 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 04/14/2010 09:15:21 AM This looks like a great book Shama, some really interesting points. A well built, beautiful and SEO friendly website is the solid foundation of any online marketing campaign - like you say, Social Media, when used successfully, amplifies your message and directs visitors to your website where they can do the 'action' bit (after having the 'conversation'). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shama EMAIL: shama@marketingzen.com IP: 173.57.133.72 URL: http://www.MarketingZen.com DATE: 04/14/2010 11:38:31 AM Nicola and Jessica - I appreciate the kind comments and I am excited to see others who get it! = ) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Roger Friedensen EMAIL: roger@forgecommunications.com IP: 174.99.58.8 URL: http://wwwforgecommunications.com DATE: 04/14/2010 12:55:10 PM Briliiant! This is spot on. Like any communication tactic/channel social media must be built on a logical, well-planned and smart foundation of strategy and messaging. In the absence of that, you might as well just be tossing darts blindfolded in a dark room. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian EMAIL: szokaj@gmail.com IP: 74.184.56.208 URL: DATE: 04/14/2010 12:57:57 PM Really like the thought leadership. Too many companies are ambushing FB, hoping to find the Holy Grail. The rational is that it is free and has a potential large fanbase. I personally don't believe customers consider themselves "fans" of a company, but rather customers. Unfortunately companies are extremely misguieded with good intentions, because the real ROI is happening in thier own communities on thier websites, generating SEO, analytics, brand advocates, call deflection, and new product ideas. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shama EMAIL: shama@marketingzen.com IP: 173.57.133.72 URL: http://www.MarketingZen.com DATE: 04/14/2010 12:58:27 PM Roger - I love that analogy! How descriptive and and "spot on." = ) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julie EMAIL: julie@liaisonpr.com IP: 173.11.27.45 URL: DATE: 04/14/2010 01:23:18 PM Shama, I completely agree with this argument and applaud your work spreading the word that social marketing should be the last step in a marketing process for companies, however, I must say I disagree that social media is simply a consumer platform. Partners, investors, the media and other non-consumer stakeholders are also utilizing social media and expecting to interact with your brand beyond traditional Web sites, direct mailings, newsletters, etc. Regardless of this point, companies should still be using your lessons when employing social media tools. Thanks for a great read! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Satell EMAIL: gsatell@hotmail.com IP: 85.102.196.238 URL: http://www.digitaltonto.com DATE: 04/14/2010 02:02:03 PM Shana, Great article! I've argued similar things on my own blog, especially the point about social media being a great amplifier, but not a replacement for branding. However, I'm not so sure that social media should be last. It takes so long to build that I think it makes sense to think about it as a integral part of an entire communication strategy. Not first or last, but as part of an integrated approach. - Greg ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Clinton Forry EMAIL: clintonforry@gmail.com IP: 173.8.116.113 URL: http://www.content-ment.com DATE: 04/14/2010 04:36:40 PM Great article! I find myself dwelling on the choice of the word "last." Last, as in chronological, or as in hierarchical? Different implications for each... I agree with @Greg above in the chronological sense -- "Not first or last, but as part of an integrated approach." Putting it last in a hierarchy makes more sense. Get a solid site first. Other things follow. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shama EMAIL: shama@marketingzen.com IP: 173.57.133.72 URL: http://www.MarketingZen.com DATE: 04/14/2010 06:58:43 PM @Clinton - Hierarchically speaking. = ) Love the distinction! (Joe - you have such SMART readers!) @Greg - Yes, of course. My point was that people need to put the basics first and not ignore key business principles. Perhaps it is best to say "Before?" = ) @Julie - Excellent points. You are right - there is a place for everyone. But it is best used as a 2 way communication channel vs a one way broadcast. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.168 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/14/2010 08:41:25 PM @Shama...obviously you hit a chord here. @Jeff...I agree with you about sales and leads...when that's possible, of course. I like to think of integrating social media more as part of creating or maintaining a behavior. In other words, we may not be at a point in the buying cycle where sales is a possibility. Although we are all still trying to figure this out, social media's best use may be as a nurturing tool. Love this discussion. Thanks for bringing it to the table Shama. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: tony:frosty EMAIL: frostyland.blog@gmail.com IP: 66.166.144.74 URL: http://www.frostyland.com DATE: 04/15/2010 05:11:06 AM 1) Actually this is reversed. Customers visit your website first to check specs and other facts, but they won't make their decision there. They'll make their decision after reading reviews, perhaps researching some forums and then talking with their friends on Twitter or Facebook to get their opinion. 2)Agreed - but you can definitely influence what occurs on those platforms. 3)For good and for bad. 4)Not for long. Facebook knows who you are and will most likely be selling that data to companies sooon. Twitter has just instituted their Promoted Tweets and you can be specific on who you want to reach. See http://mashable.com/2010/04/13/virgin-america-promoted-tweets/ 5)This is the one I have the greatest issue with. Sure if you define social media to be Twitter - but that's not the case. Blogs and forums are all forms of social media, and I'm not sure how you can classify those as being shallow. Also as far as Twitter is concerned - yes it's a social network but it also becoming the backbone of all social networking. Almost all the platforms now have an option to send updates and other bits of information on Twitter. It's like email - except anyone can read it. It's why FourSquare and Gowalla are now viable. As far as websites are concerned - I believe that the integrated social presence is the future. It's a site that blends your blogs, pics from Flickr, videos from YouTube, tweets from Twitter, and any other presences you may have in a singular branded location. A great example of this is The Ford Story. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Howie at Sky Pulse Media EMAIL: hgoldfarb@skypulsemedia.com IP: 72.228.62.161 URL: http://www.skypulsemedia.com DATE: 04/15/2010 09:10:46 AM The people who are trying to promote Social Media vs websites are the Social Media networks hoping to go public, the investors (VC's), and the Journalists/Guru's who have recently carved out a nice living around social. Social is a great place for a small-medium sized business to help market without traditional ad spending. But for big established businesses I see no need for Social at all to tell the truth. At least not at this point. Having even 100 people comment on a Fan Page post is peanuts if you are P&G who have 2 billion customers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Deb DiBiasie EMAIL: drdebnd@gmail.com IP: 71.174.140.40 URL: http://theadzdr.com DATE: 04/16/2010 10:42:44 AM Great information and reaction as the tweets, retweets, mentions and comments add up. Social Media has its place, which I don’t believe to always considered as last. It is integral to the ability to share and communicate our opinions like never before. Declaring social proof, as exhibited by this thread is great when the content is positive in nature. However,I have an extreme dislike to the opposite that can exist... when it becomes negative and damaging or protection of intellectual property is the issue, when there is disclosure of certain kinds of information or when it affects the personal security of the world, etc...then it becomes#1. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mike EMAIL: michaelagaspar@gmail.com IP: 70.131.83.248 URL: DATE: 04/16/2010 11:42:06 AM I appreciate the insight of this post, but I think this post falls short on considering modern consumer behavior. Social media should NOT, or ever, be last, and if it is, it is being implemented improperly. Social media should be integrated and supplemented simultaneously with marketing materials such as blogs, promotions, website etc. With the economy the way that it is, although showing signs of gradual improvement, consumers and professionals alike want to ensure that their decisions are maximizing their investment. I do not believe that consumers turn to social media simply to convert, or just as a forum, but as a means to seek out a personality and brand that they are comfortable giving their hard-earned dollars to. If the organization is using social media properly, it does in fact have influence on the conversation through its voice. And consumers go to social media avenues to listen to this voice, discern if it is one they resonate with, and in turn decide from there if they want to buy. Social media isn't replacing brand, it is supporting it. Regardless of whether a visitor landed on a social media platform or a website first, in this day and age, the two (along with any other marketing tools in place) are going to work in tandem to influence a consumer decision. Both need to be branded, and yes, used wisely. This goes for both B2B and B2C, big and small business, service- and product-oriented businesses. Sure strategy might change with each company, but nonetheless, social media is still a scope through which consumers see and experience your brand. You said: "Marketing today is the art and science (dare I say the Zen?) of leveraging multiple platforms to get your message across so that you can motivate people to take action." Using your art metaphor, it used to be where a website was the paintbrush and the canvas on which the marketing "artist' did his or her work. But with social media in the mix, the paintbrushes are distributed evenly between social media, website, and other marketing tools, all of which have a fairly equal role in painting the portrait that is your brand. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan EMAIL: dan@marketingcontentwriter.com IP: 68.227.171.84 URL: http://www.marketingcontentwriter.com DATE: 04/18/2010 03:06:57 PM "Over half of all consumers say that they have already purchased something – or switched to another brand or retailer – because of a recommendation they got through a social media site." This was given as a reason why corporations get involved in Social Media. But are people changing their minds based on what corporations are saying or what their peers are saying? I would argue it's the latter. So I don't see this as being a compelling reason for companies to engage in social media. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.168 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/18/2010 03:15:20 PM Hi Dan...the answer is both. Buyers look to corporations to provide them with valuable information on a consistent basis (according to the Custom Content Council - about 70% of buyers would prefer to get educational content from corporations). One major way to distribute that information is by having conversations with customers and prospects through social media. For example, Junta42 gets about 15% of its total traffic through Twitter, with a good number of those people signing up to Blog RSS, enewsletters, white papers, and our service. Not sure where we would be without leveraging just this one outlet, let alone other places where our customers hang out. If a brand can be part of the community, without just inserting their sales information that no one cares about, the payback can be huge. Thanks for responding Dan. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott Yoder EMAIL: sysafari@seowebeditor.com IP: 67.40.135.183 URL: http://www.seowebeditor.com DATE: 04/19/2010 11:23:56 AM I think this confirms that for a commercial website, social media is a means to an end. Your website is where you create and manage most of your informational marketing content. Social media is a way to promote it. I put social media closer to a link strategy than replacing a website. The content of merit is on the site, and suggestion to check it out is made on social media. Anyone who tries to do business development on social media alone will be like a person who has a business card but no phone. Its a net without an anchor. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: gps car dvd EMAIL: scott1202@hotmail.com IP: 113.91.224.251 URL: http://www.gpscardvd.com DATE: 04/24/2010 05:53:28 AM This looks like a great book Shama, some really interesting points. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Savita Bisht EMAIL: savitabisht2010@gmail.com IP: 115.242.119.33 URL: http://www.creativenewton.com DATE: 04/30/2010 03:32:50 AM Good post.Article mentioned very interesting points. Thanks for that. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Marcus Dane EMAIL: webbizideas02@gmail.com IP: 124.105.108.250 URL: http://www.webbizideas.com DATE: 04/30/2010 05:31:20 AM It is this thing that has been pointed out by a lot of big businessmen when the trend of using social media for advertising created a hype. They greatly encourage fellow businesses, small and even those starting yet, to own a business website which has a corporate website design or an ecommerce web site design that is accessible and usable not to create a black propaganda on social media but for businesses to have much freedom and space in advertising, handling customer queries, and giving exposure to the business. As said in the post, social media are a consumer platform and not a marketing platform. Those sites are more good at establishing social connections or social networking development, and it is still the venues which are a corporate web design that does the greater part of managing business activities. http://www.webbizideas.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarita Rawat EMAIL: saritarwt89@gmail.com IP: 115.242.95.156 URL: http://www.prozenix.com/ DATE: 05/11/2010 04:05:50 AM Good article. keep write as always. Thanks for sharing......... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tommy and Salinda Howell EMAIL: admin@howwellu.com IP: 24.88.84.136 URL: http://www.howwellu.com DATE: 07/24/2010 09:37:10 PM This is the blog of all blogs that I needed today. When putting things in to perspective, it's sometimes easy to just jump at the hottest thing appearing on the internet. Getting a copy of the book now so we can pay it forward for our readers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter, KLEVUR Website Design EMAIL: info@klevur.com IP: 70.251.225.9 URL: http://www.klevur.com/index.php/Services/website-design-prices.html DATE: 07/28/2010 02:59:52 PM I completely agree with the author. We get people every day that say they don't need a website because Facebook and Twitter are the only place to market. You have no control over what happens once your message is out. There will be tons on money made over the next ten years patching up online reputations from what got destroyed through social media. Read a few comments on a new article from the social world and you will say, "how in the "xx%//" did they come up with that point of view. Great article and great advice. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark-Social Media Marketing Consultant EMAIL: mark@clickherenowmarketing.com IP: 67.23.70.5 URL: http://www.clickherenowmarketing.com DATE: 09/15/2010 04:04:25 PM Yes Social Media is very important as a promotion and branding tool, however we also use and value Direct Marketing and Networking as effective methods of getting new business. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Wendy EMAIL: wendyh@spotlightcreativegroup.com IP: 71.52.143.83 URL: http://raleighsmallbusinessmarketing.com DATE: 11/06/2010 11:41:22 AM This does look like a thoughtful book, and some excellent posts above. I would add that social media can and should also be used to listen to customers and prospects alike so that a business can better respond to needs, enhance differentiation, develop new solutions. This would put aspects of it a little higher up on the action plan than dead last, but I agree with the gist of Shama's points. Thanks for posting it. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: New Junta42 Top Content Marketing Blogs Released - Convince Converts STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: new-junta42-top-content-marketing-blogs-released-convince-and-convert-on-top CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 04/09/2010 01:45:34 PM ----- BODY:

We are excited to release the eighth installment of the Junta42 Top Content Marketing blogs list. We started with 81 blogs in 2007. For this release, we individually reviewed more than 350 blogs on the basis of content marketing excellence (click here for an explanation of how we review).

Special thanks to our lead researcher, Janet Robbins, who actually goes through each one of these blogs individually every quarter. If you ever need a top notch research specialist, call Janet.

Congratulations to each of the top 42 content marketing blogs, especially Jay Baer from Convince and Convert for his number one status. For those interested, here's a rundown of the past winners (a very exclusive list):

Release #8 (April 2010): Convince and Convert
Release #7: Online Marketing Blog
Release #6: Tippingpoint Labs
Release #5: Marketing with Meaning
Release #4: Online Marketing Blog
Release #3: Copyblogger
Release #2: Copyblogger
Premier Release (August 2007): Nigel Hollis (Millward Brown)

A handy list of the Top 42 is below. Click here for the entire Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs list (including all 350+).

1 Convince and Convert
2 Conversation Agent
3 Online Marketing Blog
4 Web Ink Now
5 Writing on the Web
6 Inbound Internet Marketing Blog
7 Direct Marketing Observations
8 Connected Marketer
9 Marketing Interactions
10 The Lunch Pail
11 White Paper Pundit
12 Marketing with Meaning
13 IdeaLaunch
14 PR 2.0
15 ContentMarketingToday
16 Influential Marketing Blog
17 Moola Days
18 Buzz Marketing for Technology
19 Rexblog
20 eMedia Vitals
21 PR 20/20
22 Sparksheet
23 Pamorama
24 B2B Bloggers
25 Brain Traffic
26 Copyblogger
27 Web Strategy by Jeremiah
28 ConverStations
29 Simple Marketing Blog
30 Conversation Marketing
31 Ducttape Marketing
32 Post Advertising
33 Hard Knox Life
34 Social Media Examiner
35 TippingPoint Labs
36 Writing White Papers
37 Proactive
38 SEOptimize
39 FASTforward Blog
40 Social Media Explorer
41 AriWriter
42 jaffe juice

Related Articles:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing blogs, top marketing blogs, junta42, junta 42, jay baer, convince and convert ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: C.B. Whittemore EMAIL: cbwhittemore@gmail.com IP: 67.83.44.16 URL: http://www.SimpleMarketingBlog.com DATE: 04/12/2010 09:19:09 PM Joe, I am so honored and excited to be included in this fabulous listing of Top Junta42 Blogs! Thank you. Congrats Jay Baer! Best, CB ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon Thomas EMAIL: jon.thomas@storyworldwide.com IP: 96.56.86.10 URL: http://www.postadvertising.com DATE: 04/15/2010 10:37:51 AM Joe, Always appreciate your work and we're humbled to be part of your list. Jay's blog is certainly worthy of #1. Regards, Jon Thomas Story Worldwide ----- PING: TITLE: Brian Solis Rocks Latest Junta42 Top Content Marketing Blogs URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2010/08/brian-solis-rocks-latest-junta42-top-content-marketing-blogs.html IP: 10.17.151.36 BLOG NAME: Junta42 Content Marketing blog DATE: 08/25/2010 10:54:27 PM This is our ninth installment of the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs. Since our first back in January of 2008, Brian Solis has finished in the Top 10 five times, including a second, fourth and fifth place. This time... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 7 Content Marketing Tips from Five Guys Burgers and Fries STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 7-content-marketing-tips-from-five-guys-burgers-and-fries CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 04/05/2010 12:09:09 PM ----- BODY:

I just read an outstanding article in the April issue of Inc. Magazine on Jerry Murrell and Five Guys Burgers and Fries (I'll be going to my first Five Guys this week, so I'll keep you posted). As of this post, the electronic version was not available.

Beside the fact that this is a must-read article for anyone in business today, I thought that Jerry's take on business has too many similarities when it comes to thinking about your content marketing (yes, I know, of course I made this link). Here are my key takeaways:

Keep it simple. Jerry took his restaurant launch advice from JW Marriott - "Anyone can make money in the food business as long as you have a good product, reasonable price, and a clean place." So many times in editorial content we make it harder than it should be. "Keep a focus, make it relevant, make it actionable" for example is the simple way to go.
Spend the money on the product and let the customer do the marketing for you. In today's social media world, this is possible. Great research, insight and compelling content gets shared...IF the information is truly helpful, unique and relevant in some way.
Never cut corners on content. Your customers will notice. Jerry and Five Guys gets potatoes north of the 42nd parallel because they grow slower and are more solid. They soak all their fries in water so they won't absorb any oil when they are fried. The beef is never frozen and all burgers ordered are fresh. My favorite: always two slices of tomatoes...no matter what and even in the current tomato crisis. That's Five Guys secret sauce. Your content marketing must be different in some way. I'm getting tired of all the sites I go to that simply just aggregate content all day or say the same thing as everyone else. How does that help your brand story?
Great content marketing doesn't need a PR manager. Five Guys has never solicited a review because their product is that good. Just look at this Twitter Stream on Five Guys. This one says it all. With valuable and compelling content comes mentions, interviews, word-of-mouth and more.
Set parameters to your content - what you will and will not do or say. Take a stand. This might be my favorite. Your content marketing MUST have a point-of-view that you stick with through think and thin. Five Guys doesn't deliver...ever. When the Pentagon called up and wanted delivery, they said no, and then proceeded to put a 22-foot-long banner in front of their store that said "Absolutely No Delivery." Today their business with the Pentagon has never been better. Take a stand with your content. Chances are you'll get rewarded for your point-of-view.
Pay more for quality. I have this discussion all the time with marketers that want cheaper. Cheaper is usually a bad decision. Pay for quality content marketing and it will pay for you. Five Guys has been using some of their vendors for over 20 years, even though some are more expensive. (btw, paying can also mean dedicating quality internal resources as well.)
Get your employees involved in your content marketing. Five Guys creates incentive programs for everyone in the company to perform better. The same goes for your content marketing. Don't wall off your content in marketing or pr. Figure out a way to get the entire company to create content that helps your customers.

For more on developing your content marketing strategy based on these tips, check out this content marketing white paper from Junta42.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: five guys, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Z. Cordell EMAIL: scordell@szccommunications.com IP: 68.119.226.245 URL: http://www.SZCCommunications.com DATE: 04/05/2010 06:04:48 PM Reading this post made me hungry — and inspired! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bob Burns EMAIL: bburns@e-myth.com IP: 63.150.56.194 URL: http://www.e-myth.com DATE: 04/06/2010 10:42:30 AM Great stuff, Joe! I had just read the same piece yesterday and was wondering how to apply some of these ideas to other business models and products. What a great take on this. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Heidi Walker EMAIL: hmaewalker@gmail.com IP: 150.199.117.75 URL: http://www.businessownerandemployee.ismyblogs.name DATE: 04/06/2010 11:57:44 AM Five Guys... Ohm nom nom nom truly. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jean EMAIL: jeanm22@gmail.com IP: 204.146.162.10 URL: DATE: 04/06/2010 02:23:38 PM Enjoy the burger and fries - it's absolutely delish. And great insights you share in this post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Libbie EMAIL: ljmiller@newtekemail.com IP: 208.106.255.2 URL: http://www.newtekwebservices.com/blog DATE: 04/06/2010 04:32:34 PM It seems like so often we marketers go to great lengths to make things more complicated than necessary. Most of the businesses I frequent (and often evangelize) use this same simple, straight-forward methodology, and the same holds true for good content marketing. Nice comparison post, Joe. I'll be spreading some link love on your behalf. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Todd EMAIL: todd@taxtraxx.com IP: 24.129.143.114 URL: http://ptoddkelly.wordpress.com DATE: 04/07/2010 10:35:40 AM I'm a regular 5 Guys customer. Unfortunately, they are beginning to fall into a trap that grabs many early success stories - they are becoming more and more "corporate", which should be your next point - make sure this doesn't happen to you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cory Grassell EMAIL: Cory.Grassell@15miles.com IP: 207.250.167.102 URL: http://www.SearchPerspective.com DATE: 04/08/2010 02:43:48 PM Yep. Content marketing should be centered around content that can go viral. The power has shifted from brand to consumer, meaning consumers now control brand messaging and how its spread. Take your message where the consumers are, and let them do the work. (As a Milwaukee,WI, resident, I've never been fortunate to try your burgers/fries, but I applaud your marketing insights.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kari Rippetoe EMAIL: kari.rippetoe@rippetoe.net IP: 173.15.200.105 URL: http://twitter.com/karirippetoe DATE: 04/09/2010 09:23:07 AM In what way are Five Guys getting more "corporate"? Sure, they may be a national franchise, but the fact that they 1) make everything to order and 2) post local/regional reviews on their store walls (along with a bulletin board for customers to post their own comments for everyone to see) makes it feel local and not like other big burger chains that shall remain nameless. Five Guys is a great example of how content marketing doesn't have to be online to be successful, in this day and age where everyone is hopping on-board the blogging bandwagon left and right. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: alexander john EMAIL: mr.alexanderjohn@gmail.com IP: 76.229.148.82 URL: http://newbieecourse.blogspot.com/ DATE: 08/05/2010 08:27:04 AM keeping it simple is king! you most keep it simple or poeple will not like it. thats just what i have seen. great tips ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: japandemic superfly EMAIL: honcho@japandemic.com IP: 218.129.199.42 URL: http://www.japandemic.com DATE: 09/03/2010 07:39:58 AM This is great. About to be printed, possibly laminated, and posted on the walls here at japandemic. Thanks. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 15 Content Marketing and Social Media Keys To Success STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 15-content-marketing-and-social-media-keys-to-success CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 04/02/2010 06:53:19 AM ----- BODY:

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.

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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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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?
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.
Content marketing is not product or service content.
Advertising is a luxury. Content is survival.
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.
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.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, junta42, social media, content marketing tips ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.140 URL: http://samuraiwriter.com/blog DATE: 04/03/2010 11:41:49 PM Applying #11 and #15 are what makes the whole content marketing package come 'alive' imho. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Bierbaum EMAIL: bbierbaum@priorityresults.com IP: 71.63.241.60 URL: http://www.priorityresults.com DATE: 04/04/2010 09:55:52 AM #2 and #3 are stated simply and clearly. If you turn these into questions you ask your team before starting a social media effort you will save time and resources. I promise! I recently compiled a list of some example social media guidelines from the healthcare industry. http://priorityresults.com/blog/examples-of-healthcare-social-media-guidelines-policies-rules-restrictions-and-formalities/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jamie Favreau EMAIL: jamie_favreau@yahoo.com IP: 69.14.129.189 URL: http://jamiefavreau.wordpress.com DATE: 04/05/2010 12:21:53 AM I think a blog that a particular company has does focus on them. Which is part of the problem. Instead of solving their client's problems. They need to focus on that and they can generate leads by opening up the comments. But they have not hired me so I can't implement my ideas. I can just talk about them in a vague sense. People will talk about you whether or not you want them too. If you can be their friend they will more than likely be happy with you. I know personally I am passionate about a BIG BRAND and I feel like I have been wronged. I know I have a community and I also know I have been involved in theirs since 01-02. I don't know why they have discarded their own community and gone the traditional route but that is another story. I think they need to realize content is everywhere and there are hundreds of ways to send out a negative message. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jody Pellerin EMAIL: Marketing@PhaseWare.com IP: 173.173.91.177 URL: http://www.phaseware.com/phaseware-files-blog DATE: 04/10/2010 03:55:02 PM Our company blog does not focus on our product. We focus on topics that we hope are useful to our customers. We provide customer service and support software for the small to medium business market. Most blog topics have something to do with how to deliver excellent customer service, a little about marketing, knowledge management, self service...all of which our product does provide but very rarely do we name our product. What we want is to know that our customers and potential customers know what they are talking about when it does come time to get a solution like ours, whether they choose us or not. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 12 Mobile Marketing Stats You Need to Know STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: mobile-marketing-stats-trends CATEGORY: mobile marketing DATE: 03/31/2010 07:52:46 AM ----- BODY:

Our January content marketing spending study showed that one thing was clear - marketers are desperate for more information about mobile marketing.

Of all content marketing areas, only mobile marketing rose year over year re: educational needs (see the chart below).

Very relevant to this mobile marketing need, I had the pleasure of sitting through a fantastic presentation on mobile marketing trends and stats by David Doherty at Ascend Media yesterday. Part of this presentation included a diverse spread of mobile marketing research (included below for your reference). Hoping these will be helpful to you.

Growth of Mobile Marketing

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23% of mobile phone users had smartphones at the end of 2009.
234 million people age 13 and older in the U.S. used mobile devices in December 2009.
The use of mobile applications grew by more than 40% in 2009. (2008-2009 ComScore, MMetrics)
Texting usage is growing rapidly as a preferred means of communication among today’s professionals.
67% of the world’s population, or two-thirds total, are mobile subscribers--far outweighing online access. Mobile Marketing Watch, February 24, 2010

The Importance of Texting

People aged 42 and younger text more than talk
54% of individuals “Opting In” to a texting program agreed to receive offers.
The single most used feature of a mobile phone is texting. (2010 Moblico Solutions, LLC)

Smartphone Usage

Important note on this chart: Google is growing fastest! Palm in decline.

Mobile Marketing Grows

56% of companies plan to increase budgets for mobile marketing in 2010.
Marketers plan to increase their online marketing budgets by an average of 17% this year, drawing money away from traditional channels, like print.

(Findings from email survey conducted of 1000 marketers last month by email marketing company ExactTarget and internet market research company Econsultancy as reported in BtoB Online, February 12, 2010)

Conclusion

David and I had a nice discussion about mobile marketing after his presentation. The thinking from both of us is that this is really the first year that most marketers are actively thinking about mobile specific websites and mobile applications as part of their content marketing programs. As budgets continue to free up, 2011 looks to be the year we see incredible integration into content marketing programs.

More to come...

----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: mobile marketing, mobile marketing stats, mobile trends ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Robinsh EMAIL: robinsh123@gmail.com IP: 118.94.27.180 URL: http://www.digmlm.com DATE: 04/01/2010 05:32:24 AM There is no amaze if mobile marketing is growing, peoples are going to hold that one for the most of time and work. Now promoters have to think how to use this opportunity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Bouchez EMAIL: mlmonlineadvantage@gmail.com IP: 68.4.81.221 URL: http://mlmonlineadvantage.com DATE: 04/09/2010 10:08:05 AM Great article Joe, I posted the link and recommendation on my blog. Regards, Dave Bouchez ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christian EMAIL: chrigr2@googlemail.com IP: 79.212.16.84 URL: http://www.bettmer.de DATE: 09/17/2010 07:49:21 AM I also love your article! Our company already uses social media and we look forward to launch some mobile services. Your article inspired me and gave me some great statistics, so I can speak with my boss now. Thanks! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Engagement: Understanding It, Achieving It, Measuring It - A Complimentary White Paper STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: engagement-white-paper CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: junta 42 CATEGORY: measurement DATE: 03/23/2010 08:28:54 PM ----- BODY:

What is engagement? What does it really mean in marketing? How should we measure it? What tactics can we employ to help enhance it?

Those are exactly the questions Keith Wiegold and I try to tackle in our latest white paper - Engagement: Understanding It, Achieving It, Measuring It.

In this white paper we:

Define Engagement and what it means for your customers and your efforts
Recognize Engagement as a strategy that serves to achieve specific marketing objectives
Work to uncover the dynamics of measuring Engagement
Discuss a variety of social media and content marketing practices that maximize Engagement

The rationale for the white paper is summed up nicely with Keith's comments:

Everyone is talking about engagement, but we were hard pressed to find a source that put a stake in the ground and said 'this is what engagement really means, this is how it strategically impacts marketing goals, and this is how you can measure it,' let alone achieve it”. This white paper tackles all of this, plus provides some great tactical thoughts on how to ensure customer engagement.

I believe you'll find some excellent information that will help to position the role and importance of engagement in your own organization (as well as some wicked charts you'll love). AND, this white paper is GATE-FREE...meaning no sign-up required. In exchange, all we ask is that, if you like it, please share it with a friend or colleague. Download the engagement white paper here.

To see the ZMAGS version, click here.

Enjoy!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: engagement, keith weigold, joe pulizzi, white paper ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: R. Michael Brown EMAIL: MikeBrown@BrownLtd.com IP: 75.201.97.154 URL: http://www.BrownLtd.wordpress.com DATE: 03/23/2010 11:59:51 PM Awesome whitepaper! It's a tough topic. Measurement makes it harder but well worth the effort. Well researched and written. You not only preach, but practice it as well. Thanks for the great work. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Bottom EMAIL: john.bottom@baseonegroup.co.uk IP: 87.86.242.99 URL: http://www.baseonegroup.co.uk/beyond DATE: 03/24/2010 09:47:03 AM Joe - fantastic whitepaper. Found this very useful. Thanks so much for making it available. John ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dave Manzer EMAIL: dmanzer@thesagecloser.com IP: 76.224.146.78 URL: http://www.thesagecloser.com DATE: 03/24/2010 11:56:59 AM Good post, Joe. I also wrote about how the Discovery Channel show, Dirty Jobs, does a great job of engaging its audience. Check out the blog if you want to see how Mike Rowe gives a lesson on humility, customer appreciation and product innovation. http://bit.ly/cKNkFt ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 68.8.95.8 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 03/25/2010 09:41:30 PM Great stuff. Love the resource you have provided us with. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Liz Gebhardt EMAIL: egebhardt@egebhardt.com IP: 75.18.202.110 URL: http://www.thinkingoutloud.com DATE: 03/27/2010 10:37:28 PM Like your collection of engagement definitions on page 5. Very helpful how you broke your definition into its core elements and set a framework around multiple communications channels. The definition of engagement/influence that I have been researching is Influence = Trust+Expertise+Attention at http://www.thinkingoutloud.com/eg_ventures/2009/09/the-engagement-influence-equation.html ShareThis has also been doing some interesting data-driven work in the area of influence and engagement that you might find interesting in your work. One of their posts: http://blog.sharethis.com/2010/03/02/influence-data-sharing-data/ ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Social Media Success Summit 2010 Coming Soon STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-success-summit-2010-coming-soon CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 03/23/2010 11:32:09 AM ----- BODY:

I've worked with Mike Stelzner for the past few years to promote his amazing events. This year's Social Media Success Summit 2010 might be his best yet.

WHAT IS THE EVENT?: Social Media Success Summit 2010 is the web's largest live online conference that will empower you to use social media to gain more exposure, better engage customers and grow your business. The world's leading social media gurus will show you how. Join 24 experts, including Guy Kawasaki (author, Art of the Start), Chris Brogan (author, Social Media 101), Darren Rowse (author, ProBlogger), Mari Smith (author, Facebook Marketing), Greg Jarboe (author, YouTube and Video Marketing), Kim Dushinski (author, Mobile Marketing Handbook); experts from Best Buy, Home Depot, Whole Foods, Foursquare and Groupon; Steve Rubel (Edelman), Ann Handley (MarketingProfs), Brian Clark (Copyblogger), Jason Falls (Social Media Explorer), Jay Baer (Convince & Convert) and Ramon De Leon (Chicago Domino's Pizza)—just to mention a few.

If you need to take the next steps to leverage social media as part of your content marketing strategy, signing up for this event would be a smart move. Check it out here. Registration is limited and you can save $300 by signing up today.

Disclaimer: Junta42 is a proud affiliate for Social Media Success Summit.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: social media, social media success summit 2010 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: What Does Science Teach Us About Content Marketing? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: what-does-science-teach-us-about-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 03/17/2010 10:21:12 AM ----- BODY:

I was really impressed with David Chapin's work on comparing content marketing to life sciences. So much so, that I asked him to submit a guest post about it. Thanks to David for putting this together.

Content marketing is a hot trend in marketing circles. This trend may be hot but it is not new.

Science has been using a form of content marketing since the 18^th century, when peer-reviewed articles first began to be published. Though the titles are different, the mechanism and the benefits are similar.

Peer-reviewed publishing works like this: A scientist gives away information (such as the description and results of an experiment) that the audience finds useful and relevant. The audience responds by noticing the information, by paying attention to the source of the information, by seeing the source as differentiated, by trusting them and eventually by “raising their hands” to interact with them (e.g., “Could you please come present your paper at this conference?”). The scientist’s reputation is enhanced, which helps them get funding for the next experiment.

Substitute the word “company” for “scientist” in the paragraph above, and you describe content marketing: A company gives away information that the audience finds useful and relevant. The audience responds by noticing the information, by paying attention to the source of the information, by seeing the source as differentiated, by trusting the source and eventually by “raising their hands” to interact with the source. The company’s reputation is enhanced.

Here are some key differences between the two:

Th is content marketing illustration depicts the similarities and differences between peer-review publishing and content marketing.

The benefits of peer-review publishing and content marketing are the same: so you can be found (out of the sea of information), so you can be differentiated from your competition, so you can be chosen as a relevant source, and so you can become trusted – all with the goal of with your audience (prospects). Aren’t these the goals of marketing?

David Chapin is the CEO of Forma Life Science Marketing, a leading marketing firm for life science, biotech and pharma companies. Forma distills and communicates complex messages into compelling communications for sophisticated audiences.

David authors a newsletter: The Marketing of Science which covers topics of interest in marketing life science companies; it is published by Forma Life Science Marketing approximately ten times per year. For subscription information, go here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, life sciences, science marketing, peer-reviewed, forma ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chris W. EMAIL: chris@blue-ferret.com IP: 68.124.190.11 URL: http://www.blue-ferret.com DATE: 03/17/2010 07:55:16 PM A marvelous comparison! Excellent way to speak to the scientific-minded among us (which includes me). It's all science and psychology and process. Much simpler than we make it sometimes. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Z. Cordell EMAIL: scordell@szccommunications.com IP: 68.119.226.245 URL: http://www.SZCCommunications.com DATE: 03/17/2010 10:23:49 PM Initially, it seemed like an odd comparison to draw, but it works! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: J. Geibel EMAIL: jgeibel@geibelmarketing.com IP: 173.48.206.69 URL: http://www.geibelmarketing.com DATE: 03/19/2010 11:17:57 AM That's a real stretch. The idea that quality will automatically stand out is simply not correct (one has to know what constitutes quality before being able to discern it - even PT Barnum knew that), as is the premise that customers will "seek out" vendors (sellers.) Quite the contrary, the vast majority of vendors have to aggressively seek out their buyers - it's called selling. Proactive selling results in forecastable revenue - passive marketing results in marketing budgets. Scientific publishing is more akin to professional promotion than commercial marketing. The best marketing and PR content comes from documenting the successful sales process (e.g., building case studies from the sales map), which serve to visualize solutions and shortens the distance between the seller and the buyer (revenue). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mick Dickinson EMAIL: mick@buzzedup.co.uk IP: 77.98.153.143 URL: http://www.buzzedup.co.uk/ DATE: 03/20/2010 04:31:53 AM The power of content marketing is self-evident to most. However, it is very useful have another way of illustrating it - thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Chapin EMAIL: dchapin@formalifesciencemarketing.com IP: 70.63.130.38 URL: http://www.formalifesciencemarketing.com DATE: 03/23/2010 01:12:37 PM J Geibel, What exactly is a real stretch? Do you refer to the main thesis of the article, which is the similarity between content marketing and peer-reviewed publishing, and what we can learn from comparing/contrasting the two? Or something else? You take issue with the statement "..that customers will 'seek out' vendors (sellers)." and you go on to state: "On the contrary, the vast majority of vendors have to aggressively seek out their buyers - it's called selling." Buyers do seek out sellers. Think about what happens when a consumer decides to buy a car. The buyer-to-be does go seek out sellers. The same thing happens in the B-to-B world in the life sciences. If a lab needs a flow cytometer, they seek out the vendors of these devices. The ability of people to search out information on the internet just facilitates this and puts power in the hands of the consumer, power that selling can't overcome all by itself. To assist in being chosen for the short list of relevant, trusted suppliers, vendors must actively market their products, that is, raise awareness of their offering and raise the level of trust in the audience's minds. You state "Scientific publishing is more akin to professional promotion than commercial marketing." If by that you mean that scientific publishing is all about promoting yourself, then I disagree. Scientific publishing can be seen as an fair exchange: "I'll tell you about the results of my experiment and in return, you'll give me some of your attention and your trust." The byproduct may be promotion of the scientist's professional standing, but that is not the main point. In the future interruption marketing is going to be much less important for most B2B categories. But selling (aggressive or otherwise) alone won't replace it. In its place will be similar kinds of exchanges: valuable information and insight in exchange for trust and dialog. Lastly, I do believe that the "quality" of the content being marketed will assist the audience in differentiating between the different kinds of content available on the web. There is lots of low-quality content out there, and this low-quality content does little to build trust between the audience and the "author." My point is simply that creating content of high quality is important because it helps the "author" stand out when quality content is compared to other offerings that have lower quality. And yes, I believe that people can distinguish on their own between higher quality and lower quality content. Particularly in the life sciences, with highly educated, sophisticated, technologically-savvy audiences. In peer-reviewed publishing, there is a mechanism built in to ensure some baseline level of quality - that is, the peers that are reviewing the papers will not recommend for publication those papers that exhibit "poor quality," (which can be defined in a number of ways, including errors in thought, errors in analysis or errors in writing and presentation.) This baseline level does not exist in typical content marketing situations, and I was simply exhorting people who are interested in creating or publishing content to pay attention to the quality of the content they publish. David Chapin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve | Website Content EMAIL: blog@verticalmeasures.com IP: 72.215.194.134 URL: http://www.interactmedia.com DATE: 03/23/2010 05:17:31 PM I feel like I hit the gold mine with this post. I go crazy for infographics, and these ones are great. It's always interesting to find similarities between seemingly different industries. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Glenn Friesen EMAIL: glenn@glennfriesen.com IP: 173.226.114.90 URL: http://green9media.com/ DATE: 10/20/2010 12:01:04 PM Very clever, and on-point. Content marketing is the way to go, though I still believe peer review should have a place in the process of publishing. I'm sure there's an editorial process for most publishers; but I'm absolutely sure there isn't for most online publishers. Thus, lots of opinions exist, but little honest, tested data (excepting a few sites that hit critical mass, and have the cash to fund proper tests). Anyway, props for the analogy. It's a good one. :) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing is not just the WHAT, but also the HOW STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-is-not-just-the-what-but-also-the-how DATE: 03/17/2010 09:01:10 AM ----- BODY:

More and more brands are catching on to the idea that content marketing means providing information to your prospects and consumers that is important to them (to drive a specific marketing objective).

As we discussed in content marketing success factors, it's a challenge not to talk about yourself. Naturally, we are excited to talk about what we can offer our customers.

We have to continually remind ourselves that our customers don't care about us. They care about themselves. So, if you deliver information about your products and services, most of that will be ignored. The information MUST be about your customers' pain points in order for it to be engaged with and shared.

Understanding Your Customers Has Everything to do with Delivery

Of course, the content takes center-stage...but information without a proper delivery mechanism, now that's a problem.

So many marketers get caught up in the what. They want to do a blog or an enewsletter or launch a twitter account or do a video series or a mobile application. Whenever I talk with any marketer who brings up tools, my next question is always why?

That's where it gets interesting.

Think of it this way the next time you are launching a content marketing project - If your target buyers were blind adults, would you launch a video series on YouTube.

So in addition to looking at the actual content in your content

marketing strategy, be sure that you are also looking at how you are

going to get that information out there for your audience to find and

consume it.

A blog post from Social Email Marketing shares this quote which I

think sums it up nicely.

“People want to decide how they communicate with a company themselves.

I call it the Starbucks phenomenon: Starbucks offers six thousand

different flavours and types of coffee. It would take 17 years to try

them all. But customers love it.”

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Two Most Important Content Marketing Success Factors STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-two-most-important-content-marketing-success-factors CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 03/16/2010 09:55:52 AM ----- BODY:

Two success factors: 1) Content Marketing Cannot Be About You and 2) Ship

Although this Inc. article from Joel Spolksy is geared toward entrepreneurs, it's worth the read. While I disagree with Joel's decision to discontinue his popular blog (the one that helped him launch and grow his business), the key to his commentary is this point:

To really work..a blog has to be about something bigger than his or her company and his or her product. This sounds simple, but it isn't. It takes real discipline to not talk about yourself and your company. Blogging as a medium seems so personal, and often it is. But when you're using a blog to promote a business, that blog can't be about you. It has to be about your readers, who will, it's hoped, become your customers. It has to be about making them awesome.

Please go back and read this again.

Not following Joel's advice on this is where almost all content marketing programs (not just blogs) go wrong. Brands think that content marketing is about the clever usage of text, video and other channels to attract prospects to you. It has to be about something more than this. It has to be about solving your customers' pain points. It has to be about making them great...and while doing that, they become your customer (see this thinkorswim case study for an example of this). This is exactly what we've tried to do with Junta42.

Success Factor 1: Your Content Marketing Program, to be Successful, Cannot Be About You

Now for our second success factor.

I was in the car yesterday for a long stretch and had a chance to listen to most of Seth Godin's new book Linchpin (sidebar...anyone who is working a job and does NOT have a career, read this book).

Seth stressed the key difference between successful and unsuccessful entrepreneurs - shipping. Successful businesses consistently ship products or services. They don't wait until it is absolutely perfect. They get it out there. They take the risk...consistently.

I've presented over 200 times in the past three years and at some point through every presentation I discuss two keys to content marketing: 1) Quality content (see success factor one - it's about your customers) and 2) consistency (or shipping). I've never looked at consistency as "shipping" until after I listened to Seth's book, but that's exactly what it is.

Shipping is your content promise to your customers. Shipping...getting the content in the hands of your customers is far more important than it being perfect. Content marketing is NEVER perfect. If we waited a few more days, or had a few more reviews, I'm sure we could get closer to perfection. The key insight here is that perfection isn't the goal. The goal is making an impact on your customers...to maintain or change their behavior in some way. If you don't ship, that will never be possible.

Success Factor 2: Whatever your chosen channels for content marketing, consistently ship.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, shipping, seth godin, linchpin, joel spolsky ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kandice Day EMAIL: kandice@linwrightdesign.com IP: 68.104.162.147 URL: http://www.linwrightdesign.com DATE: 03/17/2010 10:18:30 AM Great post. Itr's true. Providing value and simply being consistent are the "secrets" to content marketing. Sure, you have to do all of the otehr stuff, bookmarking, social promotion, etc, but all of that means nothing if you are not consistent. Very nice! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: barbra gago EMAIL: bgago@genius.com IP: 69.181.3.123 URL: http://www.genius.com/marketinggeniusblog DATE: 03/19/2010 03:41:44 PM Thank you! It's funny that people want to try to manipulate the medium when the medium is simply one catalyst that's actually evolving companies entire business models, so getting hung up on the medium to me really isn't the point. As you say, it's not about using the content in clever ways to attract people to your site, it's about being in it for the long-haul and committing to your customers success, which is indeed something bigger than you! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: A Marketer's Guide to Social Media - 8 Keys to Success STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: a-marketers-guide-to-social-media-8-keys-to-success CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 03/11/2010 11:49:56 PM ----- BODY:

I participated in an amazing social media webinar today from MENG. The expert roundtable included members of the newly formed MENG Social Media Council (Mack Collier, Paul Dunay, Beth Harte, Drew McLellan, Amber Naslund and myself).

Here are eight key social media points from the session:

Start with a clear strategy, just like any other marketing initiative. Social media is both a concept and a set of tools. Before you can begin using the tools, you need to set clear goals and objectives as to what you hope to accomplish.
Social media does not sit outside your traditional marketing efforts. It must be integrated into your entire marketing process.
Yes, social media can help you increase your sales, but your goals may be different from just revenue goals. Look at human resources goals (recruiting), customer service (call center savings), lower training costs, lower conversion costs, reputation goals and more. Thinking sales growth is always the bright, shiny object, but other goals may be more attainable.
Understand where you belong in social media in your market. Is your role to observe (listen), to engage with customers, to develop conversations and relationships with customers?
Educate yourself. Read books such as Groundswell, The Digital Handshake or Get Content Get Customers. Start experimenting personally.
Look at companies that are doing it well, like Cisco, Intel, Breaking Point, IBM and SAP.
Focusing on the key social media sites (i.e., Twitter and Facebook) may not be the best strategy for your brand. Find out where your customers are hanging out at, and develop strategies for those channels (niche blogs, industry forum sites, Google groups, etc.) that deliver on your overall goals.
The core of your social media strategy must be your content strategy. What is your brand's story? What are the stories that are happening in and around your brand that will make you interesting to your customers and prospects? Why would anyone share your content through social media if you don't have anything valuable or relevant to say?

Also introduced during the session was this extremely helpful social media guide from CMO.com. Download the PDF version here. This is an excellent primer to review once your social media strategy is in place.

Inbound Marketing vs. Content Marketing

Inbound marketing is a subset of content marketing. Although both look at how to attract and retain customers with compelling, consistent content, inbound marketing focuses most of the energy on online channels. Content marketing takes a more holistic approach, looking at your content strategy as it relates to all channels (online, print, in-person and mobile). An effective content marketing strategy must also look at how the content program needs to be integrated with traditional marketing efforts.

Hubspot vs. Junta42

Hubspot's new "ebay for marketing services" is a marketplace that's much different than Junta42's "vendor matching service for content marketing". A marketplace, while still very valuable - ala eLance - still puts most of the work on the brand's shoulders in finding a content provider. Hubspot has developed a valuable service here for inbound marketing for a certain size (mostly smaller) companies needing inbound marketing services. It's a good move for Hubspot, which hopes to get people signed up to use their software and help retain those customers that are having trouble developing a solid online story.

Junta42 is not a marketplace. We take input from the brand on the content needs (through a five-minute survey and conversations with the client), project needs, audience target, project size and more. From that, we "match" the brand with one to five pre-qualified content marketing experts, saving the time and resources that it takes to search for the right provider, and the hassle of doing a formal RFP. We ensure that the vendor understands the type of project (print, online, in-person), the content area, and understand the art of content marketing storytelling.

It's also important to note that Junta42 experts handle the full breadth of content marketing services, including events and print content marketing, and not solely on inbound marketing solutions that Hubspot does. For more details on the types of projects we've matched up, check out this 2009 Junta42 annual report or our content marketing customer testimonials.

For more on Junta42, check out our "How Junta42 Works" page.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, inbound marketing, junta42, hubspot ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter Caputa EMAIL: pc4media@gmail.com IP: 204.9.221.74 URL: http://www.twitter.com/pc4media DATE: 02/22/2010 07:27:34 PM Thanks for doing this video, Joe. At HubSpot, we don't see you as competition. There's room for many different approaches and both content marketing and inbound marketing represent approaches that more marketers should embrace. Our approaches complement each other's more than they compete. As you rightly pointed out, our core business focus is providing software and training to busineses to help them do inbound marketing. Where we might disagree is whether inbound marketing is a subset of content marketing. We might actually say it the other way around. As you know, there are more steps to our inbound marketing methodology than simply creating content, albeit content creation is probably the most critical. There's optimizing it and promoting it. There's repurposing of that content for compelling offers for lead generation. So, our services go beyond just content marketing. They cover landing page creation, website design, call to action button creation. Soon, we'll launch services for lead nurturing, salesforce.com+HubSpot integration and social media marketing. But, your point is well taken about the fact that you offer content services beyond the "web". Since you've been watching us for a long time, I'm sure you're not surprised that we're not encouraging ompanies to print on dead trees, so we only launched a blog writing service at this time. But, we understand that we haven't convinced the world's marketers to abandon what they've been doing for 50 years YET. The main reason we didn't launch a "magazine writing" service or an event marketing service is because they are outside the scope of what our customers are asking for. We've built our different packages simply around what challenges and requests we get from our 2000+ customers. One other nit too.... we provide software and training for companies of ALL sizes. We started with SMBs, but we have added products and features for largers companies as well. If I had to guess, your customer base probably is larger companies and more b2c type companies whereas our customer base is more mid size companies and a bit more focused on b2b. But, we plan to continue expanding our capabilities for all different types of marketers, and we have a huge diversity amongst our customer base. Suited for your market with bigger b2c type ad bugets, your matching system is also lot more sophisiticated, whereas our is more of a directory. You're playing the middle man, whereas we just want to play the connector. We look forward to seeing your continued success, Joe. Again, we don't see it as competition. Let's keep the dialog open as we have for the last few years. We're all fighting the good fight and look forward to continuing to work with you to bring the "importance of content" more to the fore. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 74.85.100.254 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/22/2010 07:40:38 PM Hi Peter...thanks for taking the time to respond. No, I don't see us as direct competition. As I've been saying for months, 2010 is the year of content marketing "how", meaning that people are starting to get the "brands as publishers" model we have both been evangelizing. RE: Your definition of content marketing, I do disagree with this though. Content marketing is not just content creation. It's the entire brand storytelling process - Identifying the niche, developing measurable goals, creating the content strategy, finding where your customers are at in print, online in-person, executing on the content, setting up listening posts, distributing the content, so on and so forth. It sounds like, from what you are saying, that inbound marketing does the same thing, but just with an online focus. I do want to point out that Hubspot does not just do inbound marketing, but content marketing. You clearly leverage events as part of your content marketing strategy. You've also developed a book (printed on dead trees - which I have by the way) in addition to your videos, blogs, podcasts etc. So, from my standpoint, Hubspot does content marketing, not just inbound marketing. This may be semantics, but it's important for Hubspot customers to realize that inbound marketing works MUCH MUCH better with an integrated content marketing strategy. Hubspot is a testament to that. Thanks again for commenting and I'm looking forward to hearing more about what you are doing. Cheers Joe ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter Caputa EMAIL: pc4media@gmail.com IP: 75.194.51.210 URL: http://www.twitter.com/pc4media DATE: 02/22/2010 09:00:10 PM Hey Joe. Thanks for your response and for the clarification. The problem with all of these terms and movements is that we're sort of "defining" them as we go. It sounds like we agree on everything other than some semantics. Good catch on the dead trees thing. And yes we do events. If you consider "webinars" events, we do a lot of them. Although we know speaking at events and publishing our book has helped our marketing tremendously, it's important to note that the primary driver of our growth is online marketing. In fact, we limit the events we're involved with because they are costly and the ROI is hard to quantify. So, we certainly wouldn't advocate that a small or mid sized business write a book or spend a lot of time trying to book speaking gigs or producing events. It's much harder to track the impact of those on customer acquisition and they tend to be a lot more expensive "experiments". I've known plenty of authors who haven't sold more than a few hundred copies of their books after spending a year+ writing it. And I know many people who spend months planning events, but generate few new leads and minimal new revenue out of them. (I've done this myself in a former life.) For the b2b marketer especially, our data suggests that blogging, social media, seo and ppc are much more efficient marketing activities that require much less time or $ investment, while being much more measurable. So, while we do other more traditional marketing activities, they are lower on the priority list and they're successful because we've built an online reach that helps to promote our other activities. All that said, if you're a b2c marketer trying to reach a massive audience and used to spending millions on radio, print and tv advertising, I'd say that switching some of that budget to event marketing or content marketing is probably a good idea. Although it's hard to spend that kind of money on online content, I'd still start there. And then I'd spend even more of the budget on promoting the content and measuring the results. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dharmesh Shah EMAIL: dshah@hubspot.com IP: 74.85.100.254 URL: http://www.HubSpot.com DATE: 02/23/2010 02:46:45 AM Joe: Thanks for the article. Many of us at HubSpot are fans of you and Junta42. We fundamentally agree with the importance you place on content. We're on the same mission and what little differences are far outshadowed by the things we agree on and jointly believe in. I also think we are attacking different parts of a massive opportunity and really don't see us as competitive either. Wish you continued success. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 74.85.100.254 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/23/2010 09:08:11 AM Thanks Dharmesh...I agree, different, but same - and lots of opportunity. Congratulations on all the success. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John McTigue EMAIL: john@kunocreative.com IP: 66.63.235.85 URL: http://www.kunocreative.com DATE: 02/23/2010 04:49:16 PM It really shouldn't matter whether you guys are competitors or not. Marketing is a huge space with lots of competitors, and presumably as content marketing, social media marketing, inbound marketing - all the "new media marketing" types gain prominence, there will be many more competitors (and partners). In other words, from a consumer's point of view, it's important to know that you guys are out there and how your approaches may differ. Personally, I don't think it matters what you call your approach - it's what you deliver to your clients that counts and how well it fits their strategy for success. Without that you have nothing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 74.85.100.254 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/23/2010 06:08:34 PM Hi John...spot on. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 70.181.189.190 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 02/26/2010 10:09:14 AM Joe, Thanks for sharing. And thanks for the review of the video. Always a bonus! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Lazuka EMAIL: stevelazuka@hotmail.com IP: 76.190.229.181 URL: http://www.interactmedia.com DATE: 02/26/2010 04:36:07 PM Hi Joe, Pete, and Dharmesh - I think that, fundamentally, content marketing and inbound marketing are the same. In order to do either successfuly, you need to develop lots of great content, but both concepts also include the following: - developing a content strategy - researching keywords and topics to write about - incorporating seo naturaly into the content - designing optimized landing pages - submitting content to other top sites on the web - promoting content using social media - testing everything with detailed analytics - and plenty more... Joe - you're the master at creating high quality content that is interesting, engaging, and helpful to people. As a recovering outbound marketer (bad word), i'm still learning from you what it means to create quality over quantity. Pete and Dharmesh - your Hubspot software is actually an incredible content marketing tool that gives people the ability to DO content marketing (outboung marketing) successfuly. Brilliant. Content is at the heart of Inbound Marketing... and great content draws people INBOUND from search engines and social media to your site. different, but the same ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bernie Borges EMAIL: bernie@findandconvert.com IP: 24.92.29.124 URL: http://www.findandconvert.com/blog/ DATE: 02/26/2010 05:19:08 PM Hey Joe, Here's my 2 cents. I'm of the opinion that inbound marketing is an "umbrella" phrase. It's anything and everything that a marketer does to attract its target audience to its front door. These tactics may include such things as SEO, SEM, print advertising, speaking engagements, etc. It can also include offline tactics that create word of mouth. Content marketing is a component of inbound marketing. In my opinion it's the most important component of inbound marketing. For example, when you produce a video like the one tied to this blog post, you've created content. The purpose of that content is to attract your community to your front door and spread the word about Junta42. This video and this blog is part of your inbound marketing strategy. I don't think it's a semantic issue. You know me and you know I'm a content marketing fanatic. I believe however (and we may disagree here) that content marketing is a strategic aspect of inbound marketing. Where I know we agree is that without content marketing, inbound marketing has severe limitations. How effective would HubSpot be if they weren't great at content marketing? Same question for Junta42 and Joe Pulizzi. Cheers, Bernie Borges ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/27/2010 01:15:56 PM Bernie and Steve...this is great. Bernie...I've never looked at inbound marketing as anything outside of online...maybe I should. I agree we are all talking about the same thing, but if we all get on the same page it will be easier for more people to adopt. Thanks for helping the conversation on this. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Luke Owen EMAIL: lowen@truebridge.com IP: 71.243.118.33 URL: http://www.truebridge.com DATE: 03/01/2010 12:38:04 PM Joe, very interesting post and a topic that I myself have always wondered what the differences are b/w these two approaches to marketing. We're a b2b company that works in the financial industry and your approach of keeping the traditional marketing alive but tweaking it a bit to include content marketing techniques is exactly how we describe this whole new outlook on marketing to both prospects and existing clients. The "online" only approach that HubSpot focuses on doesn't resonate within certain industries like the financial world where print and other traditional media such as TV or radio will not be going away anytime soon - nor do they have to. But I too respect what they're doing and have found their tools helpful despite having to be on their up and down CMS software. But the latter is not their focus any way. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why Brands Fail at Content Marketing - Not Quite Niche Enough via GaryVee STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-brands-fail-at-content-marketing-not-quite-niche-enough-via-garyvee CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 02/19/2010 06:34:10 PM ----- BODY:

Please take one minute and ten seconds to watch this clip from Gary Vaynerchuk.

If you think that you are doing all the right things in your content marketing, but you or your brand are still not seeing success, this is probably the reason: You are not looking low enough, niche enough. Search down to find the gold nuggets, then search a little bit lower. Just below that, is your niche.

Find your niche and find content marketing success.

Linchpin: GaryVee from Seth Godin on Vimeo.

If you liked this, you'll love this video interview with GaryVee on Content Marketing.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: GaryVee, Content Marketing, Gary Vaynerchuk ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Losing Out on Turning Customers into Fans - A Cleveland Browns Story STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: cleveland-browns-loyalty-fans CATEGORY: case studies DATE: 02/16/2010 03:51:08 PM ----- BODY:

My soon to be seven year old son would like to go on a tour of the Cleveland Browns stadium for his birthday. This is a great idea for a number of reasons. First, we don’t have to clean the house. Second, the house won’t get trashed from all the kids coming over. And finally, it is a pretty unique idea and the kids will flat-out love it.

A very quick Google search revealed that they do have tours lasting about 40 minutes (perfect) for $5.00 per person (again perfect) but only Monday to Friday from 10-3. Not so perfect since we don’t home school, and even if we did, his friends would all still be in school those hours. There was a tiny clause at the bottom stating that they NEVER do tours on Sundays and occasionally on Saturdays.

So we emailed none-the-less. I asked for the Saturday closest to his birthday. Rejected. So I ask for any Saturday that month. Rejected. So I ask for Good Friday since the kids are off school that day. Rejected. I said I would have 40 people, trying to make it worth their time, I am flexible….but still REJECTED.

What is the value of having 40 kids fall in love with the Cleveland Browns and becoming life-long fans (in most cases, that's exactly what would happen)? Priceless. But the Browns don't see it that way.

The Carolina Panthers do offer full birthday parties with tours. It's no wonder this young franchise has grown its fan base so quickly.

Do you have any regulations or rules that are keeping customers from becoming true fanatics for your brand?

UPDATE: 2/19/10
We were able to secure a tour at 3pm on a Wednesday since the kid's have early dismissal from school that day. Not what we wanted, but at least it's something.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: cleveland browns ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 221.186.157.78 URL: http://samuraiwriter.com/blog DATE: 02/16/2010 10:50:08 PM Wow! Perhaps they're working on the anti-matter version of your book - "Avoid Contact. Lose Customers." Just another digital scream in hyperspace... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 02/17/2010 12:29:02 PM Joe: Great post with an example that is "right-on". Unfortunately, spreading the brand message seems to be siloed to just the branding-department in many businesses. Branding needs to be pervasive throughout every part of a business - sales, customer service, marketing and even the admin who sits in the front lobby. Happy Birthday to your 7 year old! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: D. Haber EMAIL: haberd@cadmus.com IP: 207.78.64.29 URL: DATE: 02/17/2010 08:58:07 PM That is yet another reason why Cleveland lost the original Browns, and why you should become a Ravens fan :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/17/2010 09:08:02 PM D...now I'm not sure I could handle that at all, but it is an idea. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Rutherford EMAIL: jeff@jeffrutherford.com IP: 159.250.64.243 URL: http://www.jeffrutherford.com DATE: 02/18/2010 01:35:10 PM Wow, that's truly unbelievable. As you noted, not only would you have 40 people paying $5 bucks each, but they had the chance to build many lifelong fans. Last week, I took my 6-year old son to his first live sporting event, a UMass hockey game. He LOVED it. The fans cheering, yelling, the action on the ice, the snack bar, the mascot, etc. While you wouldn't have been taking them to a game, I think sometimes adults, and harried sports marketing execs, underestimate the power of something like that - a tour of the stadium - through a young child's eyes. They've never experienced it before, and it can be something they remember for many years. And, one final point, we're not talking the Dallas Cowboys here. The Browns need every fan they can get. What a short-sighted mistake on their part. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/18/2010 01:45:12 PM Hi Jeff...great example. I don't get it either. My son is loving the colts and saints right now (for obvious reasons). Would love for him to be a Browns' fan. Need a little help. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brendon Clark EMAIL: brendon@vulture.co.nz IP: 125.237.155.55 URL: DATE: 02/22/2010 03:21:33 AM I find it remarkable that an organisation would try so hard to alienate the very people it needs for ticket sales and merchandise and the like not to mention lifelong loyalty! How cool would it be if our favourite player turned up to say Hi even if it was just a prerecorded video link? Or I got a silly hat signed by the players which of course I"d treasure for years? Or the mascot turned up? Or they put my picture up on the screens come game time? Or any effort that might show they were even remotely interested in the people they want to come and adore them ----- PING: TITLE: From Followers to Fans URL: http://rainbows.typepad.com/blog/2010/02/tomarceilcom-sent-you-a-link-to-content-of-interest.html IP: 10.17.151.36 BLOG NAME: Minding Gaps DATE: 02/17/2010 08:47:04 AM Here is a terrific blog from Joe Pulizzi on the importance and ease of converting followers to your fans. It involves his son's would-be, wanna-be birthday party. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Goodwill Develops Video Series with Miss DC: The Fashionista Drives Sales STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: goodwill-develops-video-series-with-miss-dc-the-fashionista-drives-sales CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: video DATE: 02/15/2010 10:17:21 PM ----- BODY:

Who knew you could find the latest and greatest fashions at....Goodwill?

District of Columbia Goodwill and my friends at Stella Pop teamed up for a three-part video series on DC Goodwill Fashionista (DC Goodwill's blog). The concept: Redecorate Miss DC 2009's apartment with only things she could find at Goodwill. The three parts of the video series consist of 1) before Goodwill, 2) shopping at Goodwill and 3) the results.

Along with the video storyline, Miss DC sang an original theme song for the series with local Grammy-nominated rapper Kokayi (the song was sold for $2 on iTunes with proceeds going to Goodwill).

The results are amazing:

Retail sales up 7%
Retail traffic up 13%
Donations increase of 18%
450% increase in online traffic from before series launch; traffic continues to grow
$150,000 in earned media coverage

Goodwill is working to tell a story of extremely affordable fashion. What a great start with this video series.

How are you telling your story?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: goodwill, goodwill dc. content marketing, video, miss dc 2009 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Flo Rida Guide to Content Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-flo-rida-guide-to-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 02/11/2010 10:05:46 PM ----- BODY:

Flo Rida (aka Tramar Dillard), the popular rapper from, of all places, Florida, understands the importance of spreading content. Marketers can learn a lot from Flo Rida when it comes to content marketing.

During his breakout year in 2008, he launched onto the scene with "Low", hitting #1 on nearly every chart in the free world. Most recently, Flo Rida hit big with his song "Right Round", reaching #1 on the US Billboard chart.

Now you can ask the question: How do I know all this? Simple. Flo Rida's music is literally everywhere...which is all part of his plan.

The concept: get the music in front of the right buyers. How? "Low" was featured on the soundtrack of Step Up 2, which grossed more than $100 million worldwide. "Right Round" could be found not only on the comedy hit, The Ugly Truth, but was the closing song on the biggest R-rated comedy hit of all-time, The Hangover. It was also smart repackaging, playing off the success of the original song by Dead or Alive, "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" from 1985 (and yes, I had that album).

And this is just the start. Flo Rida's music is featured on video games, in iTunes special packages, and yes, social media. Flo Rida communicates regularly on Twitter with his almost 50k followers. 300k friends on MySpace and over 30 million views on an impressive YouTube page.

What can we learn from Flo Rida?

Understand who your customers really are. Flo Rida might think that the majority of his customers were teens and young adults. With some research, I'm sure Flo Rida and team quickly realized that many of the fans that purchased "Low" were 30 and 40 something white men, which looks a lot like the demographic for the Hangover (where "Right Round" was placed).
Spread the love. Are you doing guest articles where your customers are at? Are you sharing presentations? Are you consistently communicating with your target? Are you adding helpful comments on key blogs?
Don't rely on one channel, but focus on what works. There are a thousand social media outlets, but Flo Rida focuses his resources on the key ones where most of his customers are at - MySpace, YouTube and now Twitter (remember the 30 to 40 year olds...that's Twitter).
Collaborate: Flo Rida consistently partners with some of the greatest hip hop artists in the world, even when he has to play second fiddle. Are you partnering with other organizations and individuals in your market to create great content marketing?
Consistently create great content: Flo Rida has put out over 50 songs and collaborations over the past two years, and has another record on the way this year. No breaks. Keep creating and delivering great content.
Repackage and reuse: The best stories may be old ones that need a new take.

Flo Rida understands his niche, who his audience is, and how to effectively reach and connect with them. Hey, that's one heck of a content marketing strategy.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: flo rida, content marketing, keys to content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ian Waugh EMAIL: ianwaugh@dunelm.org.uk IP: 62.189.175.212 URL: http://ianwaugh.tumblr.com DATE: 02/12/2010 05:49:11 AM The Wu Tang guide to content editing, a quote from Gary Grice (aka GZA) on the importance of being concise: http://ianwaugh.tumblr.com/post/85212355/simple-this-is-how-i-practice-writing-whatever-i ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/12/2010 07:03:26 AM I love it Ian! “Too many songs, weak lines, they mad long / Make it brief, half short, and twice strong” ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Seven Ways to Position Yourself for Unlimited Work STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: seven-ways-to-position-yourself-for-unlimited-work DATE: 02/09/2010 10:17:25 AM ----- BODY:

As Junta42 continues to grow, we've started to branch out and hire freelancers and form partnerships. What I've learned through this process is that the way I make decisions on who I buy from or partner with has completely changed from just a few years ago.

Whether you are an experienced freelance writer, a journalist/editor in a media company or brand, or even a marketing professional, there are things you must be doing now to make sure the work is always there (whether you work for yourself or someone else). It saddens me to find that people who I worked with for years at Penton Media, so full of talent, have been unemployed for long periods of time. This should have been avoided.

How you ask? Below is a combination of how I make my own buying decisions and how people have found me in order to hire us. If you follow this religiously, two years down the road you'll have more work than you know what to do with.

Define Your Expertise: Even if you consider yourself a generalist, you need an expertise area. Find something, no matter how small or niche, that you can position yourself as the go-to-expert.
Blog: I don't hire anyone that doesn't blog. Understanding what it takes to create a successful blog, learn the value of social sharing, and be able to define ideas succinctly is a must have for any marketer (here's some key blogging questions to ask yourself). Be consistent with your blogging...pick something you can do, but two-three times a week has worked well for me. Seth Godin is amazing that he blogs EVERY day. I can't remember the last time he missed a day of blogging.
Google Yourself: I don't care if your name is John Smith, if someone types your name into Google and does not easily find a wealth of information about you, that's bad news for your future career. Take David Meerman Scott. David started using the "Meerman" because David Scott was such a common name. Type in David Meerman Scott into Google and you get 172,000 results. Pretty impressive. That's all him.

I'm lucky because Joe Pulizzi is not the most common name, so my goal was to make sure I owned all the results on Page 1 for that Google search. Kudos to Joe Pulizzi III from Williamsport who makes it on Page 9 of the Google results as the first result that is not yours truly.

Before anyone hires you or decides to call you in the first place, they'll check you out (it's almost expected now). What does Google say about you? Maybe you didn't get the job because Google doesn't know who you are.
Focus on the Big Three (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn): Build your network on these three by consistently producing great content (through your blog) and sharing it out on these social media sites. Also be sure to share other's content. That will build your network the fastest. A growing fourth site is SlideShare (the YouTube for PowerPoint presentations). Anytime you give a presentation in PowerPoint format, get it on your SlideShare site. Good presentations spread fast.
Plan now for Your Book: Don't shrug this one off. A printed book is the best business card you can have. When you start or develop your blog, begin to think about writing pieces of chapters for your book. After six months of blogging, you may have more than half a book done.
Focus on the influencers in your Expert area: Find the 10-15 blogs that really matter to you and your niche and get active. Read their posts...comment when you have something helpful to say.
Give, Give, Give: The answer to all these questions are yes. Will you present at our next webinar? Would you be willing to write a guest post for our blog? Would you write an article for our next newsletter? Would you write me a recommendation on LinkedIn?

Freelance writers especially find it hard to give all their expertise away. If you are being strategic about it, frankly, you have to. The last two freelancers we hired because they consistently blogged and shared content via Twitter. I never look at resumes anymore.

These are the key seven. You'll find more in this Secrets of Personal Branding Success post as well. If you need a little more help defining your niche area, this white paper on content marketing will really help. It's one of the few things we actually ask for registration on, but it's worth it. And of course, the book Get Content Get Customers will help you with the whole package and provide case studies as well.

I'm urging you, especially if you have a full-time job that you feel is secure, to start doing this NOW. I can share hundreds (yes, hundreds) of examples of people who thought they were secure, didn't do the work above, and are now taking unemployment. There is a ton of work out there, but it's all going to the people who follow the seven steps above.

Good luck and make it happen.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark M. EMAIL: mark@malinaink.com IP: 65.25.112.70 URL: http://www.malinaink.com DATE: 02/10/2010 11:45:33 AM Great Post, Joe! The 10 Questions to Ask Before You Blog is exactly what I was looking for. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Girlie | Brochures Printing Online EMAIL: girlie@uprinting.com IP: 122.52.242.243 URL: http://blog.brochuresprintingonline.com/ DATE: 02/11/2010 02:45:46 AM Great combination! Social media mixed with other strategies work really well. Use social media to spread the word about what you do and hone your craft to gain new opportunities. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://samuraiwriter.com/blog DATE: 02/11/2010 06:52:09 AM That content marketing white paper is a great illustration of the craft. I got a lot from the 10 key blogging questions post - especially qs six,seven and eight. An oldie but a goodie! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: acai berry diet EMAIL: georgesalarcon@yahoo.com IP: 75.217.209.160 URL: http://www.acai.vg DATE: 02/11/2010 07:27:12 PM Thanks for providing these great tips. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Trish L EMAIL: trish@webcopyresults.com IP: 75.222.243.253 URL: http://www.webcopyresults.com DATE: 02/12/2010 09:59:33 AM Great Post! I found this very relevant because I decided to target a specific niche for my writing business recently (after being a generalist for more than 15 years!) I made this decision for my own mental clarity, as well as for marketing/branding purposes. I will continue to work on more general projects - but will focus my marketing efforts on my chosen niche. Thanks again for the great post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matches Malone EMAIL: batman@azteca.net IP: 71.108.120.113 URL: http://getstimulustoday.com DATE: 02/12/2010 12:02:52 PM Is it possible, as a startup, to use these seven steps? And why isn't startup in the spelling dictionary? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/12/2010 03:37:26 PM You got it Trish. @Matches...actually, I think this method is best for individuals doing startups. It's the ultimate David versus Goliath mentality. You can be more niche and focus more on customers faster than a larger company. Good luck! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Z. Cordell EMAIL: scordell@szccommunications.com IP: 68.119.226.245 URL: http://www.SZCCommunications.com DATE: 02/12/2010 08:54:14 PM Thanks for the great post! As a generalist who enjoys the variety of being a generalist, I've had a hard time choosing my niche. But I've also seen how many talented folk have been hit hard by this economy. This advice is great for everyone, whether you're planning to freelance or not. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michelle Rafter EMAIL: michellerafter@comcast.net IP: 24.22.30.144 URL: http://www.michellerafter.com DATE: 02/15/2010 12:56:28 PM Here's a real-life example of why what you're preaching really works. Last fall, a colleague passed on my name (along with a couple others) to a company that was looking for a contract editor for a new project. Before this company ever contacted me they scoured my blog - reading posts and using the clips page I maintain there to read articles I'd done for publications similar to the one they were planning. I'm sure they checked me out on Twitter and LinkedIn as well. When they did contact me it was to offer me the position - and what an offer. Without going into the details, let's just say 2010 looks like it's going to be my best year ever. One more thought: while it pays to use online tools to promote yourself, you have to be able to do the work. You could be the best marketer in the world, but if you can't follow through with material that's on target and on time, well written and factually correct, editors, publishers or anyone else in a position to hire you will figure that out sooner or later and move on to someone more capable. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/15/2010 12:58:36 PM Excellent Michelle. Congratulations and thanks so much for sharing! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dennis J. Cole EMAIL: djhunlimited@gmail.com IP: 63.85.201.114 URL: http://www.socialroast.com/ DATE: 08/02/2010 12:29:57 PM You are spot on with this post. I am starting to nail down the exact tips you have outlined. I have been doing some research and my research has proven that you must build relationships and trust. If you don't do these things you might as well pack up shop right now. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Junta42 Announces Content Marketing Giveaway STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: junta42-announces-content-marketing-giveaway CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 02/04/2010 10:29:52 PM ----- BODY:

Junta42 is again putting our money where our content is...

Today we launched the $4200 in 42 Days contest where Junta42 will contribute $4200 toward a brand's content marketing effort.

Simply put, it works like this. From now until 4/2/2010 any project submitted through the Junta42 system will be eligible for the $4200. All you have to do is sign up to the Junta42 content marketing matching service and select one of our expert, pre-qualified vendors. That's it.

See more details here. Any thoughts or questions? Just shoot them over.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Junta42, Junta42 Content Contest ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim Little EMAIL: marketinglistbroker.com@gmail.com IP: 97.92.50.35 URL: http://www.marketinglistbroker.com DATE: 02/17/2010 02:13:36 PM I love your blog! Social media is exploding right now since you can follow and promote to everyone else followers on Twitter and Facebook. Dunkin Donuts had great success with their social media promotion see this article:http://www.mailinglistsblog.com/direct-marketing/boom-custom-content/ ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Social Media Usage in Content Marketing Jumps 500% in Two Years STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-usage-in-content-marketing-jumps-500-in-two-years DATE: 02/03/2010 09:54:03 AM ----- BODY:

As a follow up to our 2010 Junta42 Content Marketing Study, we've been doing some comparisons between content marketing product usage in 2010 versus 2008. The findings are interesting, to say the least

Here are the highlights:

Significant Increases in Content Distribution

Social Media (i.e., Twitter, Facebook) - distribution of content through those channels has increased over 500% in two years.
Blog usage has more than doubled.
Online video has jumped nearly 2x.
eBooks have nearly doubled.

Slight Content Marketing Increases

Digital Magazines
Podcasts
Microsites

Holding Steady

eNewsletters
White Papers
Case Studies

Down a Bit

Virtual Events
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I don't believe these results are mind shattering, but it continues to prove that marketers are putting more resources into the kind of content marketing that spreads and is shared. It also tells us that marketers are learning to become publishers, developing content assets instead of renting the media.

If you missed it, you can download the entire content marketing study here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing spending, social media spending, Junta42 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Pablo EMAIL: pablo.edronkin@andinia.com IP: 186.56.138.53 URL: http://www.andinia.com/indexen.html DATE: 02/08/2010 10:20:54 AM But remember that quality always works best; no content will give you the edge if it is not good, and nothing will stop good content from becoming popular, eventually. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John D Crews EMAIL: john.crews@intelligentinfopubs.com IP: 96.11.117.114 URL: http://www.intelligentinfopubs.com DATE: 02/15/2010 12:44:02 PM Here's a new perspective - Content Marketing as a Green solution: http://informationconnected.wordpress.com/2010/02/14/content-marketing-a-green-approach/ ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: David Meerman Scott on content marketing, social media & what's next STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: david-meerman-scott-on-content-marketing-social-media-whats-next CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 02/01/2010 06:57:45 PM ----- BODY:

His book was a game changer. Now, David Meerman Scott's updated version of The New Rules of Marketing and PR promises even more.

I had a chance to catch up with David recently and got his quick take on the book, social media and content marketing. Enjoy!

JOE: From the previous version to the new version, what's the biggest change you thought you had to make? What's the biggest surprise - meaning something you'd never thought you'd actually update?

DAVID: When I wrote the first edition of the book, Facebook was only available to those with a .edu email address (students and educators), so I didn’t feature Facebook. And Twitter didn’t even exist at the time I was researching the first edition. So I have added extensive new information and examples on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.

In fact, the rise of the term "social media" has been so strong in the past few years that I’ve even changed the subtitle of the book to include it.

When I wrote the first edition back in 2006, Second Life was really hot. So if you had asked me back then, I would have said that SL would probably warrant an entire chapter by now. Alas, I was completely wrong. Now it is only about a paragraph in the book.

Another surprising aspect is that hundreds of colleges and universities have adopted the book for classes on marketing & PR. That's exciting... and surprising to me.

JOE: For marketers just figuring out the "why" of content marketing, where should they start in your opinion?

DAVID: Before the Web came along, there were only three ways to get noticed: buy expensive advertising, beg the mainstream media to tell your story for you, or hire a huge sales staff to bug people one at a time about your products. Now we have a better option: publishing interesting content on the Web that your buyers want to consume.

The tools of the marketing and PR trade have changed. The skills that worked offline to help you buy or beg or bug your way in are the skills of interruption and coercion. Online success comes from thinking like a journalist and a thought leader.

The Web allows organizations of all kinds (large and small companies, nonprofits, entrepreneurs, political candidates, consultants, even rock bands and churches) the ability to become publishers of content.

JOE: I'm a marketer, what's the number one thing I need to do to take advantage of the principles in your book?

DAVID: To be successful in 2010, everyone (including me) needs to be asking this series of questions:

Who are my buyers? (Or who are my donors, voters, readers, etc.)
What problems do my buyers have that my products or services solve?
How can I create some amazing information on the Web (a YouTube video, ebook, blog, Webinar, series of photos, charts and graphs, survey results, and so on) that my buyers will be eager to consume and that will brand me as someone to do business with?

JOE: What's next?

DAVID: Don't worry about what's next. There will always be a bright, shiny, new social media service. Ignore it and create something interesting -- a content rich site, a blog, a YouTube video.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: david meerman scott, content marketing, new rules of marketing and pr ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Meerman Scott EMAIL: david@freshspot.com IP: 217.41.228.254 URL: http://www.webinknow.com/ DATE: 02/02/2010 03:33:01 AM Thanks Joe. Always a pleasure chatting with you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jamie Favreau EMAIL: jamie_favreau@yahoo.com IP: 69.14.129.189 URL: http://jamiefavreau.wordpress.com DATE: 02/02/2010 04:03:58 AM I have the 2009 version of the book and it is really helpful. I am trying to help some snowboarders with a safer way to snowboard. So I am reading the New Rules because the last thing I want to do is spam someone. I have read a lot about how NOT to pitch to someone. It is great to have a guideline. Which is why I love this book. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Graeme Thickins EMAIL: graemethickins@gmail.com IP: 71.195.15.247 URL: http://www.tech-surf-blog.com DATE: 02/02/2010 11:26:57 AM I have the original "Advance Uncorrected Proof" from 2007 - signed even! (Thanks, David) Now I long for the update.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: john EMAIL: johnhasan.09@gmail.com IP: 122.161.19.167 URL: DATE: 02/11/2010 01:51:48 AM The version of 2009 is really helpful. I am reading this version & trying to help some snowboarders with a good way. john thanks ............... PLR articles ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 5 Keys to Success with Content Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 5-keys-to-success-with-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/28/2010 09:16:55 PM ----- BODY:

Here's a content marketing interview with me conducted by J-P de Clerck. I like the way J-P summed up the key successes and failures in content marketing for me. Hope they are helpful.

The keys to success in content marketing:

Understanding the informational needs of your customers
Knowing how those informational needs mix with your marketing goals and objectives
Developing a content program around those needs
Being consistent (content marketing is a marathon, not a sprint)
Listen and continually evolve the program

Failure in content marketing:

Selling, rather than informing
Not being consistent with your content promise
Not listening, thus not evolving the content program
Waiting for perfection to come before you deliver the content.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing successes, failures ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Susan White EMAIL: info@orlando-vacationhomerental.com IP: 12.187.250.194 URL: http://www.orlando-vacationhomerental.com DATE: 02/02/2010 09:12:37 PM Joe, Very very insightful information. Your book and blog help keep us focused! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: SEO and content marketing: Creating content with keywords in mind STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: seo-and-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/27/2010 09:24:20 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Emily Thompson, online marketing coordinator for Kutenda Online Marketing Software, for this week's guest post.

Couple thoughts I (Joe) had while reading this. First, you need to understand your brand persona first and foremost when it comes to SEO and content marketing. In other words, what do you need to be a true expert in to drive your business? That will help determine the tactics Emily speaks to.

Also, regarding Emily's last point, design-intensive content marketing, through devices such as the iPad, is becoming more important. As content marketers, we need to start understanding that "content" is the combination of words and pictures (and the context). We can and do gain credibility off of both. Although I'm biased, like Emily, toward the word, I am more focused on the interplay between both more than ever.

SEO and Content Marketing

Content is King. If you’re doing content marketing, you understand its importance, and the trust it builds with the community and your target audience. Content is at the heart of all your online marketing efforts because it not only engages readers, it also tells the search engines that you have something of value. SEO and content marketing go hand-in-hand.

Keeping your SEO goals in mind when creating your content is extremely powerful. A great way to start is to construct your content marketing and creation plan around the keywords you would like to rank for. When writing your content, factor in the keywords you would like to focus on. Here are a few recommended first steps:

Start by using a keyword tool, such as the Google keyword tool, to research which keywords could be the most profitable and provide you with the most traffic (the right kind of traffic). While the Google keyword tool is designed for paid search efforts, it can be a good indicator of traffic volume and introduce you to common variations of your product or service you may not have considered. It also provides you with the actual terms people are using in search-not just your industry jargon. The results may surprise you!
After you’ve determined which keywords you’d like to concentrate on, it’s time to start incorporating these in your content. For on-page website content, it’s recommended to use three variations of your core keyword, about six-to-eight times per page, focusing the majority on your main search term. Remember to keep it natural, and provide good, informative text.
It’s also important to be consistent with your chosen keywords throughout the other areas of your content marketing. Don’t use one term in your website content, and another in your white papers. Continuity is imperative to your online marketing efforts and it will help strengthen your position.
Users will also link to sites that have great content. Those inbound links are vital to improving your search engine rankings. The search engines see an inbound link from a quality site as a vote for you - the more votes, the better!

In many ways, content is often more important than design. Visitors will return to your site as long as they can learn something, regardless of whether it’s the “prettiest” or not (think craigslist!). Remember, valuable content is crucial to attaining new business. By utilizing SEO and other online marketing avenues, you will bring attention to that content and help your business grow.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: SEO, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: cynthia bailey md EMAIL: cbailey@sonic.net IP: 24.130.98.116 URL: http://www.otbskincare.com/blog/ DATE: 01/28/2010 12:05:13 PM I appreciate to concise recommendations on how many times to use the key words and to be consistent among my other content. My dermatology/medical blog is new and I'm developing my writing style. I need the reminder that key words count tremendously or I'm writing to a nonexistent readership. Thanks. Cynthia Bailey MD http://www.otbskincare.com/blog/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Heather Lloyd-Martin EMAIL: heather@seocopwriting.com IP: 71.193.203.170 URL: http://www.seocopywriting.com DATE: 01/28/2010 01:11:17 PM Hello! Great article - thanks so much for writing it. Something to consider - there's not really a hard and fast rule about how many times to include a keyword. With some pages, including the keyword 6-8 times may be too much. With other pages, you may be able to get away with using more keywords. It all depends on the keyword competitiveness, the overarching content marketing strategy, and how the keyphrase "sounds" within the copy. Also, another great keyword tool (and one that's probably a bit more reliable than Google's) is WordStream (www.wordstream.com.) WordStream has a free and a paid version - and even their free tools are very robust. Wordtracker (www.wordtracker.) and KeywordDiscovery (www.keyworddiscovery.com) are also very good. :) Hope this helps! Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Randy Duermyer EMAIL: randy@marketitwrite.com IP: 75.67.41.98 URL: http://www.marketitwrite.com DATE: 01/29/2010 08:06:15 AM Good post. I agree that keywords play an important role in content marketing, as I wrote about at http://marketitwrite.com/blog/2009/12/keyword-research-and-content-marketing/. I also agree with Joe's intro that the keywords you use need to resonate with the persona you are targeting. What's not mentioned here is the additional consideration that should be given to keywords that are popular in your local market, if you operate locally or regionally and that's where your prospects are. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Forget the Buyer Persona...What's Your Brand Persona? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: forget-the-buyer-personawhats-your-brand-persona CATEGORY: marketers CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 01/26/2010 11:18:03 AM ----- BODY:

I had an excellent podcast interview with Kim Albee from Genoo yesterday (it will be up in a week or so) where we talked in detail about content marketing and authenticity.

The first step in being authentic in your content marketing and social media? Understanding who YOU are. What's your brand story? What do you stand for?

So much focus in content marketing is understanding the buyer persona - or understanding exactly who your customers are, what their pain points are, their informational needs, etc. (Some companies go so far as to name their personas and create pictures of them.)

Buyer personas? Extremely important...no doubt.

Your brand persona? Critical.

We've all heard the phrase "before you can love other people, you have to first love yourself."

Same goes for content marketing.

Before you truly understand your customers (buyer persona), you have to understand yourself (brand persona).

Just think of the difference between Southwest and Continental airlines. Two reputable companies. Two very different companies. If Continental came out with a video series about their flight attendants doing tricks on passengers, it would seem severely out of place. Southwest, not so much.

What is your brand story?

What are the areas of expertise you want to stand for?

What are the tenets that your company stands by, no matter what?

If you were a person, what type of person would you be? Black, white, male, female, fun, serious, etc.

If your brand could change the world, where would you start?

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: And the winners are...WPSS 2010 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: and-the-winners-arewpss-2010 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 01/26/2010 08:19:40 AM ----- BODY:

It's time to announce the winners of the White Paper Success Summit 2010 contest we launched a few weeks back.

The grand prize award goes to Mark McClure from SamaraiWriter.com. Mark gets two tickets to White Paper Success Summit 2010 PLUS

A consultation with Michael Stelzner, author of Writing White Papers: How to Capture Readers and Keep Them Engaged
A copy of the Get Content Get Customers book by me
A copy of the book Writing White Papers by Michael Stelzner

The Twitter winner goes to Alicia Hicks. Alicia gets a free pass to WPSS 2010.

Congratulations to both of you and thanks to everyone who entered.

And if you'd still like to attend this event, there is still a bit of time. Click here to see the full details on the 15 sessions...

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: white paper success summit, wpss ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alicia Hicks EMAIL: alicia@sellingwoman.com IP: 70.253.141.218 URL: http://sellingwoman.com DATE: 01/26/2010 12:08:14 PM Thanks Joe! I can't wait to dive in to WPSS! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael A. Stelzner EMAIL: mike@socialmediaexaminer.com IP: 99.157.80.86 URL: http://www.whitepapersummit.com/ms/ DATE: 01/26/2010 02:37:14 PM Congrats Alicia! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 221.186.157.78 URL: http://samuraiwriter.com/blog DATE: 01/26/2010 09:12:07 PM Thank you Joe and Mike! I'm very much looking forward to the summit, reading your books and the consulting session with Mike. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: williamhinsch@gmail.com EMAIL: williamhinsch@me.com IP: 24.53.178.247 URL: http://www.learningvisuals.com DATE: 01/27/2010 06:31:13 AM How do I get a copy of the winning effort? Can someone send it to me at williamhinsch@gmail.com? Thanks Bill Hinsch ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/27/2010 07:47:25 AM Hi Bill...here it is. http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/incredible-white-paper-success-secret-revealed-right-here ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Special Report - Content Marketing Spending Continues to Rise STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: special-report-content-marketing-spending-continues-to-rise CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 01/24/2010 09:56:48 PM ----- BODY:

The results are in. Content marketing spending will rise again in 2010.

The 3rd Annual 2010 Junta42 Content Marketing Spending Survey found for the third straight year that marketers will again put significantly more money into content marketing initiatives.

Go here for the complete content marketing spending survey results and a complimentary download of the final report.

Content Marketing Spending Takeaways:

6 of 10 marketers are increasing content marketing spending in 2010. Only 7% are decreasing spending.
According to the 259 survey respondents, average content marketing budgets are 33% of the total marketing budget (up from 29% in 2008)
Small companies spend more than 2x the amount on content marketing as to larger companies.
Of all content areas, marketers are increasing their focus on mobile content solutions more than any other area (as a % growth from 2009).
Content marketing spending overall increased 11% from 2008 to 2010.

Click here to see the entire report (with pretty charts and everything). Enjoy!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing spending ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dianna Huff EMAIL: diannathewriter@yahoo.com IP: 24.63.115.248 URL: http://www.marcom-writer-blog.com DATE: 01/28/2010 06:52:12 AM Joe, Your survey doesn't say, but how do you define "mobile content"? Smart phones now render almost all content "mobile." I now access blogs, email, Websites, books, and social media with my phone. Should companies be working to ensure their content can be accessed via a smart phone? I found it interesting that all numbers when down for what people deemed important to know -- i.e. social media, e-newsletters, etc. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/28/2010 09:17:24 AM Hi Dianna...we didn't get into specifics on mobile content solutions...but yes, we are really talking about content that we take with us on iPhones, smart phones, iPads, Kindles, etc. I agree with you on the educational points - very interesting that most went down except for mobile. Thanks for responding... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Delfeld EMAIL: mark.delfeld@gmail.com IP: 173.48.162.202 URL: DATE: 03/31/2010 07:47:41 AM Joe, What exactly is content marketing (or in other words, how did you define it to the survey participants)? What is the other 67% of the budget spent on? Thank, Mark ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 12.199.9.16 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/31/2010 07:56:45 AM Hi Mark...good question. Content marketing - for this survey - was the creation and distribution of informational or entertainment content to attract or retain customers. Didn't ask about the other 67%, but that would most likely be traditional media like advertising, reseller marketing, direct marketing, etc. Hope that helps and thanks! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Dawn of Content Strategy and 38 2010 Predictions STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-dawn-of-content-strategy-and-38-2010-predictions CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 01/21/2010 12:50:33 PM ----- BODY:

Click Documents put together this truly helpful eBook on Content Marketing - 39 predictions from the top content marketers, B2B marketers, email marketers and social media experts (and yes, it includes yours truly).

Here is the content marketing eBook (no signup required)

Here's my prediction for easy reference (found on page 38...oh so close to page 42)

The Dawn of Content Strategy

Content strategy is the most important part of marketers’ toolbox. How we tell our story and educate customers is paramount.

As marketers are starting to understand that they are indeed publishers, content marketing strategy is moving toward the forefront. What is content marketing strategy? It involves the following:

Clearly understanding the goals behind all pieces of content
Knowing our customers’ information needs as it relates to those goals
Setting up listening posts to gather that information
Start figuring out where our customers are hanging out on the web
Choosing content tactics that tell a brand story that will resonate with customers and prospects

Publishers have been doing this, in one form or another, for years. Now is the time that marketers will begin to take the strategy behind creating content seriously, and figuring out how to leverage content to grow the business.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content strategy, content marketing predictions ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brandon Klein EMAIL: brandon@collaborationking.com IP: 69.204.248.224 URL: http://collaborationking.com DATE: 01/21/2010 05:04:00 PM We live and breathe our content. Written over the last 20 years, we are just publishing it piece by piece, sharing some of the best collaboration experiences ever written. http://collaborationking.com The goal of the content though is for the user to be able to change their old, antiquated collaboration techniques. Bounce back if you think it fits within 'content strategy' ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alison EMAIL: alison.bolen@sas.com IP: 65.185.167.153 URL: http://blogs.sas.com/sascom DATE: 01/22/2010 11:16:01 AM Really like this quote from Joe Lodico: "Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook…these are the starting points. Look for ways to move to higher level, quality connections." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McCulloch EMAIL: mark@markmcculloch.com IP: 86.172.22.128 URL: http://www.AmazingExtraIncome.com DATE: 01/22/2010 11:58:37 AM Great blog with awesome information. Your design and layout is fantastic and I very much enjoy visiting your blog. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 01/22/2010 12:02:22 PM Hi Joe: Thanx for the mention. It was a great pleasure collaborating with you on ClickPredictions eBook. Thank You for inspiring and educating me about content marketing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/incredible-white-paper-success-secret-revealed-right-here DATE: 01/23/2010 09:40:48 AM Thanks for this - I 'content snacked' on it and out of my marketing toaster popped the following: - the rapid increase (see the ebook) in folks with 'social media' in their job titles on LinkedIn. A provocative statistic indeed. Is LI leading or lagging in the SM area? - a focus on marketing automation requiring the creation of relevant content. I have a horse in this race and so was nodding along in agreement... ;-) - ... except that the ease with which floods, no torrents, of dross can still be directed at people online will mean that the content they really want can only come into view via "micro fragmentation" of markets and tribes. - "You can't be everything to everyone." This is good news as jewels in the content dust will really shine. - Social Media ROI tools. I'd love to know more about how b2b folks are going to track and report on investments of money, energy and time in this brave, new sm world. - "word of mouth." There's no stopping this empowerment of consumers / customers / groups. Seems like the marketing / advertising dinosaurs are looking upward as the initial asteroid streaks across their screens... just wait 'till the big one behind blasts in without warning. Game over! (the little guys win) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Year of Content Marketing How STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-year-of-content-marketing-how CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/20/2010 02:20:56 PM ----- BODY:

2008

The Year of Content Marketing What - Most marketers never heard the term and didn't "get" it. Lots of explaining to do.

2009

The Year of Content Marketing Why - Marketers now knew what is was, but needed to convince their teams (and bosses) why it was so important (if you are not convinced, get the content marketing book).

2010

The Year of Content Marketing How - Marketers know what it is and why it's so important. 2010 is the year we see major content marketing projects come to fruition (especially online). Marketers are talking content strategy and how content needs to be the center of their social media program.

I've been talking about the content marketing revolution for over a decade now. It seems like it took 10 years for us to get to it.

We are in the middle of something amazing, whether you realize it or not. Brands, small, medium and large, are the publishers of today and tomorrow.

Long live content marketing.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing how, content marketing ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Does Branded Integration Really Work? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: does-branded-integration-really-work CATEGORY: branded content CATEGORY: marketers DATE: 01/19/2010 11:00:00 PM ----- BODY:

hanks to Randall Beard, EVP and General Manager - Nielsen, for sharing this week's guest post...

Instead of using your own content marketing to surround and reinforce your brand, what if you put someone else’s TV program content around it instead? Branded Integrations, done right, use TV program content to drive your brand. The problem, though, is that most Branded Integrations come about by happenstance and not by use of proven tools and techniques. Here's how to successfully use Branded Integrations as part of your Content Marketing portfolio.

Branded Integration – A Short History

Branded Integration has a long history, arguably as old as publishing itself. The Lifesavers brand was integrated into the 1932 Groucho Marx movie “Horsefeathers,” and Spielberg's "E.T." featured the first paid candy integration: Reese's Pieces. National Geographic had a starring role in the 1946 movie “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

Procter & Gamble and Unilever sponsored soap operas continued the trend. More recently, companies have taken branded integrations even further with video games and even programs designed around TV commercial characters (Geico Cavemen).

Given this long history, it should come as no surprise that Branded Integration is big business: PQ Media estimated 2006 product placement spending at $3.1B.

Is This A Good Idea ?

Being big and being good aren’t always the same thing. Does Branded Integration really work? Certainly, the large spending would lead you to think so. However, the usual process for developing branded entertainment – haphazard and creative driven -- often leaves something to be desired. A branded entertainment company executive once explained the process something like this:

“The studio sends us a script. We break it down. We look for our clients demographics and then we tell our client this movie is available with this actor, with this director, with this producer, do you want it?”

Is this really the way companies should be deciding to spend $3.1B a year?

What Really Drives Branded Integration Results?

There are four keys to making Branded Integration work as Content Marketing for your brand:

1. Choose the Right TV Shows – The best way to get high brand recall and brand opinion shift from your Branded Integration is to pick a show that fits with your brand and has high scores historically for Branded Integrations. Predictive models which isolate the factors most impacting brand recall, opinion shift, and fit with brand generally show that over 50% of the models’ variation are driven by TV show selection. Fortunately for Marketers, there are now syndicated panels which measure TV program Branded Integration effectiveness – so you can know a program's track record ahead of time.

2. Design the Most Impactful Integration – Having selected the right genre and program for your integration, don’t just rely on the network and agency to tell you what the integration will look like. You need to negotiate for what really works. And what works, based on predictive modeling, is the following:

Involve Your Brand Longer – The duration of the integration makes a big difference; longer is better
Visualize Your Brand Icon – Don’t accept just an audio appearance; your brand needs to be visualized
Have Your Product Touched or Worn – It’s key to have characters physically interact with your product
Connect Your Brand to a Main Character – Physical interaction is good, but interaction with the main star is even better

These factors have been proven through research to be the most important creative factors in determining brand integration recall and positive brand opinion shift. Make sure that your execution includes them.

3. Advertise Your Brand During the Program – This seems obvious but is often overlooked. Nielsen IAG research shows that ads aired during a program with the same brand integration generally score better for recall, branding and likeability than the same ads aired outside the Branded Integration program. Said simply, there really is “synergy” between your Branded Integration and your ad in the same program.

4. Execute Branded Integrations in Multiple Shows in a Season – Continuity is key. If possible, negotiate for a series based branded integration, instead of an episode. Why? Having a Branded Integration in previous episodes of the same series raises brand recall and brand opinion by about 1% per previous episode -- for example, take Subway's series integration in NBC's "Chuck."

Subway's integration in NBC's "Chuck" not only increased sales, but saved the series.

Where Should Marketers Focus?

Adding Branded Integrations to your content marketing portfolio provides another way to drive engagement with your brand (for more see "Build Your Brand with Content Marketing"). But, don’t just walk blindly into it. Choose the right programs, design the integration for greatest impact, advertise during the program and deliver integrations consistently for maximum impact.

So the next time your Agency calls with their next "BIG" branded integration idea, do your brand a favor. Ask the tough questions: Why is this the right show? How will the execution optimize impact? What's the proposal for integrating my ads? Is this part of a longer deal? Most importantly, negotiate from a position of strength: use historical data and learnings about what really drives Branded Integration success to add another powerful element to your Content Marketing mix.

Follow Randall Beard on Twitter, or get Randall's blog on a regular basis by subscribing here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Win Tickets to White Paper Success Summit 2010 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: white-paper-success-summit-2010-contest-junta42 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 01/13/2010 02:56:00 PM ----- BODY:

Michael Stelzner is putting on another one of his fantastic online summits. This time it is the White Paper Success Summit 2010, billed as the “largest online event dedicated to helping you successfully market your business with white papers.”

Now you have the exclusive chance to win two valuable seats to the event!

The line-up is an all-star cast. Join Michael Stelzner (author, Writing White Papers), Bob Bly (author, White Paper Marketing Handbook), John Jantsch (author Duct Tape Marketing), Brian J. Carroll (author, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale), Jill Konrath (author, Selling to Big Companies), Roger C. Parker (author, White Paper Design that Sells), Ardath Albee (author, eMarketing Strategies for the Complex Sale), Jonathan Kantor (author, Crafting White Paper 2.0), me and many others!

You're going to learn about great topics such as:

More Business Than You Can Handle: How to Achieve The Business Dream With A Single White Paper
7 Ways to Guarantee Your Next White Paper Is a Success
Generating More Leads and Sales with Free White Papers
Launching White Papers Like Products: 7 Steps to Boosting White Paper Performance (A Case Study)
Proven Techniques for Using White Papers for the Complex Sale
Partnering for Leads: Getting Other Businesses to Promote Your Paper
Supercharging Your White Paper Distribution for Maximum Impact
Low-Cost Ways to Market Your White Paper
Turning White Paper Leads into Customers
Leveraging Social Media to Promote Your White Papers

Click here to see the full details on the 15 sessions...

This event does not require any travel (no hotel, rental car or wasted time). You simply attend sessions online and meet the experts and network with peers from the comfort of your home or office. Pretty cool, eh? :)

Here’s What You Could Win!

There are two prizes:

1. Twitter Prize: Valued at $597

One ticket to White Paper Success Summit 2010

2. Grand prize: Valued at $1,754.00!

Two tickets to White Paper Success Summit 2010 (one for you and one for a friend) PLUS

A consultation with Michael Stelzner, author of Writing White Papers: How to Capture Readers and Keep Them Engaged (Michael will spend an hour with you, personally advising you on your white paper marketing)
A copy of the Get Content Get Customers book by me
A copy of the book Writing White Papers by Michael Stelzner

Think how your business could be boosted by this package? Just the consult with Michael is priceless; MarketingSherpa calls him "The Grandfather of White Papers!"

Enter for the Twitter Prize

Simply post a tweet on Twitter using the button included here, or simply copy and paste the below tweet message. This automatically qualifies you for an entry into the prize drawing to win a free seat at the summit. You may tweet up to 5 times between now and January 25th, 2010. The tweet must contain “#wpss10win” to qualify. We will select the winner randomly on the January 26th, 2010.

The Tweet:

Win a FREE ticket to White Paper Success Summit 2010: http://bit.ly/WPSS-Junta42 #wpss10win

How to Win the Grand Prize

To win the grand prize, write a blog post (no longer than 1,000 words) explaining why you want to win two seats to the White Paper Success Summit 2010. Have your post published by midnight January 23rd, 2010 (EST). So we are notified about your post you will need to leave a trackback to this blog post or comment with a link to your post.

Remember the grand prize includes two summit tickets, a consultation with Michael Stelzner and two awesome books, so it is well worth getting your friends on board. The more friends who enter the more chances you have of getting a seat yourself.

Already purchased a ticket? No problem. If you win, you get your money back and free access to the summit!

Good Luck!

The winners will be selected by Michael Stelzner and I, and announced right here on this blog on January 26th, 2010.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: white paper summit 2010 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael A. Stelzner EMAIL: mike@socialmediaexaminer.com IP: 99.157.80.86 URL: http://www.whitepapersummit.com/ms/ DATE: 01/13/2010 05:00:54 PM Hey Folks! I strongly encourage you to write a post. Your chances of winning the grand prize are VERY high because MOST people simply hit the retweet button and do not go for the grand prize. Mike Stelzner ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Coree EMAIL: coree@marketlikeachick.com IP: 174.22.194.56 URL: http://www.marketlikeachick.com DATE: 01/13/2010 05:02:20 PM Such a great opportunity!! I attended the Social Media Success Summit that Michael put on and it was power packed! I've been wanting to work on a white paper and not sure how to get started...this would be an awesome win! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stephanie Smith EMAIL: lambdakennels1@gmail.com IP: 67.142.168.138 URL: http://www.lambdafarm.mysite.com DATE: 01/14/2010 08:40:54 AM I have posted about the White Paper Success Summit in my blog. Please enter me in the grand prize contest. Thank you. http://lambdakennels1.blogspot.com/2010/01/white-paper-success-summit.html ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Toph EMAIL: cnelson2@standard.com IP: 198.182.194.170 URL: DATE: 01/14/2010 03:50:30 PM Great opportunity! Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bob Medak EMAIL: rjmedak@stormywriter.com IP: 205.162.221.253 URL: http://stormywriter.com/default.aspx DATE: 01/14/2010 10:35:24 PM Free is the only way I could attend this conference. I have re-tweeted using the button. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julie Nelson EMAIL: julie@aromatiqueessentials.com.au IP: 203.202.177.13 URL: http://www.aromatiqueessentials.com.au DATE: 01/15/2010 02:23:07 AM Thank you so much for the opportunity to attend the paper success summit. I have re-tweeted and will post on my blog and fanpage. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McCulloch EMAIL: mark@markmcculloch.com IP: 86.172.22.128 URL: http://www.CoachOfSuccess.com DATE: 01/16/2010 07:19:15 PM Great blog yet again I still love the design and layout. I will tell you what is even better however is the opportunity to win these tickets. What you are doing is just absolutely amazing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Donna Kaluzniak EMAIL: donnak@clearwire.net IP: 64.195.66.183 URL: http://www.LogicalEcology.net DATE: 01/17/2010 08:35:51 PM Thanks so much for the chance to win the 2 free tickets! Please see my blog post at: http://logicalecology.wordpress.com/2010/01/18/white-paper-success-summit-2010/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://samuraiwriter.com/blog DATE: 01/20/2010 12:21:07 PM And here's my entry to this interesting competition: http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/incredible-white-paper-success-secret-revealed-right-here ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kristina Stiffler EMAIL: kstiffler@cwritingsllc.com IP: 65.60.235.187 URL: http://www.cwritingsllc.com DATE: 01/20/2010 03:27:56 PM What a great contest. Here's my entry: http://wp.me/pGQYL-y ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: William Hinsch EMAIL: williamhinsch@gmail.com IP: 24.53.162.130 URL: http://www.learningvisuals.com/Blog/Blog/Blog/Blog.html DATE: 01/24/2010 08:38:07 PM I posted my WP Summit article here last night before the midnight deadline but don't see it here tonight--so I send again. How can I make sure Michael Selzner has gotten it? please advise as I'd like a shot at winning if possible. Here's my links to the two blogs I posted it on: http://www.learningvisuals.com/Blog/Blog/Blog/Blog.html http://businesstabletalk.blogspot.com/2010/01/normal-0-false-false-false-en-us-x-none.html ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/24/2010 08:43:33 PM We got it William! Thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Fuminahara EMAIL: fuminahara22@gmail.com IP: 122.174.94.37 URL: http://listeasy.net DATE: 05/23/2010 11:11:48 PM Such a great opportunity!! I attended the Social Media Success Summit that Michael put on and it was power packed! I've been wanting to work on a white paper and not sure how to get started...this would be an awesome win! Easy Online Ticketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ainur EMAIL: ainurs@list.ru IP: 94.180.176.197 URL: http://ainursafin.com DATE: 07/28/2010 04:16:32 AM Unfortunately, I missed this opportunity. As a b2b marketing consultant this information is in my field of interest. What are the dates of next Social Media Success Summit? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 68.167.244.60 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/28/2010 06:00:10 AM Hi Ainur...just check socialmediaexaminer.com for all the latest on the next Summit. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ryan Malone EMAIL: ryan@smartbugmedia.com IP: 173.203.99.120 URL: http://www.smartbugmedia.com DATE: 08/25/2010 04:26:31 AM Great Opportunity indeed! Looking forward to the next summit and the chance to win free tickets! Ryan Malone SmartBug Media An inbound marketing agency @RyanMalone New report: 7 Tactics to Boosting White Paper Performance ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Columbus Ohio Web Design EMAIL: sense@shattersense.com IP: 65.122.99.48 URL: http://shattersense.com DATE: 09/23/2010 09:51:35 AM aww :( i missed the opportunity to enter ----- PING: TITLE: And the winners are...WPSS 2010 URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2010/01/and-the-winners-arewpss-2010.html IP: 10.17.151.36 BLOG NAME: Junta42 Content Marketing blog DATE: 01/26/2010 08:24:19 AM It's time to announce the winners of the White Paper Success Summit 2010 contest we launched a few weeks back. The grand prize award goes to Mark McClure from SamaraiWriter.com. Mark gets two tickets to White Paper Success Summit 2010... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing - Motivation and 19 Lessons Learned STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-motivation-and-19-lessons-learned CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 01/12/2010 09:05:19 AM ----- BODY:

A few members of the Junta42 staff had some free time on their hands and emailed this to me. They preferred to remain anonymous.

I actually thought this was quite helpful. Maybe you will as well.

The things we learn from Joe Pulizzi:

It is okay to talk with your hands (even if you are on the phone)
It is all about the customer.
If you are not having fun, you are doing something wrong.
Content marketing is king. No content, no throne.
There is no such thing as too much social media, if you have a compelling story.
SEO (search engine optimization) is a pain to figure out – but you can’t survive without it, so either figure it out or pay someone else to do it.
When in doubt, outsource.
When you don't have the expertise, outsource.
You’ve got to spend money to make money.
You would be surprised what you can learn from your children.
Everyone should have a vice.
Writing a book is a lot of work – but worth it 10 times over.
Diversify – retirement yes, but in content marketing as well – whitepapers, video, print, podcast, Tweet, Facebook etc. Be where your customers are at. Figure out how they like to receive information.
Just because someone says so doesn’t mean it is true.
Blog as often as you can but be consistent. Consistency comes first.
Take a shot.
Content Content Content.
You can never own too many URL’s.
There is no such thing as starting too many businesses at once.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kim Cornwall Malseed EMAIL: kcornwall@marcomink.com IP: 96.255.228.89 URL: http://www.marcomink.com/b2b-technology-marcom-blog/ DATE: 01/13/2010 03:22:27 AM A fantastic list Joe, thanks for sharing! I'm printing out and putting it on my office wall :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 81.149.233.139 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 01/15/2010 03:23:06 AM You were right, I did find this helpful, thanks a lot for sharing. I particularly agree with Content Is King. No Content No Throne. I think with different aspects of SEO and marketing, some people don't see content that valuable anymore. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: How Long Should You Spend on Twitter Each Day? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: how-long-should-you-spend-on-twitter-each-day CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 01/07/2010 09:33:33 PM ----- BODY:

Every speech I give to marketing professionals, I get asked one of two possible questions:

How long do you spend on Twitter each day?, or
How long should I spend using Twitter each day?

Bar none, this is the best response to using Twitter that I have heard - from Guy Kawasaki:

Question: How long do you spend on Twitter every day?

Answer: Asking me this is like asking Tiger Woods how much he plays golf. “It’s what I do.” If I’m on the computer, I’m on Twitter, and I’m on a computer eight hours per day.

After reading this from Guy, I realized he's exactly right. When I'm on the computer (which is most of the day), or using my iPhone (when I'm not using the computer), I'm on Twitter.

Twitter, as well as other social media, just becomes part of what you do as a marketing professional. We have no choice anymore. It just is.

And you know what...that's okay by me.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andee Sellman, One Sherpa EMAIL: andy@onesherpa.com IP: 59.167.196.191 URL: http://www.onesherpa.com DATE: 01/08/2010 04:53:43 AM Great answer from Guy. I'm guessing that twitter is replacing SMS but with an informational context ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McCulloch EMAIL: mark@markmcculloch.com IP: 86.152.73.129 URL: http://www.CoachOfSuccess.com DATE: 01/08/2010 05:09:07 AM As someone who does alot of marketing on a daily basis and spends a great deal of time on twitter I really appreciate the quality of information and training you are providing. Many Thanks Mark McCulloch ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 96.252.47.38 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 01/08/2010 08:06:02 AM Two points: One, I'm not sure I'd use Tiger Woods as a credible model for any behavior... Two, I'm not sure I like equating computer use with being on Twitter. For me, the computer is a tool for creative work and Twitter can be a major distraction. Is Guy really suggesting that we take a Pavlovian approach to Twitter -- when we hear that sound, should we drop everything and read the latest Tweet? The older I get, the more I appreciate the sweet sound of silence... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.110.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/08/2010 08:43:15 AM Jonathan...I definitely see your point, but it's obvious that Guy has gotten to the point that he doesn't hear a sound and drop what he is doing...Twitter is a part of what he's doing. Now, I don't know if he's 100% right, but I relate it to how most companies view social media. Those that don't get it complain about having to spend time on Twitter and Facebook and not seeing the pay off. Those that do get it just integrate it into what they already do, who they are. It just is. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: The Baum Group/Dr. Rae and Associates EMAIL: TheBaumGroup@YourStressMatters.com IP: 151.201.115.82 URL: http://twitter.com/TheBaumGroup DATE: 01/08/2010 12:06:50 PM We are delighted to be using Twitter as a marketing tool on a daily basis, except on the weekends :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bugsy EMAIL: jwsailor@gmail.com IP: 69.129.151.78 URL: http://beerwithbranson.com DATE: 01/08/2010 01:56:08 PM It's also interesting when you can quantify Twitter, which isn't terrible hard. With Google Analytics you can track your landing pages and conversion rates and all that jazz and eventually get yourself a nice figure of revenue/tweet. I like to quantify. If you can do that you can get some basic estimates of what the value is for the time you put into it. But that's silly, just keep Tweeting, it's changing the world :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brody Dorland EMAIL: b.dorland@somethingcreativeinc.com IP: 69.254.229.62 URL: http://www.somethingcreativeinc.com DATE: 01/09/2010 11:28:59 AM From an outbound marketing/sales perspective, I have a fishing analogy (simplified) that works well to explain this...If the twitter pond may be a ripe fishing hole for your business, then by all means develop your bait (content strategy) and dedicated some time to fishing each day (posting, engaging, etc.). If you start catching fish (good traffic, inquiries, phone calls), then why not fish more often? If your fish aren't using twitter, be careful not to spend too much time when you should be fishing in other ponds. Now, the inbound side of things (inspiration, ideas, monitoring, etc.) is a completely different story... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ben lovie EMAIL: ben@aerialagency.com IP: 216.198.139.84 URL: DATE: 01/09/2010 11:29:19 AM I truly hope marketers will realize that Twitter is well executed spam. I don,t think marketers have a problem with the choice of communication tools, our problem is we talk to much and don,t get our real world hands dirty. Let the bird out of the cage. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.110.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/09/2010 03:00:29 PM @Brody...great analogy Ben...I disagree. For those marketers that use twitter to promote services, yes you are right, it is spam. For those who want to build relationships with real customers and contribute valuable content, then Twitter should be considered an option. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: forexqs.blogspot.com EMAIL: forexqs.blogspot.com@gmail.com IP: 41.214.132.166 URL: http://www.forexqs.blogspot.com DATE: 01/10/2010 06:31:44 AM I would love to read more about this topic. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: @udeme EMAIL: uekarika@gmail.com IP: 41.219.243.185 URL: http://twitter.com/udeme DATE: 01/11/2010 07:22:25 AM I think Twitter as a marketing tool is a VERY BAD idea, and will yield negative marketing results. Marketing on Twitter is spammy behaviour. Everyone hates spam bots and spammy personas and they promptly unfollow/block/flag such users. Twitter's better as an info stream ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/11/2010 07:59:17 AM @udeme You are correct. That is why if you use Twitter as a marketing tool, it must be in the form of valuable, relevant and compelling information. Now that's a good use of Twitter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julio Ricardo Varela EMAIL: juliorvarela@v5group.net IP: 24.60.196.129 URL: http://v5llcgroup.com DATE: 01/11/2010 11:43:57 PM A-freakin-men. There is no "real time rule" for Twitter. If it it part of your job, then you work it like anything else. This is so dead on perfect. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sushant Sahay EMAIL: sushant@schoolsearch.in IP: 59.95.159.250 URL: http://www.schoolsearch.in DATE: 01/12/2010 02:07:36 AM Yes.. twitter is replacing SMS. Statistics say that Most of the tweets are fired from Mobile Phones. This is new generation Texting. Question is not how much time do you spend on Tweeter, as it is not like you are dedicating some time for it, it is like whenever some one tweets(send you a message) you read that or re tweet that if you like it and keep working again... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rachel EMAIL: rachel@rampcreative.com IP: 99.33.165.216 URL: http://www.rampcreative.com DATE: 01/19/2010 01:24:57 AM Sometimes it takes a great deal of dedication to start and foster a community... and to do whatever it takes to get the conversation rolling cannot be measured. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark McClure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.186 URL: http://www.samuraiwriter.com/blog/ DATE: 01/19/2010 09:40:58 AM I wonder if Guy outsourced his tweeting would anyone notice? The earlier comment about fishing in ponds is how I feel about Twitter too. So much writing to do, so little time. Tweeting tweekly tis fine for me :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/19/2010 01:53:36 PM Mark...Guy does outsource his Tweeting...although I didn't know it until I read the article. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 30 Content Marketing Truths for 2010 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 30-content-marketing-truths-for-2010 CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/05/2010 02:40:53 PM ----- BODY:

Whenever I can get two numbers into the title of a content marketing post, good things are always bound to happen. ;)

As we move into 2010, I thought I'd share these 30 content marketing truths that are taped above my desk. Whenever I lose my way (to a more traditional mindset), I read through this content-marketing heavy list. It's guaranteed to help.

That the content is more important than the offer.
That a customer relationship doesn't end with the payment.
That printed marketing doesn't stop with the full-page advertisement.
That "being the content" is more important than "surrounding the content".
That interruption isn't valued, but engagement is.
That a blog can be and should be a core part of communicating with and marketing to your customers.
That internal marketing always takes precedence over external marketing.
That a brand is a relationship, not a tag line.
That focusing on what the customer wants is more important than what you have to sell.
That readers are old school, customers are new school.
That the competition can copy everything you have, except your brand. Communications is the differentiator.
That a news release isn't meant to be picked up by the press, but to help customers find your great content on the web.
That communicating directly with customers is the best choice.
That marketers can and should be publishers.
That today's traditional publishers are scared of marketers.
That without content, community is improbable, if not impossible.
That the marketing brochure should be stricken from all strategic marketing plans.
That content without design doesn't look appetizing (or deliver on marketing goals).
That lead generation is only one small part of the marketing picture.
That hiring an editor is not a want, but a must, for the organization.
That, no matter the medium or the provider, someone is always selling something.
That the long tail of search engine optimization is driven by consistent content on your corporate blog or website.
That 90% of all corporate websites talk about how great the company or product is and forgets about the customer.
That 90% of all corporate websites suck.
That the blogging community will be more important than traditional media (if not already).
That in the next five to seven years the majority of content consumers engage in will be corporate media (if not already).
That buyers are in control, the traditional sales process has changed, and that relevant content lets organizations into the buying process.
That long-form branded content can be created anywhere your customers work, live or play.
That the Chief Content Officer is the CMO of the future.
That customers want to be inspired. Be the inspiration!

Thank you to those companies that get the value of content marketing. For everyone else...there's no time like the present (so get this content marketing white paper - it will help).

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing truths ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: PLANETwebfoot EMAIL: natalie@azterik.com IP: 216.8.169.226 URL: http://www.planetwebfoot.com DATE: 01/05/2010 03:29:01 PM Thanks for sharing this list with us. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Giles (Webconomist) EMAIL: giles@mediabadger.com IP: 142.68.12.69 URL: http://www.mediabadger.com/blog DATE: 01/05/2010 03:36:13 PM I like 29 on the Chief Content Officer; I wonder when large corporations will get there. I wonder sometimes, as consumers, how much truth do we want to hear? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael Thimmesch EMAIL: mct@skyline.com IP: 207.67.40.209 URL: http://www.skylinetradeshowtips.com DATE: 01/05/2010 04:38:00 PM Excellent, excellent post. Your very fast 30 points are a guided tour of the drastic changes that the internet first, and now social media, have wrought in marketing over the last 15 years. While sometimes that change has been gradual, it seems like 2009 had a monumental shift, just like 2001 did. Marketers have to follow the advice long given to college professors, Publish or Perish! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO Kitchener EMAIL: jim.huinink@gmail.com IP: 99.236.54.140 URL: http://www.strongwords.ca DATE: 01/05/2010 05:12:07 PM Joe, thanks for this list! As someone who has moved (been forced by the market to move) from being a writer & editor to being a marketer, I can't agree more. And I look forward to the way the "information revolution" (remember that phrase?) continues to unfold. I might ping you back in an upcoming post. You beat me to the punch on the whole "looking forward to 2010" idea. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mattt EMAIL: matthewdsiden@gmail.com IP: 71.192.85.77 URL: http://www.nuggetisland.com DATE: 01/05/2010 08:45:48 PM Joe, two great finds from you in two days from two different sources. I am impressed! Great stuff. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lilly Ferrick EMAIL: lferrick@formalifesciencemarketing.com IP: 71.111.196.96 URL: http://www.formalifesciencemarketing.com DATE: 01/06/2010 09:56:35 AM I get a lot out of reading your posts. I will challenge you on #9 though in regards to what customers want. What customers want and what they need are not always the same. In situations where the customer is in need of an expert, it's most important to tell them what they need, if it's in fact, different than what they want. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.110.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/06/2010 09:59:45 AM Hi Lilly...I agree with you to a point on that. Many times, the consumer doesn't know what they want or need unless they are presented with a solution. I guess my take is that, from a content standpoint, our customers want information on how to grow their careers and personal lives, as it pertains to the product we have to offer. That's content marketing. So often we focus on sales information (what they don't want), and less on educational and inspirational information (what they want and need). It's probably semantics, but thanks for pointing it out. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stan Phelps EMAIL: stan@9inchmarketing.com IP: 173.2.37.225 URL: http://marketinglagniappe.com DATE: 01/06/2010 01:07:48 PM Joe, As usual - thank for providing the blueprint and thought leadership on content marketing: My thoughts or additional R.U.L.E.S for providing that 'little something extra' to your clients and prospects: R - Be relevant. Try to deliver added value and focus on getting it right with your most important marketing asset . . . your current customers U - Make it unexpected. Try to 'surprise and delight' your customers. Think of your added value as 'branded acts of kindness'. L - The power of limited. Differentiate your offerings and added value so it can not be copied. Think 'signature'. What is 'purple' about your product or service? E - Expression. Don't underestimate the importance of how you deliver your content? Sometimes its not how 'what is given', rather 'how it is given'. S - Sticky. Make sure what you are offering is watercooler material. Not only do they get value, but are they willing to share with others. Best, Stan @9INCHmarketing #PurpleGoldfishProject ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 99.164.159.132 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 01/06/2010 01:31:01 PM Great list Joe! The future looks bright indeed for the customer. Could you expand on #10 -- not quite sure what it means. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.110.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/06/2010 01:33:45 PM @Stan...thanks, great stuff @Russ...the thought there is that thinking of those that read your content as just readers discounts the fact that these readers make buying decisions. Think of all your readers as customers. When you do that, you write differently. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lissa Duty EMAIL: lissa@lissaduty.com IP: 64.202.229.162 URL: http://lissaduty.com DATE: 01/07/2010 12:03:51 AM Great post! #11 has been my strategy for branding! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Technology Sales Lead EMAIL: eric.anderson987@gmail.com IP: 117.196.238.240 URL: http://www.myprospecthill.com/ DATE: 01/07/2010 02:16:55 AM Thanks for giving idea. I really appreciate it. More share in the future. please.. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: The Baum Group/Dr. Rae and Associates EMAIL: TheBaumGroup@YourStressMatters.com IP: 151.201.115.82 URL: http://www.YourStressMatters.com/preparingfor2010.htm DATE: 01/08/2010 11:47:44 AM Great list Joe. Thanks for sharing :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sara Broderick EMAIL: broderick.sara@gmail.com IP: 128.206.73.82 URL: DATE: 01/08/2010 01:47:32 PM Thanks for this list, Joe! It's a great reminder of why we do what we do. I'm in a marketing role right now and my No. 1 consideration is always content. In content, there's value. It's important to remember that content doesn't have to be tricky or over-challenging to produce. It can exist in many mediums and forms. Just write down a list of what you, your client or your company is most passionate about, what you do best, what your competitors do best and start creating. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nic Lucas EMAIL: Info@niclucas.com IP: 114.73.196.163 URL: http://www.niclucas.com DATE: 01/09/2010 11:49:29 PM This is a great list and is congruent with the message of Jeff Jarvis in 'What would google do?'. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeremy Morris EMAIL: jezmos65@gmail.com IP: 68.43.197.49 URL: http://www.understandandserve.com DATE: 01/11/2010 01:27:36 PM Joe A good list. I think there's another important point however which is a bit of a qualifier for content marketing. It's that great content can't save you from a mediocre product or poor customer service. There's no hiding place anymore ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Farm Town Cheats EMAIL: aaronwebster300@gmail.com IP: 67.142.167.23 URL: http://farmtownheaven.com DATE: 02/13/2010 11:39:12 AM Excellent Post again, I keep reading your blog content! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Carroll EMAIL: david@thehomebusinesscompany.com IP: 174.30.231.174 URL: http://marketingtraditionalbusinesses.com/search-engine-optimization-basics-for-business-owners/ DATE: 02/28/2010 11:45:20 PM Joe I really like your list. You make folks and me think. In the months to come great copy writing and finding what your customer really thinks and giving it to them are going to be the key to success ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: albert maruggi EMAIL: amaruggi@providentpartners.net IP: 98.240.208.187 URL: http://www.providentpartners.net/blog DATE: 03/07/2010 09:33:34 AM Number One I'm always amazed at how a list will generate readers. That's a commentary in itself, perhaps a result of two generations of USA Today or perhaps acknowledgement that Moses was on to something that we are just picking up on. Second, content marketing is just a buzz word for marketers to stimulate new business let's face it. third, the issue and the rub will be for companies to avoid the temptation to scream they are the greatest, and acknowledge that they are not perfect, the best, most remarkable thing in the world. I prefer to get companies to face the realities of "content marketing" by saying consider this an opportunity to have an http://www.providentpartners.net/newsroompr an"embedded corporate journalist" that's the next transition companies will make if they want to move to be a company with a social culture and not one that merely implements social tactics. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Best SEO Companies EMAIL: bergstromseo.com@gmail.com IP: 59.93.218.184 URL: http://www.bergstrom-seo.com DATE: 05/14/2010 01:29:40 AM Subject of your post is very interesting.I 'd love to read more.Please make the next post here, i 'll be waiting for that.The best way to find the best SEO company for you business is to actually phone the SEO companies up. Explain your business to them. If they can't understand your business, then they probably can't help you. The top SEO companies understand SEO, but they also understand the needs of their clients. The best seo company can look into your business and figure out what your key customers are typing into Google. There's no point in hiring a SEO company that doesn't understand what your business is about. Without that knowledge, how will they know what keywords do to SEO for? Thanks~ Prasen Dutta a community member at Top SEO Companies ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Andrews EMAIL: mark.andrews65@googlemail.com IP: 86.157.218.12 URL: http://anger-management-for-children.com/ DATE: 06/01/2010 08:26:08 PM This is a great list but my fav is number 24 on the list - how true ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adam@How To Make MOney Online EMAIL: glemoh101@yahoo.com IP: 41.238.1.59 URL: http://www.4money-making-online.blogspot.com DATE: 07/16/2010 10:37:39 AM I can Add: 1-The content without good seo = NOTHING 2-Duplicate content is spam and wast of time because your site will be penalize 3-Add regular content .. Google like regular sites 4-don't submit dozen of articles in short time.. Google treat you as spam Finally.. I hope this tips help every one want to success online. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark-Strategic Marketing Consultant EMAIL: mark@clickherenowmarketing.com IP: 205.211.217.125 URL: http://www.clickherenowmarketing.com/category/internet-market-packages/strategic_marketing_and_response_technology/ DATE: 07/26/2010 05:16:06 PM I would like to comment on number 2 & 19 which are interlinked. This should be a very important part of your strategic marketing plan, that is to have an effective way to follow up and follow through with customers, whether they have just purchased an item or started communicating with your company. On average you need to have communicated with the client 7-9 times before they purchase, so this is crucial to long term success. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Owen Cooper EMAIL: what.is.ashmax@gmail.com IP: 94.171.73.43 URL: http://www.whatisashmax.com DATE: 07/27/2010 06:02:44 AM I agree with the comment which covers point 9 Giving customers what they wants may give them temporally satifaction but because it does not meet with what they actually need they become dissatified and tend to blame there dissatifaction on the seller and therefore do not become a long term customer. Much better to try and find out what they need, answer that need and you have a customer for life. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff EMAIL: contact@leadzumba.com IP: 122.169.213.11 URL: www.leadzumba.comhttp://www.leadzumba.com/ DATE: 08/18/2010 08:37:32 AM Great post, looking forward for the next one......... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rodney Ash EMAIL: rodneyash@newhomesteps.com IP: 98.212.147.50 URL: http://www.newhomesteps.com DATE: 11/06/2010 07:42:14 AM Joe, well it almost 2011 and I just found this post. Great list. I especially like number 15: That today's traditional publishers are scared of marketers. This so true. It's amazing to watch big newspaper companies still trying to figure it out. You should do a 2011 list. Thanks. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 8 Social Media Keys for 2010 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 8-social-media-keys-for-2010 CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 12/29/2009 09:31:43 AM ----- BODY:

One of my New Year's resolutions is to get more organized. This week, I've been going through some old notes from conferences I attended this year. Pulled out a great one-sheeter on keys to social media...thought you would enjoy.

Observation & Research
Pay attention especially to conversations between prospects and your customers. This is key market research. You must understand what information your customers/prospects need to hear (listen). Above all, social media is a research tool for unfiltered information. (here are some free social media marketing tools you can use to help)
Relevant Content
The most important part of social media and growing your business is what others say about you. Create content that sparks others to talk about you. Ultimately, this helps links, subscribers, search engine rankings and ultimately, sales. Social media starts with a content strategy.
Content Marketing
Maybe the most powerful online promotion around. Social media spreads that content. It's a powerful distribution tool, as long as the content is relevant, valuable and compelling. NOTE: Build the relationships with your network first. Share great content from others. Then, once you share, they will be likely to return the favor consistently.
Do People Want to Talk with You?
No, most people do not want to talk with you, but a few do. The others watch. Those that watch are heavily influenced by the conversation. How you handle these conversations tells everything about your company.
Authentic Content
Social media doesn't work without copywriting that is true to your company's message. Find a writing team that understands first your customers, then your brand.
Be Human
Make social media personal - approach it as people, not a company. Customers don't want to talk to you as a company, but they may want to talk to your thought leaders and content experts.
Don't Always Ask for Something
Most of your content should be given freely without asking for something in return. This is the essence of social media. (more here on gated versus ungated content)
Earn It
Results will happen if you work the process. A company cannot come in and expect results immediately. It happens after months and years of giving to your customers and prospects.

What is your social media strategy for 2010?

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: social media keys, social media tactics ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: tobias tinker EMAIL: tobias@aeosrecords.com IP: 89.247.212.21 URL: http://cliffjump.net DATE: 12/30/2009 07:01:04 PM Nice clear summary! It applies to independent people like me trying to create a microbrand as much as to a larger organization... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tom EMAIL: Tom@Kevins.Biz IP: 205.238.206.50 URL: http://www.kevins.biz DATE: 12/31/2009 10:53:12 AM great post. I am realizing more and more that quality trumps quantity and even then it takes Time. Sad but even as fast as the net moves things still takes time. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: PLANETwebfoot EMAIL: natalie@azterik.com IP: 216.8.169.226 URL: http://www.planetwebfoot.com DATE: 01/04/2010 02:53:14 PM Excellent post. I agree with all your points, but especially #2, Relevant Content. Social media is all about engagement and creating dialgoue. Our business has found the use of social networking technology to be particularly useful in this area. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Top 10 Content Marketing Articles of the Year STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: top-10-content-marketing-articles-of-the-year CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 12/28/2009 02:46:25 PM ----- BODY:

An annual Junta42 tradition, I enjoy going back and seeing the most popular content marketing articles for both the blog and the Junta42 community every year (here is the 2007 and 2008 review).

NOTE: for you content marketers, this is something you should do regularly, at least every quarter. Find out what people are reading and passing along, and adjust your content calendar to suit.

A quick analysis on what readers liked and spread around to others:

Lists - this is a recognition that people have limited time. When people see a number, they know that there is a beginning, an end, and something that can make use of in the middle.
Content marketing is what this blog is about, but Social Media is what people like to spread around (hence the titles below). Point: focus on what language your customers talk or think in, and use that language. It actually looks from the titles below that the Junta42 blog is actually about social media, not content marketing. In truth, it doesn't really matter.
If the content is valuable enough, both gated and ungated content can work, depending on your goal (see the top two articles for Junta42).

And now, drum roll please...

Most Viewed Articles on Junta42

The Content Marketing Playbook (The clear winner with 4,653 views)
42 ways to connect with your customers through content. Available in both html and PDF for easy viewing. No signup required.
Attract and Retain Customers with Content
Complimentary white paper that will help you step-by-step through the content marketing process.
10 Reasons Your Company Shouldn't Tweet
AdAge article that makes some sense for those who don't really want to use Twitter for the right reasons.
How to Write a Social Media Friendly B2B Sales Pitch
Joan D'Amico on the art of the non-sales pitch.
The Ultimate Guide for Everything Twitter
Everything you'll need to get going with Twitter from Web Design Depot.

There were so many good articles in the community in 2009. If you had a special one that hit home for you, please share it below. If you would like to receive the top content marketing articles on a weekly basis (every Friday), sign up for our Content Revolution enewsletter here.

Thanks to all of you. Looking forward to more great content marketing in 2010.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: top content marketing articles, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: james bond EMAIL: 2@NBAY.COM IP: 67.188.102.179 URL: http://www.nbay.com/classifieds DATE: 01/03/2010 12:20:49 AM Another great article. You know what? You need to write a book! Seriously, thankyou for the knowledge. Sincerely, James Bond http://www.nBay.com/classifieds ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 100 Social Media & Content Marketing Predictions - The eBook STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 100-social-media-content-marketing-predictions-the-ebook CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 12/22/2009 03:34:15 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks to our good friends at Zmags, we now have a 75-page eBook covering over 100 social media and content marketing predictions for 2010 from the most influential marketers in the world. You can view it here without signup!

Last week we released the 100 content marketing predictions for 2010, easily our most popular post of the year.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: social media predictions, content marketing predictions ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ari Herzog EMAIL: ariherzog@gmail.com IP: 98.216.123.138 URL: http://ariwriter.com DATE: 12/24/2009 10:00:33 PM This is neat, Joe! Thanks for putting an e-book together! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: bencurnett EMAIL: ben@matterhornmarketing.com IP: 71.182.6.78 URL: http://www.matterhornmarketing.com DATE: 12/28/2009 10:13:24 AM Joe, I can see why it was your most post. I found it incredibly interesting, and I'm sure I'll get plenty of use from it as a reference in 2010. Thanks for putting it together. Brilliant. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: The Baum Group/Dr. Rae and Associates EMAIL: TheBaumGroup@YourStressMatters.com IP: 151.201.18.176 URL: http://www.YourStressMatters.com DATE: 01/06/2010 11:45:59 AM Nice job Joe. Thanks for the inspiration :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Phil T EMAIL: pmt_2000_2000@yahoo.co.uk IP: 82.42.225.5 URL: http://downloadz2go.weebly.com/masterfus-forum.html#/20100710/the-movie-the-secret-64062/ DATE: 08/04/2010 03:53:57 PM The exciting thing about social media is it offers the opportunity to engage in two-way conversations with your customers. What better way to know how to best serve your customers than to hear directly from them? Social media has enabled new ways to initiate conversations, respond to feedback and maintain an active dialogue with customers. Here are a few tips to make your social media experience both rewarding and constructive: 1. Knowledgeable. If you are going to work with social media, be involved in social media. Start your own Twitter account, Facebook page, read blogs and get engaged. That is the best way to understand the culture,tone, best practices, and protocol. 2. Be transparent. When you are communicating in social media say who you are and who you work for. Be genuine and be real. 3. Be yourself. Readers can see through marketing talk. Be passionate about what you do and let that show through your personality. Let people see you as a person, not a mouthpiece. 4. Frequently post. It’s a lot of work but don’t post to your blog then leave it for two weeks. Readers won’t have a reason to follow you on Twitter or check your blog if they can’t expect new content regularly. 5. Add value. Include tips, tricks, and insights. People’s time is precious and they need to get something out of the time they spend with you. Make listening to you worth their time. 6. Respond. Answer questions, thank people even if it’s just a few words. Make it a two way conversation. 7. Listen. Appreciate suggestions and feedback, it will make what you do even better. 8. Learn from your mistakes. Don’t be afraid to say you were wrong and be quick to make changes when you are. 9. Share. You don’t have to be 100% internally focused. Link to other blogs, videos, and news articles. Re-tweet what others have to say. 10. Have fun. If you don’t like what you are doing, others will notice it and won’t enjoy interacting with you. ----- PING: TITLE: 100 Social Media & Content Marketing Predictions for 2010 URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/12/social-media-content-marketing-predictions-2010.html IP: 10.17.151.34 BLOG NAME: Junta42 Content Marketing blog DATE: 12/22/2009 03:36:35 PM Some things amaze me, like this year's social media and content marketing predictions list. What does one sent email and two tweets equal? Over 100 predictions from 60+ of the best and the brightest in marketing, content marketing, custom publishing... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Marketing Shoelaces STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: marketing-shoelaces CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 12/16/2009 10:54:11 AM ----- BODY:

No one seems exactly sure when, but shoelaces became popular sometime in the 20th century to better tighten shoes, replacing buckles and buttons (which were slow and cumbersome).

Shoelaces are odd to me. The technology exists today that we can manufacture any type of shoe, dress, casual or sport, without the need for shoelaces. There is no need to tighten shoes, because the shoe itself can loosen or tighten, depending upon the need. Take a shoe like this I just purchased from Sketchers. I could wear this shoe for literally any situation. And no shoelaces.

But, millions of us still purchase and wear shoes with shoelaces. This is partly because of what our personal preferences are and partly because of what is available (and at the right price).

But mostly, we purchase shoes based on what we had before. We like shoes we are used to. We can handle a little change, but not too much.

The same goes for our marketing plans.

Do you know what the single biggest indicator of what will be in our marketing plans for 2010 or the next year or the year after? What you did the previous year.

And, you have a lot working to make sure things stay the same:

Your agency and marketing partners don't like change very much. They will convince you to tweak, but not radically change.
A new plan means new convincing to higher ups. Very challenging.
Finding new experts and partners takes time and resources.
The eternal thinking that buying IBM (insert tactic) never gets you fired (but in today's world, I wouldn't be so sure).

I Was in this Meeting

I've been in four companies in the last month where we were doing a mini-content audit (going through what was working and what isn't working in their content strategies). At every company, we came to a marketing tactic - an enewsletter, a white paper program, a pr schedule, etc., where I asked what it was and why they were doing it.

The answer: because we did it last year, but not sure exactly what it's doing.

Make the Promise

What are your marketing shoelaces? What are those things that you are doing because you did them last year, or because that's what your company is used to doing?

Make the promise to start fresh this year. Focus on what's working and what you can measure. Focus on listening to your customers and stop listening to those people in your company that want to keep things exactly as they are.

Try some new shoes...you'll be surprised at the outcome.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: marketing shoelaces, new marketing tactics, change ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stan Phelps EMAIL: stan@9inchmarketing.com IP: 173.2.37.225 URL: http://marketinglagniappe.com DATE: 12/17/2009 10:01:50 AM Joe - great insight and I like the shoelace analogy. There is a simple true-ism of life and that is . . ."People in life don't know what they like . . . they like what they know". Our brains are hardwired to resist change. One of the greatest things I learned in grad school was the premise that there should be a reason behind every rule. When the reason stops . . therefore should stop the rule. A great example of this was the newlywed husband who asked his wife why she cut about a 1/5th of the roast off and threw it away before cooking it. She replied that that's what her mother always did. The next time the husband saw his mother in law he asked the same question about the roast. His mother in law replied matter of factly that it was what her mother always had done. That winter the couple had occasion to visit his wife's grandmother in Florida. During the visit he took the grandmother aside and asked her why she had cut 1/5th of the roast and threw it away. She explained that she always cut a portion of the roast because otherwise the roast wouldn't fit into her small roasting pan. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.112.114 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 12/17/2009 04:18:22 PM Great story Stan! Love it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ethnicomm EMAIL: info@ethnicomm.com IP: 173.34.95.233 URL: http://ethnicomm.com DATE: 12/18/2009 11:00:41 AM Great post! Another reason is that people are afraid of the unknown. They did something previously and the sky did not fall so it's safe to do it again. It takes work to convince a client to get out of their comfort zone. But like you say, it's about being consumer-oriented and critically evaluating what was done. Future initiatives should include an objective and measureable outcome. Otherwise the following year they'll be in the same situation! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alexandra Spirer EMAIL: awspirer@gmail.com IP: 205.188.116.6 URL: http://www.stepsto.com DATE: 12/18/2009 12:02:10 PM This is a great post and really makes me think about how we are marketing and portraying our company to others. We are constantly reevaluating our message, tweaking our site and looking at ways to be better. Thank you for your great insights! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Happy Holidays from Junta42 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: happy-holidays-from-junta42 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 12/15/2009 08:45:35 AM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Jim O'Hare at BioMedia for putting this nice little holiday video together for the Junta42 community. We stopped a few years ago sending paper holiday cards, so we're hoping you like this instead.

Happy Holidays!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: happy holidays, Junta42 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Anushka Pathak EMAIL: anushuya.pathak@gmail.com IP: 122.160.187.54 URL: http://www.qualityfreetemplates.com DATE: 12/30/2009 06:47:36 AM Happy HOlidays! attractive name, posting is good, but, I can't see video, unfortunately. Please, tell me, how can I enjoy it through video. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.110.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 12/30/2009 07:49:11 AM Hi Anushka...you can see it here as well. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQ0yHVMtD3Y&feature=player_embedded ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 100 Social Media & Content Marketing Predictions for 2010 STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-content-marketing-predictions-2010 CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 12/14/2009 12:08:28 PM ----- BODY:

Some things amaze me, like this year's social media and content marketing predictions list. What does one sent email and two tweets equal? Over 100 predictions from 60+ of the best and the brightest in marketing, content marketing, custom publishing and social media. No kidding! Just check out this list below.

...and just to be fair, we have listed the predictions by order of submission. Congrats to Seth Godin for being Quick Draw McGraw. For those of you who want to add your two cents, please do so in the comments.

Here are some of the key trends I found while reading through our expert predictions:

Video will be big in 2010
Mobile, Mobile, Mobile
More companies will need to outsource content to expert publishers
Quality content trumps frequent crappy content
Don't say it - more offline content in 2010???

And for fun, you may want to compare this year's predictions with last year's social media and content marketing predictions. (Also added at request of Jay Baer - the Predictions Wordle)

TO VIEW THIS IN EBOOK FORM - CLICK HERE.

The Question

What is your prediction for how brand marketers will create and distribute their own content in 2010?

Seth Godin

In about six months, the economy is going to be noticeably better, and folks that put in the time and energy to build a foundation over the last two years online will be rewarded, while the latecomers will merely whine.
A lot of people (who were only wasting time at work, not investing in an asset) will lose interest in Twitter as the next shiny thing comes along.

Ian Lurie
Look for instant content. With shoot-and-upload video getting easier and easier, everyone's going to jump onto YouTube. The video rush of the last few years will look like a trickle.

That doesn't mean the content won't be awful - most of it will be. But I'm hoping a new video explosion will also drive some great new creative stuff, too.

Mike Volpe
More video, especially in B2B, as marketers realize that live video podcasts and other video formats are not difficult to do and can communicate a compelling message to help you get found by more prospects.

Michael Litman
A few bold brands have recently dipped their toe in the water with Augmented Reality and I think this is a hugely exciting area that is ripe for further exploration.

I believe that the next "big thing" will be a greater sense of personalization and location-based offerings. We're starting to see this for example in Foursquare (about which I could talk about non-stop until tomorrow!)

For example, I'd checked in to a well known restaurant chain in Soho, London on Foursquare and upon checking in, an offer came up on screen for another local restaurant chain. In the offer, it said that when you had checked in to the restaurant twice and become Mayor of that particular restaurant, you're entitled to a 2 for 1 meal! You'd simply have to take your phone and a friend in with you, show them that you're Mayor and your friend eats free!

To me that's utterly mind blowing.

Graeme Harrison
The best marketers/brands will generate great ideas, and create well told stories that are told across a variety of media channels. Digital will serve as the enabler that links these ideas and stories together.

The reality is that the vast majority of brands and marketers will continue to spam content and distribute rubbish via a scattergun approach.

Jason Falls
I think more will become aware that making content highly portable is the key to engaging an ever-more-mobile audience. Whether it's implementing RSS and mobile feeds on a website, funneling brand messages to social networks, etc., I think more will start to see the power of content distribution and customer engagement through that content. 2009 was about learning social media. 2010 will be about figuring out how to use it well.

Laurent Francois
There'll be more & more Social Media and content strategies at the hyper-local level; citizen consumers interested in their neighborhood are already keen to ask Google what they've seen in their preferred shop or street. There'll be a greater "loop" between daily discoveries & online journey. Brand marketers will try to reach their consumers in this new interactive dimension

Brian Halligan
I think 2010 is the year brand marketers figure out that interrupting their way into people's lives through advertisements just does not work anymore as we consumers are sick-and-tired of being marketed to and are getting better-and-better at blocking the interruptions out (i.e. DVR, iPod, CallerID, spam protection). They will start creating remarkable content that spreads via social media, draws in links from other content creators, and ranks in Google's search engine.

David Meerman Scott
The phrase "social media" will soon be considered obsolete as more and more organizations publish online content. Online video will emerge as the most important tool for marketers in 2010.

Scott Abel
They will (in 2010) increasingly begin moving toward providing personalized, location-aware, device-independent content (content that can be formatted on-the-fly for whatever device the user needs/wants to use - iPhone, laptop, print, etc.) This move will be based on the need to deliver the right content to the right prospects at the right time in the right format and language. Consumer expectations will drive the change. User expectations have changed and consumers are no longer willing to settle for mediocre experiences. Today, they expect all content to be accessible, consumable, and shareable - no excuses.

Ari Herzog
When you consider approximately 16% of the Fortune 500 have a public-facing blog, 28% of those blogs link to Twitter accounts, and 17% of the companies use blogs, Twitter, and Facebook to engage (or in many cases, broadcast only) with their customers, those are telling statistics.

Looking back at the 2009 predictions published in this space last year, I think we have a long way to go. Where's the value in predicting how brand marketers will create and distribute content when the Fortune 500 (or the Inc. 500) aren't making significant strides as a group? That's where the focus should be.

Simon Payn
Marketers will get more feisty and opinionated in their content to build trust with their best prospects and clients. I've tried it...and it works!

Seamus Walsh
The rise of private media channels.

As more and more people find web video to be valuable and entertaining, web video for corporate story telling will continue to expand. While many public sites, such as youtube.com have gained huge popularity, they are not always the best vehicles for business-based communication. The threat of viruses, competitive advertising and lack of quality control are reasons why more companies will steer away from public media channels and moving towards private channels, while committing internal resources to produce quality content quickly.

With the low price and technology and easy to use technology anyone can assemble a HD-broadcast quality studio. Get your customers, executives and product champions in front of the camera to tell their story - how you've solved people's problems, why your solution is unique and what value you bring to the table. In 2010 publishing your videos on a private media channel can be the most effective way to reach your target audience.

Tim Kolb
The computer software industry (outside of a few, isolated cases) has gotten extremely cost-competitive, even as the features customers demand increase in quantity and complexity.

I think in the coming year, the tide will start to shift as these organizations need to reassess where they can achieve sustainable revenue. As software packages get both deeper and wider and almost no customer uses, or even wants to know about every feature, the information about the product (specific feature information, targeted training, tutorials, etc.) will actually become the margin potential product.

I think that by 2015, we'll see software markets where the software tools themselves are developed at near cost-recovery and the user training will be the exciting growth opportunity product line.

...the ultimate in content marketing. Market the content.

Evan Scott
I'm not sure how we (as a group) will actually do it but I can say what I think we need to do in 2010 and beyond.

First, let me differentiate between B2B brand marketers and consumer brand marketers - these are very different worlds with very different customers and stakeholders.

Also, we need to differentiate between agency side and corporate side.

So, four groups of brand marketers - and we're all on the hot seat! As we should be...

In the consumer world, I believe agency-side brand marketers need to practice what they preach and partner with potential clients to launch their own line of branded products - see the precedent here.

I think brand marketers on the agency side will have to put skin in the game to demonstrate their value. The real ROI is always sales first; brand equity, like seventh.

On the corporate side, brand marketers will need to continue the trend toward user-generated content - I know, I know; that's not their own content but what I mean is that marketers will have to create content that solicits / engages consumers to respond and respond often.

One idea could be to open up product development to consumers in a more holistic way - find ways to manufacture and distribute products that have direct consumer input. Among the challenges here will be manufacturing and distribution because we're talking about customized products - but in much the same way that music purchases are now customized by individual song (rather than having to buy the whole album), consumer products companies will have to at least address this issue.

B2B brand marketers have to become much better storytellers. No more bullets in collateral materials and on Web sites. Content has to be about customer successes and, moreso, about customer stories - which sometimes include failures on the way to success.

Stories are drama - point A to point B - where something happens in between - lesson learned, challenge overcome, triumph over struggle. In B2B brand marketing, the stories that demonstrate the value of relationships always win the day. Think about it - people do business with friends, not products. So, the content has to include a new understanding of what the brand is that your selling - it's not just the product or service. You're selling your product or service's ability to help customers write and tell their own next story. If we're doing our job well, we'll be included in the story because we'll write ourselves in and have our customers tell it.

Rick Liebling
I think a lot will be enamored with the idea of crowdsourcing. They'll see it as a way to engage consumers and generate some publicity. But as more and more brands try this, savvy consumers will see that without proper curation there isn't much 'there' there.

Crowdsourcing, when used properly, can be compelling. Smart brands will utilize the concept to identify true experts, rather than hoping that 1000 entries produces one or two good pieces.

Tamar Weinberg
Content will be more widely dispersed, especially across mobile platforms as phones are getting smarter. We'll see more mobile optimized sites, but we'll also hopefully see a bigger emphasis on Augmented Reality, especially as it creates opportunities for brands to port their product availability to the screens of cell phones, giving consumers the ability to find and buy products that they are interested in from wherever they are.

Peter Prestipino
Brand marketers will more actively leverage mobile applications (and on various platforms including iPhone, Android and BlackBerry), creating content specific and exclusive to this channel.

Chris Lake
Brands will finally come to terms with the fact that their own content is usually not as compelling as the content already produced, collected, and shared by their consumers. It's time for brands to evolve from producers and distributors to collectors and curators.

Mike Arauz
We're moving into an age of transparency. Brand marketers that embrace this will have the chance to improve satisfaction, service and loyalty. Others who don't may find themselves falling out of favor, and fast.

The last decade was all about acquisition. The next one, for the smarter marketers, will be all about retention. An open, transparent approach will help you forge closer bonds with consumers and customers. A closed, head-in-the-sand approach will only cause small problems to become much more troublesome.

No brand is immune, no matter how big or small. Transparency FTW!

Don Philabaum
A global shortage of electricity will require content producers to distribute content in wheel barrows and deliver content from door to door!

John Jantsch
More content, or at least real engagement as a result of content, will find its way offline - awareness of the content will grow online as search and social networking continues to expand, but smart marketers will start finding more ways to drive prospects offline to consume content in live events and local networks.

Dharmesh Shah
Brand marketers will move budget dollars away from classic campaigns and into people that can create killer content.

This will create a new market for exceptional writers, videographers, illustrators, cartoonists, storytellers, singers, musicians and game developers. Maybe even dancers and yodelers. Basically, anyone that has the creativity to capture and charm an audience.

Bob Leonard
In the B2B world, it's going to require "simplicity on the other side of complexity." -Oliver Wendell Holmes.

What I mean is that marketers are going to have to work hard to distill product and service information (features and benefits, competitive positioning, value propositions, etc.) into easily consumed, and quickly digested morsels. I'm not referring to slogans or tag lines. Marketers have moved beyond sales messages to delivering relevant and useful information. As the sheer volume of this information grows exponentially, marketers must learn to communicate to target prospects not only in a meaningful, concise way; but also using multimedia to engage more of the targets' senses. To teach and to entertain simultaneously.

Larry Kunz
In 2010 we'll see social media -- Facebook, Twitter, blogs -- being used for all sorts of products, from software to shampoo and from Blu-Ray players to blue jeans, as ordinary consumers become more comfortable interacting with companies on the web.

Content strategists -- the people who can process information from all over the enterprise (and from customers) and repackage it for different audiences -- will gain greater prominence.

We'll see increased demand from the C-level suite for a return on investment from social-media marketing. And, I hope, a consensus will start to emerge about the best ways for measuring ROI.

Kim Kleeman
I predict there will be a clear division between quality customized content and content created in a factory-like fashion. Just like junk mail began to dilute our mail system, poorly created content will become a nuisance. If you are looking to protect and market your brand, focus on engaging your customers with content that will build trust and the relationship your brand seeks.

Nettie Hartsock
"I believe that more brand marketers will come to understand that content is only valuable if it is deeply rooted in their expertise. They will stop creating "bait and switch" content and instead empower content that is free, extraordinarily valuable and not "back to me - yakkity yak content."

Todd Smart
Smart marketers will continue to differentiate themselves and their brands through increased credibility.

The number one strategy for increased credibility is to write the book in your business.

ScLoHo (Scott Howard)
Smart Marketers will be the ones who understand and use Twitter and Facebook with hyperlinks to pull potential clients to their websites and blogs.

Smart Marketers will understand the power of real conversations via Twitter and Facebook and use these as communication tools, not just P. R. machines.

Smart Marketers will insist that their Marketing Messages are using Social Media, Traditional websites, and Traditional Media in a cross-platform culture that includes everything from SmartPhones to HDTV screens.

Paul Dunay
I think brand marketers have focused on getting the word out via social media a lot this year - next year will be the year they look INTERNALLY to get the employee base to help them spread the word.

Enterprise Social tools will become more mainstream next year with folks like IBM, Oracle, Microsoft and a host of smaller players like Yammer, SocialCast and SocialText allowing for rich interaction and immediate attention from your internal army!

Heather Rast
I believe brands will see more of the potential with user-generated content. Beyond allowing users/participants/members to post comments, I think successful brands will cultivate strong ties with their most visible, enthusiastic loyalists and channel those with the strongest contributions a type of elevated presence. Call them feature contributors, but I think it's possible for a genuine personal affinity to lead to semi-branded personality roles for those with the most interest in engaging relevant consumer audiences with interested, in-tune brands. These persons become the conduit, drawing in other voices with their approachable, compelling presence.

Steve Beyer
2010 will be the year of the listening to the customers needs. Advertising sales people versed in listening will get the lions share of the business based on meeting the needs of the customer (very few know how to listen). Marketers will need to listen to their customers to figure out how they should interact with them during the coming year. Consumer companies do extensive research to find out their customers needs. Why don't more B2B companies take the same advice? If you are in the B2B market and have a favorite magazine you need to run print ads to reach the whole market (most magazines only reach half their readership by email), digital programs to produce sales leads, custom programs to target market potential customers and social media to help out in discussion forums.

wisey
Most brand marketers will continue to create mass amounts of expensive content for their generic targets. Of which, majority of audiences will not have the time or patience to filter through it.

The smart marketers will create minimal amounts of highly targeted content to relevant audiences. Utilizing the right amount of resource to maximize returns.

Valeria Maltoni
Brand marketers follow the customers, they don't lead them. So the question is: How will people be exchanging content in 2010?

Much the same way as in 2009. I do think brand marketers will begin to rediscover the power of sophisticated email list management. Email's popularity is stable, particularly among decision-makers. Thanks to better spam filtration, it is increasingly low-noise. Metrics are easy to manage, and lists can be very granular. Email dovetails well with Twitter and other existing social media channels. Use these tools to engage people, and point them to the list.

We will see more people offering information products next year. Again, email is a good channel for this. So are eBooks.

Gaurav Mishra
I think online communities will come of age in 2010. Brand marketers will create compelling micro-content to seed these communities, then run contests to invite consumers to interpret their brand, create their own content. I also see brand marketers investing in communities that are built around a bigger social object: a lifestyle, cause or passion.

Dawn Willson
I predict "Recycled Marketing" will be the hottest thing in 2010. Brand Marketers and their clients, for the first time in marketing history, can actually make a return on a marketing investment with every content marketing budget. By building a sensible content marketing publishing schedule, that not only markets products and services, content is created that becomes intellectual property that can be bought and sold. A marketing budget this year can now reduce the budget next year, if not pay for it in its entirety, all the while garnering authority and brand leadership in any industry. Welcome to Recycled Marketing 2010! - The ultimate in Gr$$n Marketing.

Jacob Morgan
Social media channels are going to continue to be pervasive for brand marketers. Sites such as twitter, facebook, youtube, and linkedin will keep growing. We are also going to see a strong push towards mobile marketing and geo-targeting, something that we are already starting to see twitter integrate and something that foursquare has already been doing. Desired advertising or marketing is something that I think is also going to become more popular. In other words I will receive some sort of content from a brand based on something I say or do. The content I receive is going to be more relevant and more targeted based on my actions.

I think we will also see more community development amongst brands, both internally and externally, meaning consumer facing. Right now brands are struggling with a fragmented approach to content creation and distribution. Brand marketers are going to realize that their website is no longer a single URL but a collection of sites and URLs. This means that you can have your forum discussions on sites such as Facebook while your blog exists on the main corporate site. Content is going to get a lot more social.

Internal collaboration creation communities can act as sources for content creation and distribution to external communities. 2010 should be an interesting year.

Gaby Rosario
Its my sentiment that in 2010, brand and business leaders, rather than just marketers, will start paying more attention to content. Strategically they will consider investing in and employing effort and resources into building that brand's very own content management system. A silo if you will, of content that is sourced from various divisions and filtered to internal and external publishing platforms required or selected by various departments, one of them, being marketing.

Marcus Grimm
In a word, "personally." Readers are going in different directions now. Some are on their netbooks, others are on the Kindle and some are on mobile. Brand marketers will have to look at each of these platforms and ask if their readers are on them. If so, they'll need to reach readers where they are.

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Chris Wilson
Creating seamless brand experiences will be the game to win. Noise will get louder and louder, giving brands no choice but to fragment themselves into more mediums. This will make the providing consistent and rich experiences crucial for every brand.

Brand marketers will continue to struggle with aligning and integrating online and offline brand experiences, but the few that master this skill be the big winners.

Chris Minnick
Brand marketers will focus less on creating original content and will seek out subject area experts (formerly known as publishers) to produce content on their behalf.

Content syndication via affiliates and partners will increase, with the expectation that partners down the chain will have greater social connectivity to potential new customers.

As it becomes less practical to spend for "air cover" branding, brand marketers will insist on pay-per-lead and pay-per-conversion models, with the brand message attached to discrete transactions. In a sense, branding becomes more transactional.

Drew McLellan
Here's what I think will happen in 2010 -- the good, bad and the ugly:

The good: As the economy continues to slowly recover, consumers are going to reward those brand marketers who have been sharing content/expertise without any strings attached during the recession. Validation for content marketing.

The bad: Many brand marketers who are just entering the content marketing arena will do so with the old broadcast mentality. Rather than just talk -- they will shout. And turn off their potential audience.

The ugly: Content marketing isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. But many CFOs and other leaders (including impatient business owners) will prematurely pull the plug on their content marketing efforts because the results are not instantaneous. The tragedy of this is that for many of them, they were probably on the cusp of getting the traction they needed to demonstrate results.

Bernie Borges
2010 will be the year that content marketers will upgrade from engagement to experience. Marketers whose content draws people into an experience will stand out. 2010 will become the year of experiential marketing.

Brands who design content strategies and campaigns around bringing their audience into an experience will enjoy more brand loyalty and more positive actions. Brands such as Ford, Guinness, Red Bull and Google have demonstrated their ability to create content experiences that people share with other people. A content experience is one where people participate in the content. They experience the content through interaction with a brand. Smaller brands who take notice will become creative designers of content experiences and will take the lead over their competitors who are asleep at the wheel in 2010.

M. H. (Mac) McIntosh
More and more companies' marketing org charts will now include positions for people responsible for managing the creation and deployment of content as a critical element of their marketing designed to drive leads and sales.

I believe this trend will start with larger enterprises, followed soon after by mid-sized companies.

Both large and mid-sized companies will also choose to outsource some of their content creation to freelancers, contractors or content creation companies.

Smaller companies with smaller marketing budgets will be less likely to add staff and will be more likely to outsource their content creation needs.

Jay Baer
The question says it all. Brand marketers will continue to embrace the premise of direct content distribution, end-running traditional intermediaries (including the media and public relations counsel). Brands will begin tearing down the internal silos of "social media" and "PR" and "corporate communications" and "CRM" and recognize that each of those are just facets of a unified consumer contact strategy. Thus, we'll start to see wise brands integrate content creation and distribution. The email marketing team and the social media team and the PR team will begin to coalesce. This will reduce consumer confusion, and enhance content subscription/syndication/digestion rates.

Jon Wuebben
Online content strategy will enter the mainstream with print and other traditional media continuing their downward spiral. In other words, more companies will understand the value and effectiveness of content: creating and distributing it, but also leveraging it. How will brand marketers do it in 2010? By having a presence in the blogosphere, in social networking, in local search and everywhere there customers and potential customers are online. But simply having a presence, of course, will not be enough. They will need to be active participants, and need to be perceived as an authentic resource. They then need to capitalize on this presence by simply being EVERYWHERE at ALL TIMES. They will leverage this presence by having contests, special events, promotions and other activities that will give them more "face time" with their customers.

Paul Conley
As traditional publishers continue to suffer, they'll have to cut costs even further. Increasingly they'll turn to inexperienced writers, content mills and offshore text factories to fill their publications and Web sites.
That leaves a gap that sophisticated brand marketers can fill.

The smartest marketers will resist the drive toward low-cost content and instead compete for attention with quality -- snatching up talented journalists, Web producers and others being driving out of the business.

We'll soon see that in large numbers of B2B segments the very best content -- the thoughtful, weighty, important material that drives conversations in an industry -- is coming from brands, not publishers.

David Reich
I think many will use a variety of methods to get their own content out there. I would caution against putting all efforts in one "basket," since we see how quickly the SM flavor of the month can come and go.

There is still a place for marketers to get their information out via mainstream media through good ole PR. It brings with it the bonus of credibility that is still lacking on many SM vehicles.

Andrew Gaffney
More marketers will embrace e-nurturing and develop content messaging that can be delivered incrementally over a period of time to match the buyer's educational needs.

This approach has worked extremely well for companies marketing complex, higher price tag solutions and considered purchases and it is proving to be just as effective for other marketers. Too many marketers are still sending "one and done" messages. Even custom content will fail if it doesn't speak to the educational process of the buyer.

Wendy Meyeroff
I actually think a few will backtrack. Everyone was busy rushing in 2009 to explore Social Networking just to get on the bandwagon, without really deciding if "tweeting" or certain other presences were really what they needed. I think they'll step back and determine if that's actually the best use of their content.

I think the ability to backlink to outlets like Digg (as just one example) is going to make marketing and brand managers better aware of the need for custom content in general and more specifically for various trade and consumer materials. I'm talking about stories that read like real journalism, not just self-promoting, that help them stand out as true experts in their field. To that end, they should consider finding real experts in providing those stories; i.e., experienced health writers for health materials (and not necessarily doctors or nurses--it depends on their audience).

I can also see an increasing need for downloadable reports, brochures, and free giveaways: e.g., click here to get your copy of "10 Ways to De-Stress This Holiday Season!" or "A Report on the Viability of Moving Your Office From Windows to Mac". Such items both help the company capture data and (again) seem like an expert in the field, or someone concerned about its audience.

I hope we see an increase in certain web enhancements, without getting crazed with all the razzmatazz a website can do via Flash or whatever. Example: I know a lawyer's office whose landing page featured a roaring lion, though the guy's name wasn't lion (or Leo or anything similar) and he didn't represent a zoo. Why? On the other hand, I've still seen very few companies take advantage of interactive options, like the interactive quizzes.

Susan Gunelius
My prediction is that online video will continue to grow as more marketers recognize its growth potential and attempt to leverage it. With that said, the success of those efforts is questionable. Until marketers embrace engagement marketing rather than interruption marketing and truly add value and build relationships by speaking with consumers rather than speaking at them, social media and content marketing efforts will continue to be popular but not deliver the big returns companies hope for. Furthermore, the success of social media and content marketing comes from transparency and a willingness to give up control -- two things that executives have yet to buy into. I expect 2010 to be filled with more of the same conversations and struggles between marketers and the individuals in the C-suites. We can't give up trying to bring those execs over to our side though!

Ardath Albee
Marketers will realize the importance of nurturing their leads across the entirety of the buying process. In 2010, nurturing won't just be about delivering relevant content, but about creating and employing content that helps prospects build momentum with each interaction. Marketers will need to better integrate, use and personalize content to gain long-term traction with prospects. This means the adoption of a "publisher" mindset. And it means publishing content where your buyers will find it and then seek out the company to learn more.

Effective marketing is not just about "touching" your prospects consistently, but in motivating them to take actions greater than passively reading the content provided. Through the strategic planning and execution of progressive, online interactions, marketers will generate more qualified opportunities that will be accepted, pursued and won by sales teams.

Joanne Grey
I think that people are sick and tired of being sold "at". Consumers are intelligent and realize that advertisers tell them exactly what they want to hear! Playing the traditional marketing game is no longer enough to ensure sales. Competition is rife in most industries, and the provision of relevant information is what will ultimately set businesses apart from one another. When faced with a number of companies offering similar services, I believe that savvy consumers will choose ethical, socially responsible and honest companies that empower their clients to make informed purchasing decisions.

Paul Roetzer
Organizations will become more strategic in their use of content marketing for both acquisition (leads) and retention (loyalty). Content marketing must be integrated with brand, Website, search marketing and social media strategies to achieve its full potential. As a result, organizations will seek content creators who have a strong grasp of marketing strategy, and exceptional creative and technical copywriting capabilities.

Brian Solis
2010 will be the year Social Media Optimization becomes a formalized program in addition to the content creation and distribution strategies. Businesses will realize the value in becoming a bona fide media property in addition to their core business products and services.

Prospects, customers, and stakeholders, whether they're b2c or b2b, use search to unearth information that helps them navigate the landscape of options. This content leads to decisions. Depending on what they uncover determines whether or not we're even part of the decision making cycle. And, the role of search is expanding beyond Google, Bing and Yahoo. Search behavior is transpiring directly within social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and blog search. Social Media Optimization (SMO) increases the findability of customer content we create to aid customers in their discovery process. Our content becomes beacons to represent our brand and value proposition where our direct voice may be absent. This is why businesses must also become media properties. Creating rich, informative, creative, and engaging content is critical for 2010 and along with SMO, must be budgeted in terms of time, money, and resources for the new year.

Stephanie Tilton
Smart B2B marketers know they can no longer ignore the fact that prospects are in control of the buying cycle. Recognizing the need to keep prospects engaged over many months, marketers will create and distribute valuable information that gets passed along.

While e-newsletters will continue playing a critical role in outbound marketing, they will feature more magazine-style articles that make no mention of the company's offerings. And they will point readers to microsites or "content centers" organized around topics of interest that align with buyer personas and buying stages, rather than products and services. Plus, marketers will produce ebooks, blog posts, articles, videos, and podcasts that get syndicated using networks and tools including LinkedIn, YouTube, Scribd, and Twitter. Marketers that do this right will establish themselves as trusted advisors who remain top of mind as prospects develop their short lists.

Vince Giorgi

Marketers will begin -- at least should begin -- to put greater innovation emphasis on being relevant and engaging with content delivered via flesh-and-blood channels -- the sales force, customer service, dealers and distributors, etc.

As content marketers we tend to fixate on other content types -- value-adding articles, white papers and e-books; social media postings and dialogue. Still, some of the most critical content for building brand and business is that which gets lumped into the easy-to-neglect category of "collateral."

The days when it was good enough to throw a brochure and some case studies in an envelope and consider that you've done an effective job of following up with a customer or prospect are over.

With Web 2.0 thinking and technology, there’s opportunity for bringing customization, engagement and measurement to these communications. And, as recipients click through personalized content collections – online experiences tailored to their needs and interests, vs. off-the-shelf, one-size-fits-all print pieces – marketers can measure and continuously learn from their interactions.

Camille Torres
In 2010 content marketing will continue to gain popularity, becoming something marketers see as a necessity as they place more emphasis on building relationships with customers. The lines between marketing and publishing will continue to blur. Branded content and microsites will become increasingly common and will have more smart phone-compatible versions.

I think we'll also see content marketing become more interactive. Online magazines will begin to move away from flipbooks and toward Adobe AIR and other platforms that enhance readability and interactivity. Print and digital will combine as companies with higher budgets use technology that activates online videos when a print piece is held up to a Web cam.

Janet Robbins
In 2010, content marketing will move from "novel" to "normal". Marketers who go the extra mile to find out precisely how their customers use content (and the types of content they consider most useful) then use that information to drive content creation and distribution will see more success than those who don't.

For example, understanding whether customers find non-participatory forms of content (e.g., white papers, podcasts, webinars) more valuable or trustworthy than participatory content (e.g., asking questions on Twitter, seeking advice from friends/colleagues on Facebook/LinkedIn, interacting with company bloggers) - or vice-versa - when making a purchasing decision goes a long way in determining how companies can spend marketing dollars most beneficially. And in 2010, maximizing ROI will still be an overriding consideration for marketers.

Dave Fish
Three predictions for 2010:

(1) Turning Social Networks Outside-In

The 2009 holiday season will be a turning point -- as informal sharing and tweeting about great deals by users provides a big clue for marketing into social networks.

Marketers will finally recognize that the key to reaching users within social networks is not about what you do inside the social network, rather it's about what you do outside that then gets credibly and enthusiastically taken into the social network by the users.

Look for offers, promotions, and contests that are intrinsically group-oriented to originate outside of the social network and be promoted with high credibility by users inside the network.   Check out Groupon for the large group model and Blabberbug for the start of a small group approach.

(2) From FLO TV to YO TV

Another holiday season trigger -- look for FLO TV and their cute little handheld wireless TV to spark interest in mobile video from a new perspective -- high quality programming in a small format mobile LCD TV. And then later on in 2010, look for a new generation of bloggers and vloggers to do to cable programming what Matt Drudge did to the New York Times - this will be all about taking social media video "live AND on location".

(3) Hyperlocal Content Pays Enough to Explode @$4 CPH

We're seeing successively more granular local content become successful.   Check out the number of reporter-bloggers on your favorite city edition of the Examiner for a first clue. Now combine this with the likelihood that hyperlocal reporter-bloggers can make a six figure income (per study by Jeff Jarvis, director of the interactive-journalism program at the City University of New York) -- and the stage is set for hyperlocal content to go big this year.

The new benchmark number is $4 CPH -- $4 in annual income for the hyperlocal reporter-blogger per head in the population they reach. How many folks live in your town or city -- do the math.

Dragan Varagic
Because of Google new content and social media policies, Brand Marketers will focus on the creation of more quality content and the content creation market will rise according with those needs.

Brand marketers will be more focused on content distribution via online platforms which produce more positive social ratings, such as Twitter, Facebook, Digg, etc.

Jim Larranaga

Content Creation
Brand marketers will begin outsourcing more of their content creation to trusted vendor/partners as the need for content grows with all the available media channels.

Distribution
Messaging will continue to be integrated: print with PURLS, email with share-to-social features, text short codes for consumers to request information on demand, will all be part of mix in 2010 - 2011.

Kraig Haberer
Marketers (and their CEOs) will realize that it's the message, not just the media that's important. We've gotten so caught up in the latest media gizmo, whether it is Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. that many marketers have forgotten that unless we have something interesting and relevant to say to our audiences, no one will care anyway!

Paul McKeon
The average marketer will continue on a downward trajectory toward process, and away from big ideas. The leaders, however, will differentiate themselves by caring less about "singles and doubles," like open rates and page ranks, and more about "home runs" that can change the game. They will be the ones who use content to carry big ideas and to create clever, memorable and useful content that gets read, remembered, shared, and appreciated.

Russell Sparkman
The year 2010 will be a growth year in Content Marketing awareness and an indication of the growing acceptance of the approach in the coming year will be an increase in the predicted daily searches for the specific term "content marketing."

Fundamental to content marketing taking hold as a sought after marketing strategy will be increased output of case studies bearing real world examples of content marketing initiatives leading to measurable return-on-objectives and return-on-investment.

Small businesses, in particular, will be leading adapters of content marketing as they realize that the time and money invested levels the competitive playing field and leads to significantly improved conversion rates.

Under the umbrella of Content Marketing, practitioners will be introduced to new concepts, such as Transmedia Storytelling, as the basis of a content strategy. Specifically, content strategies will increasingly be designed to reach audiences and community members anywhere, anytime and on any device, with different elements of the brand story tailored to the device.

Through concepts such as Transmedia Storytelling, content strategies will drive social media and social networking strategies by providing engaging content that inspires devotion to the brand. Don't be surprised to see content marketing strategies, in this context, to increasingly take their cues from both the Hollywood and the gaming industries.

There will be increased acceptance by marketers, business owners, etc., that the specialized services, skills and knowledge base of experienced content marketing agencies or firms can be utilized and retained on the same basis that traditional marketing, advertising and PR services have been retained. Moving forward, content strategies will be planned and implemented based upon the utilization of both internal and external resources, dictated by the human bandwidth and financial realities of the marketer.

Ultimately, in the grand scheme of things, what we'll see is a blossoming of creativity in the coming year as marketers-turned-publishers compete for audience attention with their own custom content that is both entertaining, engaging and resourceful.

Gordon Plutsky

2010 will be the year that content goes mobile. Having a mobile strategy will no longer be a nice to have, but a requirement for media brands and custom content. The success of the iPhone and Kindle has shown that there is an appetite for content to be read in a "third place" away from both home and office.
More and more pure play online companies will discover multi-channel media and marketing paired with content drives customer engagement. Look for more online retailers to create "magalogs" pairing content and offers in an appealing environment using both print and digital formats.
Broadcasters (network and cable) will create more integrated online custom and advertising programs for the so called "second screen". According to Reuters, Nielsen's research shows that "57 percent of TV viewers in the U.S. who have Internet access use both mediums at the same time at least once a month. That translates to more than 128 million U.S. consumers." This opens the door to endless ties in for deeper content, social media connections and games/contests to extend a marketing campaign.

M arc Meyer

I think what's important when looking at the next 12 months is what is actually feasible? Not necessarily hyperbolic five-year long term stuff, but what is actually do-able. In no particular order look for the following to happen in some shape or form.

Marketers and developers are starting to realize that the consumer cannot be everywhere at once, nor can they. Consumers are creatures of habit, creatures of ease of use and simplicity-so there will be more of an effort to push out applications that speak to that-Think video in as many formats as possible but platform agnostic.
Data aggregation will continue to evolve to levels that will supposedly simplify our lives, but it won't.
Google will further align and build its imminent dominance of social media through acquisitions and partnerships.
Look for four things to grow faster than anything that you have previously witnessed in the short lifespan of the web and technology in general. You already see things changing rapidly in these 4 categories, but look for it to continue.

Search
Social
Mobile
Mobile Social

Mike Sansone

Mobile apps (iPhone, Droid, Berry) will become a popular add-on and extension for celebrities and companies. Though the apps will require specialized development, we are already beginning to see content collected by these brands from their existing channels via RSS, and then adding a "premium" or app-only content.

Terry Lyons

There will be a huge increase in the use of mobile proximity marketing.

Related Articles:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: social media, content marketing, predictions, 2010 marketing predictions, social media predictions, marketing experts ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andre Yap EMAIL: andre@cubedquest.com IP: 64.252.24.84 URL: http://www.ripple100.com/blog DATE: 12/14/2009 12:31:27 PM NIIICE work, Joe. I know what I'll be ingesting/digesting/burping on the beach in 10 days. Slightly different take on our blog's 2010 predictions compilation. Similar in that we're riffing the 2010 lists of folks we respect; different in that a) we're doing it as a running list, instead of a definitive one; b) we're commenting in how the various predictions intersect with our specific take on micromarketing; and c) emphasizing action more than punditry. Thanks for the this magnum opus. Prediction always fun, but nothing beats making it happen! Almost forgot: 2010 Predictions: Time to Make it Happen: http://www.ripple100.com/blog/2009/12/2010-predictions-time-to-make-it-happen/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Luke Owen EMAIL: lowen@truebridge.com IP: 71.243.118.33 URL: http://www.truebridge.com/blog DATE: 12/14/2009 12:33:11 PM Offline content will definitely spill over from the web. Especially when you learn that people who read custom publications are more likely to read the entire print piece versus the entire online component (based on recent study from Custom Publications Council as stated in my recent blog post http://www.truebridge.com/blog). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Manny Paez EMAIL: paezm@axsamericas.com IP: 201.216.23.92 URL: http://www.axsamericas.com DATE: 12/15/2009 09:33:15 AM I own a BPO in LATAM with a Spanish/English Call Center. Networking via Social media is a great advantage for companies that want to create awareness, the trick is to find and select the few sites to stay focused on and grow with them. I agree with the video comments and would like to see a user friendly interface in the social media sites to broadcast on demand right from the profile page. Please contact me with suggestions, ideas or to network via your favorite social media site. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Barb Sawyers EMAIL: barb@barbsawyers.ca IP: 69.159.194.244 URL: http://barbsawyers.wordpress.com DATE: 12/15/2009 10:01:23 AM Thanks for all the food for thought. I would boil it down to three predictions: (1) holistic content marketing (2) through social media hubs (3) to more small screens. More at http://bit.ly/76veUy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jay Baer EMAIL: jason@convinceandconvert.com IP: 97.124.10.52 URL: http://www.convinceandconvert.com DATE: 12/15/2009 10:37:56 AM Great stuff Joe. Can we make a Wordle on this? Would love to see it sorted by prediction. Thanks for including me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kari Rippetoe EMAIL: kari.rippetoe@rippetoe.net IP: 173.15.200.105 URL: DATE: 12/15/2009 10:48:42 AM Lots of predictions here about offline content - will print pubs finally figure out how to use social media in a way that drives revenue and engages the public? Local pubs can lead the way on this - engage the local community via social media channels and drive them to read the print pub, frequent local businesses, and attend local events. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.112.114 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 12/15/2009 10:57:36 AM Jay...ask as ye shall receive. http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/1453719/Junta42_Social_Media_%26_Content_Marketing_Predictions_Wordle Also linked above ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michelle Hillaert EMAIL: michellehillaert@gmail.com IP: 173.161.48.193 URL: DATE: 12/15/2009 11:06:23 AM Thank you for taking the time to compile such a vast list! Just to reiterate a bit, I would think that one of the changes we shall see will be a large growth in the number of businesses utilizing social media to create lasting relationships with their clients. There are still a large number of businesses that are timid when it comes to dabbling in social media. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dave Manzer EMAIL: dmanzer@thesagecloser.com IP: 76.224.146.78 URL: http://www.thesagecloser.com DATE: 12/15/2009 11:22:25 AM More of an emphasis on video means more bandwidth and storage will be required. If there's a headlong rush into video the way there was into Twitter, then that alone will spark a mini-boom for IT manufacturers such as Cisco, Dell, HP, Apple & Intel. Technology innovators here in Austin will benefit as companies seek new ways to run the Internet on less energy, with greater efficiency and fewer headaches. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Janice King EMAIL: janice@writespark.com IP: 71.35.102.124 URL: http://www.writespark.com DATE: 12/15/2009 11:46:44 AM For technology marketers, 2010 will bring the return of tried-and-true collateral such as data sheets, product brochures, and white papers focused on relevant investment and implementation issues. Tweets, blog posts, videos, and podcasts are simply inadequate media for aggregating, clarifying, and delivering the vast amount of detailed information required by technology buyers to make a purchase decision or even, in many cases, to select vendors for their short list. http://tinyurl.com/ya6llzl Before a contract is signed for a costly technology purchase, buyers will look to the vendors for authoritative information, in a familiar document form. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: eshoshin EMAIL: eshoshin@msn.com IP: 72.11.127.42 URL: DATE: 12/15/2009 04:31:05 PM In 2010 we'll see the rise and fall of mobile marketing. Mobile marketing is a great new venue, but like all the others it will be exploited by spammers. We'll see a surge in popularity of SMS marketing -- and then the bubble will burst. People will get tired of endless messages popping up on their phones. The market will retract and then redirect to a new medium. I see social media as a form of PR -- nothing more. It's warm and fuzzy and makes people feel good, but in the end it can't be easily tied to increased revenue or ROI. I see traditional forms of advertising (print, direct mail, etc) making a comeback in 2010 because they are easily measured and can be directly tied to ROI. With the economy still suffering, business owners will put their marketing dollars in mediums that directly increase revenue and show an immediate return -- not feel good fluff that might someday potentially kinda sorta maybe bring in revenue through online brand awareness. Just because people know who you are or follow you on twitter doesn't mean they're purchasing from your business. Don't get me wrong, PR has a place in every business -- but when the going gets tough, you have to leverage every dollar spent and track everything to make sure it's performing. Those are my two-cents. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim EMAIL: timwhirledge@hotmail.com IP: 87.194.46.10 URL: http://www.whirledgital.com DATE: 12/15/2009 06:25:08 PM Lovely post. Two things from me; The blurring of online and offline as mobile internet penetration increases (because this year is DEFINITELY the year of the mobile ;)). This means that companies will do well to move the conversation on from being 'in' social media to offline social experiences which live 'through' social media and can be tracked far more effectively. I also agree with Mike Arauz; I think smart companies will start looking at retention and loyalty programmes as a way of turning databases into fanbases; turning a retention programme into an acquisition strategy. Companies will be forced to look at 'sweating' their assets harder; from existing content to customer databases. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Online Sales Manager EMAIL: am@globevista.com IP: 124.182.41.244 URL: http://www.onlinesalesmanager.com DATE: 12/15/2009 10:10:07 PM I think we will see this video wave rise to tsunami with companies becoming more and more professional with their content creation and distribution strategies. The best companies will have their own online, media channel - they will publish consistent, quality content to a schedule and they will clean up. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joanne Grey EMAIL: joanne@spottedwombat.com IP: 58.110.138.33 URL: http://www.spottedwombat.com DATE: 12/16/2009 12:28:10 AM Great post. Anyone can produce content, but is it valuable and ethical content that speaks directly to customers? I think customers are pretty aware of the tricks that traditional marketers use to make sales. Honest, relevant and ethical information speaks volumes about the kind of company you are! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mike Sweeney EMAIL: mike@rightsourcemarketing.com IP: 70.174.137.185 URL: http://www.marketingtrenches.com DATE: 12/19/2009 08:51:08 AM Great post. I believe in the video predictions, but I think the predictions of mobile growth (both mobile marketing and mobile commerce) will fall short of expectations. I used Seth's Twitter prediction in a Marketing Trenches post titled "Prediction: Marketers Will Continue to Publish Lists in 2010". www.marketingtrenches.com Again, thanks for putting this together - as always you publish useful material. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO Web Analytics EMAIL: ebizwmmbs@ecwmm.com IP: 221.120.250.107 URL: http://www.webmediamarketing.ca DATE: 12/23/2009 04:27:53 AM This video wave rise to tsunami with companies becoming more and more professional with their content creation and distribution strategies. The best companies will have their own online, media channel - they will publish consistent, quality content to a schedule and they will clean up. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nettie Hartsock EMAIL: nettie@nettiehartsock.com IP: 70.112.238.184 URL: http://www.nettiehartsock.com DATE: 01/04/2010 03:14:31 PM Hey Joe, thanks for posting the comment. Hope you have a great new year too! nettie ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Social Media Marketing EMAIL: lookmanvinay@hotmail.com IP: 111.92.4.218 URL: http://socialfocus.com/ DATE: 01/12/2010 02:32:19 AM I think social media can be used for marketing which is beyond just customers.. It can be used to attract and engage any target audience. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Club Penguin Cheats EMAIL: kururmix@gmail.com IP: 125.113.147.158 URL: http://www.clubpenguincheats.me/ DATE: 01/15/2010 11:35:32 PM Networking via Social media is a great advantage for companies that want to create awareness, the trick is to find and select the few sites to stay focused on and grow with them. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Article submission EMAIL: ebizsubmit@hotmail.com IP: 221.120.250.101 URL: http://www.ebizsubmit.com DATE: 01/16/2010 01:43:59 AM amazing job ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 70.181.172.52 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 01/26/2010 10:29:48 AM Wow, Quite the list of who's who... Great sounding predictions, I'm not sure who would be more informed as to what's going to happen in 2010!! Thanks for the compilation! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: iPhone Application Developers EMAIL: krzr.69@gmail.com IP: 221.120.250.107 URL: http://www.mobilecubix.com DATE: 03/12/2010 04:49:42 AM Great post. I believe in the video predictions, but I think the predictions of mobile growth (both mobile marketing and mobile commerce)I think social media can be used for marketing which is beyond just customers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ana YourNetBiz System EMAIL: meetanahoffman@gmail.com IP: 69.137.185.10 URL: http://www.yournetbizwealthcreation.com DATE: 04/01/2010 11:58:02 AM Very telling post; social media is still very much in focus. I personally still need to work on mobile marketing - it makes sense why this could possibly be the future of online marketing. Ana Hoffman ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: muondo rencontre entre celibataire EMAIL: muondo@lavache.com IP: 82.227.195.106 URL: http://www.muondo-1er-de-la-rencontre-serieuse-et-pas-cher.com DATE: 04/23/2010 05:31:19 AM i found your blog with a great interest,very good written and like it it,very curious and intelligent. i read it frequently yet;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: thresty@yahoo.com IP: 113.199.156.30 URL: http://www.getyourpromotionalproducts.com/ DATE: 04/28/2010 11:48:52 AM That is really interesting article. I believe that social marketing is building strong and strong for the past 3-4 years. Moreover, people are concentrating on content building rather than just link building which is good thing to see. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Türkçe mp3 dinle EMAIL: viplash@mynet.com IP: 78.167.224.217 URL: http://www.bedavamp3.us DATE: 05/10/2010 11:31:36 AM I think social media for marketing, which is beyond mere customer .. It can be used can be used to win and be open to any audience. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arshad Malik EMAIL: malik@dataslices.com IP: 87.201.197.196 URL: DATE: 07/10/2010 07:27:06 AM yes, sms could be great tool as ad on to social media ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cher Pearce EMAIL: cherpearce@googlemail.com IP: 92.1.249.159 URL: http://www.Cher-Pearce.com DATE: 07/30/2010 01:02:24 PM Hi Joe.. dont ask me how I found my way here but I did! LOL. Great blog you have here, will be sure to bookmark and come back.. its interesting to see that alot of the predictions are or have come to fruition now that we are 7 months into 2010! I particularly agreed with video marketing and mobile marketing, I can see big things coming with mobile marketing for sure.. though I have to admit.. I'm a bit gutted Don Philabaum's predictions didn't come true! That wouldve been funny! ;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Casey Casseday EMAIL: greenrushmovie@gmail.com IP: 76.168.4.74 URL: http://www.greenrushmovie.com DATE: 08/09/2010 02:17:08 AM That's a whole lot of info to swallow, I thin a lot of this will spill into 2011-2012 as well. As a content provider, I am impressed that the experts seem to think we have a chance. Documentaries haven't been making money for a while now and they are the truest form of journalism left in American society. I really hope most of these panelists are right, except the power outage guy, I don't own a content wheel barrow and door to door sales is too old school to consider. Casey Casseday Producer, The Green Rush i Steve, I'm a filmmaker with a hit pot documentary on HULU.com We are huge Proposition 19 advocates and want to help the cause. Please hit me back if you think we could benefit your show in any way.kc Casey Casseday Producer, The Green Rush http://www.greenrushmovie.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: James Gifts EMAIL: contact@fungiftideas.org IP: 78.97.117.7 URL: http://www.fungiftideas.org/ DATE: 08/25/2010 02:53:16 PM Thanks for all the food for thought. I would boil it down to three predictions: (1) holistic content marketing (2) through social media hubs (3) to more small screens. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Social Media Marketing EMAIL: dickman.m@writeme.com IP: 173.9.109.185 URL: http://www.insegment.com/social-media-marketing.html DATE: 09/10/2010 02:54:43 PM It's interesting to see how these things came true or didn't come true since they were made (and it's only 9 months into 2010. The video rush hasn't materialized although it might take another year or two. Certainly video has been growing without a doubt but not anything above what we've already been seeing for 5 years or so. Also, it seems that twitter is still goings strong - sorry, Seth. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: adam EMAIL: argus1978@mail.ru IP: 94.255.109.233 URL: http://skforussia.ru DATE: 10/07/2010 06:03:27 AM This is really great info thank you, this is just what I need ----- PING: TITLE: 100 Social Media & Content Marketing Predictions - The eBook URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/12/100-social-media-content-marketing-predictions-the-ebook.html IP: 10.17.151.35 BLOG NAME: Junta42 Content Marketing blog DATE: 12/22/2009 03:34:16 PM Thanks to our good friends at Zmags, we now have a 75-page eBook covering over 100 social media and content marketing predictions for 2010 from the most influential marketers in the world. You can view it here without signup! Last... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: What’s Your Blog’s Take-Away? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: whats-your-blogs-takeaway CATEGORY: business blogging DATE: 12/09/2009 10:13:53 PM ----- BODY: Thanks to Sacha Cohen for this Junta42 guest post. As you'll read, Sacha's background in traditional journalism pays dividends regarding social media. Read on.

In traditional print publishing, there is a specific style called “service journalism”, which essentially means that that an article is filled with actionable tips and advice—what editors refer to as “take-aways.” Pick up any copy of Good Housekeeping, Self, or U.S. News & World Report and you’ll find “service” articles such as “Five Stress-Fighting Superfoods” and “Three Holiday Gifts That Keep on Giving”.

To write a great service journalism piece, one must think first and foremost about the audience. Consider the following questions:

What information can you offer that isn’t available elsewhere?
How can you make the subject easy to understand and accessible?
What research should you include?
What experts will provide the best insights?

These days, the most popular blog posts often take a page from services journalism. Whether it’s How to Go Green: Wine or Six Greener Ways to Get Around Town, service sells.

When advising clients about content strategy, start with the value proposition first. What’s the take-away? What makes this client’s perspective different than another? And how can you combine those two elements into one must-read post?

Each client has something special to offer, a point-of-view that can be turned into a take-away with a real benefit.

The types of take-aways you might want to consider include:

Checklists
Quizzes
Lists (best and worst, top 10, etc)
To dos
Round ups (Five healthy, road-trip friendly snacks)

Of course, this post wouldn’t be complete with a take-away of its own. Here’s a checklist of items that every blog post should include:

Descriptive, SEO-friendly headline.
Keywords throughout the copy, aiming for a combination of head and tail terms.
Metatags (title tag, keywords, and description).
External links to relevant content using descriptive keywords within the link.

Sacha Cohen is the founder of grassfed media. Reach her at sacha[at]grassfedmediadc.com or twitter.com/grassfedmedia. ----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Blogging, blog writing, writing a blog, blog content, writing for blogs, service journalism, takeaways, take-aways, checklists ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul McKeon EMAIL: contentfactor@gmail.com IP: 71.56.34.143 URL: http://www.contentfactor.com DATE: 12/10/2009 09:33:14 AM Giving readers a take-away is the new requirement for social media. Why are any of us on the web, reading copy, except to learn something of value? Give us a take-away and we will remember you--and your company, and what you're selling. It so happens I can offer the white paper "The 10 Hallmarks of Great Web Content" not only as an example, but for more on the same topic. http://www.contentfactor.com/library/content/10-hallmarks-great-web-content ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Carl Phelps EMAIL: carl.phelps@iwritemarketing.com IP: 129.21.79.82 URL: http://www.iwriteblog.com DATE: 12/11/2009 01:34:35 PM It seems like the concept of "service journalism" and "giving a takeaway" really comes down to engagement. As in all social media, you have to be engaging and interacting with your readers. There is just too much other great content out there. Whenever we finish drafting a blog post I always ask two questions: 1. What is the overall message you are trying to convey? 2. Does the reader know what to do next to follow your advice? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alejandro Bustos EMAIL: info@alejandrobustos.com IP: 24.51.212.146 URL: http://blogideas.alejandrobustos.com DATE: 12/14/2009 02:59:16 PM In any blogging practice the most important thing is to offer to the visitors fresh content every day or every week. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: amolpatil2k EMAIL: magscans@rediffmail.com IP: 59.95.6.219 URL: DATE: 12/20/2009 07:06:03 PM We might be missing the point altogether. Everything in media is about leverage. Traditional Journalism thrived on leverage due to high entry barriers. Even though the Net brought those down, Traditional Journalism never suffered nearly as much as it should have because the entire purpose of leverage was not so much profit as censorship. Till date, all the money and all the spins are in the radio and TV worlds because censorship is so profitable. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: @Junta42 Top Content Marketing Blogs Released - TopRank on Top STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: junta42-top-content-marketing-blogs-released-toprank-on-top CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 12/07/2009 11:45:18 AM ----- BODY:

It's official...content marketing is the buzzword for 2009.

As our team reviewed the over 300 companies that have submitted their blogs for review, the phrase "content marketing" was found multiple times on almost every blog.

In 2007, I could count the usage of content marketing with my hands. Today, I need more hands.

Our seventh official release of the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs again featured a record number of blogs (313 to be exact, which is about 30 more than our last update, and up from the 81 original blogs in 2007).

Congratulations to Lee Odden and team from TopRank for moving back into the top spot for the second time.

Congratulations to top 42 (below). The entire list can be viewed here. For more about the Top 42 or to submit your blog, go here.

1 Online Marketing Blog
2 Web Ink Now
3 EyeCube
4 Convince and Convert
5 Copyblogger
6 PR 2.0
7 TippingPoint Labs
8 Marketing Interactions
9 ContentMarketingToday
10 Conversation Agent
11 Rexblog
12 Writing on the Web
13 Post Advertising
14 Internet Marketing Blog
15 Inbound Internet Marketing Blog
16 Chris Brogan's Blog
17 Web Strategy by Jeremiah
18 Modern B2B Marketing
19 Marketing with Meaning
20 IdeaLaunch
21 The Viral Garden
22 Winning the Web
23 The Toadstool
24 Direct Marketing Observations
25 Seth's Blog
26 PR 20/20
27 Keysplash Creative
28 Social Media Explorer
29 Capture the Conversation
30 Brain Traffic
31 Drew's Marketing Minute
32 Buzz Marketing for Technology
33 9 Inch Marketing
34 Litman Live
35 Paul Gillin
36 ViralBlog
37 The Content Wrangler
38 Marcom Writer Blog
39 Ducttape Marketing
40 Buzz News
41 Writing White Papers
42 Feed Growth!

Related Posts

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul Gillin EMAIL: paul@gillin.com IP: 209.6.150.144 URL: http://gillin.com DATE: 12/08/2009 03:51:50 PM Thrilled! Thanks so much! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael Litman EMAIL: email@litmanlive.com IP: 193.203.71.130 URL: http://www.litmanlive.co.uk DATE: 12/10/2009 06:59:19 AM That's brilliant, thanks for the inclusion. @litmanlive ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Web Marketing Companies EMAIL: goutambvm@gmail.com IP: 115.184.44.62 URL: http://www.bvminternetmarketing.com DATE: 01/16/2010 07:07:41 AM Wow ! that’s great …..hope to expect more.. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why Print isn't going anywhere for a long, long time... STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-print-isnt-going-anywhere-for-a-long-long-time CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 12/03/2009 12:57:53 PM ----- BODY:

We'll be here someday with electronic, but this makes the case for why print is still an essential tool for most of us. Enjoy!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: sun, print custom marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: seamus walsh EMAIL: seamus.walsh@vazt.com IP: 75.68.172.176 URL: http://www.vazt.com DATE: 12/03/2009 01:54:31 PM Joe, thanks for bringing clarity to a debated subject. If a picture is worth one thousand words, what is a video worth? I think you would agree video is one of the fastest content formats to create. That said, choice of any content format should implemented as part unified content strategy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.117.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 12/03/2009 02:39:54 PM Good point Seamus...I think the important aspect here is not to forgot this critical channel as part of the content strategy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim Lloyd EMAIL: timlloyd150@hotmail.com IP: 79.74.94.95 URL: http://www.linkedin.com/in/timlloyd1 DATE: 12/06/2009 07:32:18 AM Brilliant that such a tight and clever presentation has come from the one industry most criticised for not 'keeping up'. However, its slightly at odds with the recent news that Murdoch plans to put up paywalls around his news sites (he owns The Sun). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.117.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 12/06/2009 11:51:28 AM Tim...good point. I think the key to remember here is that (regardless of what Rupert does), brands need to strongly consider a print content component as part of their content strategy. People still love and engage in print...so if your customers are there, that means your brand should be as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julie Burgmeier EMAIL: julie@skagitmarketing.com IP: 71.112.65.35 URL: http://www.skagitmarketing.com DATE: 12/07/2009 12:40:18 PM Speaking of brands, after one view of this video how many advertisements did you see? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Caleb Galaraga EMAIL: calebgalaraga@gmail.com IP: 24.215.199.169 URL: http://calebgalaraga.com DATE: 12/14/2009 10:43:07 PM This is just brilliant! Simple, classic and a reminder of how complicated things have become. Unfortunately, we all drank the kool aid of the new technology generation and are loving it! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Chex and Content - Where's Your Party Mix? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: chex-and-content-wheres-your-party-mix CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 12/02/2009 09:35:23 PM ----- BODY:

Corn Chex, Cinnamon Chex, Rice Chex. We currently have boxes of it around the house. And it's all because of relevant content.

How you might ask?

It started with one box of Cinnamon Chex. My oldest son Joshua, who's eight years old, took great interest in the back of the Cinnamon Chex box. The subject was ChexPartyMix.com. The back of the cereal box promoted the Chex recipe site containing hundreds of sweet and salty recipes containing the main ingredient - Chex.

Joshua literally spent hours on the website, looking for just the right recipe to perform with Dad. The first recipe, Chocolate Chex Caramel Corn Bars, was first up. We went right to work. Unfortunately, near perfection turned not so perfect as Dad accidentally replaced corn syrup with vegetable oil. Joshua was okay with the mistake, as long as we could try again the next day.

Day 2 Recipe - Chex Muddie Buddies.

After a trip to the store for ingredients and two more boxes of Rice Chex, we were ready to start. This time, it was perfection, and the entire family enjoyed Muddie Buddies (like Puppy Chow) before bedtime.

Who knows what the recipe will be tomorrow? (except for Joshua)

Not only is ChexPartyMix.com responsible for our local Giant Eagle stocking up on more Rice and Cinnamon Chex, we are now big fans of all things Chex. Why? Because of a recipe site so user friendly and helpful that an eight-year-old boy bookmarked it next to Lego.com on his personal toolbar.

What's your ChexPartyMix.com? Where are you developing valuable, compelling content that is turning prospects into fans? Are you developing marketing information so outstanding that people like me are motivated to share it with anyone who will listen?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, chex party mix ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Crowdsourcing Content Marketing – Oxymoron or Killer App? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: crowdsourcing-content-marketing-oxymoron-or-killer-app CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 11/30/2009 10:37:02 PM ----- BODY: Thanks to Rick Liebling, a long-time Junta42 supporter, for this provocative guest post. Connect with Rick @eyecube.

While those of us who are believers in Content Marketing have been diligently spreading the word, proponents of crowdsourcing have been screaming from the rooftops with all the subtlety of a tent show revival about the buzzword of 2010. But is crowdsourcing really all its cracked up to be? Can brands really harness it to their benefit? As a marketer your resources, both human and financial, are limited, so where should you be looking to shift your time and money?

It’s important to understand what Content Marketing and Crowdsourcing are, what they can (and can’t do) and how they can be used (and misused). I think the biggest area of, if not confusion then perhaps misunderstanding, is with crowdsourcing. Right now a lot of brands are using crowdsourcing like a cudgel instead of a scalpel. They are trying to grab as many consumers as possible, throw a challenge, any challenge, at them and see if they can catch lightning in a bottle.

Is that how you would crowdsource open-heart surgery? What about automotive engine repair? Of course not. You’d try to gather a large selection of pre-qualified people for the specific task at hand. So, if you are a brand marketer and you want to produce effective, relevant content marketing, and you want to do so via crowdsourcing, you have to look at this from a different perspective.

You need to be more strategic and a little more thoughtful. Whether your product is a mass product or has a very specific target, you can identify a niche consumer. Sure, everybody loves your fizzy beverage, but maybe you want to target college students. Why open your crowdsourcing contest to everyone then? Why not target college kids and more importantly, make the content relevant to college kids. How about crowdsourcing live music reviews from college campuses all around the country. This would engage your target consumer with relevant content and eliminate submissions from sources you don’t want and aren’t targeted.

The real power of crowdsourcing is in focusing on a group of experts, not a group of generalists. If you’re a brand marketer who is a believer in content marketing but hears the siren call of crowdsourcing, go for it, but be smart. ----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Rick Liebling, crowdsourcing, content marketing ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing Tips to Be More Thankful Next Year STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-tips-to-be-more-thankful-next-year CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 11/26/2009 12:51:41 PM ----- BODY:

I'm extremely thankful this year...for many things. Re: business, it's hard to imagine just a few years ago I was working for "the man" and how this year I have been able to spread the word about content marketing all over the world. It's quite humbling actually.

Here's what I'll be doing more of over the next year to insure more good things will happen in 2010.

Share more expertise. This is the hardest part about content marketing. Most businesses feel they need to protect their expertise. They believe that's their competitive advantage. The truth is, the more expertise you share, the more business you will get. Every time I give a speech, I get more speaking offers. Every time we blog about a key issue, the more of the right web traffic we get and the more people spread that content for us. What will you share next year?
More audio and video. Slideshare is fantastic, but more and more Junta42 readers have been asking for video or audio with our Slideshare presentations. It's not hard to do, we just have to do it. We're thinking if we add this component, more good will happen.
Continue to be human. This is a challenge for businesses, and a key to successful social media. How do you act online? Like a person. Throw out the corporate speak and be real.

Effective content marketing means more sharing, more giving and more marketing with meaning. When you help your customers on a consistent basis, you'll get chosen (more than not) when they are ready to buy.

Now that's something to be thankful about!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing, thanksgiving, sharing expertise ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 70.253.175.149 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 11/30/2009 12:42:55 AM I find the same thing happening with my small enterprise Joe... the more I share, the more business I receive in return. I will definitely be continuing to add my insight to the web into 2010. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 86.167.33.240 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 11/30/2009 03:50:15 AM Great post and I think you've hit the nail on the head. There are so many things that giving can generate because people beleive in what you provide. They spread the word about you and what you can offer giving you something back in return...their business. Thanks for sharing. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Pros and Cons of User-Generated Content STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: pros-cons-user-generated-content CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 11/25/2009 06:10:35 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Dara Solomon, Community Manager at FunAdvice.com, for putting this timely piece together on user-generated content. More and more, marketers are asking how or if user-generated content should fit into their overall content marketing strategy. Dara provides a good overview below to help you in your decision making.

As the Internet continues to sprawl, entangle with, and seemingly overtake many aspects of our lives, different issues also begin to reel us in. Something interesting to think about is the debate on websites using “user-generated content” (UGC) versus “traditional” content.

The concept is simple: user-generated content includes any site where the user (that’s you or possibly your customer) can write and publish content, whether it is video content, blog posts, advice websites, and the like. No Rupert Murdoch involved there. Contrarily, “traditional” content includes pages run by local and national media, business pages, and any website where the content was professionally written, edited and published (your content marketing).

Working for a site, FunAdvice.com, that contains almost entirely UGC, it’s starkly apparent in my daily life that UGC has both pros and cons.

Pros of UGC:

Voice: As we all witnessed, the Internet played a huge role in the 2009 Iranian election protests. Whereas without UGC, much of the protests would have been peripherally covered (through Iranian traditional news only), UGC allowed blogger Joe Schmo in Iran to post his protests for the world to read. It’s not debatable that UGC gives people around the world a voice, whereas traditional content does nothing of the sort. As for the inherent debate on Democracy, maybe later. For now, a definite pro.
Upcoming: The current teenage generation uses the Internet. According to a late 2007 Pew study, 94% of American teenagers polled use the internet/email. As this occurs, teens are watching TV (traditional content) less. UGC seems to be the way to go if trying to hook the future generation.
Simpler: It could be argued that UGC is easier from a site owner’s perspective– considering content is written for you rather than by you. I’ll leave you a minute to ponder that; it’ll come up again later.
Self-policing: Not only is it possible to not have to write much content, there are ways to get the community to actually police themselves. Over at FunAdvice, we use volunteer moderators to help keep abuse and spam at bay.

Sounds good and dandy, right? So why isn’t every website based on user-generated content?

Cons of UGC:

Credibility: For anyone who has asked a fairly simple question on an advice site and received a myriad of different answers, this issue comes up immediately. Who are these people generating this content, and what makes them experts? How much wrong (or even dangerous) information are they disseminating to the world through their blogging and incorrect advice?
Bias: Also seems to be a no-brainer. Unless the site is a specifically-stated political party site, bias isn’t explicitly told in UGC. It’s up to the reader to gauge which information doesn’t hold bias. And many people aren’t capable of this determination.
Moderation: Unless using self-policing options (see Pros), there is an issue of moderating UGC sites (especially advice sites). How much work is involved with making sure illegal or abusive activity isn’t published on your watch? And is the work worth it for the possibly biased and incredible information?
Ownership: When examining traditional content, it’s easy to see who the owner is (Rupert Murdoch). Ok enough of those jokes. In all seriousness, who actually owns the content on user-generated sites? The host? The user who wrote the content? Both? Intellectual property laws regarding the Internet have a long way to go to catch up with us today.

So where do you personally stand on this debate? Is UGC the wave of the future and a possibility for your company, or just a way to spread junk en masse? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: user-generated content ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Geoff Caplan EMAIL: geoff@mail.org IP: 98.211.197.191 URL: http://marketingtechnews.com DATE: 11/26/2009 09:12:03 AM Excellent post. Dara's analysis of UGC is dead on and the points she makes should be taken under serious consideration by anyone responsible for content and overall online marketing strategies. This is a forward thinking approach to Internet Best Practices. Sound Internet marketing principles should aways be built on a core foundation of objective, relevant content, across the board. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Larry Kunz EMAIL: lkunz@sdicorp.com IP: 98.26.24.93 URL: http://www.sdiglobalsolutions.com DATE: 11/27/2009 12:53:10 PM UGC is the wave of the future. If we miss this wave, we'll be swamped. My brand is enhanced if I have a skilled content strategist who can manage the UGC and integrate it with traditional content. My brand is damaged if I don't manage UCG effectively -- or if I try to ignore UCG, because my customers and potential customers will perceive (fairly or not) that I'm not interested in them. Anne Gentle's book, Conversation and Community (http://xmlpress.net/publications/conversation-community), is a great resource. She explores the issue from the context of technical documentation, but her comments are relevant in other contexts as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: instant sales system EMAIL: adams.newmedia@yahoo.com IP: 115.184.76.33 URL: http://www.how2buildyourbusiness.com DATE: 11/27/2009 08:36:04 PM Thanks for the Great Post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ryan EMAIL: ryanbeale26@yahoo.com IP: 76.19.146.175 URL: http://rbeale.com DATE: 12/02/2009 10:21:26 PM Interesting Read. You bring up excellent points on both sides of UGC. I am a UGC advocate, but think in the long run will be most beneficial to "entertainment" type websites. We'll see how it all plays out. @RBeale ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sara EMAIL: sara.2.miller@sprint.com IP: 144.230.63.58 URL: DATE: 12/03/2009 12:57:54 PM I would add one more point to your "cons." From a communications perspetive, you also don't "control" the message with user generated content. Although this method is fun and egaging, the message you hope comes across could get lost - either because the UGC leaves out your company's perspective or because the content is poorly executed. Now, I know we often don't have "control" anyway, but UGC is a often a sure-fire way to muddle your message and confuse your audience when you have something clear to say. I counsel my clients to steer clear of UGC if they have a clear message they want to deliver. If that's not the case, then we open it up to others to help us share the message in a fun and authentic way. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dara EMAIL: editor@funadvice.com IP: 71.65.205.203 URL: http://www.funadvice.com DATE: 12/15/2009 06:08:07 PM Sara, Good point, with UGC you give up control of the message. From how I see it, if you are running a site with a specific viewpoint/stance you want to portray, commercial-based content would be the way to go... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Do you want your customers to be able to reach you? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: do-you-want-your-customers-to-be-able-to-reach-you CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 11/24/2009 12:15:22 PM ----- BODY:

This is a guest post compliments of Junta42's VP of Operations Pam Kozelka. It's all about being accessible for your customers? Today, your customers expect you to be reachable, in whatever way they want to reach you. Are you?

Every time we update the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs list, one of the jobs is to get the name and email for each blogger. For this go around, there are 44 new blogs to be added to the list – so there are 44 people to find and get an email address. Doesn’t sound too tough, right? I mean in this internet age with internet savvy bloggers, finding their contact information should be a cinch.

HA! Fooled you. As I write this I am only about half-way through the list and have yet to find a straight out email address for one blogger. I find connections to Twitter, Linkedin and Facebook. I even find phone numbers. I found one that was supposed to be a link to a contact form but the form wasn’t there (do they wonder why people don’t contact them???).

What if I were a prospect? What if I actually wanted to give you some direct business? If you make it so hard for me to contact you directly, I might give up and find someone more accessible. Life is way too busy for me to spend more than 3 minutes trying to figure out how to get in touch with you.

I know you will tell me that posting your email address will give you all kinds of spam, but you are smart enough to know your way around that. Want to reach me? Tell me I am wrong? Here you go pam[at]junta42.com.

And a take away - [Joe (the boss) after all likes a good takeaway or two]. How your customers, prospects and others are going to find you is key to your content strategy. This not only includes SEO, blogging and producing content that will drive people to your site (gaining credibility and trust), it also includes them actually being able to get in touch with you.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: accessibility, content strategy, Pam Kozelka ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul L'Acosta EMAIL: marketinfails@me.com IP: 75.131.119.246 URL: http://twitter.com/marketingfails DATE: 11/24/2009 02:25:58 PM Thank you for this reminder. Need to update some pages now! --Paul ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Yes, Senior Executives Are Looking for Your Content STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: senior-executives-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 11/23/2009 12:27:18 PM ----- BODY:

One of the biggest questions I receive on my travels is about whether senior executives (the C-Suite) search the internet to find information. The thought is this: senior-level decision makers farm out looking for information to others, or they rely on traditional marketing channels to gather their buying information.

This latest research study from Forbes and Google (registration required to get PDF report) found that C-level decision makers do in fact use the Internet to gather buying information. The survey polled 354 senior executives at organizations with more than $1 billion in revenues.

Here are some of the key findings:

Most executives search the Internet daily.
60%+ rely on search engines.
30% of executives under 50 leverage their social networks.
70% use the Internet more frequently versus traditional print or broadcast media.
80% either search for buying information themselves or gather the initial information to pass to others.
Video is becoming much more important as an information source.
More than 50% of executives under 50 use Twitter several times a week.

It's worth the registration for the report.

Point is this: Are you providing consistent content marketing on the web for these decision-makers to find?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: senior executives, content marketing, decision markers ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Caroline EMAIL: c.hatchett@waxcom.com IP: 38.100.206.190 URL: http://www.waxcom.com/impressions DATE: 11/24/2009 12:20:09 PM Thanks for sharing this study. It's makes the case for marketers (especially those in B2B) to produce and share solid content and engage in inbound marketing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul McKeon EMAIL: contentfactor@gmail.com IP: 96.25.167.39 URL: http://www.contentfactor.com DATE: 11/24/2009 03:32:30 PM For content marketers, it is encouraging to see that the C-suite does its own research. Internet searches are easy, and social media doesn't lend itself to being delegated to assistants. That means marketers will reach real decision makers directly if they distribute their content in the media that suits the audience. On http://www.contentfactor.com/blog I summarized some additional points of interest to b-to-b content marketers. Thanks, Joe, for blogging this study. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Acai berry EMAIL: barbaraandrew01@in.com IP: 122.180.1.91 URL: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=1829429 DATE: 12/07/2009 04:55:08 AM Thank you for another great article. Where else could anyone get that kind of information in such a perfect way of writing? I have a presentation next week, and I am on the look for such information. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Corporate Blogging Tips and Strategies STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-corporate-blogging-tips-and-strategies CATEGORY: business blogging DATE: 11/18/2009 08:33:00 AM ----- BODY:

Ambal from Click Documents asked me if I had any tips/strategies for corporate blogging. The presentation below is a corporate blogging basics presentation useful for beginning bloggers. That said, here are the main takeaways. For more indepth understanding of a content marketing strategy, this content marketing white paper will help.

A blog is just a tool, nothing more, nothing less. BUT, it can be a powerful tool to distribute consistent and valuable information to your prospects and customers. Be sure to focus on the informational needs of your customers, and provide helpful content around those needs. The more niche the better. Find your expertise area and own it!
Not sure how to get started with a robust social media presence? First, focus on your blog and use that as the magnet to attract customers from social networks to your site. You cannot have a social media strategy without first understanding your content strategy.
Match your expertise areas with the needs of your customers. Every situation where you have expertise and your customer has an informational need is a piece of content that leads to a larger content strategy.
There are thousands of blogging platforms. Pick the easiest to implement. Wordpress and TypePad would be my first and second choices. Larger organizations may want to look into Compendium.
Get your blogging ears on and listen. Use tools such as Google Alerts, Twitter Search and Tweetdeck to actively listen to your community.
Where are your customers hanging out? Find relevant industry blogs using Twitter, Google Alerts and Google Blog Search and begin to read those blogs. A bit later, start to engage and comment with helpful tips. Once you gather a presence on those blogs, guest blogging opportunities should be considered. Make a list of at least 10-15 blogs.
Automatically spread your message. Use a service like Twitterfeed to automatically post your blog updates to Twitter and Facebook.
Choose a consistent schedule. Whether it's once, twice a week or even daily, pick a schedule and stick to it. This blog posts 2-3 times per week and has been doing so for almost three years now. Of all these points, this may be the most important.
Track your performance. Use Google Analytics to monitor which posts are being engaged in the most and where people are coming from. Do more of the posts that are read, less of the ones that are not.
Length and style tips:

Shorter is often better (250 words). Get to the point and make it actionable. Link out to ideas that need more explanation.
Bullets/Lists do better
Titles are like magazine covers...their role is to get people to open them. Work on titles that get people to read your post.
Integrate video or presentations (embed) whenever possible. Mix it up!
Actively link to other bloggers. They will notice.
Proofread!

Beginner Corporate Blogging Tips

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: corporate blogging, blogging tips, corporate blogging strategies ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com/connectthedocs DATE: 11/18/2009 11:49:25 AM Hi Joe: Thanx for the detailed post highlighting tips/strategies for corporate blogging. I am going to run down the list and mark off areas in which my team has to improve. This list combined with Russell's ideas(http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/10/creating-consistent-content-a-content-marketing-plan.html) will certainly help my team create a good, blogging+content marketing plan for 2010. Thanx again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: tedlsimon EMAIL: tedsimon@comcast.net IP: 98.210.37.208 URL: http://wwww.tedlsimon.posterous.com DATE: 11/19/2009 02:16:27 PM Joe, Great tips for anyone looking to get their blog started or improve their current efforts (be it corporate or personal). I plead guilty to violating #8...and probably a few others as well. Keep up the great work...enjoy following you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jody Pellerin EMAIL: Marketing@phaseware.com IP: 173.173.76.125 URL: http://www.phaseware.com/PhaseWare-files-blog DATE: 11/19/2009 03:57:56 PM In support of #8 I can say that readership definitely increased when I blogged more frequently and on a consistent schedule. As far as #10 goes, I would add PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE proofread and if grammar and spelling are not your strong suit find someone else to do so. I am seeing increasing numbers of posts with misspellings, with the wrong word (usually a homonym) being used, poor punctuation and parts of sentences being left out. I won't say I am perfect but I do go back over my posts before I hit publish. Give the PhaseWare Files a look - we just blogged about this subject. http://www.phaseware.com/PhaseWare-Files-blog/bid/27509/Dear-Bloggers-Please-Proofread-Your-Work ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tom Allinder EMAIL: tom@inboundmarketingpr.com IP: 69.36.220.252 URL: http://inboundmarketingpr.com DATE: 11/20/2009 09:08:51 AM Joe, I have found success with tackling controversial subjects too. Blogs on tough subjects tend to push a lot of buttons! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 99.191.180.40 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 11/20/2009 01:49:42 PM Thanks Joe. One of my biggest challenges with clients is convincing them that they should use a blog to build a positive relationship with their clients and prospects and not as a "hard selling" tool. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.117.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/20/2009 02:16:44 PM Hi Russ...I agree with you. Getting clients to understand that they need to be providing consistent information that isn't a hard sell is the toughest part. More companies are getting it, but it's like moving the Titanic at times. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christian Russell EMAIL: christiantrussell@hotmail.com IP: 98.223.66.59 URL: http://www.nextlevelblogger.com DATE: 11/21/2009 07:48:26 PM I do agree that bloggers notice when you link them. It takes a while, and when you're starting anything in the blogosphere, you basically feel invisible at first, but it does pay off in the long run. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chris Baggott EMAIL: chris@compendium.com IP: 76.251.251.64 URL: http://blogging.compendiumblog.com/blog/blogging-best-practices DATE: 12/11/2009 11:31:47 AM Great tips Joe. Also, we suggest frequently to open the floodgates for content creation. Good business blogs tell the stories about how you solve problems. The similar situation story has been the greatest sales tactic of all time for eternaty. "Tell me how you have solved a problem like mine in the past and I'm likely to trust you to solve my problem" This is true whether you sell cars or high end legal consulting. The best people to tell those similar situation stories are either your employees or your existing customers. Empower them...solicit them. Free them. Chris Baggott CEO Compendium Blogware ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Roger EMAIL: information@seositecheckup.com IP: 203.134.207.13 URL: http://www.seositecheckup.com DATE: 04/14/2010 06:27:33 AM Hi many thanks for sharing this. i am agreed and learn the basic things. For more info visit here : http://www.seositecheckup.com/articles/42 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Custom Publishing Council Announces 2009 Pearl Awards STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: custom-publishing-council-announces-2009-pearl-awards CATEGORY: custom publishing council DATE: 11/16/2009 09:41:44 PM ----- BODY:

Had an outstanding time last Thursday at the 2009 Custom Publishing Council Pearl Awards (Junta42 was a sponsor of the event).

A sign that the recession may be over? - many more attendees at the awards event this year over last year. A great site to see.

Finally, congrats to Junta42's parent company, Z Squared Media, on their silver place best blog finish in association with Razorleaf Corporation.

Here are all the winners below:

Winners are listed by category, title, custom publisher and client name, included in parentheses.

DESIGN | Best Cover Less Than 50,000
Gold: Lamborghini Desk Diary, Faircount Media Group (Lamborghini Club America)
Silver: The First Giant Leap for Mankind, Faircount Media Group (NASA)
Bronze: One, TMG (Silicon Valley Community Foundation)

DESIGN | Best Cover 50,000 – 250,000
Gold: Enroute, Spafax (Air Canada)
Silver: in, Spafax (LAN)
Bronze: Parks, Time Inc. Content Solutions (National Park Foundation)

DESIGN | Best Cover More Than 250,000
Gold: World Vision, Journey Group, Inc. (World Vision)
Silver: Spirit, Pace Communications (Southwest Airlines)
Bronze: Deliver, Campbell-Ewald (USPS)

DESIGN | Best Opening Spread | Less Than 50,000
Gold: Capital Thinking, (Tales of the Transformation),Leverage Media (Patton Boggs LLP)
Silver: Thrive, (Drop by Drop), Pace Communications (Syngenta)
Bronze: Explore, (Angelina Jolie), HCP/Aboard Publishing (TACA Airlines)
Bronze: Lamborghini Desk Diary, (Quitting is Bull), Faircount Media Group (Lamborghini Club America)

DESIGN | Best Opening Spread | 50,000-250,000
Gold: Go, Ink (AirTran Airways)
Silver: Destination Hyatt 2009, HCP/Aboard Publishing (Hyatt Hotels Corporation)
Bronze: Cleveland Clinic Magazine, TMG (Cleveland Clinic)

DESIGN | Best Opening Spread | More than 250,000
Gold: ACCESS, Meredith Integrated Marketing (DIRECTV)
Silver: Spirit, Pace Communications (Southwest Airlines)
Bronze: fresh, The Pohly Company (Hannaford)

DESIGN | Best Overall | Less than 50,000
Gold: MoFo Tech, Leverage Media (Morrison & Foerster LLP)
Silver: LeeNia, Direct Publishing Group (UF Distribution Polska)
Bronze: CENTURION, Journal International Verlags (American Express Services Europe)

DESIGN | Best Overall | 50,000 – 250,000
Gold: Parks, Time Inc. Content Solutions (National Park Foundation)
Silver: HomeSpa, Spafax (BainUltra)
Bronze: SilverKris, SPH Magazines Pte Ltd (Singapore Airlines)

DESIGN | Best Overall | More than 250,000
Gold: Acura Style, Javelin Custom Publishing (American Honda Motor Company Inc.)
Silver: ACCESS, Meredith Integrated Marketing (DIRECTV)
Bronze: Deliver, Campbell-Ewald (USPS)

DESIGN | Best New Magazine
Gold: MoFo Tech, Leverage Media (Morrison & Foerster LLP)
Silver: d.lux, Journal International Verlags (Steigenberger Hotels AG)
Bronze: The Barnett Shale, Wax Custom Communications (Chesapeake Energy Corp.)

DESIGN | Best New Newsletter
Gold: Yoshi!, Novimedia (Toyota MM Poland)
Silver: HealthLink, DCP (Brown & Toland Physicians)
Bronze: Advisor News, Pace Communications (Wachovia Financial Advisors)

DESIGN | Most Improved Publication
Gold: MIT Sloan Management Review, The Pohly Company (MIT Sloan Management Review)
Silver: OfficeLine & TEN, GLC Custom Publishing (United Stationers)
Bronze: Georgetown Business, TMG (G.U. McDonough School of Business)

DESIGN | Best Special Issue
Gold: 2009 Masters Journal, Golf Digest Publications (Augusta National Golf Club)
Silver: enRoute, Spafax (Air Canada)
Bronze: SAP SPECTRUM PRINT, Grasundsterne Werbeagentur GmbH (SAP AG)

DESIGN | One-Shot
Gold: Born Early, Rodale Custom Publishing (MedImmune)
Silver: One Journey, D Custom (Purina One® Brand Pet Food)
Bronze: WorldView, Leverage Media (Patton Boggs LLP)

DESIGN | Best Use of Photography | Less Than 50,000
Gold: Audi Magazine, Trip Editoria (Audi Brazil)
Silver: Renaissance, (Devon on Foot), Pace Communications (Wachovia)
Bronze: WorldView, Leverage Media (Patton Boggs LLP)

DESIGN | Best Use of Photography | 50,000 - 250,000
Gold: in, (Carnaval), Spafax (LAN)
Silver: CNN Traveller, (The Winds of Change),Emphasis Media Limited (CNN)
Bronze: Four Seasons Magazine, (Kitchen Science),Pace Communications (Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts)
Bronze: Journey, (Time Machines), D Custom (First Command Financial Services, Inc.)

DESIGN | Best Use of Photography | More than 250,000
Gold: ACESS, Meredith Integrated Marketing (DIRECTV)
Silver: envision, KI Lipton (CertaPro Painters)
Bronze: Corvette Quarterly, Campbell-Ewald (Chevrolet)

DESIGN | Best Use of Illustration | Less Than 50,000
Gold: Audi Magazine, Trip Editoria (Audi Brazil)
Silver: Zoom, Infel AG (AET)
Bronze: Thrive, Pace Communications (Syngenta)

DESIGN | Best Use of Illustration | 50,000 – 250,000
Gold: in, Spafax (LAN)
Silver: Four Seasons Magazine, Pace Communications (Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts)
Bronze: Cleveland Clinic, TMG (Cleveland Clinic)

DESIGN | Best Use of Illustration | More Than 250,000
Gold: diane, Rodale Custom Publishing (Curves International)
Silver: Hemispheres, Ink (United Airlines)
Bronze: All Animals, Time Inc. Content Solutions (The Humane Society of the United States)

DESIGN | Best Use of Typography
Gold: ACCESS, Meredith Integrated Marketing (DIRECTV)
Silver: NACS Magazine, The Pohly Company (NACS)
Bronze: Independent School, TMG (NAIS)

DESIGN | Best Tie-In with Corporate Marketing
Gold: Little Brown Book, Rodale Custom Publishing (Bloomingdale's)
Silver: On Investing, Custom Solutions from SmartMoney (Charles Schwab)
Bronze: xPotential, TMG (K12 Inc.)

DIGITAL | Best Integrated Print and Web Program
Gold: Stir, Hanley Wood Marketing (Sherwin-Williams)
Silver: L’Oréal: Art of Possiblity, Rogers Publishing (L'Oréal Canada)
Bronze: Lamaze: Pregnancy, Birth & Beyond online magazine extension, Rodale Custom Publishing (Lamaze International, Inc.)

DIGITAL | Best Web Publication
Gold: Forecast.diabetes.org, TMG (American Diabetes Association)
Silver: Cleveland Clinic Health.com, TMG (Cleveland Clinic)
Bronze: You24 Online Magazine, Rodale Custom Publishing (24 Hour Fitness)
Bronze: Biztechmagazine.com, TMG (CDW)

DIGITAL | Best E-Newsletter
Gold: On Air, Spafax Canada (Air Canada)
Silver: CP News, Novimedia (Citroën Polska)
Bronze: BBVA Compass Everyday, King Fish Media (BBVA Compass Bank)

DIGITAL | Best Microsite
Gold: Master the Shift.com, Rodale Custom Publishing (Nissan)
Silver: SNAP Live ̕09, Hammock Inc. (Society of National Association Publications)
Bronze: Cleveland Clinic Facts.com, TMG (Cleveland Clinic)

DIGITAL | Best Blog
Gold: Delta Sky Magazine, Pace Communications (Delta Air Lines)
Silver: Razorleaf Blog, Z Squared Media (Razorleaf Corporation)
Bronze: Asics/Your Running Partner.com, Time Inc. Content Solutions (Asics)

DIGITAL | Best Use of Community/Social Networking
Gold: SNAP Community Site, Hammock Inc. (Society of National Association Publications)
Silver: 3121, New Media Strategies (A Meredith Integrated Marketing Owned Company) (National Journal)

DIGITAL | Best Interactive Tool
Gold: Gillette Facial Styler, Time Inc. Content Solutions (Gillette)
Silver: DNC and RNC Convention Hubs, New Media Strategies (A Meredith Integrated Marketing Owned Company) (C-Span)

DIGITAL | Best Web Feature or Article
Gold: Gillette Grooming Glossary, Time Inc. Content Solutions (Gillette)
Silver: Washington Flyer, TMG (Washington Flyer)
Bronze: You24 Online Magazine, Rodale Custom Publishing (24 Hour Fitness)

DIGITAL | Best Overall Web Design
Gold: Lexus Magazine, Story Worldwide (Toyota Motor Sales)
Silver: ClevelandClinicHealth.com, TMG (Cleveland Clinic)
Bronze: MasterTheShift.com, Rodale Custom Publishing (Nissan)

DIGITAL | Best Use of Mobile Technology
Gold: LDI iPhone Application, Penton Media (Lee Filters)

DIGITAL | Best Launch or Relaunch
Gold: Prilosec OTC/StopHeartBurn.com, Time Inc. Content Solutions (P&G/Prilosec OTC)
Silver: Forecast.diabetes.org, TMG (American Diabetes Association)
Bronze: SAP.info, Grasundsterne Werbeagentur GmbH (SAP AG)

EDITORIAL | Best Cover Lines
Gold: Greenwise, Meredith Integrated Marketing (Publix)
Silver: WebMD the Magazine, TMG (WebMD)
Bronze: New Outlook, Redwood Custom Communications (Sears Canada Inc.)

EDITORIAL | Best Feature Article/Package |Less Than 50,000
Gold: One, (Keeping Doors Open),TMG (Silicon Valley Community Foundation)
Silver: Renaissance, (Gear Up for the Green), Pace Communications (Wachovia)
Bronze: Rolls Royce Desk Diary, (Return of the Green Fairy),Faircount Media Group (Rolls Royce Owners Club)

EDITORIAL | Best Feature Article/Package |50,000-250,000
Gold: Proto, (Yes. No. Maybe), Time Inc. Content Solutions (Massachusetts General Hospital)
Silver: Four Seasons Magazine, (Kitchen Science), Pace Communications (Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts)
Bronze: nyse magazine, (Delta’s Flight Plan), Time Inc. Content Solutions (New York Stock Exchange)

EDITORIAL | Best Feature Article/Package |More Than 250,000
Gold: diane, (Breast Cancer Guide), Rodale Custom Publishing (Curves International)
Silver: New Outlook, (Bridging the Distance), Redwood Custom Communications (Sears Canada Inc.)
Bronze: At Home, (The Path Home) Meredith Integrated Marketing (Century 21)

EDITORIAL | Best Overall |Less Than 50,000
Gold: MoFo Tech, Leverage Media (Morrison & Foerster LLP)
Silver: WorldView, Leverage Media (Patton Boggs LLP)
Bronze: FedTech, TMG (CDW-G)

EDITORIAL | Best Overall |50,000 – 250,000
Gold: enRoute, Spafax (Air Canada)
Silver: Proto, Time Inc. Content Solutions (Massachusetts General Hospital)
Bronze: STIR, Hanley Wood Marketing (Sherwin-Williams)

EDITORIAL | Best Overall More Than 250,000
Gold: Spirit, Pace Communications (Southwest Airlines)
Silver: Lexus, Story Worldwide (Toyota Motor Sales)
Bronze: Acura Style, Javelin Custom Publishing (American Honda Motor Company Inc.

EDITORIAL | Best New Magazine
Gold: PROJECT M, Burda Yukom(Allianz Global Investors)
Silver: MoFo Tech, Leverage Media (Morrison & Foerster LLP)
Bronze: Green Mechanical Contractor, Penton Media Inc. (Contractor Magazine)

EDITORIAL | Best New Newsletter
Gold: Healthlink, DCP (Brown & Toland Physicians)
Silver: Is Your Company Ready for Pandemic Flu? Hope Health (Hope Health)
Bronze: Advisor News, Pace Communications (Wachovia)

EDITORIAL | Most Improved Publication
Gold: Georgetown Business, TMG (G.U. McDonough School of Business)
Silver: Santa Barbara: The Magazine for Visitors, Pace Communications (Santa Barbara Conference and Visitors Bureau & Film Commission)
Bronze: Fairmont Magazine, Spafax (Fairmont Hotel)

EDITORIAL | Best Column
Gold: Continental, (The Guide), The Pohly Company (Continental Airlines)
Silver: ACCESS, (The Scorsese Selection),Meredith Integrated Marketing (DIRECTV)
Bronze: diane, (Of Springsteen and Spring Cleaning), Rodale Custom Publishing (Curves International)

EDITORIAL | Best Regular Department
Gold: Grape, (A Closer Look),Meredith Integrated Marketing (Publix)
Silver: MyBusiness (My Business Manual),Hammock Inc. (NFIB)
Bronze: On Investing, (Across the Wire),Custom Solutions from SmartMoney(Charles Schwab)

EDITORIAL | Best Special Issue
Gold: 2009 Masters Journal, Golf Digest Publications (Augusta National Golf Club)
Silver: enRoute, (Food Issue), Spafax (Air Canada)
Bronze: THE STEP BEYOND, Journal International Verlags (EADS, Corporate Fraud Communications)

EDITORIAL | Best One-Shot
Gold: Born Early, Rodale Custom Publishing (MedImmune)
Silver: One Journey, D Custom (Purina One® Brand Pet Food)
Bronze: WorldView, Leverage Media(Patton Boggs LLP)

EDITORIAL | Best International Publication
Gold: Zoom, Infel AG (AET)
Silver: Lamaze: Pregnancy, Birth & Beyond, Rodale Custom Publishing (Lamaze International, Inc.)
Bronze: inmotion, Journal International Verlags (MAN Nutefahrzeuge Gruppe)

STRATEGY | Best Tie-in with Corporate Integrated Marketing
Gold: VIEWS, QuadCreative (Quad/Graphics)
Silver: in, Spafax (LAN)
Bronze: BizTech, FedTech, StateTech, EdTech Focus on K-12, EdTech Focus on Higher Education, TMG (CDW, CDW-G)

STRATEGY | Best Achievement of Corporate Objectives
Gold: Little Brown Book, Rodale Custom Publishing (Bloomingdale's)
Silver: Traveler, Pace Communications (AAA of Northern California, Nevada and Utah)
Bronze: diane, Rodale Custom Publishing (Curves International)

STRATEGY | Proof of Return on Investment
Gold: Zappos Life Casual, King Fish Media (Zappos.com)
Silver: Zappos Life Active, King Fish Media (Zappos.com)
Bronze: UR Magazine, Rogers Publishing (Rogers Wireless Inc.)

STRATEGY | Best Distribution Strategy
Gold: Countdown magazine, Parents Network Custom Media (Kimberly-Clark)
Silver: Washington Flyer, TMG (Washington Flyer)
Bronze: Little Pink Book, Rodale Custom Publishing (Bloomingdale's)

STRATEGY | Best Launch or Relaunch
Gold: Sip & Savor: A Taste of Santa Barbara, Pace Communications (Santa Barbara Conference and Visitors Bureau & Film Commission)
Silver: UR Magazine, Rogers Publishing (Rogers Wireless Inc.)
Bronze: diane, Rodale Custom Publishing(Curves International)

BEST IN CUSTOM : HONORING OVERALL EXCELLENCE
The Best in Custom Award recognizes products that achieve overall excellence in the following categories: editorial, design, strategy, distribution, and fulfillment of the client’s marketing objectives. This year’s award was presented to enRoute, published by Spafax.

Best in Custom Finalists:
MoFo Tech, Leverage Media
enRoute, Spafax
Spirit, Pace Communications
Parks, Time Inc. Content Solutions
Acura Style, Javelin Custom Publishing
Forecast.diabetes.org, TMG
Diane, Rodale Custom Publishing
Zappos Life Casual, Kingfish Media

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andrew Davis EMAIL: adavis@tippingpointlabs.com IP: 71.174.59.26 URL: http://blog.tippingpointlabs.com DATE: 11/17/2009 11:16:38 AM Congratulations to all the Pearl Award Winners! Great Content by Great People! Keep up the good work! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Create Content that Sleeps, Creeps and Leaps STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: create-content-that-sleeps-creeps-and-leaps CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 11/13/2009 12:10:28 PM ----- BODY:

I had a great conversation today with Dr. Sandra Bauman from Bauman Research about start-up companies. She shared with me the idea about "sleeps, creeps and leaps." In the first year of a business launch, the brand sleeps. In year two, you start to see the company creep toward success. But it's in the third year that the business leaps and really begins to grow.

Fascinating concept.

The same principle can be applied toward corporate content marketing.

As the corporate content program starts (let's say with a blog, white paper, enewsletter strategy), success is difficult to find. Not much of the right traffic, not many tangible results. This is a good reason why most corporate blogs die within three months.

It's only after months and months, possibly a year of time before you start to see real engagement. Because you have kept your content promise, you now start to see people sharing your content, signing up for your RSS feed, and linking to your great content. Google starts to pick up on this and your organic search engine results start to pick up.

Then, after well more than a year, the real magic happens. You become the thought leader. A trusted advisor for your industry. People start to look to you for guidance in the industry. It's in this time period, that you start to see quantifiable business returns as a result of your content.

Yes, it could happen sooner, and it could also take longer, but the key issue here is this - content consistency.

The most important part of the content strategy (even, dare I say, more important that the absolute best content for your niche) is consistently delivering on your content promise day after day, month after month, year after year.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content promise, content consistency, content that sleeps creeps leaps, content marketing, sandra bauman ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tom Allinder EMAIL: tom@inboundmarketingpr.com IP: 69.36.220.252 URL: http://inboundmarketingpr.com DATE: 11/13/2009 02:27:53 PM Most of the companies management teams that I deal with expect to see Internet marketing, social media, blogging and what have you work immediately. I have to constantly remind them that creating and marketing content is a process and not a one time thing like the email blasts they are used to. I think the easy money of the 90s and early 2000s turned a lot of individuals into "instant gratification" people. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: C.B. Whittemore EMAIL: cbwhittemore@gmail.com IP: 67.83.44.16 URL: http://SimpleMarketingBlog.com DATE: 11/13/2009 11:32:13 PM Joe, I love the image and encouragement associated with sleeping, creeping and leaping. Wonderful meeting you today and hearing you in person. Best, CB ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brenda Gelston EMAIL: bgelston@marketingmomentumassociates.com IP: 71.234.53.250 URL: http://www.marketingmomentumassociates.com DATE: 11/14/2009 09:28:48 AM How true…as my practice grows I find myself writing more for my customers and audience rather than creating content based on my own expertise. I believe the critical mass of readers is achieved when this shift takes place. I am not there yet but that is my ultimate aim. The feedback I receive helps make that leap forward in every evolution. I welcome feedback of any form, even if it is criticism. Your blog is one of the beacons I depends on that helps me stay on course. Thanks, Brenda ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.117.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/14/2009 11:57:22 AM Tom...you are 100% correct. That's why we all need to keep educating our customers about this. CB...it was awesome meeting you. Brenda...thanks. It sounds like you will be there soon! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steven Woods EMAIL: steven.woods@eloqua.com IP: 99.231.165.243 URL: http://digitalbodylanguage.blogspot.com DATE: 11/14/2009 10:24:14 PM Joe, a great post and a needed reminder about consistency and content quality. What measurement/metrics do you suggest in the first year? Views/traffic? Subscribers? How do you suggest any objective measurement on whether the content creation process is working and/or could be working better? I get asked that a lot and will admit I have no answer that seems satisfactory. "Try for a year and then you'll know if you were doing the right thing" seems a bit of a tough sell... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.117.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/15/2009 10:06:31 PM Hi Steve...that's a fantastic question. I would use these for the first, the building, year - Never miss a week of your promised content schedule - Inbound links. Important from the standpoint that you are commenting on other blogs and people are starting to find your content valuable. - Conversions slowly build. I would make sure you have something of value for people to subscribe to...white paper, ebook, enewsletter, etc. But you are right, it's a tough sell. It's like trying to talk someone into using Twitter. Seems really stupid until you really start doing it and see things happening. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Top 10 Twitter Basics Questions Answered STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: twitter-basics-questions-answered CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 11/10/2009 08:51:36 AM ----- BODY:

Just about every day I answer a question about using Twitter, the microblogging tool. I've put them together in this handy post. Enjoy, and, if you like getting information on content marketing, feel free to follow me @juntajoe.

Question #1
What is the easiest way to find someone's @ name? If I read an article or hear them speak, how do I easily find their Twitter call sign.

Use Twitter Name Search

Question #2
What are other ways to find twitter names?

If Twitter Name Search doesn't work for you, try Twellow, the Twitter Yellow Pages.

Question #3
What does the # mean and how do you find out the # for a conference (for example).

The # is called a hashtag. They were created to bring organization to Twitter. For example, I may send out a tweet about content strategy, and may want to help those interested in content strategy find the tweet by adding #contentstrategy.

For the example below, this person can now coordinate his/her tweets with others about news of the fire.

If you are trying to locate a particular hashtag, try these sites:

hashtags.org - Shows recently used hashtags and popularity.
Twemes.com - Find and track hashtags.

For more on using Twitter hashtags, here is a helpful hashtag article from Search Engine Journal.

Question #4
Are their 'rules' written or implied on when you should retweet or thank for a retweet?

"Retweet" means to forward someone else's tweet to your followers. Best practices are:

Retweet only if the information would be valuable for the people that follow you. If it's not valuable, don't retweet.
Public thanking retweets are sort of frowned upon as unnecessary (i.e. @you Thx for the RT), so don't do them. If you really want to show recognition, you can Direct Message the person back, but since so many users are starting to use DM's for spamming, your follower may not ever see it. Also, if you both aren't following each other, you can't send a direct message. Best practice is to just return the favor at some point.
Personally, I like to use "via" when retweeting. It just shows that you didn't just forward it out without thinking. See below

Question #5
What is the difference between sent from Tweetdeck or Seesmic?

There are literally hundreds of ways to send and manage your tweets. Tweetdeck and Seesmic are two ways of managing the process. Tweetie is used often for the iPhone.

In this image, you can see four different ways that people are sending out their Tweets. Web means Twitter.com.

Question #6
What's a good ratio to keep from Followers to Follows (often called the TFF ratio)?

I'm a big fan of following people that follow me, as long as it's relevant to my business in some way (around a 1 to 1 TFF).

You'll get all different viewpoints on this. For example, some people (like our good friend Ashton Kutcher) will only follow a select crowd. Obviously, unless your a celebrity, this can come off as a bit elitist.

Truth is, it probably doesn't matter. If you have significantly more followers than people following you, it may be harder to gain more followers. So, best advice, is to grow your followers naturally as you go so your ratios never seem too far out of whack.

But here's the biggest point - figure out what your objective for using Twitter first. That makes all the difference.

Here is an excellent article that goes into more detail on TFF ratios.

Question #7
How often are personal tweets appropriate?

Couple points here:

Understand what your objective is for using Twitter. Is it personal or is it business or both?
If it's business, determine whether your Tweet would be valuable to your network. If it's not, personal or not, don't send it.

Greg Verdino, who I follow, always sends many more helpful tweets than personal...but every once in a while throws in a personal Tweet. I like that about Greg. It makes him more real, but he never overdoes it.

Question #8
Where do direct messages post? Who can read them - only the person you send it to?

A direct message (DM) is only sent to that particular person. In order to send a DM to someone, you both must be following each other. Same goes for receiving a direct message.

Think of it like an email to that person - only they will receive it.

NOTE: Be careful using direct messages. Since some Twitter users have been using them for Spam and Auto-DMs (see this post for more on Auto DMs), people are ignoring or even turning off their DM email settings.

Some, as in the one below from Ambal, are very helpful.

Question #9
How is sending a direct message different from sending a reply to the person? Does this post public? Just to the person or to anyone in Twitter?

Replying to someone in Twitter (@juntajoe) can be seen by anyone in Twitter. Sending it with the @ (at) symbol gets another person's attention. Basically, it's like doing a phone conversation over the radio - it's intended for one person, but everyone can hear it (see it in this case).

When you are replying to someone, it's important to provide enough context for both the person you are talking to and also possibly be helpful to anyone else paying attention.

Question #10
So, should I even answer the Twitter question "What are you doing?"?

Well, probably not. Does anyone really care anyway? They care about themselves, so send out tweets important to your followers.

For more of the basics, check out this Twitter for Beginners article or check out this presentation for Twitter beginners.

Twitter Basics for Business

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

Did we miss any?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Twitter, Top Twitter Questions, Twitter for Beginners, Twitter Basics ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Deborah EMAIL: doverdeput@comcast.net IP: 66.31.94.113 URL: DATE: 11/10/2009 11:45:18 AM Joe, Here is another question: what does it mean when someone does this: @BWDumars @DarcyBev @CSRollyson @doverdeput @KelloggSchool @AllanDeYoung @beardrs @richguha #MENG ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: instant sales system EMAIL: adams.newmedia@yahoo.com IP: 122.169.219.110 URL: http://www.how2buildyourbusiness.com DATE: 11/10/2009 11:55:29 AM Good Questions. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sherri EMAIL: sherri@saconnects.com IP: 99.51.30.78 URL: DATE: 11/10/2009 02:41:23 PM Very helpful! Thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.194.95 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/10/2009 04:47:31 PM Hi Deborah... That tweet looks like it's promoting MENG members to follow, since the #MENG was used. Not best practice really, but I believe that is what the user was doing. Sort of like a #ff follow friday tweet where someone is recommending others to follow that they follow via Twitter. Hope that makes sense. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: batteries EMAIL: sarareid28@gmail.com IP: 122.169.55.211 URL: http://www.zoombits.fr/batterie/ DATE: 11/11/2009 03:01:50 AM Many times i also felt few of these questions on using twitter. Thank you for explaining all answers in brief here. These information should known to all users. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jimmy Lu EMAIL: pr@marketbright.com IP: 216.27.182.77 URL: http://www.marketbright.com DATE: 11/11/2009 06:37:39 PM This is an excellent guide on Twitter. I'll be showing this to a lot of my friends and coworkers who are new to using Twitter :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christian EMAIL: christiantrussell@hotmail.com IP: 98.223.66.59 URL: http://www.nextlevelblogger.com DATE: 11/14/2009 03:13:34 PM Great basics on Twitter. It's crazy I haven't written a post like this...need to get on that. The basic stuff gets asked over and over again; it's a great idea to simply have a post you can refer people to for answers :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: stem tech EMAIL: adams.newmedia@yahoo.com IP: 122.169.162.226 URL: http://www.enjoyhealthybody.com DATE: 11/19/2009 11:32:15 AM Thank you for the Questions and Answers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alice Rene EMAIL: alicerene1@aol.com IP: 207.200.116.12 URL: http://www.alicerene.com DATE: 01/12/2010 07:05:41 PM Very, very helpful! Thank you, Joe. Alice Rene ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Custom Print Magazines - Why Can't MasterCard Produce Inc. Magazine? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: custom-print-magazines-why-cant-mastercard-produce-inc-magazine CATEGORY: custom magazines DATE: 11/04/2009 10:00:44 AM ----- BODY:

I don't know about you, but I've been reading more print magazines lately. Seems odd at first, but in a way, it makes perfect sense.

I spend most of my business day and night on the computer. When I'm on my computer, I need to get things done.

But when I want to relax and engage in an inspiring story, print is my choice...books and magazines.

At the top of the list is probably Inc. magazine. This month's article about how 37Signals founder Jason Fried spends his day was priceless.

Speaking of "priceless", shouldn't MasterCard be producing an Inc-type magazine? Or Verizon or AT&T for that matter. American Express OPEN does a good job with their OPEN BOOK. It's good...but it's no Inc.

What a missed opportunity? How about in your niche? Is there an opportunity?

The Opportunity in Custom Print Magazines

Look, I'll be the first one to say that the content channel choice depends on who the customer is and what the overall objective is. That said, here are some points to consider in your quest to be the trusted solutions provider for your customers and prospects.

According to research from the Custom Publishing Council, 80% of consumers prefer to receive company information in the form of educational articles.
Have you noticed less mail in your mailbox? I don't know about you, but I'm paying more attention to what I receive in the mail today.
Print can be expensive (due to printing and mailing expenses), so take a good look at your database and who should receive it. I recommend testing first...don't send it to your entire audience at first. Test out a portion and then review the results.
With traditional publishers (in many cases) reeling, this is an opportunity to become the leading provider of information for your industry. I'm not kidding. For example, I used to be publisher of Fire Protection Engineering, an association magazine from the Society of Fire Protection Engineers. In every study we performed, FPE was viewed as the leading magazine on fire protection engineering and was the #1 reason members joined. Or how about this print magazine example from TD Ameritrade company thinkorswim? Can't you do the same?
According to the APA, engagement time in the average custom magazine is 25 minutes. How would you like your customers spending 25 minutes engaging in your content? You'll never see "time spent" numbers like that on the web.

If you feel there is an opportunity to create the ultimate retention vehicle like a custom magazine for your customers, just be sure it's the best. There's no reason why you shouldn't have the best information on the planet for your niche. And, if you are considering outsourcing your magazine project, start here. Even though there are many print magazines that are done internally, I've consistently seen the best coming out of professional custom magazine shops. And, if you are honest with the internal resources it takes to pull off a custom magazine project, it's usually either a wash or perhaps cheaper to outsource.

More Resources To Get You Started

Custom Print Magazines from the Content Marketing Playbook
The 10 Commandments for Custom Magazine Failure via the Junta42 blog
A Custom Magazine that's Built for Profit courtesy of Folio
B2B Custom Publishing Research via Junta42
Deliver Magazine on benefits of direct mail from the USPS
Kroger's Custom Print Coupon Magazine Program courtesy of Marketing with Meaning

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: custom print magazines, b2b custom magazines, custom magazine examples ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan Hutson EMAIL: dan@pokethebeehive.com IP: 64.47.116.130 URL: http://www.pokethebeehive.com DATE: 11/04/2009 01:46:31 PM Hi Joe. My short answer to the question you pose is, "Because I don't trust MasterCard." That is, I don't trust the credit industry in general at this moment because of what I consider the lack of integrity in how they serve (read: fleece) their customers. I DO trust Inc. and have long been a subscriber. It's a great magazine that, as far as I'm concerned, owns the small business owner market. I know this isn't primarily your point, but which comes first: establishing the trust/credibility to launch a title, or launch a title to build trust/credibility? I'd be interested in your thoughts. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.182.118 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 11/04/2009 02:20:36 PM Love the question Dan...and your argument is exactly the point. MasterCard wants/needs to be a trusted resource for small businesses...but you currently don't trust them. What if they sent you Inc. every month, coming from MasterCard. If they did this consistently, and the content was so fantastic (like Inc.'s) that you couldn't put it down, would you begin to form a closer relationship with them? Possibly even begin to trust them? Financials are a tough example right now, but you get the point. Great content sent consistently builds a relationship over time. Why shouldn't brands do what publishers have been doing? Thanks for the comment Dan. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: health tips EMAIL: adams.newmedia@yahoo.com IP: 122.169.223.246 URL: http://www.enjoyhealthybody.com DATE: 11/05/2009 11:59:00 AM I think Dan hutson might be right. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Donogh Lane EMAIL: rathronan@hotmail.com IP: 93.107.92.215 URL: http://www.brandledgrowth.com DATE: 11/13/2009 10:17:05 AM I'm with Joe on this. I'm working with a financial services company on a branded content project and trust is a huge issue. I believe the #1 content issue for brands is to focus on the consumer content need, not what the brand wants to say. If the choice of topics and editorial integrity reflects this, the trust will come - people aren't stupid, and know a sales pitch when they see it, no matter how subtle. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Less of Me, More of You - A Stella Pop Content Marketing Video STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: less-of-me-more-of-you-a-stella-pop-content-marketing-video CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 11/02/2009 10:38:51 PM ----- BODY:

Big thanks to Mike O'Grady at Stella Pop for putting out the latest edition of eVidmagazine featuring yours truly.

Although Mike was originally thinking a two or three minute video interview, he decided that the video worked best as a 10 minute segment. Hey, he's the expert, so I'm not going to disagree with him.

My biggest takeaway from the video was this - Less of me and more of you (well, not literally since it's almost 10 minutes of me). What I mean is that brands are starting to focus much more on you (the buyer) and much less on the "me" (themselves).

In simplest terms, that's what it means to be a publisher. For example, just pick up your local paper, NY Times or BusinessWeek magazine. Very little of the content is focused on the publications themselves.

hmmm, why not? Well, because they want people to actually read it.

Where did corporations go wrong thinking that our customers wanted to hear all about our products and services? Buyers don't. They care about themselves. Buyers are very selfish.

So as publishers, corporations now need to give buyers content they need to live better lives or succeed in their jobs. We talk about this and more in the following video, including:

- What if customers actually requested your marketing?
- Social media doesn't work without a content strategy.
- Who's responsible for the corporate story?

I hope you enjoy. And again, great job Mike!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: stella pop, joe pulizzi, video, content marketing, content strategy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Massey EMAIL: brian@conversionscientist.com IP: 70.240.12.101 URL: http://conversionscientist.com DATE: 11/02/2009 11:16:41 PM Joe's challenge is that he's calling for fundamental change in the marketing departments of our businesses. I for one am joining the chorus. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brody Dorland EMAIL: b.dorland@somethingcreativeinc.com IP: 69.254.229.62 URL: http://www.somethingcreativeinc.com/blog DATE: 11/17/2009 06:20:29 PM Dagnabbit. You beat me to writing this book...Nice work Joe and Newt. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: BtoB Custom Media / Custom Publishing Special Report STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: btob-custom-media-custom-publishing-special-report- CATEGORY: business-to-business DATE: 10/29/2009 12:49:13 PM ----- BODY:

BtoB Magazine just did an outstanding custom media special report for business-to-business brands. Here's an overview of the special report.

Media, Agencies Battle to be Kings of Content: Publishers, advertising agencies, direct firms, pr firms - everyone is battling for the money flowing into content marketing and custom media. This article offers perspectives from both media companies and agencies on the battle for content.
Custom Media Moves Closer to the Core: Great examples from the CME Group, Sherwin-Williams and IDG on how brands are leveraging both print and online custom media as part of their overall marketing strategies.
Blueprint Marks New Path for Custom Publication: Interesting custom media case study from Compass bank. Worth the read.
Key to Custom Media Is Not Being Stuck on One Channel: Interview with yours truly about focusing on a multi-channel strategy for your custom media. Print, web, social media and measurement.

Spend some time and dig into these articles. Extremely valuable. ----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: btob, btob custom media, business-to-business, btob custom publishing ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Who's Outsourcing Content? - A Junta42 Annual Report STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: whos-outsourcing-content-a-junta42-annual-report CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 10/29/2009 08:33:25 AM ----- BODY:

We just delivered the Junta42 annual report email to the Junta42 content marketing vendors and I thought I would share it with the community.

As you'll see in the email, these are high-level numbers. Over the next few weeks, we'll be putting together a "State of Content Marketing Outsourcing" (better title to come) that will take the mounds of data we have on content marketing projects and put it together in a handy report. If there is anything specific you'd like to see, please let me know.

>>>>Start of Email

Hi John:

First off, I wanted to thank you for your ongoing support of Junta42. It's people like yourself that have made our little experiment a content marketing success.

We launched Junta42 in beta July of 2008, and officially launched the matching service in October of the same year. The entire team here at Junta42 felt it was a good time to update our expert content vendors (such as yourself) on what has happened over the past 12 months. So, here goes (NOTE: We'll be putting a more detailed report to go out to the community in the next few weeks).

Project Statistics

Over the past 16 months we have seen:

455 total projects
204 approved projects (13 repeat customers)
An average of 13.6 approved projects per month
An average of 3 approved projects per week
685 total leads distributed to our content vendors
170 total certified content vendors in the Junta42 system

We have worked hard over the past year to approve only legitimate projects with real content budgets. Unfortunately some have not been so promising. We are continuing to refine our approval process and are seeing major improvements in this area.

Types of Clients

We have had literally every type of client imaginable use the Junta42 service, from solopreneurs to large associations to multi-billion dollar businesses. Just to give you a feel, here are some of the brands that have used the Junta42 matching service:

Xerox
Home Depot
Deluxe
Minco
SAE International
Mettler-Toledo
Euro RSCG
US Government
Syntel
PKF North America
Norandex
Conergy
First Midwest Bank
Honda
Oldcastle Architectural
RIM (makers of Blackberry smartphones)
Citrix Online
WMH Tool Group
United Methodist Communications

I'd love to say that all these projects closed, but many of these content projects were put on hold due to the economic conditions. From our records, a good number of these projects are still in internal discussion. That said, a few of the closed projects we are able to disclose include:

RIM (makers of Blackberry smartphones) - Email Newsletter project to Future US
First Midwest Bank - Custom Magazine project to Imagination
SAE International - Website project to Hanley Wood Marketing
United Methodist Communications - Email Newsletter project to Wise Group
Optimum Marketing Solutions - Website Content project to Spotted Wombat
ACS Creative - Blogging project to Significant Info

As we get more approvals to share closed projects, we'll be sure to pass them on.

Types of Projects

The biggest request for project type revolves around:

Custom magazines (38 projects)
Blogs/Social Media (23 projects)
Websites/Microsites (22 projects)
White Papers (17 projects)
Email Newsletters (16 projects)
Print Newsletters (15 projects)

The most popular content expertise areas include:

Marketing & Media (21 projects)
Business Services/Financials (20 projects)
Internet/E-commerce (11 projects)
Computer Software (10 projects)
Information Technology (10 projects)
Healthcare/Hospitals (9 projects)
Real Estate (7 projects)

Since our launch, we've delivered $11.6 million dollars in leads to our expert vendors, an average of $80,034.00 per project. Here is the breakdown of disclosed budgets (in USD):

$10,000 - 76 projects
$25,000 - 29 projects
$50,000 - 11 projects
$100,000 - 9 projects
$250,000 - 13 projects
$500,000 - 5 projects
$1,000,000 - 3 projects
Budget Undisclosed - 58 projects

I hope this sheds some light on how the last year has been for us. Looking forward to helping you grow your business in 2010. If you would like to know more about how our system works, check out our How It Works page, or possibly our Vendor FAQ page.

Also, if you have any questions at all, please feel free to contact me at joe[at]junta42.com or my office line at 216-941-5842.

Thanks again, and on with the content revolution!

Joe

Joe Pulizzi

Founder and Chief Content Officer

Junta42

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Outsourcing content, Junta42 annual report, Junta42 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Personal Branding Success in 15 Steps STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: personal-branding-success-in-15-steps CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 10/27/2009 10:35:08 PM ----- BODY:

Dan Schawbel has put together a first-rate magazine about personal branding called (of course) Personal Branding Magazine. The latest issue includes an article from yours truly, which I've included below. I also included one of my PowerPoint presentations when I do in-person workshops on personal branding (this article was based on that presentation).

If this topic is important to you, I suggest you check out Dan's magazine (get the free trial issue here).

15 Steps to Personal Branding Success

Before talking about the how of personal branding, it’s essential to talk about why it’s essential for your business and your life.

Developing your personal brand will help you:

Grow your company.
Drive your career.
Open up partnerships and new opportunities you never thought of before.
Shorten sales cycles. Minimize selling your services (since you will be the trusted expert).
Become more fulfilled with life.

10 Steps to Personal Branding

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

I can speak first hand about this. It was just a few years ago that I was at the short end of all the areas above. Then, by focusing on a niche and setting tactics (we’ll talk about this in a second), the last few years have been amazing: Trips abroad for keynote speeches, a published book, a growing online business and never a shortage of partnership or new business opportunities.

Are you in?

Look, it’s not that easy, but there is a formula to this that has worked for me, and it can work for you as well.

First, the basics.

Commit to doing something and doing it consistently.
Focus on what makes you unique.
Demonstrate lethal generosity (Give away valuable information all the time. Think of yourself as the publisher.).
Then do things that make people want to spread your message.

NOTE: Most importantly, pick a niche. What area of information can you be an expert in? The smaller the better at the start. For example, my expertise is content marketing. Some will be experts in pet attire, others in nanotechnology. Pick one and go.

Here are 15 tips that will make the difference for your personal branding quest.

Update Your Online Profiles. Be sure they tell your story of why you are unique. Focus especially on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and your Google Profile. Plaxo, TripIt and FriendFeed may also be an option.
Buy Your Domain (http://myname.com). This is the place where you can control your message about who you are. Check out mine as an example (http://joepulizzi.com).
Business Card Process. If you get a business card, make it a habit of getting those people into your online networks.
Professional Picture. No-one wants to see you getting sick at a party last week as your Facebook image. Get a professional photographer to take your picture and be consistent in using it throughout your online profiles.
Start a Blog. Take your expert topic and consistently deliver valuable, relevant and compelling information through this tool.
Comment on other Blogs. In your niche, what are the top 10-15 influential blogs? Read and comment on those blogs consistently.
Write a Book. I’m not kidding. A book is still the best business card around. If you are the expert in your niche, you need to write a book.
Deliver BIG Content. eBooks, enewsletters, white papers, research reports and industry rankings. Pick two or three and publish, publish, publish.
Find Distribution Channels. PowerPoint presentations should go on SlideShare or Scribd. Blog content should be distributed via Twitter and Facebook.
Respond to Those Who Talk about You. Monitor Twitter Search and Google Alerts for mentions of you. Be sure to comment on those blogs.
Accept Guest Writing Spots. If it’s in your niche and people want you to write an article, the answer is YES. Always yes.
Pick Two Associations and Get Active. You can’t be involved in every association, but pick two and be VERY active. Work to get on the board.
Speak, Speak, Speak. Speaking in public takes the previous 12 points to the next level. If you don’t feel you have what it takes, join your local Toastmasters.
Always Be Helping. If someone asks for your help, do your best to give it. Pay it Forward really works in today’s gift economy.
Get Behind a Charity/Cause. This can’t just be about you. Find a cause that truly makes a difference in this world and give 100%.

Anyone, and I mean anyone, who follows these 15 points, will see a dramatic difference in your life and career in just six months. Find your niche, and go get ‘em.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Deb Lamb EMAIL: youreverythingservices@gmail.com IP: 64.6.42.20 URL: http://www.youreverythingservices.com DATE: 10/30/2009 07:24:49 AM Good morning Joe, Excellent Advice and Ideas! As a business owner of a virtual assistant service, it is crucial to get your name out there and do it consistently. However, it can be difficult at times to keep up the pace, but at the same time, it is certainly worth it and something we have to do as business owners if we want to be successful! You have provided some great tips that I have not thought of before and will start implementing immediately. Thanks so much for sharing and I'm hoping this will help increase my business. I'm willing to give it a try! Make it a fabulous day and I'll be back for more. Deb Freelance Writer http://www.youreverythingservices.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: mark mcclure EMAIL: samuraiwriter@gmail.com IP: 210.199.7.140 URL: http://samuraiwriter.com/blog DATE: 02/11/2010 02:13:05 AM Do you still use yahoo answers and does it generate leads? Are you using a virtual assistant to help with any of the 15 tips above? Seems like a lot of time would be required to accomplish them, even incrementally, and still find time to do the actual client work. Thx for sharing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.103 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/11/2010 08:06:28 AM Hi Mark...I use LinkedIn Answers more now than Yahoo! Answers. I don't use a virtual assistant, per se, but I am starting to outsource some writing activities. I still do all my own tweeting, posting, but I have someone that does that for Junta42. Honestly, 30-45 minutes solid per day every day and this can be done. Hope that helps. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sue Atkins EMAIL: sue@positive-parents.com IP: 85.210.130.134 URL: http://www.thesueatkins.com DATE: 11/10/2010 07:15:40 PM I am in the midst of re branding myself back to my own name as I have been working with a marketing consultancy that told me - "I am the brand" and expert in my field and I am very pleased to see that they are working with me on all of the above points !! So that's reassuring !! I have already noticed a massive change in people's awareness of me and as I regularly appear on BBC Radio and TV I have found branding my work back to my name to be really helpful. Your article is full of excellent advice that is simple, grounded in common sense and not overwwhelming so for any small business starting out I would encourage you to follow your great tips and watch your business soar. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Custom Publishing Budgeting - Providing Some Answers STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: custom-publishing-budgeting CATEGORY: custom publishing DATE: 10/22/2009 10:49:20 AM ----- BODY:

We've had some excellent feedback around Russell Sparkman's guest post on creating a consistent content plan. As part of the discussion, Chris Herbert asked how a company should go about budgeting for a custom publishing plan such as this.

Below is a response from Russell with some additional points from yours truly. I hope this proves helpful.

The question about custom publishing budgeting, of course, comes up all the time. Because there are so many variables, I'm going to shift the question from "What to Budget" to "How to Budget." Here is how we explain custom publishing budget development to clients:

1. Read Seth Godin's Meatball Sundae.

I often recommend this book to existing and new clients because of its key premise: ask not how you can use New Media approaches such as Content Marketing to market your "business as usual" company or organization, but how can you change your company/organization to better utilize New Media approaches.

Takeaway: Most large organizations are set up around developing advertising and public relations messages (like we've always done it). That model is broke. Once you realize that, you need to look at your marketing/communications/sales departments with a fresh eye. Ask yourself: "If we tore the structure down and put it back together, how would we be different? What's best for our customers?" It's a challenging but important exercise. If you are having a challenging time persuading senior management that this type of exercise is needed, read Get Content Get Customers.

2. Find Your Chief Content Officer

If you follow the advice in Point #1, and you're focus is Content Marketing, then a conclusion you need to come to is that it will take a new commitment, or realignment, of human resources to content creation or development. If it's a small business, this may mean the business owner's commitment; if it's a large corporation, it's going to be a realignment of people in the communications departments. Or, it'll mean creating a relationship with an outside content strategy/development agency.

Takeaway: None of this is possible unless someone is given ownership over the brand story. Similar to a social media administrator, where someone is dedicated as the chief listener, developing a content marketing or custom publishing strategy that works needs a champion within the organization (regardless if you outsource custom publishing to a partner or not).

3. Shifting Funds

If you make the human resource commitment, then the next step is to look at what you normally spend or budget for marketing and realize that now you're going to begin using a significant portion of those funds to invest in content. Notice the use of the term "invest." This isn't spending. It's investment.

Takeaway: The best part about custom publishing and content marketing is that you are creating an marketing asset. When you advertise, in say a print magazine, the spend is gone as soon as it's out the door. When you create compelling content, that content (if it's good) will be spread through social media, indexed in Google, and you'll be able to attract customers to that content for months, possible years. This doesn't even take into consideration the ability to repurpose or reuse that content to develop even more content (see Step 5).

4. Defining the Budget

Next, look at the recommended 1-7-30-4-2-1 schedule and start picking off the low hanging fruit. budget-wise. For example, blogging is a major time commitment, but since it can be done without paying anyone, it's often the most affordable point of entry. Additional, lower cost approaches are self-generated, in-depth presentations such as White Papers in PDF format, Powerpoints uploaded to Slideshare.

Takeaway: Completely agree with Russell on this, but would insist that brands take one step back and figure out what their story is going to be or what it should be. In other words, what are the informational or entertainment needs of your customers and how does that relate to your business? What area(s) do you want to be the trusted, expert resource for. Figure that out fast. If you aren't sure, watch this video or check out this 4 steps content strategy program.

5. Big Content

At the opposite end of the spectrum from blogging, in terms of time and budget, is producing a workshop, a web video series, or an event. However, these are excellent investments because content from them can be "multipurposed" across the whole content plan and publishing frequency range (for my own content marketing efforts, we came out of the starting gate by producing an event, for example. We have videos from the event that we'll be publishing monthly to our site, and so on).

Takeaway: So many custom publishing choices, so little time. Budgeting for them could be as simple as "free" using existing resources (no outside expense) to outsourcing large scale content projects. I've learned that most vendors are afraid to give out budget ranges (and rightfully so) because there are so many different variables that go into a content project (strategy, editorial, copywriting, design, distribution, campaign integration, content repurposing needs, etc.).

The Numbers Please

That said, here are some numbers that may help if you are looking to outsource. These numbers come directly from averages within the Junta42 system and are custom publishing budget ranges that our clients submit when they look for vendors. Please note that this is for turnkey outsourced projects with content marketing and custom publishing experts and they are ranges only.

Blogging - $10,000 - $30,000 per year, depending on expertise needed and frequency.
eBook - $7,500 - $20,000 per eBook
White Paper - $5,000 - $15,000 per white paper
Custom Print Magazine - $40,000 - $500,000 per issue, depending on print run, distribution, content needs, folio size and more.

From a budgetary standpoint, large companies spend about 10-20% of their marketing spend on custom publishing activities. Small companies spend about 50-60% on content initiatives (see this 2008 btob custom publishing study). Average is 29%.

Summary

I'll wrap up with a little story. I lived in New England for many years. I learned that Old New England farmhouses often started out as a single, small house and a separate, detached barn. Over the years, the farmers would add onto the single, small house in phases as the family grew and as income allowed, until, eventually, the house and the barn were connected. They became one unified unit.

When planning your content marketing budget, and striking out to publish or produce content on a 1-7-30-4-2-1 frequency, keep the Old New England farmhouse analogy in mind.

You may start out with a daily or weekly blog (i.e., the little farm house), and a more production intensive project like an annual event (i.e., the barn).

Over time, as resources and budget allow, your content investment will make all the little in-between connections so that you end up with a content marketing strategy that is a unified whole.

Additional Reading:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: custom publishing, custom publishing budgeting, content marketing plan ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 99.191.180.40 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 10/23/2009 01:33:01 PM Great piece. Particularly the part about content being an investment in your business. Companies need to start thinking of the creation of great content as a marketing expense. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why Content Marketing? - The Video STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-content-marketing-the-video CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/22/2009 08:42:37 AM ----- BODY:

Gijs Daemen from Merge Media, a Netherlands-based content marketing shop, did a bang-up job putting this video together on content marketing. The original presentation was directed to his customers in the Netherlands.

Questions I answer in the video:

What is Content Marketing?
Why Content Marketing? Why the opportunity?
How about web content? Are people making buying decisions based off of corporate online content?
What about all these terms? Content marketing, custom content, custom publishing, customer media, inbound marketing...should you care?

Joe Pulizzi 1 from Merge Media on Vimeo.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: gils daemon, merge media, why content marketing, content marketing, video ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patrick EMAIL: patrick@merge-media.com IP: 145.103.250.249 URL: http://www.merge-media.com DATE: 10/22/2009 08:51:23 AM Thanx Joe for your inspiring thoughts on content marketing! We will be watching you:) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/22/2009 08:56:00 AM Patrick...great job putting it together. You really made it work with the material you had. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Joyce EMAIL: john@thesmallbiznest.com IP: 66.189.46.99 URL: http://www.thesmallbiznest.com DATE: 10/25/2009 05:00:09 PM Joe, Great information and much appreciated! - John ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: fathers day EMAIL: kimtaylor22@gmail.com IP: 122.169.29.182 URL: http://www.zoombits.co.uk/gifts-and-gadgets DATE: 10/27/2009 02:56:50 AM nice information joe i appreciate your work. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Gary Vaynerchuk (@garyvee) on Content Marketing and Growing Your Business STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: gary-vaynerchuk-content-marketing CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 10/19/2009 10:57:37 AM ----- BODY:

Gary Vaynerchuck, author of the new book Crush it! and the popular Wine Library TV (where he gets over 100,000 viewers a day), was kind enough to put this video together on content marketing for the Junta42 audience. Thanks Gary!

A quick overview:

Most important message to his followers: Patience. It takes patience to grow a business and is even more important than passion.

Top 3 lessons:

Care about your customers. Identify their pain points and show them you really care.
Nobody cares about you, your products or your brand. Deliver something awesome to them so that they care about what you deliver to them.
Internal communications is key. If your internal culture is not right, it's almost impossible to grow your business.

What if a marketer believes they should create valuable and relevant content for customers, but doesn't have the resources or skill? GaryVee says to partner up. Find an outside team that can help you deliver your story (this is why we started Junta42).

How do I start a content strategy? Find your expert niche and deliver consistent free content to your customers.

What about metrics? Focus on the long-term. Online content marketing is too knew to really get caught up in analytics.

Most important thing marketing professionals can do right now? Listen!

Related Articles:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: Gary Vee, Gary Vaynerchuk, content marketing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christian EMAIL: christiantrussell@hotmail.com IP: 98.223.66.59 URL: http://www.nextlevelblogger.com DATE: 11/14/2009 07:58:45 PM Great tips from Gary here. The fact that "no one cares about you...really" is absolutely dead on. Success comes from delivering value...consistently. As soon as you stop bringing it, you're out of the game. This is a paradigm that a lot of big companies are not willing to accept, which is why they're losing market share to the "little guys" every day. Work ethic combined with actual expertise goes far. ----- PING: TITLE: Why Brands Fail at Content Marketing - Not Quite Niche Enough via GaryVee URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2010/02/why-brands-fail-at-content-marketing-not-quite-niche-enough-via-garyvee.html IP: 10.17.151.36 BLOG NAME: Junta42 Content Marketing blog DATE: 02/19/2010 06:34:12 PM Please take one minute and ten seconds to watch this clip from Gary Vaynerchuk. If you think that you are doing all the right things in your content marketing, but you or your brand are still not seeing success, this... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Creating Consistent Content - A Content Marketing Plan STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: creating-consistent-content-a-content-marketing-plan CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 10/16/2009 03:30:32 AM ----- BODY:

The following is a guest post courtesy of Russell Sparkman from Fusionspark Media, a new media communications company based in Washington state. I've had the pleasure of working with Russell on a number of projects, most recently their amazingly successful New Media 2012 conference.

As you will learn from Russell's post, he's advocating a content marketing schedule that is quite ambitious, challenging for most companies. We believe this sort of thinking is not just nice to do, but necessary to the overall business and marketing strategy. Check it out and let me know what you think.

This is a story about story budgets. No, not the kind of budget that defines, in dollars and cents, what you’ll spend on a story.

This is about the traditional media use of the term “story budget” to describe the running tab of story ideas that make up a long-term publishing schedule.

If you’ve been following this blog, among others on similar topics, you’ve heard many times that content marketers need to think and act like publishers. One essential step in this process is to create and maintain an ongoing story budget.

An essential component of a story budget is the publishing schedule around which you plan, produce and publish content. If you are embarking upon Content Marketing strategies you will need to establish a publishing schedule that you can plan around, and adhere to, as much as possible. Planning your publishing schedule is easy as 1-7-30-4-2-1 (*see important message, at bottom).

This mnemonic device represents the frequency around which you should be publishing content to your web presence, and across social media sites, other sites, etc., as part of a strategic content marketing initiative. Let’s review these numbers one by one:

1 = Daily

“1″ is the loneliest number, according to a Three Dog Night song. In terms of content marketing strategy, it’s the busiest number. In this case, “1″ is an active number because it refers to the daily basis upon which you are engaged in publishing. Now, you may be sitting there thinking “how on earth can I publish on a daily basis?”

Here are a few tips of what you can easily publish on a daily basis:

Twitter updates that offer something of value to your constituents
News items you read elsewhere that are relevant to your core content; use Google Alert s to provide you with a steady stream of news relevant to your product, service or cause
RSS feeds into your site from other sites offering content relevant to your core product, service or cause.
User-generated Content (UGC) in your site, through your own site’s submission functions, or dynamically fed through sites such as Flickr. UGC also includes comments and ratings systems.

7 = Weekly

“7″ is a lucky number in the game of craps. But in terms of content marketing, “7″ refers to the weekly contributions you make in your content marketing strategy. Here are a few suggestions of weekly activities related to your content marketing strategy:

A new blog post
A photo gallery
A short video (one with simple production values, i.e. of someone giving a presentation)
Offline media buys, such as Radio, TV, Print
Participation in related forums, or discussion groups
Update of your product catalog
Update of your primary website’s pages and/or sections

30 = Monthly

“30″ is the age over which we didn’t trust anyone. Until, of course, a lot of us passed that age milestone. However, in terms of content marketing, “30″ represents what you can publish on a monthly basis.

As the length of the cycle increases, so do the potential production values of your monthly offering. A few ideas of what you can publish on a monthly basis include:

Write a new blog post based on extensive research, or an interview with a subject matter expert, etc.
Create and send an eNewsletter
Produce a short video (2 to 3 minutes, with increasingly greater production values, i.e. script, location shooting, multiple cameras, etc)
Produce a video of one of your executives speaking at a conference
Produce an audio Podcast
Create a PowerPoint presentation and share it via Slideshare
Organize and promote a “Tweetup,” or similar offline gathering
Make online/offline media buys, such as Radio, TV, Print, Google Adwords

4 = Quarterly

Taxes are often due quarterly. And so are important content assets of your content marketing strategy.

Look at your quarterly publishing cycle as an opportunity to reach for a bigger bang. Examples of what you can publish on a quarterly basis include:

Publish a research-based White Paper
Create an E-book series and distribute it in PDF format
Produce a video series
Create an animated infographic
Produce a special issue of your eNewsletter
Make an announcement of contest or sweepstakes winners

2 = Bi-annual

Twice a year, you should plan something big as a part of your content marketing strategy. If done correctly, a Bi-annual event would be something worth video-taping, so that you can use the video to fill weekly, monthly or quarterly needs. Examples of Bi-annual content include:

Produce an experiential event, and record the proceedings for later use in your weekly, monthly or quarterly cycles
Create a new print brochure & offer it for download in PDF format
Produce a webcast
Utilizing the content you’re producing (stories, photos, images), participate in a trade show or conference

1 = Annual

Birthdays and anniversaries come around once per year. These celebrations are a clue as to what you should think of in terms of producing content on an annual cycle. Your annual content marketing activities should be a celebration, an event, an announcement. Some suggestions include:

Produce an experiential event, and record the proceedings for later use in your weekly, monthly or quarterly cycles
Host an executive roundtabl e, and record the proceedings
Produce an annual industry White Paper, or eBook
Speak or present at an annual conference
Announce and launch a contest or a sweepstakes
Update your web presence with a new story feature, a new tool set or new functionality
Create and launch an iPhone app, a Facebook app

Produce a Game

Altogether, a 1-7-30-4-2-1 publishing schedule amounts to what is increasingly being referred to as multiplatform, or 360 platform, or transmedia storytelling experience. These are content marketing strategies where your content and your story are ubiquitous and you are engaging with your audience anywhere, any time and on any device.

* Important Note: A 1-7-30-4-2-1 publishing schedule is an ambitious undertaking that is well-worth the effort in terms of building awareness, building and engaging an audience, generating qualified leads, etc. However, it’s well understood by the author that there are considerable human bandwidth and financial factors to be considered in producing according to such a schedule. We’re working on it, ourselves. Suffice it to say that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither will your content marketing story budget. The emphasis here is on planning, and building out your story budget and publishing schedule over time. Starting today! So, get started! ----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing schedule, content marketing budget, storytelling ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nigel Lamb EMAIL: nigel.lamb@xposurecreative.co.uk IP: 80.4.178.66 URL: http://www.creativebrandmarketing.co.uk/blog DATE: 10/16/2009 03:57:08 AM Great article. I've read many blog posts from others that talk about content on blogs, what you can write about, and also about choosing a theme for your blog, but this is the first one to talk about (in my layman terms) a publishing schedule. Personally it's a lot to take on all at once, but is certainly could be something that could be brought on in stages, building up to the full 1-7-30-4-2-1. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chris Herbert EMAIL: b2bspecialist@gmail.com IP: 24.150.148.222 URL: http://marketingthatmatters.blogspot.com DATE: 10/16/2009 03:57:55 AM This is a really good framework to use. Thx. Can you give us an idea of what to budget for this type of plan? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Susan Weiner EMAIL: info@investmentwriting.com IP: 173.76.224.18 URL: http://investmentwriting.blogspot.com DATE: 10/16/2009 05:38:43 PM I'm doing 1, 7 & 30. The other numbers are great food for thought ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Hicks EMAIL: brian@coronissolutions.com IP: 24.138.75.107 URL: http://www.coronissolutions.com DATE: 10/17/2009 09:10:18 AM Great recommendations Joe. Succinct & many are easily executed. Brian ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russell Sparkman EMAIL: russell@fusionspark.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://www.fusionspark.com DATE: 10/19/2009 05:05:43 PM Re Chris Herbert's question about what to budget for this type of plan: This question, of course, comes up all the time. Because there are so many variables, I'm going to shift the question from "What to Budget" to "How to Budget." Here is how we explain content marketing budget development to clients: 1. Read Seth Godin's Meatball Sundae. I often recommend this book to existing and new clients because of its key premise: ask not how you can use New Media approaches such as Content Marketing to market your "business as usual" company or organization, but how can you change your company/organization to better utilize New Media approaches; 2. If you follow the advice in Point #1, and you're focus is Content Marketing, then a conclusion you need to come to is that it will take a new commitment, or realignment, of human resources to content creation or development. If it's a small business, this may mean the business owner's commitment; if it's a large corporation, it's going to be a realignment of people in the communications departments. Or, it'll mean creating a relationship with an outside content strategy/development agency; 3. If you make the human resource commitment, then the next step is to look at what you normally spend or budget for marketing and realize that now you're going to begin using a significant portion of those funds to invest in content. Notice the use of the term "invest." This isn't spending. It's investment; 4. Next, look at the recommended 1-7-30-4-2-1 schedule featured in this blog post, and start picking off the low hanging fruit. budget-wise. For example, blogging is a major time commitment, but since it can be done without paying anyone, it's often the most affordable point of entry. Additional, lower cost approaches are self-generated, in-depth presentations such as White Papers in PDF format, Powerpoints uploaded to Slideshare.com, and so; 5. At the opposite end of the spectrum from blogging, in terms of time and budget, is producing a workshop, a web video series, or an event. However, these are excellent investments because content from them can be "multipurposed" across the whole content plan and publishing frequency range (for my own content marketing efforts, we came out of the starting gate by producing an event, for example. We have videos from the event that we'll be publishing monthly to our site, and so on); I'll wrap this comment up with a little story. I lived in New England for many years. I learned that Old New England farmhouses often started out as a single, small house and a separate, detached barn. Over the years, the farmers would add onto the single, small house in phases as the family grew and as income allowed, until, eventually, the house and the barn were connected. They became one unified unit. When planning your content marketing budget, and striking out to publish or produce content on a 1-7-30-4-2-1 frequency, keep the Old New England farmhouse analogy in mind. You may start out with a daily or weekly blog (i.e., the little farm house), and a more production intensive project like an annual event (i.e., the barn). Over time, as resources and budget allow, your content investment will make all the little in-between connections so that you end up with a content marketing strategy that is a unified whole. Additional Reading: Content Marketing Playbook http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/10/check-out-the-content-marketing-playbook-a-free-ebook-experiment.html The Content Factory: Maximizing Content Investments Through Multipurposing http://www.fusionspark.com/blog/2009/01/09/the-content-factory-maximizing-content-investments-through-multipurposing/ Content Marketing Secrets, Part I: The Energizer Bunny of Marketing http://www.fusionspark.com/blog/2009/02/12/content-secrets-part-i-the-energizer-bunny-of-marketing/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Trevor EMAIL: copywryter@gmail.com IP: 208.97.91.2 URL: http://redcanary.ca DATE: 10/20/2009 04:00:20 PM Brilliant even for publishers. After all, successful online publishing is not just about sentences and paragraphs, it must be a holistic digital practice. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 86.155.45.203 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 10/22/2009 03:40:34 AM Thanks for this post Joe, really insightful. I think many of us like structure and with this in mind you've provided an excellent tool many of us can work from. As the others have mentioned, few of us are doing all of the list but dipping in some, but a structure is needed to ensure all bases are covered, and you've provided that. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 99.191.180.40 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 10/23/2009 01:38:49 PM Very good stuff. This plan is not too ambitious in my opinion either, with the suggestions laid out herein, there is more than enough opportunity to publish material on this schedule. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Allan EMAIL: allanpopz@ymail.com IP: 217.132.143.53 URL: DATE: 02/12/2010 07:17:45 PM Awesome stuff. Starbuck's marketing plan is also great to learn from: http://www.wepapers.com/Papers/50461/Starbucks__Marketing_Plan ----- PING: TITLE: Custom Publishing Budgeting - Providing Some Answers URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/10/custom-publishing-budgeting.html IP: 10.17.151.33 BLOG NAME: Junta42 blog DATE: 10/22/2009 10:49:43 AM We've had some excellent feedback around Russell Sparkman's guest post on creating a consistent content plan. As part of the discussion, Chris Herbert asked how a company should go about budgeting for a custom publishing plan such as this. Below... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing / Custom Publishing Research - Marketers Telling the Story STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-custom-publishing-research CATEGORY: measurement DATE: 10/13/2009 08:52:06 AM ----- BODY:

Really interesting study on content marketing and custom publishing research led by King Fish Media with help from Hubspot, Upshot and Junta42.

(Note: the study requires name and email to download and the 20-page eBook can be downloaded here).

Here are the highlights from the 189 marketing professionals that took the study:

Beliefs about Content Marketing

93% of marketing professionals create or plan to create content marketing as part of their overall programs in the next year. The take: We are all publishers now.
Almost 67% of marketers believe that the content they produce can have the same or more value than a traditional media company. 8 out of 10 believe they can create content as engaging as media companies. The take: Brands have access to some of the best writing talent in their industries today versus years' past, so this makes sense (although the number is a bit higher than I expected. Most marketers I talk with on this don't really "believe" they can do this without proper coaxing.)

Measurement

Marketers believe content marketing is 18 times more effective in actually determining ROI than traditional advertising (74% to 4%). The take: Wow! But, this makes more sense when you look further at their marketing objectives. Since most are heavily relying on lead generation, this seems right since content drives lead generation programs. Still, amazingly high number.
70% of marketers are spending more on content marketing over the last three years. The take: this is consistent with our findings last December that found a 56% increase in content marketing spending in 2009 alone.

Content Where?

Top tactics where content marketing is spent: Email marketing, Corporate web site, Social media.
Where will the money be going next year: Online video and podcasts, White papers/eBooks, Social media.

How to use this report?

If you need research and statistics in order to get buy-in from your executive team for content marketing, this will be incredibly helpful. There are a lot more stats in here than the ones I included, so download the entire eBook report here. Thanks to King Fish for putting this together.

Other Relevant Research

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing research, custom publishing research, measurement, roi ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: TradeShow Promos EMAIL: nikki.yeager@epromos.com IP: 69.38.134.82 URL: http://www.trade-show-promotion.blogspot.com DATE: 10/15/2009 02:26:45 PM Thanks for all the useful info! Internet marketing is definitely where it's at. However, some industries are still doing face-to-face marketing and trade shows. For those, check out my blog www.trade-show-promotion.blogspot.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: koko EMAIL: buysino88@gmail.com IP: 69.197.177.130 URL: http://www.mobilephone7.com DATE: 10/23/2009 03:30:09 AM Thanks for sharing~ ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Media Change, Behavior Change - A Must See Video STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: media-change-behavior-change-a-must-see-video CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 10/08/2009 09:06:03 PM ----- BODY:

If you are interested in how our media behavior has changed and will change in the future, take two minutes and watch this video. Thanks to Kevin Lund for passing this on.

btw, great example of how to promote a conference.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: media change, behavior change, convergence ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jay Ehret EMAIL: jay@themarketingspot.com IP: 24.167.55.55 URL: http://www.themarketingspotblog.com/2009/10/made-to-stick-messaging.html DATE: 10/09/2009 12:41:30 AM Joe, while this is a well-produced video, I have just one thing to say: "get to the point!" I could have done with about 2 fewer minutes of statistics. And talk about burying the lead, you have to watch 4:28 of video to get to the call to action. At least TV commercials are only :30 seconds long. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 72.8.44.146 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/09/2009 06:09:57 AM Thanks Jay...I agree with you, but just love the statistics! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Louise EMAIL: louise@voiceborne.com IP: 99.141.74.56 URL: DATE: 10/09/2009 08:30:52 AM Yes indeed. I find these very useful when I'm trying to explain that web 2.0 is not just old-style communication, done faster ;) Here's another one I really like. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: adams EMAIL: adams.newmedia@yahoo.com IP: 122.169.169.186 URL: http://www.nvinc.com DATE: 10/13/2009 02:13:14 PM The video shows only the numbers, who knows wether the numbers are real or not. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The 4 Step Content Strategy Program - Content Strategy Simplified STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-4-step-content-strategy-program-content-strategy-simplified CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 10/07/2009 12:48:13 AM ----- BODY:

Let's face it. Content strategy is not easy. Actually, it's pretty difficult.

Those that regularly read this blog know I've been covering it more recently:

Since releasing the Content Marketing Playbook (which is all tactical), I've been receiving more and more emails regarding where to start with a content strategy. Here is a roadmap to follow to make sure you are on the right track.

Step 1: Define Your Marketing Goals

Goals like "we want more traffic to our website" and "our competitors are doing it" just don't cut it. Think of it this way: "What are the things that need to happen in order for the content program to continue?" Another good questions is "A year from today, what will be different in our business as a result of the content marketing program?"

Here are some direct sales-related examples:

More customers
More sales from current customers
Less customer turnover

There may be cost-saving goals:

Spend less on customer service costs
Spend less on traditional marketing to replace with more efficient content programs (to get similar results)
Get customers to talk about you more (new kind of public relations)

Whatever the goals are, make them tangible and put a number to them. Recently I've been seeing more analytics-related goals (number of downloads, web traffic, mentions, etc.), but always believe you need to relate these back to an organizational goal (like the ones above) or you'll never be able to prove enough value.

Step 2: Determine Your Customers' Informational Needs

What kind of information do your customers need to help get their jobs done, or live happier lives, that directly relates to your expertise and, hopefully, your products and services. For example, Hubspot develops content in and around online marketing. Most of the educational content relates directly to their product (inbound marketing software as a service), but some doesn't. The point is that Hubspot understands the needs of their customers and delivers ongoing and consistent content around those needs. When they are ready to buy, Hubspot is there.

Remember, you need to position yourself as the industry expert. Find the "secret sauce" - the area between your customers' needs and your expertise.

How do you get that information?

Listen using free tools like Google Alerts, Twitter Search or possibly a paid customer listening tool.
Read blogs in your industry. Choose the top 15-20 and make it a point to have someone own this task.
Talk to your customer service and sales personnel.
Call your customers.
Send out email surveys.

Step 3: What Do You Want Your Customer or Prospect To Do?

To reach your ultimate objective in step one, what do you need your customers to do?

Share something with others
Download something
Call someone
Go somewhere
Buy something
Refer you to someone else

Note that these are all measurable actions. If you can't find anything to measure, keep going back to the smallest increment that you can possibly measure. For example, with the release of our Playbook, we are looking at a group of actions (downloads, mentions, enewsletter signups, service signups, consulting inquiries). These are prioritized and weighted. At certain increments, we'll measure, discuss and then tweak the program based on what we are seeing.

Step 4: Determine the Ultimate Product and Content Mix

Many novice content marketers start with this step first. It's seems the most likely. "Let's do an eBook, or a weekly enewsletter." This is the wrong place to start.

If you did, go back and review steps one through three. Once those are complete, then review these 42 content marketing examples and begin to test and tweak the ones that align best with your content strategy. Also note that many of these tactics can and should be integrated together (custom print magazine, digital magazine, and customer-focused community site may all be part of the same content program).

If you like this and need a bit more information to really take a committed step toward content marketing strategy, our book Get Content Get Customers will get you there.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content strategy, content marketing strategy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: mlm leads EMAIL: admin@bizsourceplus.com IP: 203.177.74.138 URL: http://www.bizsourceplus.com DATE: 10/07/2009 08:30:46 AM Allowing people to influence, shape, respond to, and create their own content is still surprisingly a tough hurdle for many brands to get over. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chris Owen EMAIL: chris@chrisowenacademy.com IP: 67.142.167.20 URL: http://www.chrisowenacademy.com/mlm-leads/ DATE: 07/24/2010 12:19:54 AM Success in 4 steps. I like it. I think content strategy is one of those area's I'd like to avoid but can't. So I use a lot of qualified outsourcing techniques to handle it. You made some great points here and I think it'll help a lot of people. Thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nate, The MLM Leads Guy EMAIL: support@mlmleadpros.com IP: 125.60.241.251 URL: http://www.mlmleadpros.com/ DATE: 07/29/2010 08:55:22 AM Nice article. It would really help newbies out there. I like how you pointed out doing newsletters are wrong place to start. Thanks for posting this. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Check out the Content Marketing Playbook - a free eBook Experiment STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: check-out-the-content-marketing-playbook-a-free-ebook-experiment CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: eBooks DATE: 10/01/2009 10:09:01 PM ----- BODY:

After months of work, Junta42's Content Marketing Playbook is complete.

What is it? - 42 ways to tell and share your business story through content. The examples include long-form, short-form, social media, online, print and in-person initiatives. We've also included over 50 mini-case studies and well over 100 resources relevant to each content marketing tactic.

The goal - to create an ongoing content marketing resource for marketing and publishing professionals. In return, we're looking for more people to use Junta42's free vendor-matching service. Some people won't be ready for that, so we're hoping they just spread the word.

The style - big thanks to Brian Clark and Authority Rules. We borrowed his eBook distribution idea (ungated PDF plus every page accessible via html). Brian, I hope you don't mind (so we plugged you throughout the eBook). Also a hat tip to David Meerman Scott, who convinced me to try my next eBook without forcing people to subscribe. It will be interesting to measure the difference between gated an ungated.

Special thanks - goes to Hanley Wood Marketing, who kindly agreed to sponsor the Playbook. Also big thanks to my writing partner Jonathan Kranz, as well as Joe Kalinowski (design) and Beth Brinton (web).

What you can do - Check out the playbook. If you see something that should be added, shoot it to us at add[at]junta42.com. If you like it, spread it around and let's see what happens.

Let me know what you think...and as always, enjoy the content marketing!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing playbook, content marketing tactics, content strategy, junta42, junta 42, brian clark, authority rules, david meerman scott, jonathan kranz ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Pam EMAIL: pam@zsquaredmedia.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: DATE: 10/02/2009 09:22:40 AM Great job Joe and team! What a great resource! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 96.252.47.38 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 10/02/2009 09:53:09 AM It was a great pleasure working with you on the Content Marketing Playbook! But I wonder -- as we add new content pieces, will you have to rename the company? Junta43, Junta44, etc.? ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/02/2009 10:01:41 AM Hopefully we don't have to go there, but no doubt there will be more to add. After the response to this, no doubt will be launching more of these. Thanks again for all your help and guidance on this project. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Help Me Help You - Spend Content Marketing Money STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: spend-content-marketing-money CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 09/29/2009 09:44:36 PM ----- BODY:

Well, first the bad news.

After months of trying to work this out, the winner of Junta42's $4200 in 42 Days Contest, 48HourPrint, decided not to move forward with their project. (for those of you who don't remember, every project match that went through the Junta42 system over a 42 day period was eligible to receive the $4200 dollars)

When we started this contest, we all thought how easy it would be to give this money away. I mean, who wouldn't want $4200 to kick-start a content project, be it a blog, a newsletter, a video series or even (heaven forbid) something in print?

Now, the good news.

We have $4200 to try something new.

What should we do? What would you do? Should we give it away (I'm thinking yes)? Should we spend it on our own content (that's not as much fun)?

How would you spend $4200? Would you go video, blog content, search strategies? Maybe you'd get a content audit and strategy completed, so you'd know exactly what needs to happen with your content marketing strategy?

Drop me a line and let me know...maybe I can give the money to you.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: $4200 in 42 days, Junta42, content marketing contest ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rick Liebling EMAIL: rickliebling@gmail.com IP: 71.187.74.219 URL: http://www.rickliebling.com DATE: 09/29/2009 10:46:40 PM Here's how I would spend the money: I'd hire professionals to help me create a multi-media package that showcases my strategic thinking (as seen on my blog) and my creative output(via my Foundtracks project). Together this limited-edition, annual release (magazine format, with attached CD) would serve as my marketing collateral material. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Fernando EMAIL: fernando@labastida.com IP: 75.13.82.235 URL: http://latinitmarketing.com DATE: 09/29/2009 10:47:08 PM I'd use it to convert my current blog into a professional looking website with a clear and bold above-the-fold call-to-action for my content marketing consulting business!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jody Pellerin EMAIL: Marketing@PhaseWare.com IP: 173.173.76.125 URL: http://www.phaseware.com DATE: 09/30/2009 01:35:21 PM I would do one of the items you suggested: get a content audit and strategy completed. I have the skills to implement anything that needs to be done, or I can quickly learn. However, I think it is best to have a third party go over my content as I may be too close to any issues to see them and determine the best way to resolve them. With a firm starting point, it is easier to implement coordinated improvements rather than try to make improvements piecemeal that may not come together after all is said and done. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/30/2009 01:39:16 PM Great ideas...funny, I've received about five emails as well about getting a content audit done. Hello Content Audit companies...big demand today. Thanks to each of you for responding! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul Conley EMAIL: inquire@paulconley.com IP: 63.146.63.2 URL: http://www.paulconley.com/ DATE: 10/02/2009 10:36:33 AM Hi Joe, Here's a thought...why not give the $4200 to a nonprofit that needs some content help? The hardest part would be deciding which nonprofit would get the money. Should it be a school, an agency that serves the handicapped? something that helps feed the poor? I know your Golf for Autism project has likely put you in touch with loads of organizations that work with that population. Is there an agency or school that works with kids with autism that needs some help? Paul ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/02/2009 12:58:35 PM Great idea Paul...we've already had so many approach us on the same thing. We'll be making a decision on what to do over the next few weeks. All this input is fantastic. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ContentKeith EMAIL: keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com IP: 76.209.55.159 URL: http://nutlug.wordpress.com DATE: 10/02/2009 05:14:51 PM Hey, Joe: an offer for you to consider -- if you decide to go the NFP route, and that NFP decides to (wisely) invest in a content audit, I will happily conduct the entire audit AND craft a content strategy for the 'winner' -- likely a five digit+ cost normally (as you know), all for the $ 4,200. I'd be happy to do the extra work for a good cause. No obligations, just putting the offer out there. Thanks for all you do! Keith Wiegold ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/02/2009 09:42:51 PM Wow...excellent offer Keith. We are going to sit down and figure out what we are going to do over the next couple of weeks. Tough decision, so many good ideas. Will keep you posted. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Moore EMAIL: david@advantageprint24.com IP: 71.54.154.112 URL: http://www.advantageprint24.com DATE: 10/12/2009 06:21:10 PM Joe, I'd use the money to create weekly or bi-weekly webisodes of content filled web.tv. It would be a show about Your community (Kinston, NC), Your leaders (5 min - business and civic inspiring interviews), and Your business (small biz tips, marketing, printing, design). The show would last 20 mins or so. Think Hubspot.tv but local. I just need help with audio and some editing software. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Laurie Dunlop EMAIL: ldunlop@netstrategies.com IP: 173.8.11.229 URL: http://www.netstrategies.com DATE: 10/13/2009 09:31:45 AM Joe, I would invest in our future and find a College that teaches content marketing ... the seniors likely have a project to complete this year to graduate ... you could inspire the students to create a content plan using your guidance and award the winner the $4200. If you choose this option, let me know and I will interview the winner for my NetStrategies blog! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: How can I get more people to my website? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: how-can-i-get-more-people-to-my-website CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: online content marketing CATEGORY: video DATE: 09/25/2009 08:27:31 AM ----- BODY:

Somewhat interesting Bloomberg video from Ad legend Jerry Della Femina on the future of advertising and ad agencies.

The key points:

The advertising industry is not run by creative anymore, but the bean counters.
The "good-old days" for advertising is over - where they used to make 15 cents on every dollar spent, now it's more like seven or even five cents.
According to Jerry, every meeting with marketing executives starts out with "How can I get more people to my website?"

Everyone wants viral

The discussion in the video then revolved around niche, viral campaigns as a way to drive website traffic. That's fine, but it's concerning that so many marketers focus on "the viral" believing that one brilliant idea that people want to spread will make all the difference.

The formula for success, according to David Meerman Scott, includes: a combination of some great—and free—Web content (a video, blog entry, interactive tool, or e-book) that provides valuable information (or is groundbreaking or amazing or hilarious or involves a celebrity), plus a network of people to light the fire and links that make your content very easy to share.

Couple Key Points

You first need a network of people. In order to do that, you need to create and share valuable "free" content to your target audience consistently, over a long-period of time.
The power is not in the one, but in the many. Blendtec didn't just blend one thing up and hope people shared it. They have done it consistently over years, with now hundreds of millions of people engaging in their Will it Blend? videos - transforming their entire business.

How do I get people to my website?

This Huffington Post article by Charles Warner goes into some detail about how content is NOT king, but it's all about marketing and search (I strongly disagree with this).

How can you market without having a valuable, interesting story to tell? When executed correctly, your content IS your marketing.

How can you be found in online searches without having valuable information for people to find? How do you rise to the top in search without many people linking to your content because it's so valuable?

How can you be successful in social media without first having a content strategy?

So if you really want to get people to your website...

First, stop asking that question. It's not about people coming to your website. If you get a million people to your website and they do nothing, what's the point? You want the right people doing the right things that will help your business (and help them at the same time).
Second, don't think that it's one time or easy in any way. Creating good content on a consistent basis that people want or need is hard. That's why so many marketers and agencies look for the "quick" viral hit. That makes it seem easier. That makes it about the creative, the idea, about the campaign. For success, make it about your customers and do it over a long period of time.
Before you do anything, answer these questions. It will save you a ton of time.
Then formulate those into a basic content strategy.
Then use these six steps to content marketing execution success.

Successful marketing is not about the search for the viral hit...it's about a continuous process of valuable publishing. Who knew that in this high-tech era, that the secret to marketing success would be around a technique used since the dawn of time - publishing?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: viral marketing, advertising agencies, content marketing, publishing is marketing, david meerman scott, jerry della famina ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andee Sellman, One Sherpa EMAIL: andee.sellman@gmail.com IP: 59.167.196.191 URL: http://www.onesherpa.com DATE: 09/25/2009 07:33:42 PM Really great post Joe. The most difficult thing is to be absolutely consistent over a long period of time. When we started our blog I thought we should do something every day. After about six months we've come back to a publishing regime where we post one video blog and one word blog per week. We're trying a Tuesday and Thursday so readers know when to look for them. Over time we're slowly getting more and more readers and members and moving up in our google rankings. It's a marathon not a 100 metre dash!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/25/2009 08:11:37 PM Thanks for the great comment Andee. Sounds like you've got it down. Helpful content to the right audience over a long-period of time does the trick every time. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matthew Ray Scott EMAIL: mscott@strategicincubator.com IP: 97.115.119.131 URL: http://www.StrategicIncubator.com DATE: 09/26/2009 07:54:12 PM Joe, Spot-on guidance as always. I believe we will continue to see a shift from the SEO emphasis to content marketing emphasis. After all, a great content marketing marketing strategy has a built-in SEO strategy. I love "How" questions and I like to follow them up with "Why" questions. I'm convinced that so many people are struggling with How to get more people to their website because they can't name "who" they want to arrive and then don't know "what" they want them to do when they get there. That was alot of Who, What, When, Where, & Why:) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sonny Cohen EMAIL: sonny@duoconsulting.com IP: 66.151.6.248 URL: http://www.duoconsulting.com/about/people/sonny-cohen DATE: 09/27/2009 11:24:23 PM Oy, I hate these kinds of discussions. More people to your website? Ouch!. That is such a packaged goods kind of mentality; mass produced marketing for mass produced products. Isn't it, at least in part, about getting the right people to the right places to interact with you or your online brand presence (wheresoever that may be) at the right time? And to do this continuously over time? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott Walker EMAIL: scott@braincandyllc.com IP: 69.231.55.49 URL: http://thismonkeycantype.com DATE: 09/27/2009 11:39:35 PM Seems odd that the old saws are still true, but we have to keep reminding ourselves that they're still relevant. You hit the nail on the head regarding traffic: numbers are useless unless they represent measurable value. Also, it's harder than ever (and will be increasingly so) to secure that meaningful traffic. There are no silver bullet, quick-hit short-cuts for long-term success and staying power. How many years has it been since the tech implosion? Why are we still seeing short-term bean-counter priorities being substituted for long-term value-add offerings that will truly generate the stickiness and viral marketing components the bean counters want? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/28/2009 08:03:02 AM - Oy, I hate these kinds of discussions. More people to your website? Ouch!. That is such a packaged goods kind of mentality; mass produced marketing for mass produced products. Sonny, you are exactly right. I was sort of making a point that it is the wrong question to ask. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Blase Ciabaton EMAIL: TheDirectMailMan@gmail.com IP: 75.147.147.110 URL: http://www.TheDirectMailMan.com DATE: 09/28/2009 10:49:57 AM Great post! In my business as well (direct mail), everybody wants a quick fix. Yes, people still send direct mail; the ones who are successful send relevant messages to a targeted audience consistently over time. In many cases, direct mail is only part of the communication strategy with their target audience. Ironically, those who "get it" the most are often nonprofits. They consistently communicate with their donors and reap the long term results. By in large, the for-profit world wants the quick fix, comparable to "going viral" on the web, and this is exceptionally difficult to achieve in a single step for the same reasons that you reference in this post. Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: creatine EMAIL: neilkevin09@gmail.com IP: 121.247.251.62 URL: http://www.vitabits.fr/supplements/ DATE: 09/29/2009 06:05:05 AM Thanks for the information. I am working in E-marketing industry. Where you required to get more traffic to the site. This tips will help me a lot. This tips is different from SEO techniques. It emphasis more on core marketing funda. Thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christopher, blog commenting service EMAIL: jnchris.nannety@gmail.com IP: 124.125.107.111 URL: http://www.p2w2.com/link-building.php DATE: 09/29/2009 08:58:40 AM Content marketing is a good important strategy, but how can businesses survive or thrive in this era where there is so much competition in every area? That's perhaps the reason why many are using viral marketing and similar strategies to reach a vast number of potential customers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: jeu pour enfant EMAIL: sarareid28@gmail.com IP: 121.247.251.226 URL: http://www.zoombits.fr/jeux/ DATE: 10/02/2009 07:18:57 AM I can give to some tips to attract more people to your website. -You could give people a free subscription to your newsletter. -Provide your visitors with new and original content. -Give your visitors a free ebook. -If you have expertise in a certain area you could offer free consulting to people who visit your web site. -Give visitors a free entry into a contest you are running. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sheila Goraluk EMAIL: darkangelwebsites@mts.net IP: 216.55.208.208 URL: http://darkangelinternetmarketing.wordpress.com/ DATE: 05/31/2010 11:53:44 AM great ideas all of you and a wonderful article I hope you don't mind me sharing it on my newbie entrepreneur blog. I think they would benefit from it as I did, we are so busy struggling to get traffic we kind of lose the plot at times. Thanks again for the reminder of what is really important. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nick Usborne EMAIL: nickusborne@gmail.com IP: 173.179.233.230 URL: http://www.webcontentcafe.com DATE: 06/06/2010 09:18:49 PM Blase wrote, "Ironically, those who "get it" the most are often nonprofits." You are so right, and I can't believe I hadn't seen that myself. I have written for hundreds of non-profit and for-profit organizations and companies over the course of over 30 years, and the point you made in just 10 words never clicked. Thank you! : ) As a side note, I wonder if non-profits are able to mail more frequently because they are promoting good causes. As to Joe's post, yes. Yes, it all takes time. The modern curse on every writer and marketer these days is the myth of "Internet time". Nick ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: A Rebuttal: Content is Marketing....then comes search and social media STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: a-rebuttal-content-is-marketingthen-comes-search-and-social-media DATE: 09/24/2009 09:35:00 PM ----- BODY:

To put this brief post into perspective, take a read at Charles Warner's post on Huffington Post entitled Content Is Not King.

Charles was focusing on media companies as the centerpiece of this story. Here is Charles' key point:

"...the explosive growth of the Internet has led to such a proliferation of content out in the long tail that it is now virtually infinite. To say that "content is king" in today's world is like saying "a grain of sand is precious."

There are gems mixed in with the infinite content, but the conundrum is finding those jewels. In the age of the Web, the puzzle has been solved by Google, which has become the largest media company in the world by being an aggregator of content, not an originator, a creator of content.

Content is no longer king, marketing and search are the rulers now."

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The New Lead Generation is in Membership Programs STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-new-lead-generation-is-in-membership-programs CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 09/23/2009 08:35:30 PM ----- BODY:

Had an interesting conversation with Texterity president Martin Hensel regarding lead generation programs (specifically for BtoB markets) and how they are changing before our eyes.

Now, all lead generation programs are different, but they basically run this way (yes, very simplistic to all you lead generation experts...here goes).

Create the offer
Convert and gather the lead information
Direct e-mail or call by the salesperson to qualify or convert
If they don't respond, keep pestering them with email offers.

Martin was discussing how one of his clients (a leading software company) was beginning to move away from this process. Why? They are finding that the majority of leads they acquire are:

Very early in the sales process (often six to 12 months out and are just in the process of learning) and
Are put off by getting a direct solicitation after completing an online form (usually from a white paper or webinar)

The solution: the membership model.

Here's the process:

Develop the offer, which is not just for one piece of content, but an indepth dive into multiple and ongoing pieces of online content (think something like homemadesimple.com). Subscribing (the lead information) offers an ongoing content promise.
Prospect subscribes to join the free membership.
The prospect doesn't get called unless they state an immediate buying problem (a question in the membership form). All others gain free access to the content community as they move through the buying process.

What makes this different? Since most of these BtoB buyers are very early in the process and still need more education on the subject, the ongoing content delivery (through email and social media) positions the vendor as a trusted expert. As the buyer gets closer to the buying decision, odds are will be that this company, that is delivering all this fantastic opt-in content to them, is first on the list. Motorola does a version of this already, and have been for a while.

With the buyer in full control anyway, doesn't this model make more sense? - to focus your "hot leads" with your sales team and let your content do the nurturing for those customers who aren't ready.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: lead generation, btob marketing, membership programs, lead nurturing ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Christopher, blog commenting service EMAIL: jnchris.nannety@gmail.com IP: 124.125.107.111 URL: http://www.p2w2.com/link-building.php DATE: 09/29/2009 09:26:30 AM This reaffirms the fact that content marketing, if done relevantly with a consumer oriented approach, will yeild good results for companies. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dr. Wright EMAIL: info@wrightplacetv.com IP: 75.31.104.140 URL: http://www.wrightplacetv.com DATE: 09/29/2009 12:39:54 PM Its works to a certain extent I guess. Dr. Letitia Wright The Wright Place TV Show http://wrightplacetv.com www.twitter.com/drwright1 ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 20 Questions to Ask before You Launch Your Content Project STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 20-questions-to-ask-before-you-launch-your-content-project DATE: 09/18/2009 08:52:12 AM ----- BODY:

As usual, Seth has done it again.

I've taken Seth's questions to ask on launching your next website and adapted them a bit for content marketing. As you put your next content plan together, use these questions. You won't be sorry. Enjoy!

What is the goal of the content marketing project?
In other words, when it's working great, what specific outcomes will occur?
Who are we trying to please? If it's the boss, what does she want? Is impressing a certain kind of person important? Which kind?
How many people on your team have to be involved? At what level? Who ultimately responsible for owning the content program?
Who are you using to outsource your content project? What expertise will they need? What will they specifically do? Who will oversee them?
Who are we trying to reach? Is it everyone? Our customers? A certain kind of prospect?
The person we are trying to reach - are we trying to inform them or entertain them? Do we know what their informational needs are?
What are the content activities that this group has demonstrated they enjoy interacting with? (that's who you compete with for time)
Are we trying to close sales? If so, can we measure directly. Do we want people to call us?
Are we telling a story that's worth spreading?
Are we earning permission to follow up?
Do we need people to spread the word using various social media tools?
Are we building a tribe of people who will use the content to connect with each other?
Do people find the content via word of mouth? Are they looking to find answers to a specific problem and can the content answer them?
Is there ongoing news that need to be presented to people or is news not important?
How consistently will we need to share the content to make a maximum impact - either in online or print? How many times a month would we like people to engage in our content? For how long?
Does showing up in the search engines matter? If so, for what terms? At what cost? Will we be willing to compromise any of the things above in order to achieve this goal?
Will the content need to be universally accessible?
How much money do we have to spend? How much time?
Does the organization understand that 'everything' is not an option?

For more, check out these key questions to ask when launching a content marketing initiative, 10 questions to ask before you blog, the six steps to content marketing success, or download this free white paper on setting up a program that attracts customers with content.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Enjoy!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content marketing questions, seth godin, content questions, how to launch a content plan ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Keating EMAIL: markkeating@aim-write.com IP: 75.118.65.85 URL: http://aim-write.com DATE: 09/18/2009 09:25:41 AM Joe: Yet more evidence that Seth Godin is a genius. Just about everything he writes makes me think about something in a completely new way. I have to say - #3a made me chuckle. I've had more than my share of such projects. Ego-driven marketing (regardless of the delivery vehicle) is almost certain to fail. Mark ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/18/2009 09:34:17 AM Great point Mark. Especially with content projects, there are many egos involved. If we aren't aware of them, they can bite us and hurt the project. Thanks for sharing! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: DeneneWrites EMAIL: denene_78@yahoo.com IP: 24.166.167.15 URL: http://www.denenebrox.com DATE: 09/18/2009 10:26:32 AM Great post and great questions to ask before embarking on a content campaign! Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bobby Burns EMAIL: bburns@e-myth.com IP: 63.150.56.194 URL: DATE: 09/18/2009 05:25:22 PM Joe, Great stuff! I just read Seth's blog about an hour ago, went back to work, was thinking of how this could apply to content writing projects (seriously! I was!) and then went back to my blog trolling - and there you had done the work for me! Thank you, and keep up the good work. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 70.253.160.145 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 09/22/2009 12:02:39 AM I saw this on Seth's blog as well. I read Tribes over the weekend and have been reading a lot of his stuff online. He embodies Content Marketing at its finest. I have really been focusing on #13 -- your content as well as Seth's has been helping me out tremendously. Thank you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Amanda O'Donovan EMAIL: amanda@amandaodonovan.com IP: 99.237.102.15 URL: http://www.amandaodonovan.com DATE: 10/07/2009 04:12:06 PM Thanks for this, Joe. With all the hype and chatter surrounding content driven marketing, it's refreshing to see something advocating planning and structure...a series of questions that will make us pause for breath and focus on the purpose of the content we're creating. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 72.8.44.146 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 10/07/2009 04:16:58 PM Thanks Amanda...appreciate the note. I think you are right...there are lots of ways to create content, and not too many marketers asking the questions BEFORE creating the content. Thanks! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why Outsource Your Content Marketing? - The Jeff Gordon Model STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-outsource-your-content-marketing-the-jeff-gordon-model DATE: 09/17/2009 03:21:36 PM ----- BODY:

Had a great conversation with David Kemper from Kemper Strategy about outsourcing content creation within organizations.

He told me a great story about Nucor Steel about 15 years ago. At the time, the only one that was giving tours in steel plants in North America was Nucor Steel. POINT HERE ABOUT PICTURES< SHARING TOURS< ETC. David asked the executives why. This was the response (in my words).

Take Jeff Gordon. You can get close to Jeff Gordon's car. You can check under the hood and look at the engine. You can get inside and sit in the car. Heck, you can even drive it around the track a bit. But do you think anyone in their right mind is going to drive around a Nascar race as well as Jeff Gordon?

At Nucor Steel, they wanted as many people to share in the experience that Nucor offered.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Social Media Starts with a Content Strategy STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-starts-with-a-content-strategy CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 09/17/2009 11:35:56 AM ----- BODY:

Had the pleasure of giving this presentation for Virtual MENG (Marketing Executives Networking Group) yesterday on social media and content marketing.

Some key takeaways from the presentation:

The key to social media is understanding that no one cares about you. They care about themselves. If you deliver consistent, valuable information to your customers (or followers in this case), they will care because you made it about them. Most brands get this wrong.
That means that publishing, and developing a content strategy that revolves around your customers' informational needs, comes first. Without content, using social media as a distribution mechanism and conversation starter is pretty pointless.
What's your secret sauce? Find the place where your customers' informational needs intersects with your niche expertise. You can build a strategy on that.

10+ Social Media Tips - Social Media Starts with a Content Strategy

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

The presentation also includes loads of blogging and Twitter tips, as well as other helpful tools such as Namechk and Ping.fm.

For more on creating a content marketing strategy, get this free white paper.

Enjoy!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: social media tips, content strategy, VMENG, Joe Pulizzi, content marketing speaker ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ian Goldsmid EMAIL: ian@iangoldsmid.com IP: 117.104.180.135 URL: http://www.iangoldsmid.com DATE: 09/17/2009 04:43:46 PM Great presentation - got your book - looking forward to reading it soon ... this preso motivated me to dig deeper into what you have to say ... Best, Ian ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/17/2009 09:42:18 PM Thanks Ian...let me know what you think of the book! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John D Crews EMAIL: jcrews@ppipubs.com IP: 70.191.126.122 URL: http://www.ppitechcom.com/wpblog/?p=69 DATE: 09/18/2009 12:33:47 AM Joe, thanks for the tips on getting started in developing a strong professional internet presence. I really appreciate how you are willing to freely share tips and techniques. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rob Rose EMAIL: rob@rrsquared.com IP: 66.92.34.147 URL: http://www.rrsquared.com DATE: 09/18/2009 01:00:41 AM Joe As always a great preso.... And a great blog post - what excellent advice. We should catch up!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim Lloyd EMAIL: timlloyd150@hotmail.com IP: 212.183.134.209 URL: DATE: 09/18/2009 02:58:21 PM Great presentation. Why do so many organisations start from the tools and work back to the content? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.243.179.199 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/18/2009 03:03:18 PM Tim...excellent point. Here's why. Tools are sexy. Content is hard. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alison EMAIL: bolens2002@yahoo.com IP: 65.185.167.153 URL: http://blogs.sas.com/sascom DATE: 10/07/2009 01:04:52 PM This is a great post. I'm sharing it with all the bloggers I coach & taking notes for myself as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jimmy Sou EMAIL: jimmysou@innerhub.com IP: 76.172.9.147 URL: http://twittervendingmachine.com DATE: 07/13/2010 10:02:41 PM Content is still King. Always has been and always will be. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Linda from Social Media Jazz EMAIL: linda@socialmediajazz.com IP: 92.233.116.178 URL: http://socialmediajazz.com/ DATE: 08/03/2010 04:19:19 AM A lot of clients only seem to want to provide recycled content for social media because of the indirect ROI. i.e. long term measurement is required ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Six Steps to Content Marketing Execution Success STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: six-steps-to-content-marketing-execution-success CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 09/14/2009 08:46:12 AM ----- BODY:

Just finished this last post on content strategy before content marketing, then saw this perfect post from Seth Godin. It really puts what we are trying to accomplish with content marketing in perspective.

Seth maps out six specific steps when it comes to success. Let's take these steps and relate them to our content marketing efforts.

Attitude
Approach
Goals
Strategy
Tactics
Execution

Note that Seth puts execution last. Many marketers focus on the execution of the marketing program first, without looking at the previous five points (hard to believe, I know).

Step 1: Attitude

I call this secret sauce. What is the intersection between your expertise and the informational needs of your audience (your customers)? Those content areas become the core for your content marketing program (and your business).

Your secret sauce should be very relevant to your product and service offerings. After all, you are in this to sell more of something, so be sure that is in the plan.

Step 2: Approach

In the approach section, think about listening posts. In step 1, you really took some time to figure out how you can truly be an educational resource. In step 2, you ask the questions and listen to find out the real pain points of your audience. This is where social media tools come in so handy. Use Twitter Search, Google Alerts and other social media tools to listen to what your customers are struggling with.

This will help define the story you are trying to tell. Ask yourself this: "If you don't understand what your customers are struggling with, then how can you solve their problems?" It's a simple question, but it's the core of our entire marketing plan. Good editors dig deep to understand. You have to as well.

Step 3: Goals

Notice that we first have to find out what our customers' information needs are first, and what our informational expertise can be in relation to our product/service offerings, before we move onto goals.

Remember, you can't have strategy without goals.

Step 4: Strategy

Now you can put together your content strategy once you have your goals, approach (listening posts) and attitude (secret sauce) in place.

Step 5: Tactics

Now pick the most effective tactics based on what the first four steps tell you. Note that many marketers go to tactics that sound right first, without going through the first four steps.

"Wow, an ebook is a great idea."

"We should do a custom magazine."

"Why don't we have a blog?"

Don't go here until you understand why these tactics are a good or bad idea.

Step 6: Execution

Then we actually execute the plan. Execution is extremely important, but meaningless without the first five steps. Think of it this way - a perfectly executed dive at the wrong event on the wrong day is just a waste of perfectly good water.

As Seth says: "If the top of the hierarchy is messed up, no amount of brilliant tactics or execution is going to help you at all."

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: seth godin, content strategy, six steps to content marketing strategy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: adams EMAIL: adams.newmedia1@yahoo.com IP: 122.175.73.89 URL: http://www.nvinc.com DATE: 09/14/2009 03:26:35 PM It's a good Article. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 69.232.72.209 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 09/24/2009 10:51:20 PM Nicely done, this is some information that can be very useful for me as I launch my campaign. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bronson EMAIL: gnuboss@gmail.com IP: 196.210.174.254 URL: http://www.bronsonharrington.com DATE: 09/28/2009 03:37:32 AM Thanks for this post filled with great advice, definitelty one to add to the reference section of my content marketing bookmarks. I have to agree that all to often people start building stuff without having a good enough reson why, I have been guilty of it in the past as well. Solid planning is often the difference between failure and success, a little planning goes a long way. ----- PING: TITLE: 6 Steps to Content Marketing Success: How to Listen to What People Want URL: http://www.coachezines.com/2009/09/6-steps-to-content-marketing-success.html IP: 10.17.151.33 BLOG NAME: Writing on the Web from Patsi Krakoff, The Blog Squad DATE: 09/20/2009 07:57:32 AM I've been talking to retired friends who want to start a little online business. I ran across two excellent posts this week that tie into this topic nicely, one by Joe Pulizzi of Junta 42 Blog, and other by Seth... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The B.E.S.T. Method for Content Strategy (what you do before Content Marketing) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-best-method-for-content-strategy CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: get content. get customers. DATE: 09/10/2009 10:17:59 AM ----- BODY:

Core point: Don't start executing on your content marketing until you have a sound content strategy.

Yes, easier said than done, but so many of us get infatuated with a tactic before really planning out what should happen and why. You wouldn't build a car without a step-by-step plan, but many of us create an eBook, Facebook page, web content or custom magazine without a content strategy.

To address this, Newt Barrett and I covered the B.E.S.T. content strategy in Get Content Get Customers. The goal of asking the B.E.S.T. questions as part of your content marketing strategy is to find the intersection between your products/services and the information needs of your customers. Only then can you craft a content marketing approach that will deliver more sales, more customers, and more measurable results.

Behavioral

What action do we want our customers to take?
What effect must we achieve with them?
How will we measure their behavior?
How will we put them on the path to purchase (what exactly is the conversion)?

To sum up: How will you measure as a whole and what are the smaller measurements that tell the Return on Objective (ROO) story?

Essential

What do our buyers really need to know (not about our products, but about information and tasks relevant to what we have to offer)?
How does what they need to know align with the our unique expertise?
What will provide the most benefit personally or professionally?

To sum up: What's the intersection between your expertise (as it relates to your products) and the informational/entertainment needs of your customers? That's what I like the call the secret sauce!

Strategic

Does this content marketing effort help us achieve our strategic goals?
Does it integrate with our other strategic initiatives?
Do we have executive support for this content strategy?

To sum up: I've seen too many custom content projects live outside of marketing and the overall strategic goals of the company. To truly be successful, a content strategy needs to tell your brand story as it relates to your customers. Don't let it live in a vacuum.

Targeted

Have we precisely identified the prospects we want to target?
What are the different customer segments? Why are they different?
Do we really understand what motivates them?
Do we understand their professional roles?
Do we understand how they view the product or service we offer?

To sum up: Get a handle on the buyer persona for each of your customer segments. If you don't know them well, how do you know what they need. (Excellent overview here on a buyer persona.)

How do you get this kind of information? Use these social media tools to create your own listening posts. Send out surveys. Call your customers. Talk to your salespeople.

And finally...

Once you have this information, and the executive team buys into this essential background information for your content strategy, then you can start developing the execution plan.

Also check out: Five Reasons Why Content Strategy Comes before Social Media

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: content strategy, best content strategy, get content get customers, content marketing strategy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Walter EMAIL: lion_slinger25@yahoo.com IP: 203.131.85.242 URL: http://www.lionslinger.com DATE: 09/13/2009 05:03:26 AM You have spelled it out here. It is important to plan the B.E.S.T. areas before executing content marketing. Many online marketers get too excited that they forget this vital aspect. It will take time, it will take patience, but the reward is worth it. :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Bottom EMAIL: john.bottom@baseonegroup.co.uk IP: 79.65.116.99 URL: http://www.baseonegroup.co.uk/beyond DATE: 09/14/2009 12:17:28 PM Joe - I like it; this is a really useful summary. As with many marketing initiatives, assumptions often replace real research at the early stages, and this will help me explain to clients that the fundamentals are essential to doing content marketing in the right way. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott EMAIL: adams.newmedia1@yahoo.com IP: 122.169.144.14 URL: http://www.fastbusinesscredit.com DATE: 09/15/2009 02:36:41 PM It's very important to have a clear strategy for any marketing initiatives. It would be like an well organized approach with set goals and methodologies instead of being wildly scattered. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: g13 media EMAIL: g13medialive@rocketmail.com IP: 71.136.240.213 URL: http://www.g13media.com/ DATE: 02/26/2010 03:24:05 PM Thanks for the social media tools Joe. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paula Satow EMAIL: psatow@buzzuka.com IP: 24.251.187.161 URL: http://www.buzzuka.com DATE: 05/19/2010 03:23:36 PM Totally agree that great content comes first. I encourage people to try www.Buzzuka.com so they can start by creating a great 30-second elevator pitch in just a few minutes. It's free and easy. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: An Ad I Couldn't Ignore - The Watch Avenue STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: an-ad-i-couldnt-ignore-the-watch-avenue CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 09/09/2009 09:50:51 PM ----- BODY:

Most ads, I ignore.

This one made sense.

I was on NYtimes.com today and saw this Tissot watch keeping time for me. At first I thought it was a Tissot sponsorship integration, but later in the day, it was a different luxury watch keeping time. No, this ad was sponsored by The Watch Factory.

Intrigued, I checked out their site and came to their Watch Selector. Very helpful tool.

As the content guy, I can't stand to admit that an ad got the best of me. If they only had more orange watches, I'd be sold.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: the watch factory, ad placement, display ads, ny times. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Add Link EMAIL: alexmaviy@btinternet.com IP: 86.159.15.32 URL: http://www.add-link.co.uk DATE: 09/13/2009 08:04:41 PM Thanks for the suggestions, will check them out. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Changing Face of Communication according to IBM STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-changing-face-of-communication-according-to-ibm CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: marketers CATEGORY: predictions CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 09/08/2009 01:23:54 PM ----- BODY:

Following in the footsteps of their previous white paper on marketing trends (The End of Advertising as We Know It), IBM Global Business Services has developed another dandy for your reading pleasure called The Changing Face of Communication (download the PDF here). The report was designed specifically for telecommunication providers, but I feel it's relevant for all marketers.

I recommend you take 30 minutes to really go through this, but I wanted to pull out some interested quotes that help tell their story about how buying decisions have changed, and the role of technology in marketing.

Big Picture

"The challenge is not just in understanding the technology, but also the unfolding fundamental shifts in human communication behavior." (page 1)
We need a "broader definition of communication - one that encompasses everything from two-way conversations to many-to-many communications - and align the organization with this reality." (page 2)
"Social networking...is...becoming an activity woven into the intrinsic fabric of the internet." (page 3)
"By 2012, the number of unique monthly visitors to social networking sites will surpass 800 million." (page 3)
"In the US, 80% of young adults, 60% of teens and 30% of adults use social networks." (page 4)
"Social networks...have become a primary destination for online users." (page 4)
"...a typical 21-year-old in the US entering the workforce today has played video games for 5,000 hours, exchanged 250,000 emails, instant messages and phone text messages, has 10,000 hours of cell phone use and has spent 3,500 hours online." (page 7)
"For many of this generation, social networking is even supplanting email as the preferred method of communication." (page 7)
They use social networks "for harnessing collective wisdom or opinion from trusted individuals." (page 7)

On Content

"Social networks are...increasingly becoming channels for digital content distribution, using their network of relationships to push information to users." (page 5)

Trends

"Communication patterns are shifting from point-to-point, two-way conversations to many-to-many, group communications and collaborations." (page 6)
"Shift in communication control is transitioning from provider-controlled environments to open Internet platform service providers with greater opportunities for user participation." (page 6)

Of course, there is much more, especially on business models and opportunities. I encourage you to download this piece and shoot me your thoughts.

And, I can't let this go without saying...this is an excellent example of a custom content strategy for IBM.

Download it here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Benito Castro EMAIL: castrogaliana@gmail.com IP: 217.12.16.51 URL: http://www.benitocastro.com DATE: 09/11/2009 10:28:01 AM Thank you for this terrific document, and thanks to IBM as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott EMAIL: adams.newmedia1@yahoo.com IP: 122.169.144.14 URL: http://www.fastbusinesscredit.com DATE: 09/15/2009 02:40:04 PM Thanks for sharing this wonderful document. Scott. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Print Custom Magazines Still Work: Q&A with financial custom publisher T3 Publishing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: financial-custom-magazines-t3 CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: custom publishing CATEGORY: custom publishing council DATE: 09/03/2009 10:04:01 AM ----- BODY:

Almost a year ago I came upon a custom magazine called thinkMoney from the company thinkorswim. It's just one of those custom magazines that I like to keep around and refer to on occasion. Design, content, calls-to-action...they are all working in the same direction. (fyi, thinkMoney won "Best New Magazine" for the CPC Pearl Awards in 2008.)

Over the past few months, I've been able to work on a few projects with thinkMoney's custom publisher, Kevin Lund from T3 Publishing. When he showed me some of the results from thinkMoney, I knew it was something we had to share on the blog.

Kevin's background is in financial education as well as business development and marketing for financial information services. Additionally, he's been an independent trader of equities and equity options for 12 years (so he knows the trading business). Having made his living both trading the markets as well as writing, speaking and analyzing them, he has a good sense of what traders and investors need to know and want to hear.

Here's some of the highlights from our Q&A. If you think that custom print magazines don't work anymore because of the web, think again.

Joe: Kevin...before we get into your custom magazine project, let's have your take on the content marketing industry?

Kevin: In a word – crucial. It’s also growing leaps and bounds, whereas traditional advertising firms continue to struggle to reinvent themselves while latching onto status quos. I really don’t know how today, any company, whether you’re a one-person operation or a juggernaut can effectively market themselves in a world of so many choices, without making a concerted effort to connect with and educate their target audience as to why they should be taken seriously.

Consumers have become so much smarter with the proliferation of Web, social media and mobile technology that the definition of branding has risen far above 30 second messages that shout at the audience. “Build it and they will come” no longer works. Now, it’s more like “Build a buzz, and they will come.”. Content marketing goes right to the heart of the target audience with relevant messaging and has the ability to shape their behavior, without being sneaky.

I wish I could remember where I heard this from, but there’s a great Chinese proverb that we live and die by as a custom content firm that goes something like, “Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and I will understand.” That’s content marketing. If you’re a marketing professional, and you don’t understand the value in that, then you simply don’t get it, and you probably won’t survive.

Joe: Your client thinkorswim, why was a custom magazine on the list of marketing initiatives?

Kevin: Initially, the idea of a magazine hadn’t even crossed their mind. But they had a very real problem when they were acquired by a large, publically traded company (INVESTools) in early 2007. Their trading software was already widely regarded as the best in the retail option space, and because of their almost legendary customer service and quirky personality, they had an extremely loyal, almost cult-like customer base of very active traders. Not a very easy bunch to please, let me tell you.

Anyway, they didn’t want to risk losing touch with their core audience as they built critical mass. They needed an effective medium to scale their legendary personal touch, without the customers sensing that anything had really changed. At the same time, they needed a way to introduce new product lines, promote trading activity and build brand equity without going through traditional marketing channels. We brought the idea of the magazine to the president and founder of thinkorswim and he loved it. He hired us on the spot and thinkMoney was born.

Joe: What types of results have you seen with the magazine, and how do you integrate it into their total marketing efforts?

Kevin: The results have truly exceeded even our highest expectations. According to readership surveys, over 90% of the audience has acted on the information in some meaningful way, a majority of which, has driven revenue directly to the firm. It’s really the best of both worlds for them. It’s not only become one of the firm’s most powerful marketing pieces, but it’s also the voice of thinkorswim as a firm.

The magazine has been so successful that it has become a brand within the brand that customers rely on, with anticipation. We get some of the funniest fan mail. We’ve been told by customers that they actually wait outside their mailbox just to get it. Another customer said he’d trade in his spouse for a lifetime subscription! That’s the extreme of course, but that gives you an idea of the type of buzz that we’ve created.

When we started conceptualizing thinkMoney, the company freely admitted that despite their success, they were terrible at marketing themselves, so they really didn’t put any limitations as to what we could do, which for a brokerage firm is rare. Much of the design elements and art that we’ve introduced into the magazine has found its way into the branding campaigns for the firm, which is very flattering.

The creative license we’ve been given is just amazing, but because of it, we’ve been able to defy the conventional wisdom on Wall Street and produce a serious financial magazine that makes you laugh while learning how to trade a complex product like derivatives. It shows their audience that while they don’t take themselves too seriously, their message is serious and they are a voice to be heard.

Joe: Why is expert custom content so important for traders?

Kevin: If you want to get through to traders, you need to speak the language of trading, which is not to be confused with financial reporting. We do both, but if you use financial reporters for a trading magazine, your audience will see right through you and lose interest. Traders typically aren’t interested in mutual funds or making 10% returns a year. The term “compounding interest” isn’t in their vocabulary. Rather, they thrive on the alternate reality they live in. The average person that loses $5,000 in a stock investment might think about cancelling the family vacation that year. But for the trader, it might be all in a day’s work, and there’s always tomorrow.

So the information you have to give traders needs to be relevant, useful and timely. They live for the moment, so the content needs to cater to that mentality. This is a magazine by traders for traders, which is a very different approach than most other financial magazines.

But this is the same for trading as it is any niche market, which is really what I think your question speaks more loudly to. No matter what your niche is, you want to balance the needs of your audience with your marketing objectives. The formula isn’t difficult: Give them information that is actually worth learning and is actionable right now. That’s it. No real secret.

Joe: What's next for thinkMoney?

Kevin: We’re working carefully with thinkorswim right now through the next phase of their ongoing evolution. They recently merged with TD Ameritrade, so they’ve inherited a new set of challenges that are very positive, but challenges nonetheless. We’ve been here before though, and the magic that came from that is something we can repeat again, I’m sure.

Other Relevant Articles:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: T3 Publishing, Kevin Lund, custom magazines, financial custom magazines, financial content marketing ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The New CMO.com - A Helpful Resource that Could Be So Much More STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-new-cmocom-a-helpful-resource-that-could-be-so-much-more CATEGORY: branded content CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 09/01/2009 09:49:24 AM ----- BODY:

My friend and former Penton colleague Tony D'Avino alerted me to the new CMO.com - "a new Web site conceived by Omniture and championed by leading marketing agencies, technology providers and industry experts" (according to an Omniture email).

The website, focused on the digital marketer, takes syndicated content from over 40 sources that are searchable in 30 categories.

Here's my take: It's pretty. It's a great aggregated resource of marketing content (similar to what we've done for a few years with our community site around content marketing). If I'm part of the syndicated content pool like BtoB or AdAge, I'm loving it.

I've looked at the site several times, and I keep coming up with the same question: What's the goal?

Is it for Omniture to be viewed as a thought leader in digital marketing? Is it for this group of leading agencies and technology providers to get into the publishing business? Is it just a helpful tool, from your friends like Compete.com and Outrider? Maybe it's to showcase the Omniture product in action (a working case study)?

Look, I'm not putting them down at all. It looks like a helpful resource. Heck, I used to pitch sites like this three years ago to my clients.

But if Omniture's goal is to become an authority on digital marketing, I don't believe it can be done with other people's content. We've struggled with that ourselves, which is why we are ramping up our original content creation (stay tuned).

Fusionspark talks about this concept as being the definitive resource. Brian Clark calls this authority. You may call it thought leadership or even content marketing.

I clicked about 15 times into and out of content on CMO.com and couldn't find any content from Omniture. Shouldn't Omniture be leading this conversation? I guess it depends on their goals, but I say yes.

Here's the deal: If Omniture (et al) wants to be considered the expert resource on digital marketing, and ultimately be the place that people want to go to solve their marketing challenges, then they need to tell the story in unique, relevant and compelling ways - themselves. Their own video, blogging, white papers, ebooks, articles...not just BtoB's and AdAge's.

If the strategy is to launch a website where they can attract enough readers to sell sponsorships and then other media products, then I think it's a good start. But the strategy to be a true expert resource...I don't think it hits the mark.

Attracting and retaining customers through content means you need to tell your own story. Depending on Omniture's marketing objective, I believe they need to move in this direction.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeremy Morris EMAIL: jmorris@campbell-ewald.com IP: 65.123.68.81 URL: http://campbell-ewald.com DATE: 09/03/2009 03:59:52 PM Joe Completely agree. Aggregation can be a valuable component of a content strategy but not the core. If Omniture believes it has the authority to be a thought-leader in the space it needs to prove it. It won't do that by piggy-backing other peoples' work ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeremy Morris EMAIL: jmorris@campbell-ewald.com IP: 65.123.68.81 URL: http://campbell-ewald.com DATE: 09/03/2009 04:04:47 PM On the other hand I just went to it and took a look around. Pretty useful site. I'll use it. But I bert I forget pretty quickly that it's 'brought to me by Omniture'! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Garrett French EMAIL: garrett.french@ontolo.com IP: 75.182.116.202 URL: http://ontolo.com DATE: 09/04/2009 11:53:07 AM There's something to be said for feed aggregation and curation at the core of a content strategy. For one, if their regular writers already have magazine-quality blog postings, why not just link to that? For two, they can vastly widen the scope of their coverage, and cover more of the digital marketing content-space. Consistent, knowledgeable curation remains vital though: it shouldn't be a "set it and forget it" thing. It will take a solid editor who can identify fresh, quality content and even look past big names to discover fresh thought talent from new up and comers. I applaud the approach and believe there's a great deal of industry authority and expertise one can demonstrate simply through the feeds/articles you choose to include and those you choose to exclude. If CMO.com consistently shows me gems I wouldn't have otherwise found, they win my attention. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.98.210 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/07/2009 09:02:47 PM Hi Garrett...I completely agree with you. If it's a helpful tool, I will continue to use it, no doubt. But will an aggregation concept help Omniture drive more sales or position themselves as trusted experts? And will you buy from them or seek them out when you have digital marketing needs? That's where I'm not sure it holds water. Can you tell your own story without your own content? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Marcus Dane EMAIL: webbizideas02@gmail.com IP: 124.105.108.250 URL: http://www.webbizideas.com DATE: 05/04/2010 09:36:15 PM I think it will help in driving more sales but it will be a protracted process though. http://www.webbizideas.com/services/web-design/corporate.html ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Your Content, Their Content & the Brand STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: your-content-their-content-the-brand CATEGORY: branded content CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: predictions CATEGORY: vision statements DATE: 08/27/2009 09:53:51 AM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Kenneth Weiss, author of the new book, Slightware – The Next Great Threat to Brands, for this guest Junta42 blog post. Ken offers some interesting thoughts on content and the customer conversation. Take a read!

Companies have traditionally attempted to control the dialogue and vernacular around their brands. The correct words, and the specific tonality were carefully chosen to explain, position and differentiate brands. Packaging, advertising, public relations and all types of customer communications were continuously reviewed. Being “on brand” was paramount. Being “slightly off brand” was never allowed. While this is still the intent, it is not always possible. Why? Because too many people have too much to say about the brand and they have the tools to do it!

So how do companies leverage the power of content while continuing to be a steward of the brand? It’s not easy.

Your Content

Almost everyone within an organization is creating content these days. Sales people make PowerPoints. Marketers write posts for company bogs. Customer service teams publish documents to the web. The CEO gives speeches to local organizations. Human resource teams write company overviews for job boards. Engineers create white papers. Other employees post videos and images. Is it possible to route all of these pieces of communication through a central brand manager? Obviously, no. Does this mean that they can all put their own spin on the brand? Yes, they can. No, they shouldn’t.

How to make it work:
Brand guidelines and brand training need to be pushed beyond the walls of the marketing department to every corner of the organization. Documentation needs to include more than just logo guidelines. It needs to be a complete, holistic explanation of the total brand. Living and delivering the brand needs to be an ongoing activity. Not something that happens once a year or during orientation.

Their Content

Customers, writers, editors and experts are talking about your brand. This can include reviews on other sites, or reviews on your own site. But the content goes far beyond these simple sentences and paragraphs. Brand mentions will turn up in Tweets, comments on posts, YouTube videos and even in the content of other sites. Do you think all of this dialogue is using the endorsed, approved words and tonality? No, of course not. Is it all positive? No, again. It is IMPORTANT because it shows that people are engaged and compelled even if it is not always HELPFUL.

How to make it work:
Develop your editorial and legal process around content monitoring and participation. How will the company react if a person discusses using the product incorrectly versus using the product in a way that could be dangerous? How will the company react if the person is using the product in the proper way, but just doesn’t like it?

Be ready to offer content. If a person has a question, needs a how-to, or wants to move from being a novice user to an advanced user, what content do you have to offer?

Respect the balance of power. Brands need to show more respect to the customer than ever. The old adage “The customer is always right” needs to be changed to: “The customer is always heard.” Not heard and dismissed – heard and listened to.

Getting it Right

Strong brands will always have an advantage when it comes to awareness, consideration and purchase intent. Content, both company generated and community generated is an asset to any business. It can be an invaluable part of building a brand through two-way discussion rather than traditional one-way delivery.

Kenneth J. Weiss is Director of E-Commerce for Hoover and author of the new book, Slightware – The Next Great Threat to Brands. Download the first chapter for free at www.Slightware.com.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lilly Ferrick EMAIL: lferrick@formalifesciencemarketing.com IP: 71.111.209.211 URL: http://www.formalifesciencemarketing.com DATE: 08/27/2009 04:54:51 PM You're right. You cannot have control over everything about your brand. One of the best things a company can do for your brand is to put things in place that ensure your brand is established internally first. If the 10 people at your company say 10 different things about your company, things are already out of control. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Team The Rise To The Top EMAIL: allyson.summers@gmail.com IP: 98.156.44.54 URL: http://www.therisetothetop.com DATE: 09/01/2009 11:00:08 PM Building a strong brand is important, thanks for posting this to help people strengthen their brand and to always respect the balance of power by listening to their customers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rumah Dijual EMAIL: customer@bestsurabayaproperty.com IP: 114.58.136.117 URL: http://www.bestsurabayaproperty.com/aneka-properti/ DATE: 09/02/2009 01:52:34 AM Really, brand awareness is the most valuable asset for a corporation. Yet It's hard to build it and need long time and consistent effort. I like the term "building a brand through two way discussion". Thank you for the precious insight. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ldii EMAIL: budiwaluyo_sby@yahoo.com IP: 202.70.59.3 URL: http://ldii-sidoarjo-jawatimur.blogspot.com DATE: 11/25/2009 11:41:54 PM I know, strong brand image is important for marketing success. We should be careful in building people perception about our product/company. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Three Rules to Marketing Reset - Spreadable. Ultra-Niche. Consistent. STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-three-rules-to-marketing-reset-spreadable-ultraniche-consistent CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: predictions CATEGORY: publishers CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 08/24/2009 10:43:15 AM ----- BODY:

The last portion of this interview with Paul Laudicina of A.T. Kearney really struck me. Take a read through this paragraph, and then let's discuss.

You know, Peter Drucker used to say that companies fail not because they do the wrong thing or because they do the right thing poorly, but because they fail to understand a fundamental shift in the theory of business. Immelt [from GE] calls it an economic reset. Drucker called it a change in the theory of business. But you could call it a fundamental transformation. The most important thing any company could or should be doing now to prepare for the post-recession environment is to look at all of the fundamentals and reexamine what changes in the theory of business might mean for their core competencies, for their ability to meet the new consumer demand.

As I read this paragraph, I think of the many traditional publishers out there who have been working toward the end goal statement, "When advertising comes back..." Scary proposition.

Seth Godin blogged about the marketing reset as the movement from attention shortage to attention surplus.

There was an attention drought for the longest time. Marketers paid a fortune for TV ads (and in fact, network ads sold out months in advance) because it was so difficult to find enough attention. Ads worked, so the more ads you bought, the more money you made, thus marketers took all they could get.

This attention shortage drove our economy.

The internet has done something wacky to this situation. It has created a surplus of attention. Ads go unsold. People are spending hours on YouTube or Twitter or Facebook or other sites and not spending their attention on ads, because the ads are either absent or not worth watching.

Marketing is in the process of resetting itself (and has been for a while). What does this mean for us? I think we are all trying to figure it out, but here are three concepts to kick around.

Advertising can work, but more and more will be in the form of content and storytelling. If our advertising must be relevant and opt-in, great content is the only way. I think of Blendtec's Will it Blend? for this example. Ultimately, they are pitching the product the entire time - two minute product demos of their blenders in action - but they do it in such an entertaining way that you never feel like you are being sold. It's so good that people sign up to watch their marketing. To do: Stop thinking about pushing your product and start thinking about what your customers would do after engaging in your advertising/marketing. If the inclination is to spread the message, then you've done something right.
Go more niche. Instead of just a company Twitter account, maybe you need five - one for each customer segment. Instead of a corporate Facebook account, maybe you need three Facebook "movements" - all focused on a customer concept or idea that solves their pain points. Each customer will have it's own niche channels you need to focus on - different blogs, different communities, different social media tools. To do: break down your customers' informational needs by segment. Treat them differently. The more niche the better. The story needs to be relevant at all times. Remember that your customers won't search through your irrelevant content to get to your relevant content. They'll just give up and go somewhere else. Google makes that easy.
The most important content process issue that people forget is the idea of consistency. That's where the idea of the microsite fails. It's one big push...lots of content all at once and then silence. It's better to start small and build up over time. To do: Don't launch your content marketing initiative waiting for perfection. Launch small, get feedback, adjust, pick a content schedule and stick to it.

Create marketing that spreads (or that your customers would be likely to talk about), go ultra-niche and whatever you develop, do it consistently. This is the recipe for content marketing success as our marketing resets itself.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: James B EMAIL: james@helpyard.com IP: 81.157.51.59 URL: http://www.helpyard.com/ DATE: 08/25/2009 08:42:39 AM It's interesting that the infrastructure of marketing/advertising/PR is built for one-time volume, whereas the infrastructure required for the marketing-reset needs to handle multi-stage conversations and individual personalisation of the messages. Multiple-messages even. Many in 'traditional' marketing will look upon these requirements in horror: 'think of the amount of work involved', and there will be huge efforts needed, until the infrastructure catches up. Any thoughts on what that infrastructure will(does) look like? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.219 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/25/2009 09:00:54 AM James...I agree with you. From a traditional standpoint, this looks like a ton of work that falls outside of most current processes. I think, most importantly, it means assigning a content strategist, or chief content officer, to the role to oversee this area. All companies will set this up differently, but there needs to be someone who takes ownership who is responsible for the customer conversation and publishing initiatives. What else should we add? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 71.140.114.215 URL: http://www.superiorpromos.com DATE: 08/26/2009 04:01:21 PM Very interesting topic. I would definitely agree that marketing is in a bit of a rebirth or rejuvenation stage. Marketers are adapting to new technologies and developing new strategies. I really think that your idea of storytelling is one of the answers to the future of marketing. This is something that is going to be viable in the future. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rumah Dijual EMAIL: customer@bestsurabayaproperty.com IP: 114.58.136.117 URL: http://www.bestsurabayaproperty.com/aneka-properti/ DATE: 09/02/2009 02:09:34 AM Thank you for this insightful lesson. I find abundant new theory and knowledge here. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adam@How To Make Money Online EMAIL: glemoh101@yahoo.com IP: 41.238.7.252 URL: http://www.4money-making-online.blogspot.com DATE: 07/18/2010 11:27:21 AM Thanks for this great information, I think most important is to focus on one plan and when success repeat what you do with other ( don't promote a lot affiliates in same time ) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Beermatman EMAIL: keith@beermatadvertising.com IP: 213.66.0.24 URL: http://www.beermatadvertising.com/v2 DATE: 07/24/2010 04:38:22 PM I sort of hate to throw a spanner in the works or anything; but we are experiencing a strange phenomena in our business. We as a company sell advertising space on the "traditional" Beermat; and have been bracing ourselves for some real hard times; what with Pubs and Clubs closing on a regular basis. However companies have been steadily increasing their orders for our product over this last year or so; please don't get me wrong it's not on fire or anything; but we are seeing a definite upturn; not sure why this is. Cheers Keith aka Beermatman ----- PING: TITLE: Day 9: Advertise Different URL: http://markvalentine.typepad.com/good-idea-a-day/2009/08/day-9-advertise-different.html IP: 10.17.151.33 BLOG NAME: Mark Valentine's Good Idea a Day Blog DATE: 08/25/2009 04:40:50 PM I love the idea of advertising, because at its best, it combines free thinking and creative problem solving with meeting your company's needs and building relationships with your customers. How can you catch someone's attention and make it worth their ... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Story Listening through Social Media STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: story-listening-through-social-media CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 08/19/2009 08:58:13 AM ----- BODY:

We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto.

Here's an outstanding eBook from my friends at Story Worldwide entitled "Story Listening through Social Media". If you were looking for some backup as to the importance of online listening with a purpose, and how it relates to telling your brand's story, this is it. The folks at Story were nice enough to let me offer it to Junta42 readers without any gates or forms, so here it is for your downloading pleasure.

My takeaway - conversations are going on about your brand right now, whether you are a part of those conversations or not. Can you afford not to be? Then, if you do get involved, do you know what to say?

I'm big on one liners or phrases that are memorable and make a strong point. Here are the ones I pulled out of the eBook that made an impact on me.

There’s a conversation going on right now about your brand. Are you a part of it?
Today, every human being and every organization is (potentially) a global publisher.
Individuals now have as much publishing power as big corporations. So big corporations are just one more voice among millions.
Your brand perception is now in the hands of an army of strangers. Isn't it time you got to know them?
Now that consumers are talking to one another, traditional advertising is doomed. In a world where everything’s opt-in…Interruption generates hostility…And bad news travels very, very fast.

Also includes some great case studies from Kogi, Comcast and Dell.

Download it here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bruce Nunn EMAIL: bruce.nunn@hotmail.com IP: 154.20.55.91 URL: http://www.BruceNunn.com DATE: 08/19/2009 01:51:28 PM The eBook is very well done. It does a good job categorizing the personalities that are discussing your brand on online communities. Thanks Joe. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: mary EMAIL: mary@position2.com IP: 174.129.253.45 URL: http://www.position2.com DATE: 08/21/2009 06:18:53 AM That's a really interesting. These days social media is being used by so many companies to reach out to their target audiences. http://blogs.position2.com/category/smm ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Anne Potts EMAIL: atmpotts@yahoo.com IP: 173.76.101.168 URL: DATE: 07/12/2010 08:39:23 PM I just revisited this ebook after about a year (hard drive filled, had to let some things go). It's such a great view of how complex and still basic social media is. ----- PING: TITLE: Day 9: Advertise Different URL: http://markvalentine.typepad.com/good-idea-a-day/2009/08/day-9-advertise-different.html IP: 10.17.151.31 BLOG NAME: Mark Valentine's Good Idea a Day Blog DATE: 08/25/2009 04:40:50 PM I love the idea of advertising, because at its best, it combines free thinking and creative problem solving with meeting your company's needs and building relationships with your customers. How can you catch someone's attention and make it worth their ... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: We Are All Publishers - The Video STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: we-are-all-publishers-the-video CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: video DATE: 08/18/2009 07:29:22 AM ----- BODY:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ted EMAIL: ted@thedailyreviewer.com IP: 112.202.82.99 URL: http://thedailyreviewer.com DATE: 08/19/2009 04:27:54 AM Congratulations! Our selection committee compiled an exclusive list of the Top 100 Content Marketing Blogs, and yours was included! Check it out at http://thedailyreviewer.com/top/Content-Marketing You can claim your Top 100 Blogs Award Badge at http://thedailyreviewer.com/pages/badges ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 2009 Junta42 Golf for Autism Another Success - $30k in Proceeds in 3 Years STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 2009-junta42-golf-for-autism-another-success-30k-in-proceeds-in-3-years CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 08/17/2009 12:57:52 PM ----- BODY:

It was another perfect day for an amazing cause. On August 14th, nearly 100 golfers and over 80 sponsors and contributors came together to raise more than $10,000 to help get children with autism get speech therapy services. All proceeds for the event go to Easter Seals Northern Ohio.

Now, as the Junta42 Golf for Autism completes its 3rd year, we've raised $30,000 for the cause ($7500 in 2007, nearly $12,000 in 2008, and $10,500 this year). Our original goal for 2009 was $12,000. By late 2008, it was apparent that this year was going to be much more challenging. All told, we feel pretty good about surpassing the $10k level. What made the difference? Even though some of our larger hole sponsors had to back out (due to economic reasons), we had more overall contributors than ever before (85 total, up from 73 last year). This is a huge testament to the great volunteers we had this year in the field and online (the Facebook page) helping to gather support.

Where to start?

First, here are some wonderful testimonials from this year's event:

The Junta42 Golf for Autism is a wonderful event with great people at a beautiful course. I will be back next year! - Amanda Wegryn, Penton Media
My entire team agreed this is one of THE best outings we have participated in. Very well run and what a great cause! 2009 was our first year and we have every intention of participating next year. Thanks Joe! - Josh Healan, Advancement, LLC
It amazed me to see, even in this down economy, the support that Junta42 generated for Easter Seals. From players to Sponsors, the generosity displayed is a result of the support and trust people have in Joe. - Jim Clarke, Ka, Inc.
An outstanding outing for a great cause! - Jack Parks, Steris

Second, here are some awesome pics from the outing. Take some time to go through the pics - the signage this year was awesome thanks to Brianne Haddox at Billboard Connection. And here's the program from this year's event (designed by Joe Kalinowski and printed by Duke Printing).

Third, a big thank you to all our sponsors and contributors for the event, especially our premiere sponsors:

All our Contributors:

AMS Specialty Steel
Andy Junkins
Applebees
Barb Schmitz
Baricelli Inn
Bev Beckert
Billboard Connection-Brevard - Brianne Haddox
Blue Canyon
Bob Evans (Bainbridge)
Buffalo Wild Wings (Bainbridge)
Chuck & Lisa Francisco
Cooking Thyme
CVS
Dick's Sporting Goods
Dolores Sullin
Dorothy & Kevin McCarthy
Duke Printing
Ed & Sandy Kozelka
Edward Marecki
Frank & Diane Gronowski
Fred Misischia
Fry Communications
Galileo Communications
Generation Rescue
GFS
GPS Gift Gallery
Henry & Ann Speier
Honda
Jack Jerry - JerryCo
Jackie Strnad
James Clifford
James Kunkel
James Witkowski
Jerry Kunkel
Jim & Peg Connell
Jim and Laurel Clarke
JoAnn Grande
Joe Kalinowski
Joe Zion
Johnny's Downtown
MacDuff Publishing
Marcie Avram
Max & Erma's (Solon)
Medical Mutual of Ohio
Michael & Melissa Paul
Michael & Michele Madej
Mike & Darlene Balzano
Moen
National City Bank
Outback Steakhouse (Independence)
Panera Bread (Solon)
Pat Catans
Paul & Mary Ann Kunkel
Peter and Ellen Kwiatkowski
Petitti Garden Centers
Pittney Bowes
Playaway/Findaway Digital LLC
Richard Bongorno
Rick Liebling
Rick Rudnicki
Ruby Tuesday's (Bainbridge)
Scott Abel
Shannon Hammer
Stephanie Diamond
Stephen Rogers
Suzanne Hoffman
The Boneyard in Mayfield
The Kapitan Family
The Rosen Group
Wendy's/Western Reserve Restaurant Management
Yours Truly

Fourth...we had so many wonderful volunteers this year. Thanks so much to the committee for everything that they did to make this event possible.

Mike & Lynne Pistillo
Joe & Pam Pulizzi
Angela Vannucci
Missy Pistillo
Laurel Clarke
Mike & Darlene Balzano
Brianne Haddox - Billboard Connections (signage)
Joe Kalinowski (program design)

And finally, a big thank you to all the grandparents that watched the kids while all our volunteers were making this happen.

Now, even though this is an annual event, we never stop working. So, here's what you can do right now if you haven't already.

1. Join Our Facebook Causes Page
2. Recruit Others for the Cause
3. Continue to Spread the Word

Donations can be sent to:

Junta42 Golf for Autism
3317 W 155th St.
Cleveland, OH 44111

or you can make contributions online at our Causes page.

Thanks again to everyone for their support and help. Already looking forward to next year.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bruce Nunn EMAIL: bruce.nunn@hotmail.com IP: 154.20.55.91 URL: http://www.BruceNunn.com DATE: 08/18/2009 11:52:19 AM Congratulations. My son has autism, and it's great to see the community support and awareness of this pervasive disability. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/18/2009 09:01:00 PM Hi Bruce...thanks for taking the time to comment. Be sure to sign up for our Facebook causes page so we can stay in touch on the effort. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul EMAIL: highclere.harris@btinternet.com IP: 86.154.35.222 URL: http://playbettergolfgreatinfo.blogspot.com/ DATE: 07/06/2010 02:45:23 PM What a great game golf is, being able to have fun and raise money for good causes – keep up the good work. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tyler the Ogio golf bags guy EMAIL: tylezncvma@yahoo.co.uk IP: 70.233.146.226 URL: http://ogiogromstandbag.com DATE: 07/24/2010 09:41:11 AM Man, that was a great event this year. Lets keep adding to the pot for the children. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Roger the Golf Swing Plane guy EMAIL: stacemar2004@yahoo.com IP: 216.217.53.222 URL: http://www.golfswingplane.us DATE: 07/27/2010 02:29:24 PM What a great event. We donate trophies for dozens of charity events each year. Email me if we can help. ----- PING: TITLE: Joshua Steals Show at 2010 Junta42 Golf for Autism URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2010/08/joshua-steals-show-at-2010-junta42-golf-for-autism.html IP: 10.17.151.35 BLOG NAME: Junta42 Content Marketing blog DATE: 08/20/2010 11:26:57 AM The 4th Annual Junta42 Golf for Autism on August 16th at the beautiful Acacia Country Club was indeed special this year. Yes, we had more golfers this year. Yes, we had more sponsors this year. To date, we've raised almost... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: What if? (no one cares and why you need to be a publisher) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: what-if-no-one-cares-and-why-you-need-to-be-a-publisher CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 08/13/2009 09:36:06 AM ----- BODY:

What if? (questions posed to a marketing professional)

What if your customers saw your company as the industry thought leader?

What if they signed up for your enewsletters and white papers because they were interested in what you had to say, and thought it could positively impact their businesses?

What if traditional media called you for interviews, or bloggers wanted Q&As from people in your organization...not just a few times, but consistently?

What if you didn't need salespeople to make cold calls anymore?

What if your customers spread your content to prospects for you - essentially becoming your marketing distribution arm?

No, this is not fantasy land. This can happen. Maybe it's already happening.

How you ask?

By consistently delivering the most important, most valuable, most necessary information to your customers.

No one cares about your products, your services, your blog, or your website. They care about themselves...how to be happier, more successful, how to sleep better, how to get a raise, a job or some peace of mind.

What are those things for your customers? What do they really care about?

Once you get around the idea that they really don't want to hear about you, what will you tell them?

The marketing fantasy is happening for those that take on this task. I've seen it happen to Brian Clark, Shama Kabani, Hubspot and countless others.

They are true publishers. Sure, they have products and services, and are very successful. But they are first and foremost publishing machines that focus on their readers' (customers') needs and wants. They are building marketing assets (not advertising).

Most marketing professionals know this is possible, and want to go this direction, but more than not stay true to the past for a variety of reasons.

The new media company is not a media company...it's you. The sooner you accept that and begin publishing, the sooner you can be part of the fantasy.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bruce Nunn EMAIL: bruce.nunn@hotmail.com IP: 154.20.55.91 URL: http://www.BruceNunn.com DATE: 08/13/2009 12:21:32 PM David Meerman Scott wrote an excellent book called The New Rules of Marketing & PR that captures the same sentiments. It is a great read. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kye Swenson EMAIL: kyeswen6@gmail.com IP: 69.38.134.82 URL: http://trade-show-promotion.blogspot.com/ DATE: 08/13/2009 05:02:19 PM Inspiring article. Another great example is Matt Cutts from Google. You know the guys is a millionare, but you can also tell that he has genuine passion for online marketing. That's why he set up his blog and created Google's first set of webinars. He posts practical, straight-forward, and useful information that almost everyone benefits from. That's why I think webinars are becoming so popular and are a necessary tool for establishing your brand name. They show that you enjoy taking the time to create videos and have a practical conversation with your customers that supplies them with valuable information. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joanne Grey EMAIL: joanne@spottedwombat.com IP: 58.111.65.167 URL: http://www.spottedwombat.com DATE: 08/13/2009 10:39:54 PM Thank you for a great article. I think more people are starting to finally see the benefits of content marketing. I can recommend Joe's book "Get Content - Get Customers" - read it and get your clients to read it too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/13/2009 10:42:05 PM Bruce/Kye...great examples. Joanne, you are too kind. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Are You Creating Necessary Content? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: are-you-creating-necessary-content CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 08/11/2009 01:11:15 PM ----- BODY:

Take a few minutes and do an inventory of the content you send to your customers and prospects. I'm not talking about the information you create that talks about your products and services. In this case, look at the type of information you distribute that educates your customers and positions you as an expert resource.

Is it necessary?

When I talk with companies about creating content marketing, I usually talk about valuable, relevant, compelling and consistent content as core to a content marketing program. That, in and of itself, may not be enough. In addition, is the information necessary for your customers' growth? Is it truly helpful in resolving their pain points?

In this article, Mr. Magazine discusses the importance of publishers creating truly necessary information for target readers. In this context, Mr. Magazine is focusing on media companies or magazine publishers, but it holds true for brands as well.

So often companies concern themselves with getting out the next post or next newsletter issue without doing the analysis about the significance of the content to their customers. With so many options today for your customers, your content better be needed, it better be the best around, it better solve their challenges...or why do it at all?

How do you create truly necessary content?

Listen to your customers. Use simple tools like Google Alerts and Twitter Search to figure out what your customers and prospects are struggling with. Target important keyword phrases and follow the conversation. Topics should appear that show trends and the need to expand on key issues. If that's not enough, ask them. Call them up and talk to them. Visit them in person. Use online survey tools. Your customers want to share this information because they, in most cases, want to solve their challenges. If you can help, that's great for them.
Review those doing it right. In most cases, especially in BtoB markets, trade publications have served this need for years. What are the issues they are focusing on? What are they not focusing on that they should? You can be the resource that takes this content to the next level. Good enough is not good enough anymore. Your content needs to be the best. Find out what it will take the get there.
Recruit help. Even if you have the best experts in the industry, most times you need outside journalistic help to tell your story in a way that positions your information as necessary to their career survival. Partner with an individual or an organization that will help you develop a content factory within your organization. Those organizations will help you think and act more like a publisher.

Your goal as a company is to generate a profit. To do that today, you need to have not only the best products and services, but you need to be the provider of the best information. By doing that, you'll attract and retain customers who, when ready to buy, will think of you. Why? Because you are the trusted expert that they rely on. The information you distribute is necessary to their jobs and their lives.

What other choice do you have?

Image credits: Shutterstock

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: DeneneWrites EMAIL: denene_78@yahoo.com IP: 24.166.167.15 URL: http://www.denenebrox.com DATE: 09/15/2009 11:16:53 AM Thank you for emphasizing on your blog and in your book the importance of working with good writers as part of a content marketing strategy. There are so many companies out there who want to get content for their blogs, websites, etc. for next to nothing. They don't give much consideration to anything other than keywords. To them, it's more about quantity than quality writing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.105.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/15/2009 11:21:06 AM So true Denene...keep the faith. Quality beats quantity any day of the week...and more people are coming to see the light on that. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: How to Launch an eBook or White Paper - Authority Rules STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: how-to-launch-an-ebook-or-white-paper-authority-rules CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: eBooks CATEGORY: microsites CATEGORY: online content marketing DATE: 08/06/2009 07:42:51 AM ----- BODY:

Copyblogger's Brian Clark just released a fantastic free report entitled Authority Rules. I'm just digging into this now, and urge you to really think about what Brian is teaching regarding the importance of your reputation in online marketing.

But that's not the reason for this post. Just as important as Brian's content, is how he produced this report. Brian's launch model is something you, as a small business or brand, need to duplicate. Here's why:

No forms, gates, or information required to access the content. Just a few simple requests to spread the message.
Multiple formats. Brian compiles the information in a handy, downloadable PDF. You can also view the content through continuous html pages, or you can go to the exact web page through the table of contents. Different strokes for different folks. Covered.
Search optimized. By separating the content into multiple pages and topics, Brian will get search traffic as well. Brilliant!
Ready to share. Brian makes sharing easy through Facebook, Twitter, Delicious and StumbleUpon. Brian asks you to share the content, and sets it up so it's a no brainer to do so.
Content Linking. The report isn't just an individual report. It's a collection of thoughts with links to other valuable Copyblogger posts. Anyone reading this report will most certainly be engaging in Brian's website as well.
Brian will get names after all. By not requiring registration, more people will spread Brian's message...but at the end (and subtlely throughout the document) Brian gives people reasons on why they should sign up at Copyblogger or follow him on Twitter.
He prepared the way. Brian send out a few notes before the release that it was coming. It was anticipated and, thus, welcomed.

And if I know Brian, this report is just the start. Most microsites, eBooks and white papers are created, spread around and slowly die. The new white paper or eBook needs to live and evolve. I have a feeling that's the case here.

So if you are thinking about that next white paper or eBook, think twice about how you are going to distribute it and copy the Copyblogger.
----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: James B EMAIL: james@helpyard.com IP: 86.137.103.81 URL: http://www.helpyard.com DATE: 08/06/2009 11:52:51 AM Brian Clark really does practice what he preaches: * give great content * ask to share * make it as easy as possible to share * reap the rewards I find his tactic of creating a stand-alone site interesting - I suppose it's concentrating the message by eliminating all the distraction of 'other' content. (He seems to be pushing the 'Thesis' theme quite hard too. I can't imagine that's the pay-off though.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Clark EMAIL: copyblogger@gmail.com IP: 98.98.184.6 URL: http://www.copyblogger.com DATE: 08/06/2009 12:33:06 PM Thanks Joe! Looks like I didn't sneak anything past you. ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Joyella EMAIL: gioiella@gmail.com IP: 74.73.244.105 URL: http://www.localnewser.com DATE: 08/06/2009 12:46:51 PM Joe, Thanks for writing this post. I've been thinking along just these lines as I try to grow my own business and stake out my claim as an authority in my field, and this breakdown on Brian's paths to spreading content and attracting an audience is extremely helpful. Thanks again, Mark www.localnewser.com www.vinitrek.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sky EMAIL: skyking162@gmail.com IP: 74.69.26.114 URL: http://www.beyondtheboxscore.com DATE: 08/06/2009 12:48:13 PM So here's my question as a bit of a newb -- what's Brian's goal here? More readership for CopyBlogger? More social media followers? More authority? Do all of those things lead to more ad revenue and/or larger audience to purchase things from him in the future? Why go the route of a separate website and not just publish on CopyBlogger? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Corbett Barr EMAIL: editor@freepursuits.com IP: 72.173.53.247 URL: http://www.freepursuits.com DATE: 08/06/2009 02:49:29 PM Great analysis, Joe. I was immediately struck by the power and simplicity in the way Brian (and Chris Pearson) published the report. I hope this becomes a model for others in the future. It's much easier to share the report because of the lack of roadblocks, sign-up requirements, etc. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Clark EMAIL: copyblogger@gmail.com IP: 70.57.40.224 URL: http://www.copyblogger.com DATE: 08/06/2009 06:04:05 PM Sky, once we decided to turn the report free without an opt-in, we decided to give it it's own site as an alternative to reading via PDF. But it's also a demonstration of how to launch a brand new site. Copyblogger is well established as an authority site, so we showed one interesting way to launch a new site that attracts links and prompts social media sharing. So.. as a newbie, has this given you any ideas on how to launch an authority site of your own? ;-) From a practical standpoint though, Authority Rules was designed to tie together several years of Copyblogger content in a way that hopefully makes Copyblogger more useful to our subscribers. So there is still a lot of direct benefit by gaining more and better educated subscribers for a great software tool we have in development (coming this fall). Hope this helps. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/06/2009 08:52:41 PM Sky, great question. Brian, thanks for the detail. Really appreciate it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: mary farmer EMAIL: mj86626@gmail.com IP: 74.129.11.44 URL: http://www.farm-town.com DATE: 08/11/2009 02:19:55 PM Copyblogger is sure a great site, been reading it for a long time. I like how you broke down "how" he went about making HIS content successful. So much of information is in the way it is presented, not just the information itself. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Consistency and Guinea Pigs STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-consistency-and-guinea-pigs CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 08/03/2009 10:38:11 PM ----- BODY:

About a month ago, we brought home our first pet...a Guinea Pig that the boys named Phary (pronounced Ferry).

After the initial adjustment week, a routine developed. The boys would get Phary out of her cage in the morning, and right before bedtime. As one of us walked over to get Phary out of her cage, she would place herself in the left corner of the cage so we could easily grasp her and carry her out. All was right with the world.

Last week, the routine changed a little. There were a few mornings we were gone and couldn't get to Phary. There were also a few nights where she didn't get her "out of cage" playtime.

Understandably, Phary didn't like this. This morning when I went to take her out, she didn't go to her regular spot, and fought me a bit as well as I struggled to take her out of the cage. As I finally took her over to the play area for the boys, she almost pooped in my hand. Not pleasant.

We were not consistent with Phary, and she didn't like it one bit.

Above All, Content Must be Consistent

Naturally, after the "Phary Incident", I thought about content marketing (but of course). Not that your customers are like Guinea Pigs, but the same behaviors apply.

A content marketing initiative, be it a blog, enewsletter or custom magazine, is a promise to your customers. A deviation in the regularity or consistency of the content product is like breaking that promise.
Once the promise is broken, you should expect a change in behavior in some of your customers (interesting story on that here). For example, if you have a weekly enewsletter, then suddenly skip a few weeks, your open rates will decrease. You've broken the promise, and they just don't care as much any more.

So, when you look at your content marketing tactics, put consistency at the very top. Don't believe for a second that you can skip an issue here or there and it won't have a negative impact.

And even while you are thinking that you are still putting out this great content (and so what if it's not consistent), your customers may just poop in your hand (sorry, couldn't resist - go to 1:20 of the clip below).

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lilly Ferrick EMAIL: lferrick@formalifesciencemarketing.com IP: 71.111.196.132 URL: http://www.formalifesciencemarketing.com DATE: 08/04/2009 12:27:52 PM Such basic information, applicable universally and yet, it serves us all well to hear it over, and over. Thanks for the great analogy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Melissa Paulik EMAIL: paulik.melissa@gmail.com IP: 69.178.223.156 URL: http://www.themarketingsurvivalist.blogspot.com DATE: 08/05/2009 04:50:33 PM I completely agree. When would-be bloggers ask me what the best frequency is, I tell them to worry more about consistency. I post almost daily but then I am obsessed. If you stick to a weekly schedule, or even a really pithy monthly blog post, that can work really well for a corporate blog. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 81.155.80.69 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 08/10/2009 04:35:51 AM This is a new take on how consistency can effect your bloggers and it's a great way of looking at it. I for one know the blogs that have recent updates that are news worthy and relevant for what I'm looking for and for this reason I return, normally the same time every day (out of habit). I feel lost if there hasn't been anything new for a few days but at the same time, always keep checking because I know that the posts that are written are worth reading. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: bath mate EMAIL: bathmateus09@gmail.com IP: 113.11.6.6 URL: http://bathmateus.com DATE: 12/18/2009 03:50:33 PM http://www.bathmateus.com I love it ! I like it ! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Social Media Doesn't Work without Content STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-doesnt-work-without-content DATE: 08/03/2009 12:44:45 PM ----- BODY: ----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs Released - Tipping Point Rises to the Top STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: top-42-content-marketing-blogs-released-tipping-point-rises-to-the-top CATEGORY: business blogging CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 07/30/2009 11:13:50 AM ----- BODY:

Well, after a slight delay to coincide with the launch of the new Junta42 redesign, the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs have finally been released.

Definitely, our most competitive and thorough list, the Top 42 is a collection of the best experts in the world that join in on the conversation about content marketing. The entire list of content marketing blogs can be found here. If you feel one may have been left off the list, please submit the blog at the bottom of the Top 42 main page. We update the list quarterly.

Congrats to all the almost 300 blogs in this round, especially the Top 42. Special congrats to the team at Tipping Point Labs for taking over the top spot in their debut listing.

Below is the Top 42 in its entirety.

1 TippingPoint Labs
2 Copyblogger
3 Marketing Interactions
4 Online Marketing Blog
5 PR 2.0
6 Marketing with Meaning
7 Post Advertising
8 Conversation Agent
9 Brain Traffic
10 Web Ink Now
11 Buzz Marketing for Technology
12 EyeCube
13 ContentMarketingToday
14 Convince and Convert
15 Influential Marketing Blog
16 Internet Marketing Blog
17 Dan Blank
18 The Harte of Marketing
19 Writing on the Web
20 The Toadstool
21 PR 20/20
22 Keysplash Creative
23 Chris Brogan's Blog
24 Social Media Explorer
25 Content Rich
26 Drew's Marketing Minute
27 Seth's Blog
28 9 Inch Marketing
29 The Content Wrangler
30 Greg Verdino's Marketing Blog
31 IdeaLaunch
32 Hard Knox Life
33 Direct Marketing Observations
34 Nigel Hollis
35 Rexblog
36 Daily Fix
37 Sales Lead Insights
38 Techno//Marketer
39 Eat Media Blog
40 Savvy B2B Marketing
41 Social Signal
42 Web Strategy by Jeremiah

Related Posts:

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul Roetzer EMAIL: paul@pr2020.com IP: 76.160.78.205 URL: http://www.pr2020.com DATE: 07/30/2009 11:44:07 AM Joe, Amazing list, and we're honored to be a part of it. Congrats to all. Keep publishing great content. Thanks. Paul ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alan Wolk (The Toad Stool) EMAIL: alan.wolk@mac.com IP: 74.105.161.187 URL: http://tangerinetoad.blogspot.com DATE: 07/30/2009 09:21:35 PM Joe - Thanks so much for the vote of confidence. An honor to be in such esteemed company. Keep up the good work. Alan ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Missy Martin EMAIL: gomediagirl@gmail.com IP: 70.116.149.61 URL: http://www.missymartin.wordpress.com DATE: 08/10/2009 05:27:43 AM Well, this is a great list, and one I aspire to be on. I have just begun my blog on marketing, and though it is still very new, I believe in it's strength. Missy Martin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nigel Hollis EMAIL: nigel.hollis@millwardbrown.com IP: 66.220.239.86 URL: http://www.mb-blog.com DATE: 08/10/2009 12:33:50 PM Today's resolution? Improve my ranking on this list! Time to take some advice from the great set of bloggers represented here. Thanks for pulling this together Joe, much appreciated. Nigel ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO Services EMAIL: ebiz.submit@gmail.com IP: 202.70.146.111 URL: http://www.ebizsubmit.com DATE: 08/20/2009 07:28:44 AM Amazing post ! if you are talking about marketing SEO is the main source of web marketing . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Make Money on the Internet EMAIL: fpjpssns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.152.9 URL: http://www.jeffpaulsuccessstories.com DATE: 09/25/2009 05:17:46 AM Content management is important in generating audiences interest and preferences . With it keywords bring appropiate position on search engine . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Paul Internet Millions EMAIL: fpjprns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.158.228 URL: http://www.jeffpaulreview.com DATE: 09/26/2009 01:24:39 AM Content Marketing has tremendous importance on way to Internet Marketing , with different methods as blogs , article , classified you can avail huge marketing through websites . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stickers Printing EMAIL: emanprinting1@gmail.com IP: 221.120.250.106 URL: http://www.emanprinting.com/ DATE: 03/04/2010 01:17:33 AM Really great list of marketing blog thanks for share it. These blogs are really helpful for me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Site Booster EMAIL: webmaster@site-booster.com IP: 94.182.102.23 URL: http://www.site-booster.com/blog/ DATE: 11/05/2010 09:41:24 AM Hi Joe, Thanks for the vote of confidence. It's actually the first time for my blog to rank so high in the blogosphere that someone like you have mentioned it on its top list. I feel proud and content, but more thankful for the enlistment. I appreciate it and do my best to stay there with better and better content. Rahman Mehraby Online Marketing Blog ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Changes Coming at Junta42.com STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: changes-coming-at-junta42com CATEGORY: junta 42 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 07/29/2009 08:47:17 AM ----- BODY:

Well my friends, after many months, the end is near. But with all website redesigns, it's always the beginning.

We've been working on a new and improved version of Junta42 for quite some time now, which will launch later this week.

I thought it was important to give you a head's up on this. It's also incredibly therapeutic for me to talk about it.

So, here is a short list of some of the changes you'll see.

There is no more Junta42 Match (at least not the name). From now on, our successful content marketing vendor-matching service will simply be called Junta42.

Why make the change? We initially launched Junta42 as a content aggregation site for content marketing. In June, 2008 we launch the matching service. Instead of integrating the two, we pretty much launched Match as a separate site. We made that decision for a few reasons, none of which make any sense today.

From all the feedback we received about why people may not have used the Junta42 Match service, most revolved around the fact that they didn't know what Junta42 did or even how to find the service (perhaps you fall into that boat).

So, when you see the new site (updated home page above), you'll notice the focus on Junta42 as a custom content matching service. Done and done.
While it makes perfect sense to proceed with point one, I was frankly hesitant to do so considering we'd built up a wonderful content marketing community and we didn't want to mess with our loyal readers and contributors (thanks by the way).

Keeping the community functionality was essential. In fact, we've increased the functionality by adding in related articles and hopefully an easier category structure so you can find what you want faster. We also improved on the commenting interface so you can talk to each other more often (and to me).

The Junta42 daily content and most popular articles will simply be found under the Community heading. We will never stop our own content marketing initiatives.

You'll see lots of other small things, but the biggest changes are in the focus, design and usability. A big thanks to our friends at Eat Media for that. Another thanks goes out to Bernie Borges and the team at Find and Convert for assisting with our SEO (if you need SEO or social media help, see Bernie. He also writes a mean book!).

So, stay tuned later this week for the launch, as well as our latest Top 42 Content Marketing blogs list.

Looking forward to your feedback on the site.

Thanks,

Joe

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John EMAIL: jorzell@gmail.com IP: 64.252.13.113 URL: http://www.tricountyweb.com DATE: 07/29/2009 09:18:04 AM I just found your site a couple of months ago and immediately moved it to the top of my RSS feeds. The new look will define what your site is all about and make a long time reading out of me. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Ultimate Guide to Creating an eBook - The eBook eBook STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-ultimate-guide-to-creating-an-ebook-the-ebook-ebook CATEGORY: eBooks DATE: 07/24/2009 07:25:34 AM ----- BODY:

Wanted to pass on an outstanding eBook from Jonathan Kranz on the what, how and why for developing an eBook.

First off, this is a great example of how to do an eBook: inviting design, easy-to-follow organization, great examples, and a readable, natural voice.

Second, if you are considering an eBook as part of your marketing plans, this is a must read. Below is the embed, but you can download the complete version from Jonathan here. The best part is, Jonathan is eating his own dog food by not requiring any registration in advance of getting the eBook (way to go Jonathan!).

The Ultimate Guide to Creating eBooks - The eBook eBook

View more documents from Joe Pulizzi.

The eBook eBook 11 Point Checklist

Find an exciting subject that really means something to your customers
Identify subject matter experts and other sources of precious information
Frame the subject on terms favorable to your business
Use conflict to create dramatic interest
Organize your content for easier writing and reading
Pick the best approach for packaging your expertise
Create callouts and sidebars that stimulate interest
Craft an inviting introduction that lures readers inside
Lead readers to the next step of engagement with your business
Design your ebook to complement your ideas
Plan to promote your ebook for maximum market impact

Another relevant article - why giving away your eBook for free can help you generate print sales.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michele Linn EMAIL: michele@linncommunications.com IP: 69.14.164.27 URL: http://savvyb2bmarketing.com/blog DATE: 07/27/2009 07:23:00 AM Joe, I just wanted echo your sentiments about Jonathan's ebook. I'm very interested in ebooks and think that this is THE BEST "how to" guide I've read. It's one of those books I'll definitely be referencing for a long time to come. Michele ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Building a Marketing Asset (take the red pill) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: building-a-marketing-asset-take-the-red-pill CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 07/22/2009 10:32:51 PM ----- BODY:

Assets are good.

Stocks that you sell high and buy low. Home prices that grow year after year. A Mickey Mantle rookie card.

Can you tell an asset from a liability?

Most people can in their personal lives. Cash-rich versus debt-poor. How about health versus sickness.

It's not that easy in marketing. Marketing tactics aren't black and white like cash and debt. Marketing tactics are very dependent on objectives, customer segments and expectations. They are also very dependent on what the chief marketer is comfortable with, understands, and what they like...not necessarily what's best.

But let's imagine (in the voice Morpheus). Let's wake up tomorrow focusing solely on building marketing assets. That means focusing on activities that our customers can use or engage in many times, and that they can easily spread to other people just like them. Let's focus on things that build relationships, that help our customers before, during, and after they buy (or don't buy) our products and services.

What does that look like?

A blog
A branded content tool
A video series
White papers
eBooks
Podcasts
A book
An article series
A research report
An iPhone app
A webinar series
A community site
A Twitter tips channel
A custom magazine
A screencast
A shared tip
An online answer that's helpful
A comment that's thoughtful

What do all these things have in common?

They're helpful. They have a shelf life. They can be shared with others. They position you as an expert.

It sounds wonderful, doesn't it? But we don't live in that world yet.

We still live in the world that believes interruption sells. We still live in a world where marketers are doing more selling than educating, more persuading than helping. We still live in a world where the majority of marketing dollars goes toward traditional advertising.

It won't be easy. All I'm offering is the truth. Take the red pill.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karl Foxley EMAIL: contact@foxleymarketingsolutions.com IP: 86.0.225.75 URL: http://www.foxleymarketingsolutions.com DATE: 07/23/2009 07:27:06 AM It's certainly true what you are sharing here today! One of the websites I spend the most time on offers step-by-step guides to improving your experience and productivity with Vista, XP, web browsers etc. They have affiliate related products on the site but they never push them on the reader, they show you how helpful they can be and they also share alternatives. For me the website offers true value as I learn something new every time I visit. Thanks for sharing, Karl ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/23/2009 09:43:58 AM You know, looking ahead, I DO see a role for traditional media that doesn't interrupt, but helps sustain relationships. The context? Within the next few years, I suspect we'll see a digital backlash, a kind of collective craving for the tangible, the physical. Something real, not just bits and bytes. In this world, I see direct mail as a logical extension of the relationships built or initiated online. (Imagine, for example, sending packs of beautifully designed stickers to preteen fans of your band -- or brand.) I wouldn't hold the wake for trad marketing just yet. Instead, expect it to morph in ways we haven't imagined. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/23/2009 10:39:06 AM @Karl...thanks for the insight. @Jonathan...I agree with you. Traditional media will evolve in something more useful...it will have to in order to be accepted and engaged with. At least, this is my hope. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matthew Ray Scott EMAIL: mscott@strategicincubator.com IP: 97.115.117.205 URL: http://www.strategicincubator.com DATE: 07/23/2009 12:33:21 PM Joe, Another great post. I love the emphasis on listing those know, like, and trust relationship building activities. We find with our clients that it is always valuable and never assumed that when we list, Here is what you need to do and build relationships and focus on revenue-producing activities our clients tend to have opportunity to build a "cookbook." Want to build relationships-choose the following ingredients and mix. The video of the Red Pill is also a perfect tie-in. I do think interruption marketing is RIP, but I still say a reality in our distracted society is to provide tactful and obvious nudges vs. "pokes." Great post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Les EMAIL: les_tatum@yahoo.com IP: 74.193.98.156 URL: http://www.seonicheblogs.com/wordpress-for-membership-sites/ DATE: 07/23/2009 11:24:20 PM Building marketing assets is where it's at. You can spend all day trading hours for dollars online but unless you build something solid that will pay you over and over for years to come you will still be trading hours for dollars years from now. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim Lloyd EMAIL: timlloyd150@hotmail.com IP: 212.183.140.18 URL: http://www.publishingforresults.blogspot.com DATE: 07/25/2009 03:25:16 PM I've recently started working with Social Media News Releases (SMNRs) which appear to be a great way of aggregating all your assets in one place. I've yet to test effectiveness, but worth a look in my opinion. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Promotional Products EMAIL: superiorpromosinc@gmail.com IP: 71.138.249.87 URL: http://blog.superiorpromos.com DATE: 07/25/2009 04:09:25 PM This is some great information. Arming customers with information like you have listed is greatly appreciated by customers and makes them realize that you care about helping them succeed instead of just seeing them as dollar signs. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mediaman EMAIL: barry@netwebomni.com IP: 205.188.116.6 URL: http://www.netwebomni.com DATE: 08/04/2009 12:28:14 PM It's always nice to see a little thinking take place. Let's not forget that although we have better than 80% Internet usage, not all users do and want the same thing. Depending on your product or service, the other 20% could be VERY valuable. If you are targeting an older generation,traditional media may be the only way to reach them, and because of the expense, your product or service or brand-building effort needs real and measurable results to justify tht approach. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/04/2009 12:32:35 PM Hi Barry...I don't disagree with you...I still believe in traditional media. But, without an underlying flow of consistent content creation that is valuable, it will be very difficult to help that traditional media get its legs. Point is, if you are going to spend the money on a traditional program, you better have your content strategy house in order. Thanks for your comment. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: johnpeter EMAIL: partimejob4all@gmail.com IP: 122.164.166.54 URL: http://www.partimejob4all.com DATE: 08/05/2009 08:18:22 AM ya i agree with you ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: James The Forex Trading Guru EMAIL: james@yourtraderoom.com IP: 98.124.105.220 URL: http://www.yourtraderoom.com DATE: 07/26/2010 10:19:50 AM I feel traditional media is on its way out. People are so bombarded these days we have become immune to most of it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Oli Hille EMAIL: oli.lifestyle@gmail.com IP: 222.154.123.127 URL: http://www.LifestyleBook.com DATE: 11/08/2010 11:12:07 PM Yeah I like the Matrix references and too many people are stealing our time and not giving real value. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Anna EMAIL: plume2010@ymail.com IP: 75.31.77.67 URL: http://4xtradingmadeeasy.com DATE: 11/20/2010 02:22:33 AM I do make an effort to provide useful information in my niche sites and not push the affiliate product too hard. And I'm hoping that helping and educating readers will also be financially beneficial to me. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why You Should Be Thinking Video in Your Email Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: should-you-be-thinking-video-in-your-email-marketing CATEGORY: video DATE: 07/22/2009 02:06:28 PM ----- BODY:

This recent Forrester study caught my eye - that incorporating video into email can increase click-through rates two-to-three times (full report here from Forrester for $749).

To find out more, I called my colleague (and customer) Todd Smart from VideoNewsletters.com. Todd confirmed that click-through rates are indeed significantly higher with video newsletters - but, warned me on the following:

The quality of the video DOES matter.
Like with any other content marketing vehicle, the video must be valuable, relevant and compelling - stay away from the sales pitches. Make sure the content is of great value to your target customer. Tell the story.
Audience development/list management is critical.
A good video without surrounding design elements that engage won't deliver expected results.

Todd was kind enough to share his Video eBook about video newsletters with Junta42. I liked it so much, I asked if he would let me share it with you.

You can download Todd's Video Newsletter ebook (a $50 value) for free using code Junta42. Just click the dowload button, then enter in the Junta42 code. Thanks Todd!

Couple notes...it is a VERY large file, so be patient. Also, it's a gated form, so you'll have to give your name and email address. I think you'll find it's worth your time.

Let me know what you think.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mac McIntosh EMAIL: mcintosh@sales-lead-experts.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://www.sales-lead-insights.com DATE: 07/23/2009 10:35:55 AM Thanks for the useful post and for asking your client Todd to share his Video E-book. Can you please ask Todd if it is true that there are sometimes delivery problems with video emails? I've been told that the scripts that start the videos can be spam filter triggers. I've also seen that Outlook and some other email systems used by businesses disable the scripts making the email that does get past a spam filter appear as a blank with maybe a link that needs to be clicked in order to be able to view the video, which probably reduces views significantly. If one or both of these issues are sometimes true, what are the best practices to get video email through the spam filters and to display right in Outlook, etc.? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dr Wright EMAIL: info@Wrightplacetv.com IP: 75.36.64.192 URL: http://www.wrightplacetv.com DATE: 07/24/2009 11:45:39 AM video newsletters are a good idea, however, there are still many people who will not be able to see it. Having video plus plain text works, some people are trying to do video instead of plain text. Dr. Letitia Wright The Wright Place TV Show http://wrightplacetv.com www.twitter.com/drwright1 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: james8888 EMAIL: james888188@gmail.com IP: 71.96.84.112 URL: DATE: 07/24/2009 02:19:39 PM Hmmm, those sound like good ideas. Thanks for sharing this! I think personally I'd also make sure the videos I include are posted online in multiple places, allowing the possibility for greater exposure at zero cost and just a little time. But just because you post your video on YouTube, Veoh, DailyMotion, AdWido, and Vimeo doesn't mean you're going to get anywhere if people aren't going to want to talk about your video, so making the best video you can is the first priority. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ferdy EMAIL: support@vid3omail.com IP: 61.68.168.114 URL: http://www.vid3omail.com DATE: 09/14/2009 06:43:36 AM Guys, I will soon launch Vid3oMail.com. Check this out and let me know what you think? Send a video mail at http://www.vid3omail.com Cheers Ferdy ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Giving Away Your Expertise IS Your Competitive Advantage STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: giving-away-your-expertise-is-your-competitive-advantage CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/16/2009 09:52:17 AM ----- BODY:

Erica brings up a great point about companies not wanting to share their expertise through content marketing. Why not share?

Sharing secrets and expertise arms customers with too much information.
Sharing secrets and expertise gives an advantage to the competition.

Neither are true, and I'll tell you why.

Most companies believe that their competitive advantage is in some process, some product, some service. That's hardly ever the case. Anyone at almost anytime can copy your process, product or service...especially today.

Your true competitive advantage rests in your communications, your marketing, your brand.

Once you realize that, giving away your "secret sauce" makes sense. Giving away your expertise and teaching your customers what you know does one amazing thing - it positions you as the expert in your industry. Once you are known by your customers and prospects as the industry expert, it will be almost impossible for any process, product or any competitive service to come between you and your customers.

Keeping your "secret sauce" to yourself does a few things:

Customers/prospects will never know that you are the expert in your field.
Customers will never share your expertise with others because there is nothing to share.
It gives a huge opportunity for someone else to share their secret sauce and position themselves as the industry expert.

Now what are you waiting for?

Subscribe - Junta42 - Custom Content Experts - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Charles Brown EMAIL: chbrown@webmarketing-coach.com IP: 76.185.224.153 URL: http://www.google.com/profiles/charbrow DATE: 07/16/2009 12:26:09 PM I love your "secret sauce" analogy. Not only does giving away your secrets position you as an expert, it also builds a relationship with the people who learn from your content. Remember that wonderful teacher that changed your life? The person who educates, really educates, has the power to create lasting change in someone's life. And a relationship is far better than a holding onto your secret sauce. Charles Brown http://webmarketing-coach.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/16/2009 01:32:30 PM I get that all the time: "Why are you giving away your copy secrets?" Because, as you know, I've nothing to lose and everything to gain. Few people rub their hands greedily and say, "Ah hah! With these secrets at my command, I'll do this myself." Instead, they put their hands to the keyboard and shoot me an email... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Daniel Oyston EMAIL: danieloyston@gmail.com IP: 203.55.120.81 URL: http://theoysterproject.blogspot.com/ DATE: 07/16/2009 06:11:22 PM Great post and very concise on a subject that, if you discuss face-to-face with employees, can take some time … The other thing that content marketing provides, assuming that you house and distribute it electronically, is that it provides many inbound links and great Google results. Conversely, a hard copy colour print out of you latest whitepaper, posted to a key senior executive, with a little hand written note, not only ensures they see it but oozes the personal touch. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patricia EMAIL: pmilton@interactionassociates.com IP: 63.81.40.2 URL: http://www.interactionassociates.com/ideas DATE: 07/17/2009 11:02:59 AM My company executives don't understand why we give away our "secrets." I tell them it is to establish our expertise and get people to call, and we have evidence that it works. But they still want to charge something - this could be a revenue stream!! is their continual cry. How can I convince them that charging $9.95 for a useful, insightful ebook is cheesy and ineffective? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/17/2009 11:22:13 AM Great question Patricia. Start here. What business are you in? Are you in the content business (for profit) or do you sell a product or service. I'm assuming that you have services to sell to customers that are much greater in value than 9.95. But here's the kicker...while you are protecting your content and chasing people away by gating your content and charging for it, your competitors are sharing the same type of expert information all over the web, getting people to come to their websites to find out about their services. What's more valuable? 100 customers buying your ebook at 9.95 per or 10,000 prospects engaging and sharing in your content - talking about your brand and trying to get in contact with you. That's a business decision that needs to be made. Thoughts? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patricia EMAIL: pmilton@interactionassociates.com IP: 63.81.40.2 URL: http://www.interactionassociates.com/ideas DATE: 07/17/2009 11:30:44 AM Joe, you don't have to sell me on it - I am a true believer of giving away expertise to get the big sale! I guess the issue is my execs think that the small charge doesn't drive people away, whereas I do. I also think it is cheesy and gives a wrong impression. It would be helpful to know if there is any data on people abandoning content when they realize it is for sale vs free. I know there is data available on people abandoning white papers when they are faced with giving a lot of contact info. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/17/2009 11:33:48 AM Understood Patricia...I was actually writing that to your executives if you wanted to pass on. Check out this article that has some compelling data on gated content from David Meerman Scott. If this doesn't sell them, nothing will. http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/03/tear-your-content-walls-down-why-gated-content-might-not-make-sense.html ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kevin Alvarez EMAIL: kevin@bluelynxmarketing.com IP: 65.34.79.182 URL: http://www.lakeland-marketing.com DATE: 07/17/2009 01:55:05 PM First off, I will admit I am more of a student than a practioneer of content marketing. I am on board with this argument but I want to throw out a hypothetical, yet realistic, situation. Suppose you are new local service business starting out and have a very very small following. Your local competitor is already viewed as "the expert" (for no other reason than they were first & have a large marketing budget) within the community and has a strong following. In this case, I think if you were to publicly publish the "how to" of a unique service you are offering (a service your competitor is either late on or ignorant to), there is a strong possibility your more established competitor could leverage this insight. Agree...disagree? Patricia, it seems that your executives are focusing too much on the "giving away content" aspect and forgetting the marketing piece. The content alone does not benefit the business. It's imperative the "secret sauce" is marketed in a way that achieves the campaign goals. The one thing I have learned is if the overall strategy, tactical plan and measurables are defined and discussed early in the process, resistance is minimized. I would love to hear your thoughts...especially how small local businesses are effectively using content marketing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/18/2009 08:33:04 PM Hi Kevin...here's my take. As the underdog, you are bound by no rules. You can develop free online tools for your customers that your competition hasn't yet. You can post your photos on Flickr, create Knols on Google, presentations on SlideShare, blog, possibly develop a video channel. You could outpublish your competition. Frankly, if your competition leverages this information...I say who cares...because they aren't going to publish what you will publish, and if they do, you can be more nimble and make decisions quickly. Today, being bigger and established isn't what it used to be. There are no barriers to entry today, and publishing unlocks opportunity. What say you? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Harlow EMAIL: steve@steve-harlow.com IP: 66.82.9.59 URL: http://http:www.steve-harlow.com DATE: 07/19/2009 09:32:42 AM Great post Joe! Content Marketing is definitly hitting the "old school" marketers between the eyes. They have a hard time grasping the concept. In response to Patricia, and her execs not understanding, approach them with this: How many times do you recieve direct mail peices from the local car dealership with a key inside? If you come down to the car lot, and try your key, if it starts the car, you win the car. So here is a company that is giving away, what, $14,000 to $ 20,000 car? Yet the traffic that the "free promotion" is driving to their dealership will result in higher sales for them over the period of the contest. The same holds true with your content marketing. Hope this analogy helps. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Les EMAIL: les_tatum@yahoo.com IP: 74.193.98.156 URL: http://www.seonicheblogs.com/wordpress-for-membership-sites/ DATE: 07/23/2009 11:38:31 PM Another great article, people will remember you much more when you have taught them something that works for them. When you teach them the good stuff you get loyal raving fans and not just customers. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Reasons Why You Won't Do Content Marketing (and continue doing the same thing) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-reasons-why-you-wont-do-content-marketing-and-continue-doing-the-same-thing CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/15/2009 02:00:01 PM ----- BODY:

I had an amazing conversation this week with an agency that was trying to convince their client to invest in a content strategy and full content marketing program. Just to give you the quick take, the client's goal was to reach certain consumer segments in the southeastern states. They had a budget of $2.5 million dollars for marketing spend for the campaign.

The client's VP of Marketing didn't think anything could be done with a marketing budget that small.

That client is thinking about the world we used to live in. The world of radio, television and placed media. It's hard to believe, but most of the marketing world still live in this reality.

Just think what kind of impact we could make with a $2 million dollar content marketing budget. Boy, hire a few expert journalists to crank out some amazing content and you still have almost $1.9 million dollars left.

The conversation made me realize that, even though content marketing is certainly a legitimate and growing field today, there are still so many reasons why (we, you, I) don't do it.

Here are ten reasons. I think it's helpful to know the reasons why we don't do something, which then may help us pull the trigger. Now here's a "Top 10" you don't want to be on.

Top 10 Reasons Why You Won't Do Content Marketing

Your company is set up to sell products or services, not to provide relevant and valuable information to customers and prospects. It takes a real mindset change to start thinking about your customers' informational needs as part of your marketing strategy.
You have well-worn marketing paths that are easy to follow. Going off the beaten path into uncharted territory is intimidating.
You have strong relationships with media partners that may go back decades. It's not easy to break those relationships by pursuing a brand-new content marketing strategy.
The reduced effectiveness of traditional marketing may have occurred so slowly that no alarm bells have gone off within your organization. You also may think things will come back at some point.
Many companies (possibly yours) aren’t measuring their marketing, so you may not even be sure what is and what is not effective. Hard to make any changes when you don't know.
You lack both the right people and the right processes to implement a new kind of marketing.
You are reluctant to abandon traditional marketing tactics for what they may believe to be unproven content marketing or new media practices.
You lack content marketing role models from whom they can learn best practices.
You place very little value in marketing versus other aspects of the organization (operations, product development). Little do you know, that every part of the organization is affected by (or actually is) marketing.
Even though I'd hate to think this one is true, I've seen it first hand...You have some real idiots running marketing for your company that don't have a clue about the needs of your customers or what to do about it. Before you can even look at content marketing, you have to ditch the idiots.

And Bonus #11 - It's hard. It's more difficult to consistently create valuable and relevant content to our customers than place media. It's easier to just place an ad. Listening, creating, co-creating, commenting, and actually having real customer conversations is harder. Higher payoff, but harder none-the-less.

#12 (from Jonathan Kranz): You don't know how to connect your knowledge/experience/expertise with the hopes, fears, desires and objectives of your target market.

What did we miss?

In order for a company to alter their mindset toward one of new media or content marketing, they need one of a few things to happen:

Business gets so bad that they start trying new things.
Voluntary or involuntary turnover creates new thinking in the organization.
A culture change in sparked in the organization, through an internal champion, external customer demands, or the merging of a new business culture through an actual merger or buyout.

The opportunity to become the expert industry source for your customers is there, right now. How you take advantage of this opportunity is up to you.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/15/2009 02:22:18 PM Awesome! Here's my suggestion for number 12: You don't know how to connect your knowledge/experience/expertise with the hopes, fears, desires and objectives of your target market. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.94 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/15/2009 02:28:32 PM Jonathan...added as #12. Thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Byron White EMAIL: Byron@ideaLaunch.com IP: 98.217.152.193 URL: http://ideaLaunch.com DATE: 07/15/2009 10:32:25 PM Small world. Big ideas. Joe-- spoke with you today for the first time. Jonathan-- spoke with you about 10 years ago the last time. "Great Content" has brought us together in yet another magical way. Really powerful post hear guys. Now that the obstacles are clearly identified, we can sell like hell. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Erica Stritch EMAIL: estritch@raintoday.com IP: 216.15.121.98 URL: http://www.raintoday.com DATE: 07/16/2009 09:06:04 AM Great post! #9 - when you say every part of your organization actually is marketing - especially hit home. We work with professional services firms, where what they are selling is the knowledge and expertise. What better way to demonstrate this than through content marketing. Yet when we speak with our clients, they are afraid of, "giving away their secrets." I tell them that if they can give away all of their expertise in an article, blog, or white paper, then their services may not be worth it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.94 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/16/2009 09:09:07 AM Great point Erica...that's a recurring issue. Clients think they give away their secret sauce and have no competitive advantage. BUT, the competitive advantage is giving away the secret sauce SO MUCH that no one ever questions that they are the experts. Worth a post I believe. Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ContentKeith EMAIL: keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com IP: 66.99.235.2 URL: http://nutlug.wordpress.com DATE: 07/16/2009 03:44:35 PM Joe: LOVED this! Although connected to others, maybe a simple 'reason' is: You don't know where to start. As we know, it's just not as easy as writing (or have someone write) a few articles and slap them up on your website. A plan is required. A strategy/strategies to have content marketing address real business objectives. Pre-determined metrics to measure the effectiveness of the efforts. A crystal-clear view of your end customer, what makes her tick, and what her higher-order needs are (that can be delivered by your brand). We've even both had clients wonder how they can sell ads adjacent to their content....nuff said there. $ 2.5 million? Have their agency call me -- I'd be happy to provide a few ideas! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rob Leavitt EMAIL: robleav@gmail.com IP: 72.93.248.243 URL: http://www.reputationtorevenue.com DATE: 07/17/2009 09:02:47 AM Great post Joe! I've seen and heard most of these "reasons" too. One other one (#13?) that I come across quite a bit is "You think you're doing it already." A number of B2B marketers point to their random collection of poorly done white papers, their mediocre newsletter, and their occasional articles or reports or corporate blog posts and call it thought leadership. They think they're already doing a decent job even though there is little strategy, consistency or quality. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Darren Pearce EMAIL: dpearce@vololegal.com IP: 86.138.226.45 URL: http://www.vololegal.com DATE: 07/21/2009 03:53:50 AM This is a great piece and I totally agree with the issues raised in it. Our newly launched law focused social site VoloLegal features a mix of news and content generated by people connected to the site and I see this as an intrinsic part of a marketing strategy. Content should be varied, not always about the core subject matter of the site, and designed to both solicit debate and be informative. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kathleen, The Savvy VA EMAIL: kathleen@thesavvyva.com IP: 24.70.175.218 URL: http://thesavvyva.com DATE: 07/24/2009 11:20:01 AM 2.5 million!! An online person could take over the world with that! That is definitely an old school mindset. Great article by the way. I was impacted at point #1. Thanks and gotta run to do some writing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kristen EMAIL: park.kristen.a@gmail.com IP: 207.108.155.2 URL: DATE: 07/24/2009 11:46:51 AM I think that #11 should have been #1! It seems that a lot of people just aren't ready for the work involved. And I think that #12 should be be way up there too... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: kimber mccabe EMAIL: kmccabe@oshyn.com IP: 88.181.8.105 URL: http://www.oshyn.com DATE: 07/24/2009 12:15:27 PM At Oshyn we have been deploying a strategy of "Sharing Thought Leadership". Not only does sharing provide others with needed information, it allows people to observe/engage in our expertise. I think another point to add to your list is FEAR. I think some people are honestly scared to say, "This isn't working anymore. We need to engage our audience in a whole new way." Anyone who starts to move into the direction of inbound marketing and has no major "internet-related" experience seems to feel quickly overwhelmed and they like a camel they just stick their head back down and continuing gnawing away. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jon McCluskey EMAIL: jon@posterprinting.com.au IP: 58.108.198.41 URL: http://www.posterprinting.com.au DATE: 07/27/2009 12:33:32 AM A fantastic post! #11 is my biggest battle, however dedicated researching times each day and recycling our old content is what keeps it fresh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Justin EMAIL: justin@mccloudphotography.com IP: 209.237.91.103 URL: http://www.mccloudphotography.com DATE: 07/27/2009 02:03:20 PM Great post Joe. Very infomative article with lots of value. Thanks for sharing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: nettie hartsock EMAIL: Nettie@nettiehartsock.com IP: 70.112.238.184 URL: http://www.nettiehartsock.com DATE: 08/05/2009 10:38:06 AM #13: You clearly don't understand that not only does dynamic, engaging, updated content attract customers, but it is also a key factor in attracting journalists to cover your story and company. We're bored easily and new thought-leadership content makes us very happy and our editors happy too. Gives us a new spin on an old story, content we can "almost" cut and paste into a story and makes our lives easier. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 99.164.159.132 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 01/06/2010 02:53:51 PM #11 is the killer. Companies don't have to like it -- they can bury their head in the sand. When they look up they will find that this new marketing is the ONLY viable method. It is not easier, it is harder and it is REALITY. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russell Sparkman EMAIL: russell@fusionspark.com IP: 66.228.217.1 URL: http://www.fusionspark.com DATE: 01/06/2010 04:31:19 PM Hey Joe, This is great. After some of the client or near-client interactions I've had over the past several weeks, it's posts like these that help keep me sane. Right now, for every "1" client that gets it, really gets it, there are literally dozens we talk to that should get it, but fail to get it, because of what you've articulated here. I think I've mentioned to you that I'm drafting a content marketing post called "Faith and Committment." It's very much related to this post's core theme. You've inspired me to get it done! Thanks Russell ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russell Sparkman EMAIL: russell@fusionspark.com IP: 66.228.217.1 URL: http://www.fusionspark.com DATE: 01/06/2010 04:34:01 PM Hey Joe, et. al: On a more positive note about those who do "get it," here's a message that I got over the holidays: "Thanks for meeting with me as well. I am working on the budget and have ordered some of the books on your blog list. I am on the fast track to pupil of the year! I am EXCITED!" This is from a person who came away from a discussion about content marketing completely "stoked." Let's hope we all see more of these kinds of responses in 2010! Cheers, Russell ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.110.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/06/2010 04:52:15 PM Awesome Russell. Really cool of you to share this. That's what it's all about. ----- PING: TITLE: Giving Away Your Expertise IS Your Competitive Advantage URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/07/giving-away-your-expertise-is-your-competitive-advantage.html IP: 10.17.151.32 BLOG NAME: Junta42 blog DATE: 07/16/2009 09:52:18 AM Erica brings up a great point about companies not wanting to share their expertise through content marketing. Why not share? Sharing secrets and expertise arms customers with too much information. Sharing secrets and expertise gives an advantage to the... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing Gaining in Popularity STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-gaining-in-popularity CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 07/14/2009 11:36:25 AM ----- BODY:

I had two phone calls this morning from colleagues that asked about the popularity of the term "content marketing".

In looking at trend lines for "content marketing" on icerocket.com, the buzz over content marketing has doubled over the past two years.

From August to October, 2007, there were an average of 8.57 posts per day about content marketing, totaling 771 posts.

From April to July, 2009, there were an average of 15.59 posts per day about content marketing, totaling 1,403 total posts.

More people are talking about the importance of content marketing, which means that more people are starting to "get" it and spread the word.

Related Articles:

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Ettorre EMAIL: john.ettorre@gmail.com IP: 192.35.79.70 URL: http://www.workingwithwords.blogspot.com DATE: 07/14/2009 03:13:18 PM That's no doubt because A). like the phrase "inbound marketing" people tend to generally understand it instantly, and B). the larger web marketing trends put the wind at its back. But also of course because articulate proponents such as you have greatly helped to evangelize about its benefits. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/14/2009 07:35:20 PM Interesting, thanks Joe. Maybe we like "content marketing" because it's the opposite of "empty messaging"? ;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russ Henneberry EMAIL: russ@russhenneberry.com IP: 64.149.214.253 URL: http://www.russhenneberry.com DATE: 07/14/2009 11:11:06 PM No doubt. I have been blogging about it since I found your book and blog. I guess I always believed in it but never had a name for it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Byron White EMAIL: Byron@ideaLaunch.com IP: 98.217.152.193 URL: http://ideaLaunch.com DATE: 07/15/2009 06:20:13 AM Great stats Joe. The spotlight is on. But now it's time for content marketing professionals to deliver more than just chatter about content marketing. That art of learning the wants and needs of customers needs to be explored in more detail. And the science of delivering content in a compelling, engaging way is at the early stage of development. Thanks for pushing us all along Joe. Keep up the great work. (Look forward to chatting with you on the phone today by the way ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tom Smith EMAIL: tsmith@fminet.com IP: 64.132.140.6 URL: http://www.fminet.com DATE: 07/17/2009 08:56:33 AM I've been fortunate to work for a company that's been generating content for the construction industry for 55 years. We have more than 500 articles and research reports on our site and leverage them liberally with the media, associations and influencers. Now we need to get up to speed on the social marketing end of things. Thanks for your insights. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: kimberly mccabe EMAIL: kmccabe@oshyn.com IP: 88.181.8.105 URL: http://www.oshyn.com DATE: 08/04/2009 12:32:57 PM It's great that "content marketing" is a term gaining in popularity. My question is - as companies realize the value in generating great content: are they also taking a look at the systems they use to managing the content? Love Grey! I think its fantastic. Beyond the design of the website though - I'm curious about how they manage content? How do they update it? I'm really excited about the new online marketing systems that allow the business users to have more control over the content. I'm just wondering if this website is designed for agency "wow" or is giving those responsible for Grey's website the opportunity to update that great content and track its effectiveness in an integrated fashion. Here's what I mean http://www.oshyn.com/_bpost_4325/The_Next_Evolution_of_Web_Content_ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: kimberly mccabe EMAIL: kmccabe@oshyn.com IP: 88.181.8.105 URL: http://www.oshyn.com DATE: 08/04/2009 02:16:12 PM whoops! looks like my URL got cut-off - let's try a bit.ly! http://bit.ly/173RBK ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Long Haul to Content Marketing STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-long-haul-to-content-marketing DATE: 07/14/2009 10:06:28 AM ----- BODY:

It's been an interesting week of conversations. Have chatted with brands, agencies and even job seekers about the practice of content marketing.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Decline of Advertising and the Rise of Content Spending STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-decline-of-advertising-and-the-rise-of-content CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 07/08/2009 04:37:46 PM ----- BODY:

Just read through a very interesting post from Brian Solis on Forrester's Five-Year Media Spending Forecast. From the results, this quote from Forrester's Shar VanBoskirk is worth some discussion:

"The most interesting takeaway from the research is that overall advertising budgets will decline. Yep. With dollars moving out of traditional media toward less expensive and more efficient interactive tools, marketers will actually need less money to accomplish their current advertising goals."

Takeaways here...

Five years is a long time. Twitter isn't even that old. Take these with a grain of salt.
Anyone who doesn't think that advertising budgets will decline should try a new career.
Yes, online efforts are cheaper, and social media is essentially free...but what's not being said here is a lot.

Where's Content?

Let's look at a few of the biggest projected growth areas, social media and search marketing.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, social media doesn't work without relevant, valuable and consistent content. Success in social media relies on a web content strategy that works for the brand and especially for the brand's advocates. Although social media distribution is essentially free (Twitter, posting on YouTube), the content planning, resource allocation and then creation is not. That's where the money is going. Take Hubspot for example. The distribution of their content is very cost effective (blog, online TV series, community site for example), but the planning time, knowledge, resources and coordination cost plenty. Worth it...absolutely, but inexpensive...no. Content usually shows up in another line item on a budget, which may be the problem. No one ever knows how much the content really costs. I know some executives that think that the content magically appears every week at the end of a rainbow.
Then comes search marketing. Showing up in search results means you need great content. Getting results from pay-per-click usually means you need a great content offer. Either way, without content, search doesn't work.

What I've just pointed out may seem obvious to some, but I see this over and over again first hand. Small, medium and even large companies look to "alternative" online strategies and discount the cost of the content.

Actual client: "I want to create an ongoing content series, most likely a blog, that we can integrate into a social media campaign. We need a content plan and need to outsource the editorial. Also looking for integration into social media (Twitter and other stuff like that) and monitoring of our objectives (more traffic) . Budget is about $5k." Yikes! (This example is from a $500 million dollar company)

Spend on the Right Content Initiatives

Okay, so what should you do with this? First off, stop thinking about content marketing or content strategy as the end deliverable. The content process is not just the video series, the enewsletter or the custom magazine. It's the entire content strategy process, including (shout out to Kristina Halvorson from Brain Traffic on guidance here):

The Content Audit. Before you usher in more content noise, it's worth it to figure out what you have said. Anyone about to spend significant investment in content creation should develop a content benchmark first.
The Content Plan. Who's the audience?; What are their informational needs?; What are the success metrics of the content plan?; Who owns the plan?; What are the best content tactics?; How will we execute those tactics?;
Content Maintenance. Once we create the content, how do we keep it fresh, updated, and continually monitor our customers' informational needs so that we succeed with the content plan?
Content Marketing. How are we distributing our valuable, relevant content so that we deliver on our success metrics?

So, the morale of the story is, take all that money you are saving by not advertising, and make sure you put it into the right content buckets. Yes, social media may be free, but succeeding in social media and your web content strategy is not.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/08/2009 08:23:43 PM Right on, Joe! The truth is, content marketing ain't free. (The $500 million company that wants to spend just $5,000 on a complete campaign? Oy vey! Yet they wouldn't blink to spend that on one, lame print ad...) But it's not just an investment in dough. It's an investment in THOUGHT. And there's the real rub. It's so much easier to throw money at an ad or commercial. It's so much more difficult to stop and THINK about what your audience wants, what you know, and how to connect the two. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.112.174 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/08/2009 08:37:16 PM Amen brother! You hit the nail on the head. Marketing today is not easy. But it's a lot more interesting. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stephanie Tilton EMAIL: stilton@tentonmarketing.com IP: 96.237.60.71 URL: http://savvyb2bmarketing.com/search/tag/Stephanie%20Tilton DATE: 07/08/2009 09:49:31 PM Great post Joe! It still amazes me when I hear B2B companies balk at making an investment in sharing their ideas and thoughts. In fact, they can get a lot of bang for their buck in today's social media world - there are now so many ways to spread a single idea. But even after developing a solid plan such as the one you (and Kristina) have outlined, marketers may still struggle to measure the success of their content plan. That's because social media largely revolves around engaging prospects in a "conversation." That said, @BlakeHinckley has just put up an interesting post about "passive profiling" as an non-intrusive way to track engagement with content. (http://marketinglab.bnj.com/2009/07/learning-b2b-from-the-cia-passive-profiling/) I think marketers are going to need and want this type of measurement going forward. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Morgan EMAIL: morganb@gmail.com IP: 68.5.218.145 URL: http://www.turnhere.com DATE: 07/09/2009 02:10:11 AM Great post Joe. I agree completely. All companies will become publishers (if they're not already) and whether they outsource it or invest in it in-house they need to think like a publisher and understand how publishing content ties to bottom line and strategic goals. You can't just start a blog or a podcast or a series of white papers and not have a coherent plan of where you're going, what you're looking to achieve and how you're going to make it all happen. As brands become publishers they'll need to add to the budget content creators, editors and other traditional publishing roles. And those are real costs, whether outsourced or not. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.112.174 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/09/2009 10:44:41 AM @ Stephanie...thanks for the link...I'll check it out. @ Morgan. Absolutely. The rise of the corporate content strategist is at hand (the brand publisher). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John DiPaola EMAIL: dipaolajohn@gmail.com IP: 68.110.190.2 URL: DATE: 07/09/2009 10:04:35 PM Actually, social media and blogs rank very low on the food chain when it comes to the real world process of building brand and selling products and services in the industrial b2b world. Still a big part of our GDP. That is the world we live in today. Who knows about tomorrow. We would all be better off actually getting in front of the customer, selling value and building relationships. New media and traditional advertising paves the way as long as it is connected with unique and relevant content. Always did and always will. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ContentKeith EMAIL: keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com IP: 76.209.54.170 URL: http://nutlug.wordpress.com DATE: 07/11/2009 12:20:04 AM While some marketers and many of us are early adopters of 'content marketing,' I wonder how long it might take to be mentioned in the second breath behind search, email, etc., let alone in the same breath. Joe, my favorite quote of yours has to be "social media doesn't work without relevant, valuable and consistent content." Even social media seems to be on more understood (and therefore more solid) footing than content marketing. Guess it's up to the stalwart evangelists like you to spread the gospel...count me in as an apostle! Keep it comin'! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Harlow EMAIL: steve@steve-harlow.com IP: 69.19.14.35 URL: http://http:www.steve-harlow.com DATE: 07/11/2009 09:14:08 AM I'm right in there with ContentKeith. An early adopter of "content marketing". So many people who "claim" to be marketing through Social Media, just do not get it. Too many out there just have the easy street mentality that all it takes is to set up automated posts, and continually blast ads 24/7. They do this because they think that this is "free" advertising. It is actually useless garbage. Folks have been blasted with these SPAM tactics for so long, they have developed SPAM filters in their own head. They simply filter this junk out. What catches their attention is the true content. Relevant, useful information. Ideas and real tools that can help them solve their own needs. So you spend your time developing this content, share it, see the results, and then you need to set back, and measure those results against the time that you put into it. That is when you can put a dollar figure to it, and see what your true "free" advertising costs are. Keep up the great work Joe. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mason EMAIL: mk6520@gotsmail.com IP: 76.185.106.123 URL: DATE: 07/12/2009 02:02:21 PM To be honest, the best strategy and path to get your ad on the right track is to sent it to a site that will post it and get it out immediately. try this site i use for my ads, http://adwido.com . they are the best ive ran into! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.112.174 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/13/2009 09:03:36 AM Great conversation guys. @John...you are right...70% of all dollars still go into very traditional advertising and media...but that is on a decline. Who knows where it will be in 5 years. I'd say less than 50%, which is a ton of money. That money will need to move into more content and relationship-oriented vehicles. @Keith/Steve...content marketing is more difficult, takes more time, but has a greater payoff in the long run. I think people are starting to get it, and social media is helping. At some point, all this will just be known as plain old marketing. Should be a fun ride. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Elizabeth EMAIL: eh@iangilyeat.com IP: 68.0.153.89 URL: http://blog.iangilyeat.com DATE: 07/13/2009 01:59:25 PM Amen. Content is still king. It takes a lot of thought and effort on a continuous basis--and that takes money. Companies need to be willing to invest in creating better content because that's what's going to impact the bottom line in the future. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Online Sales Manager EMAIL: am@globevista.com IP: 124.178.33.152 URL: http://www.onlinesalesmanager.com DATE: 07/25/2009 10:43:09 PM Another great post Joe. I actually just bought your book - "Get Content. Get Customers". Thoroughly enjoyed it. Very practical - particularly the Best Practice Success Stories. I think that is essential reading for anyone who wants to sell products or services online. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/27/2009 09:42:28 AM Thanks for the Kudos OSM! Appreciate you spreading the word. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Emily Render EMAIL: emily.render@gmail.com IP: 71.81.131.116 URL: http://emilyrender.wordpress.com/ DATE: 08/19/2009 01:54:42 PM Thanks for this post. Writing, content creation, communications... The work I do for businesses and non-profits goes by many names. Lately I've noticed some commentary, predictions and market research on trends in this field, including the one you mention here. [posted on http://emilyrender.wordpress.com] 1. I read that the majority of businesses (nearly 60%) are increasing budgets for content creation despite the economy, according to a Junta42 study - but where is this study on your website? Would have liked to link back to it. 2. "In 2008, total communications spending actually increased 2.3 percent, to $882.6 billion, but that was the sector’s slowest growth rate since 2001. Advertising, as is clear by now, is contracting. Spending dropped 2.9 percent in 2008, to $210 billion," according to The New York Times. They also reported a prediction that the media industry will be the third fastest growing industry and much of that growth will come from public relations and the internet, not from newspapers and traditional media. 3. "Good writing, thoughtful writing, and the effective presentation of ideas will be necessary however it is delivered. Those who can effectively analyze, disseminate and distribute information will succeed. Those who can adapt and prepare for change while staying true to a certain inner strength, a certain confidence in the effectiveness of what their doing, will have the best prospects." - Bill Lascher ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 08/19/2009 02:21:20 PM Love your thinking on this Emily. BTW, here is the link to the research article on content spending you were looking for http://www.junta42.com/resources/content-marketing-spending.aspx ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott Paley EMAIL: scott@abstractedge.com IP: 74.103.14.64 URL: http://brandinteractivism.com DATE: 09/15/2009 06:29:18 PM I suspect it's less about the money and more about the effort involved. If you're a CMO of a big company, it's MUCH easier to buy a bunch of ads and purchase media than it is to develop a compelling and effective content strategy. Marketers aren't wired this way (today). The consistent development of great content is really, really hard to do! Largely, it's going to take an educational effort before content marketing becomes mainstream. However, I strongly believe it's on its way. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 207.237.53.23 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/15/2009 08:13:15 PM Scott...Amen to that. I completely agree. Content marketing is very difficult to do - especially with marketers who have well-worn media paths. It takes a different kind of thinking - but I agree - it's on the way. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Amy LeFebre EMAIL: lefebre@hanon-mckendry.com IP: 75.151.19.1 URL: http://www.mindscape-hm.com DATE: 11/08/2010 09:04:49 AM Joe - we're still seeing a big learning curve with content. As our director of branded content describes it, people think you feed a few descriptors into the "content machine," turn a crank, and out comes the content. Effective content--content that engages your audience and elevates your brand--requires as great an investment in the strategic creative process as does a great ad campaign. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: B-to-B Fundamentals Don't Change - The BMA Video STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: btob-fundamentals-dont-change-the-bma-video CATEGORY: business-to-business DATE: 07/07/2009 01:40:52 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks to David Meerman Scott and Rob Rose for passing this video on from BMA 09 - B-to-B Fundamentals Don't Change.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why You Need a Branded Content Tool of Your Own STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-you-need-a-branded-content-tool-of-your-own CATEGORY: branded content DATE: 07/07/2009 12:56:58 PM ----- BODY:

I love branded content tools and applications.

If you aren't thinking about creating one, you need to be...now!

What is a branded content tool? Simply put, it's an online application that comes from a brand (i.e., Kraft) that solves a very simple problem or is incredibly helpful. Most times, it's free as well.

Why create a branded content tool/app? Similar to content marketing, where a company delivers valuable, relevant and compelling information in order to position that company as a trusted expert, a branded tool uses data content to do the same thing.

What are some branded content application examples? Here are a few of my favorites.

Website Grader from Hubspot. Free and easy-to-use tool that measures how well a website is doing in terms of search engine optimization. Website grader has been so successful for Hubspot (over 1 million websites to date), that they launched a number of other graders, including my new favorite, the Gobbledygook grader.
The Webbed-O-Meter from Webbed Marketing. Free tool to analyze your "buzz" effect over 16 different social media sources.
iFood Assistant from Kraft. Recipes on the go via your iPhone.
Personal Budget Planner from Mint.com. Easy-to-use online tool that helps you create a financial budget.
Nike Plus from Nike. Track your running and training. Also, check out the Perfect Shoe Finder from Nike. Very cool.

How to start? Think of this...what's something very simple, and very helpful you could be providing to your customers for free, that ultimately positions you as an expert related to the products/services you sell. The alignment of those two things could make for a killer app.

Some odd examples? If I'm a printer, I'd create a "design your own magazine cover" tool. If I'm an air-conditioning repair shop, I'd create an automated check up tool that emails key dates to tune-up the air conditioner. If I'm a dentist, I'd develop a teeth simulator that shows what happens to teeth if you eat certain foods for sustained periods. You get the point.

What helpful tool should you be developing that your competition hasn't thought of...yet?

Relevant Resources:

Subscribe - Junta42 - Custom Content Experts - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Get Content Get Customers Sighting at Newark Airport STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: get-content-get-customers-sighting-at-newark-airport CATEGORY: get content. get customers. DATE: 07/03/2009 08:58:31 AM ----- BODY:

First time I found Get Content Get Customers in a bookstore - Borders at the Newark Airport...sandwiched between Porter and Ramsey.

Picture #1 shows the actual position of the book when I arrived. Picture #2 shows the book as I left the bookstore. Amazing, isn't it?

Also, for all you Kindle fans, GCGC is now available on the Kindle and currently sits at #8 in the Direct Marketing category.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Newt Barrett EMAIL: newt@contentmarketing.net IP: 98.238.66.202 URL: http://www.contentmarketingtoday.com DATE: 07/03/2009 09:09:44 AM Joe, I've also found that bookstores can be a bit short-handed and may need some help with placement of soon-to-be bestsellers like Get Content Get Customers. They can be thankful for voluteers like you--and me, for that matter. :-) Newt ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/03/2009 09:56:20 AM At least your book has been placed in the right section! Don't get me started with this one... (I feel this should be a cowboy ballad backed with coyote howls and the crackling of a mesquite fire: The Lonesome Trail of a Dangburned Dummies Author.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/03/2009 10:07:29 AM Jonathan...I feel your pain. As far as I can tell, no bookstores in Cleveland carry the book. You'd think that they'd supply books to the co-author's home town. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 07/03/2009 11:49:53 AM You know what's funny? Publishers will push books about innovative marketing processes -- yet they themselves are determinedly stuck in business models that are practically ancient. Returns? What's up with that? And why are they so committed to ink and paper, rather than selling the substance of their content (ideas, entertainment, art, etc.) through a variety of media? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/03/2009 01:43:19 PM I wonder that myself...although those business models won't be around for very much longer. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kevin Alvarez EMAIL: kevin@bluelynxmarketing.com IP: 65.34.79.182 URL: http://www.bluelynxmarketing.com DATE: 07/04/2009 06:21:14 PM I once worked as a marketing director for a publishing distribution company. Talk about an industry that has it backwards. I am glad to see this book found shelf space. I just hope the author of "Think India" does not see your before/after pics. LOL. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/05/2009 01:29:01 PM Kevin...good catch on "Think India". I'm sure they won't mind ;) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: News Flash: Guardian Seeks to Grow through Products, Not Content STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: news-flash-guardian-seeks-to-grow-through-products-not-content CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 06/30/2009 12:39:36 PM ----- BODY:

If you are a regular to this blog, you've heard this before: in the future, it will be very difficult to tell the difference between media companies and brands that sell products and services.

Heck, we may be there already. Media companies are working hard to develop products while their advertising revenues plummet. Brands must develop consistent content and publishing strategies in order to attract and retain customers (to ultimately sell their products).

It's a strange marketing world we live in today.

Another shining example of this happening is at The Guardian, the liberal UK newspaper and online resource. After giving my speech on the Future of Custom Publishing at the "Best of Corporate Publishing" 2009 event in Berlin, Germany last week, I had the opportunity to listen to Colin Hughes, managing director of Guardian Professional, the B2B Division of Guardian Media.

After talking for a while about content syndication, Colin opened up about the future of The Guardian. Here are his thoughts through my notes:

No one has figured out how newspapers can make enough money online to be profitable, including them.
They are not quite sure when the last day will come for a printed Guardian, but their leadership is quite sure it will come within the next 30 years, if not sooner. They are preparing that it could realistically come very soon (though).
They belief the key to their growth is in creating new, unique and valuable products and services by leveraging the Guardian brand.

Let's focus on that third point for a second. The Guardian has been working with over 850 development organizations around the world. Their charge: to develop new applications and products based on the Guardian brand.

These development organizations get free use of the Guardian brand, with the only caveat being that if any money is made, there must be a revenue share with the Guardian.

It's a Facebook Apps meets NYTimes strategy. The Guardian has their own VC fund, but instead of monetary investment, they willingly give use of the Guardian brand. Only time will tell if it will work, but I believe they are headed in the right direction as a large media company.

In 10 years, it will be interesting to see if we'll be able to tell The Guardian from other brands working to sell products and applications in their chosen sectors.

As media companies have been aware for some time now that their emerging competitors are their own advertisers, brands need to be aware that future competition will come from media companies as well.

Subscribe - Junta42 - Custom Content Experts - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 06/30/2009 04:46:06 PM Funny you should mention this, Joe. Two or three weeks ago, I got a curious email from the Wall Street Journal. (I'm a subscriber to its online edition.) They were making an offer -- but not for a subscription or related content. Instead, it was for WINE. Not a book about wine. Not a wine newsletter. But actual cases of wine, hand-selected by their wine columnists. Interesting... So I imagine they captured my reading habits, saw that I clicked on the wine column, and put me on the list for this offer. More significantly, they've decided that as a revenue stream, mere content isn't enough; instead, they want to leverage their reader base to target them with hard offers they suspect they would be interested in. What do you make of this? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.141 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/30/2009 04:48:17 PM Hi Jonathan...great example. What do I make of this? Welcome to the future of media for the next few years until they really figure out what they want to do. My question is, did you appreciate this offer, or feel like it was a little "Big Brother-ish"? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 06/30/2009 04:58:41 PM Joe, Dow Jones is a client of mine (different division than media) so I'm just going to say that I noted the activity and found it...curious. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brindey Weber EMAIL: brindey.lane.weber@gmail.com IP: 24.91.194.55 URL: http://www.brindey.com DATE: 06/30/2009 10:26:30 PM Hello Joe. So, if someone suddenly named you responsible for leveraging the Guardian Brand for revenue, what ideas would you have for them? What do you think newspapers should do to make money but keep credibility? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: A Monck EMAIL: amonck@gmail.com IP: 90.198.154.200 URL: http://adrianmonck.com DATE: 07/04/2009 05:49:25 AM Jonathan - welcome to the WSJ's version of the Sunday Times Wine Club! It's a 35 year old idea... http://www.sundaytimeswineclub.co.uk/xsite.aspx?xsite=theclub_home.xml ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter Holsgrove EMAIL: pgholsgrove@gmail.com IP: 94.7.191.192 URL: http://www.cliked.posterous.com DATE: 07/04/2009 05:52:48 AM Hi Joe. Its certainly an interesting assertion and obviously one which makes sense - traditional media companies like the Gaurdian need to think differently. The main issue I'd suggest the Gaurdian will have however is simple... the Gaurdian isn't 'cool', and changing that perception, amongst the myriad of other established and emerging platforms is going to be very tough. Therefore, when thinking about leveraging the Gaurdian brand, what success could be driven from the association? Online web 3.0 type stuff? Perhaps, but in my opinion, not likely. Are there print innovations that the Gaurdian could latch onto? Maybe, but with an ailing print industry, there is no long term picture. Perhaps where the Gaurdian could prosper is in using its vast experience, knowledge of the industry, relationships, contacts and data - be less protective about the brand and use the 'real value' in what they have to churn out some real innovation. Kind of like what Barak Obama is trying to achieve... take age old values, ethics and traditions that will work to the end of time, get some smart people involved, put a modern facade on it and get people behind it. That way, the Gaurdian may still be around in 30 years, instead of watching Digg, Mashable, Twitter, GdGt, etc have all the fun. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Strategy as the Future of Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-strategy-as-the-future-of-marketing CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 06/25/2009 03:09:17 PM ----- BODY:

Kristina Halvorson (@halvorson) from Brain Traffic did an amazing presentation about Content Strategy as the Future of Marketing. It's thanks to Kristina that I've been presenting more about a greater focus on content strategy as THE critical part of a total content marketing strategy.

My key thoughts while reviewing her presentation include:

Relevance is key to your brand's importance to a customer. Relevance is created through the distribution of consistent, compelling content.
Information from a brand must be useful. It must solve challenges or entertain (depending on the brand). hmmm, I wonder what can do that (yes, content)?
When thinking about content strategy, think about USABLE content for your customers. That means, less talk about YOU and more focus on THEM.
You need a content strategist, either inside your organization or a partner for hire. Plan for one NOW.
Stop thinking like a marketing person when developing your content and start thinking like a publisher. It helps if you develop content that your customers would want to share with others.
Your content, and thus your website, is more than marketing, it's an asset. Start thinking about taking resources out of places other than the marketing line. It's that important.

Content Strategy: The Future of Marketing

View more presentations from Kristina Halvorson.

Other Relevant Resources:

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 86.148.117.62 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 06/26/2009 04:04:50 AM Really good post. When writing we can sometimes take on a marketing format rather than thinking about who we are aiming to write for. It is important we always write with our customers in mind rather than thinking of what we will achieve by writing and distributing content online. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jonathan Kranz EMAIL: jonkranz@kranzcom.com IP: 173.48.194.103 URL: http://www.kranzcom.com DATE: 06/26/2009 10:01:24 AM Strong points, all. But I think we need to translate this strategic direction into practical tactics: i.e. what we need to DO to make content marketing WORK. With clients and with participants in my marketing writing workshops, I begin with two exercises that help us find focus: 1) Identifying audience/market "hot buttons," the issues that keep them up at night or inspire them to get out of bed in the morning; then 2) a two-column matchmaking process in which we make parallel lists of our (or organization) know-how/expertise and customer/prospect/audience needs -- every time these intersect, we've found great content fodder. There are others, but these two are always a good start... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chaitanya Sagar, Excel Expert EMAIL: chaitanya.sagar@peopletoworkwith.com IP: 124.125.107.99 URL: http://www.p2w2.com/chaitanya_sagar/index.php DATE: 06/29/2009 07:33:54 AM The content must be useful, innovative and interesting. It becomes popular and that will be able to accomplish the goal of effective marketing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 07/01/2009 06:07:26 PM Joe: Thanx for sharing this awesome deck on content strategy. Kristina mentions one of the key points I have seen you evangelize in your blog posts i.e., to think like a publisher. Please share your thoughts on what are the 3 tactical steps that we as marketers can do to "think more like publishers". Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. Thanx again for the sharing this interesting deck from Kristina . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.148.141 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/01/2009 09:37:11 PM Thanks Ambal...here are a few 1. Think of creating content to build relationships with your customers (readers), not to use content to sell directly. The mistake most brands make is they have to feel like they are selling all the time in their content. This doesn't work anymore (if it ever did). 2. Get some outside help. An outside perspective on helpful content is almost always necessary. Journalist or custom publisher will do. 3. Give ownership of the content. Someone has to be your content evangelist. If not, content can run a muck. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 07/02/2009 02:17:56 PM Joe: Thanx for the 3 tactical tips. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan McCarthy EMAIL: daniel.r.mccarthy@me.com IP: 67.86.212.148 URL: http://www.viralhousingfix.com DATE: 07/03/2009 10:46:27 AM Joe, This is a great presentation, and your core conclusions are spot on. I'd go further and suggest that when a brand embarks on a content strategy, they should think about three primary buckets of content through the filter of user experience: engagement, contribution, discovery. With engagement, you want to develop content elements that invite the community to engage, largely with each other, but also with your brand. You need to define this engagement in a way that is consistent with the brand story, but not slavish to the brand message. With contribution, you want to develop content elements that invite contribution from the community. With discovery, you want to develop content elements that help the community discover things that are aligned with your brand story. Defining the content through the user experience is essential to keeping the brand story aligned. Dan ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: buy darkfall gold EMAIL: s.js6637481@yahoo.com IP: 58.212.4.81 URL: http://www.buydarkfallgold.net DATE: 07/06/2009 02:58:29 AM Thanx for the 3 tactical tips. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.236 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/06/2009 10:40:46 AM Dan...excellent example of thinking about the user experience. The core of your message is creating ongoing, consistent helpful information for prospects and customers. From my perspective, that's where most brands have issues - they want to talk about themselves more than provide expert editorial content. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dave Finkelstein EMAIL: dave@d4bmarketing.com IP: 66.65.92.48 URL: http://www.d4bmarketing.com/blog DATE: 03/28/2010 11:38:15 AM great post thanks for the tips, indeed content seems to be king, i like the think like a publisher nor a marketing person tip dave www.d4bmarketing.com ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Social Media Stages of Involvement - Where You Should Be Spending Your Time STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-stages-of-involvement-where-you-should-be-spending-your-time CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 06/23/2009 02:08:17 PM ----- BODY:

Great social media presentation short by Andrew Davis from TippingPoint Labs given last week at Custom Media Day in New York City. The video is three minutes long and worth the time.

DISCLAIMER: I took this with my new Flip camera, which I love. The only problems with the Flip are that you need to be close to get a good video and you need steady hands. I failed on both accounts.

Andrew is an expert at social media adoption, and breaks down the percentage of time brands (and in this particular case, custom content provider clients) need to spend on social media at certain points in the lifecycle of the social media tool.

Experimentation - 5% (i.e., duckduckgo.com)
Adoption - 10% (i.e., 12seconds.tv)
Gestation - 15% (i.e., Yelp)
Escalation - 15% (i.e., Twitter)
Consolidation and Monetization - 25% (i.e., Facebook)
Maintenance - 30% (i.e., YouTube, blogging)

Subscribe - Junta42 - Custom Content Experts - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andrew Davis EMAIL: adavis@tippingpointlabs.com IP: 76.119.183.240 URL: http://blog.tippingpointlabs.com DATE: 06/26/2009 06:28:00 AM Thanks so much for shooting this Joe. Really appreciate it! - Andrew ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Social Media Tools - Best Kept Secrets STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-social-media-tools-best-kept-secrets CATEGORY: online content marketing CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 06/19/2009 07:59:31 AM ----- BODY:

My friend Scott Abel (The Content Wrangler) gave an outstanding presentation at Web Content 2009 on social media tools - best kept secrets. The full presentation is below, but here's the quick take on the 10 Scott shared:

10 Web 2.0 Tools Marketers Can Use Today

View more Microsoft Word documents from Scott Abel.

Google Docs Forms Designer. Create custom forms for surveys and downloads. Customize in less than 10 minutes.
Delicious Promotions. Scott reviewed the power of promoting events and offers through Delicious.
Tynt. Scott's favorite tool. It tracks what users copy from your website (very cool tool).
Ping.fm. Write once, publish many. Ping allows you to publish to as many as 60 social networks in less than 10 seconds (NOTE: be careful. Understand how your message is being sent and where it is going so you are not Spamming anyone.)
GoView. Screencasts that allow you to show instead of tell. According to Scott, a step down from Jing but easier to use.
bit.ly. Shorten your URLs for distribution and be able to track them as well (who opens it where).
Scribd. YouTube for PDFs.
Kwout. Screen captures with working links to original pages.
Knowem. Checks brand name availability across 120 social media websites.
slideshare. Increase the value of slide decks far beyond the conference presentation.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jasper Blake EMAIL: jasper@social-smart.com IP: 72.208.227.104 URL: http://social-smart.com DATE: 06/20/2009 03:06:47 PM The ultimate all-in-one tool for social media is http://social-smart.com Admittedly it is not freely available, but if you are a social media manager, or a company looking to hire a social media manager, then this is the sort of tool you want to be looking at. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kim R EMAIL: kimmie80stl@yahoo.com IP: 71.180.31.67 URL: http://CaribPOP.biz DATE: 06/30/2009 11:36:53 AM Great suggestions! Thanks :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cheap Computers Canada EMAIL: nroegem@gmail.com IP: 110.37.5.94 URL: http://www.pcs4cheap.ca DATE: 03/05/2010 09:00:09 AM I have been using ping.fm...and i have to admit...its great ! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kathleen Hood EMAIL: contact@socialmediamanager.com IP: 24.180.45.37 URL: http://socialmediamanager.com DATE: 07/23/2010 11:17:03 PM Great List! Most I was aware of except slideshare. I will check it out. I think this list could definitely be expanded as well. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Create these 10 Media Channels for Your Content Marketing Strategy STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: create-these-10-media-channels-for-your-content-marketing-strategy CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 06/18/2009 10:16:41 PM ----- BODY:

Had the pleasure of presenting "Please Stop Talking about Yourself" at the Web Content Conference 2009 in Chicago this week. As usual, I was discussing the importance of brands creating their own media channels, and putting their publishing hats on in place of traditional marketing practices. You can catch the PowerPoint presentation on creating media channels here, but for the PowerPoint averse, here are the top 10.

Please Stop Talking about Yourself - Joe Pulizzi Web Content 2009

View more OpenOffice presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

Create an online media site. Examples - HomeMadeSimple.com and BeingGirl.com from P&G; Out-Law.com from the UK law-firm Pinsent Masons (we also talk about Out-Law as a full case study in Get Content Get Customers).
An educational enewsletter (not to be mistaken for the "sales happy" enewsletter). Godfrey gives us a great example from the b2b marketing side.
A slideshare channel. Why not create your own presentation channel at slideshare? Trendsspotting provides a perfect example of this in action.
The free web app. Hubspot's website grader is a classic.
The Twitter tips channel. Collect the best information on the web and distribute through Twitter. Be the expert content resource for your industry.
A Facebook movement. Fan pages are fine, but provide something of relevance that your customer base can dig into. Shama Hyder does a great job with her ACT blueprint page.
Raid traditional media. If you are not looking at media properties in your industry to purchase or partner with, you are not being a smart marketer.
The mobile helper. Kraft's iFood assistant could change the way people cook.
A digital magazine. Yes, even with all the social media rage, there is still a place for digital magazine. Betty Crocker creates targeted digital mags for consumers of all food specialties. Check out this one on birthday parties.
The video microsite. Can't do a post like this without mentioning willitblend.com, perhaps the greatest ROI ever on a video storytelling series.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Internet Marketing EMAIL: fpjpssns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.146.54 URL: http://www.jeffpaulsuccessstories.com DATE: 10/27/2009 01:08:14 AM The importance of brands creating their own media channels, and putting their publishing hats on in place of traditional marketing practices. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: You Might be a Twitter Beginner if You Make these Mistakes STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: you-might-be-a-twitter-beginner-if-you-make-these-mistakes CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 06/11/2009 12:14:59 PM ----- BODY:

Look, I'm no @chrisbrogan when it comes to Twitter followers, but I have a nice following (@juntajoe). At this point, I still take the time to individually review who follows me. During this process, it pains me to see the many Twitter "beginner" mistakes that turn me off from following a person back.

So, you might be a Twitter Beginner if you make these mistakes (think of Jeff Foxworthy's "You Might Be a Redneck" when you read this).

1. If you don't fully complete your Twitter profile.

I probably see about 1/3 of Twitter accounts that don't complete their profile.

First, enter your name. Your real name. Are you mjp4833 or are you Mary Johnson?

Second, enter your website that best represents who you are.

Third, enter your bio that tells your interests, or the type of things you tweet about. Mine is "Evangelist for content marketing. Helping companies learn how to be publishers."

Fourth, enter your location. Personally, I'm tired of the GPS location. Do you have a home?

This all may seem really obvious to you, but I'm amazed the number of people that don't complete it. Without a complete profile, your inexperience shows. Be sure to come out of the gates like you know something, but you were just late because you were stuck in traffic.

2. If you keep the default o_O image and don't change to a more professional picture.

Click on Settings, Picture. Make it a good one.

3. If you follow 500 people before posting something somewhat intelligent.

Does "is chilling on the carpet" attract the kind of conversations you are looking for?

4. If you follow too many people too fast.

Be careful here. The new people you follow might think you are a spammer.

5. If you don't watch your ratios.

Keep your following/followers ratio as close as possible. FYI, if you have MORE followers than you are following, it shows me that you are picky about who you follow. Some might disagree, but I like that and usually follow those people back.

6. If you use auto direct messages.

I know that many experienced Twitter users will disagree with me on this. Some people set up an automatic direct message function that goes to all followers, telling them to sign up for something or that they are looking forward to following me. I cannot stand that. Too impersonal.

Direct messages are fine, but make it personal. (btw, I used to use Auto DM's at first too...then I learned better.)

For more on beginners, check out this article on best practices for Twitter beginners. Also, check out this Greg Verdino post "If Twitter Were a State, It Would Be Arkansas". Greg includes some excellent data on Twitter newbies. Interesting story as well.

Let's add to this list. If you have more, send them to me and I'll add them to the list.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chrystal EMAIL: chrystal.king1@gmail.com IP: 66.93.66.228 URL: http://www.examiner.com/x-2977-la-budget-fashion DATE: 06/17/2009 01:27:26 PM Thanks for the info. I just started using twitter, so I wanted to make sure I wasn't making to many mistakes. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Navneet EMAIL: navneet.australia@gmail.com IP: 122.168.217.205 URL: DATE: 06/20/2009 11:50:21 PM Beautiful article, informative as well. Thanks ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Five Reasons why Content Strategy comes before Social Media STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: five-reasons-why-content-strategy-comes-before-social-media CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 06/09/2009 10:52:47 AM ----- BODY:

Get Content Get Customers is just hitting bookstores now (you can read the news release from McGraw-Hill here). When Newt and I first started putting the book together in late 2007, content marketing was a relatively unknown term. Now seemingly a household phrase (at least according to Twitter), brands are still struggling with exactly what it means to develop a content marketing strategy.

Ah, but social media is all the rage. Is social media working for you? Are you struggling to figure out how to make it work for your customers? Could it be that your content strategy isn't driving your social media initiatives?

Here are five important reasons why a content strategy needs to be considered before integrating social media into your marketing plans.

Social media does not work unless you have something valuable to say! Developing a content marketing strategy is about understanding your customers' pain points, and then delivering multi-channel content that solves those customer challenges. Without having something to add to the customer conversation, how is it possible to leverage social media tools where you can help guide the conversation and position your brand/company as a trusted advisor?
Publishing is marketing, marketing is publishing. If we've learned anything over the past few years, it's that the majority of new media marketing efforts rely on a keen understanding of publishing. That means that you (the marketer) need to take your sales and marketing hat off and put on your publishing hat. Instead of features and benefits communication (look at most enewsletters, which are most times product or offer driven), are you delivering information like a publisher does to readers? The publishers of the future are not going to be media companies, but companies that ultimately offer a product or service. That includes you.
Social media activity does not mean you are accomplishing your marketing goals. That's where content strategy comes in. What is the purpose of your content? What are your key messages? What content assets do you have and what do you need to acquire? All the social media interaction in the world won't answer these issues for you, which should be completed first.
It's the content that is ultimately shared through social media. Valuable educational and amusing information is shared through social media. So many brands have rushed into social media wondering why they don't have the right kind of Twitter followers, or why they don't have enough comments on their blogs or within their communities (or what they are getting out of social media in the first place). Understanding that it's the content plan that drives the spreading of your ideas is the first step.
Social media = I hear you + I'm listening to you + I understand (thx @briansolis). Now replace "social media" with "publishing" or "content strategy". Works, right? Now try this...content strategy = I hear you + I'm listening to you + I understand + successful marketing goal and content measurement. This cements the fact that you are producing this content, not only to be shared by your customers and prospects, but to accomplish a significant marketing objective.

Ultimately, it's not about just experiences and interactions through social media. It's about creating meaningful experiences and interactions. It's about creating valuable, relevant and compelling content on a consistent basis that positions your brand as the trusted expert to your customers. When that happens, customers and prospects want to talk to you, and want to share your content.

Ah yes, that is where social media is so important. Social media is where the magic can happen. But consider content as all the upfront work, research and practice that it takes to put the magic show together. Social media is the Abracadabra.

So, I urge you, step back from your social media initiatives for just a second, and consider the following:

Where are the content assets in your organization that provide the editorial information for your content strategy? Do you need a content audit?
Do you have experts in your organization that can write from a journalistic perspective? This is not features/benefits content. It needs to be the best of the best on the topic you are writing based on your marketing goal. If it's not the best, can you honestly position yourself as the expert? Hire a turnkey content provider to help you that understands this. Quality content counts!
Who owns the content strategy in your organization? Where is that individual at - marketing, PR, communications? Without ownership, creating a consistent message to your individual customer segments is a challenge at best.

If you are new to the content strategy game, I urge you to check out our book, which includes dozens of examples from companies that are putting successful content strategies to work.

Developing a content marketing strategy is not easy, but necessary.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Daniel Oyston EMAIL: danieloyston@gmail.com IP: 203.55.120.81 URL: http://theoysterproject.blogspot.com/ DATE: 06/09/2009 06:17:07 PM This post is bang on the money. I work for a consulting firm and have some "rockstars" in our field. Content is what helps me get them front and centre and position us an an authority. This post has been sent to some key staff to reinforce my view that SM isn't a magic bullet and that we need to be helping customers and providing value (through content :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/09/2009 08:45:51 PM Great Daniel...keep me posted. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: New Media Strategies EMAIL: chasebkelley@gmail.com IP: 121.96.219.246 URL: http://jasonvanorden.com/ DATE: 06/10/2009 12:48:29 AM As many internet marketing expert says "Content is king!". We should make it a point to have a quality and relevant content. Social Media are just tools to spread our content and our brand. Great Post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Margot Bloomstein EMAIL: mbloomstein@isitedesign.com IP: 206.72.104.162 URL: http://www.twitter.com/mbloomstein DATE: 06/10/2009 12:35:21 PM This is terrific Joe. It's frustrating to see new trains leaving the station without anyone considering where they're going, if there's enough fuel, and if the track is even laid. Too often social media campaigns are on those rails and lack the planning and analysis content strategy can provide. Great to see you call it out! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/10/2009 12:40:17 PM Thanks Margot...actually, when I started writing this I thought it was too basic, but I'm continually amazed at how many brands just jump into social media without a clue of what they want to say and why it's even important to customers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan Haley EMAIL: danshaley@gmail.com IP: 165.157.52.42 URL: http://www.scripps.org/ DATE: 06/10/2009 01:56:05 PM Thanks, Joe. Regarding Margot's "new trains leaving the station without much consideration," I've always wondered why the web commnunity--and thus, its clients--hasn't really taken content seriously all these years. It may be because web folks are restless creatives: they like to develop, play with something for a little while, hand off to clients, and move on. Web content is handmade, and good CS or CM requires the long view. You have to be disciplined to see content through well past launch, and diligently, assiduously tend to it hourly. This is where the web community--and as a result, its clients and their sites--have failed, and continue to do so. Anyhow, just a theory full of broad brushstrokes and generalizations. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vince Giorgi EMAIL: vgiorgi@charter.net IP: 68.117.69.187 URL: http://www.touchpointcity.wordpress.com DATE: 06/10/2009 10:38:48 PM Thoughtful post, as always, Joe. And congratulations on the book. For some crazy reason (possibly overwork, or too much potato salad too early in the season?), lately I've been visualizing the relationship between social media and content strategy in terms of metaphors involving insects. A colony of ants, for example, streaming out from a hill. Bumping into each other. Climbing over one another. Exchanging antennae rubs. Impressive amounts of kinetic energy and potential on display. Then, abruptly, the scene changes, and those seemingly random interactions start to signal there's something important or valuable going on back at home base. Suddenly, what appeared to be mostly a scramble starts to assume purposeful patterns. Queens get nourished. Eggs get laid. Tunnels get dug. The colony and its inhabitants flourish. And... ...this comment gets even deeper into a weird area. So what say we wrap up this week's episode of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Content Kingdom right there. After all, supper's ready. And we're having potato salad again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 71.131.197.175 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 06/11/2009 01:21:27 AM Joe and Newt: Congrats on the release of the updated version of Get Content. Get Customers. I absolutely loved the Harvard Business case study approach you had taken in the earlier version of Get Content. Get Customers. Your latest book is on my must read list for this month and I can't wait to see what you have put together. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 86.143.237.205 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 06/11/2009 03:58:33 AM Great post, well done. I think the first point you make really strikes home. Why will people want to read what you've written if you have nothing to say? I think sometimes people forget that content has to be valuable to be worth anything otherwise it is not only a waste of your time but a waste of what could be potential custom. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lindsey Annison EMAIL: lannison@clickthrough-marketing.com IP: 91.135.9.57 URL: http://www.clickthrough-marketing.com/internet-marketing-blog DATE: 06/11/2009 07:47:28 AM Great post. It is all about understanding what your customers want and providing it, before hitting the marketing main line. Too many sites just focus on sell, sell, sell instead of thinking holistically and realising that they could cut the support calls if they provided How to manuals, webinars for customers on how to use the products post-purchase, guides on alternative uses for the products or how to maintain them for longer life etc etc etc. Then, when you have those, you can go Tweet. Not jsut to your community of users, but to grow brand awareness that here is a company who not only have something to say that isn't marketing spiel, but actually respect their customers. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jordan Levy EMAIL: jordan@zajon.com IP: 76.189.168.0 URL: http://zajon.blogspot.com DATE: 06/12/2009 09:49:35 AM Great Post Joe. You articulated something I have been wrestling with these last few months. Wherever I go, if people find out that I'm in the web biz, they ask me about social media: How to create a blog, Facebook account or what about twitter? I can tell that they are not thinking about strategy, and have no idea what to do with social media. They just know everyone is talking about it and they need to be part of it. It kind of reminds me of 1996 - 1998 when everyone wanted a web site, but had no idea what to do with it or what to put on their site. Lots of brochure-ware sites were created with out being thought out in terms of goals or strategy. I see the same thing happening in the social media web space. Thanks for the great article - I'm going reference it when I talk to clients. Congratulations on the book. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: abril EMAIL: abril.coop@gmail.com IP: 201.240.16.27 URL: DATE: 06/18/2009 06:50:52 PM Nice article !...but.. I’m a new blogger and I'm confused u_u , all webpages talk about making money for hosting videos, but not all of them are good and I have a lot of ideas. My brother recommended me to visit www.vismomedia.com, he said I’ts a good webpage for bloggers. What’s your opinion ¿? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Simon Stepsys EMAIL: Simon@amazing2ndincome.com IP: 82.132.139.133 URL: http://www.SimonStepsysCoaching.com DATE: 08/26/2009 01:10:18 PM Excellent post and very true. Great content creates a lot of followers and soon to be buyers. Thanks for sharing this great post. Simon ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dawn Willson EMAIL: dawnkwillson@me.com IP: 68.117.101.254 URL: http://www.ndawnm.com DATE: 02/20/2010 01:53:35 PM I truly could not agree with this blog more. I have been creating content for ten years for television, the web, marketing pieces, content pieces - you name it. I learned every avenue of content production that can exist, but realized a lot of the stuff I had to write did not have a gold nugget of wisdom to share. However, this is now an educational process that needs to be given to every client we talk to. The best part? THEY GET IT. They know they need it and they absorb it all and invest. I honestly don't think I have ever been happier in my career as a producer, writer and marketer until now. I was ahead of mine ten years ago when I created interactive television content for technology that did not exist. I'm so glad to find my people that speak the language. Rock on! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: so shife EMAIL: soshife@rocketmail.com IP: 71.136.229.5 URL: http://www.soshife.com/ DATE: 02/25/2010 08:58:46 AM planning is the essence of all seo methods. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Liverpool Builders EMAIL: info@4kconstruction.co.uk IP: 41.191.23.57 URL: http://www.4kconstruction.co.uk/ DATE: 07/23/2010 03:49:13 PM I did many seo projects before, I agree with "the content is always the king" using good optimized content we can get higher ranking in search engine results, thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Pilar from Pickaweb.co.uk EMAIL: webmaster@pickaweb.co.uk IP: 88.8.80.91 URL: http://www.pickaweb.co.uk DATE: 07/28/2010 11:14:21 AM Giving something for free away can make a huge difference to your social media. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kelso EMAIL: kelsoo@gmail.com IP: 70.68.186.122 URL: http://www.gsid.net DATE: 08/12/2010 05:36:22 AM I think with the way social media is going.. the internal websites will be just as needed. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Yes, A Real-Life Custom Media Event You Should Attend STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: yes-a-reallife-custom-media-event-you-should-attend CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 06/03/2009 09:41:47 PM ----- BODY:

Honestly, I was a little punchy a couple night ago when I sent out the email below regarding the upcoming Custom Media Day - presented by Junta42, American Business Media (ABM) and Custom Publishing Council (CPC).

I'll pass on the long sales pitch here...you can read the letter below. Here's the deal - if you are a part of any process where you are creating custom content for clients or for yourself, you should attend this event on June 17th in NYC.

That's it...now, I'll admit, I easily crack myself up, but I laughed a few times at this email.

**********

June 1, 2009

Hi [Insert Your Name Here]:

I was so rushed (at the Nashville airport a few weeks back) to get out the last email on the 2009 Custom Media Day, I forgot to mention quite a few things.

First, this is not an event where you should come alone to (sorry). You should be bringing your salespeople, your project managers, your production staff, your design team, etc. The Custom Media Day (June 17th in NYC) will be one of those workshops where you can open your staff to the possibilities that exist in custom media today. Share the love!

Second, at the CPC Conference in March, I heard from so many of you that wanted more on digital magazines. Sure, social media is great, but your customers were asking about digital mags. You ask, you receive. The combined expertise of two of the leading players, Nxtbook and Texterity, will be on hand to show you how to drive revenues for yourselves and cost savings for your clients (AT THE SAME TIME). Don't miss this magic act!

Third, you'll get a little taste of everything custom, especially on the b-to-b side...print, online, video, search, social media, integration...it will all be covered. And, we'll leave plenty of time to get your questions answered from the experts.

And one more thing, did you check out the talent that we'll have in store for you? First rate all the way...and you won't hear about "pie in the sky" theories that 'may' work. You'll here about strategies and tactics you can implement now to grow your business and improve your products.

Now, I know what you are thinking, there can't be any more can there Joe?

Oh...but there can my friend. We'll wrap up the day with a special report from the Custom Publishing Council Roper Research. You'll be able to hear the insights in the study, and how you can use this information to sell more custom.

So, make sure you sign up today. We have to limit the audience size because of our meeting space, so be sure to sign up this week to reserve your spot.

Let me know if you have any questions...

Best,

Joe

P.S. Andrew and I have some cool strategies lined up for you during the social media session. These will be sure to get your customer's attention. Sign up now!

P.S.S The Custom Publishing Council is planning a dinner the night before the event. If you are interested, let me know and I'll send you the details.

P.S.S.S If you actually read this entire email, you are awesome. The first person to send me their custom media day confirmation gets a complimentary copy of the NEW AND IMPROVED Get Content Get Customers.

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 42+ Social Media Marketing Tools STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 42-online-content-sharing-and-productivity-tools CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: online content marketing CATEGORY: video DATE: 06/02/2009 01:34:35 PM ----- BODY:

Had a great time yesterday at the MagsU workshop on "Opening the Emedia Toolbox - Social Media Tools". In the session, we reviewed numerous online tools on how to develop social media strategies for personal branding, new revenue streams, search engine optimization, new content initiatives and more for content providers/publishers. Here's a taste. If you have some social media tools you'd like to add, post them in the comments. Special thanks to those who made recommendations.

The Basics

LinkedIn - Start the practice of connecting with every business card you receive from contacts.
Facebook - Consider a "Facebook Movement" - creating a topic or trend in Facebook outside of your personal or brand fan pages.
Twitter - A staple for all of us. Here's a must read basics of Twitter article. (Courtesy of @mike_stelzner).
Google Profile - This is a Gold rush here. Secure and verify your personal name (i.e., Joe Pulizzi - Content Marketing Expert), before someone else gets it.
Plaxo - organizes business contacts via the web (courtesy Judith Berkowitz).

Conversations and Listening

LinkedIn Answers - Listen and answer.
LinkedIn Groups - Find groups that make sense for your business.
Yahoo! Answers - Listen and answer questions. Position yourself as the expert.
Google Alerts - Get updates on who's talking about you, your industry, your customers.
Google Groups - Find the group relevant to your job and get active.
Alltop - The digital magazine rack. Find the alltop for your industry - here's content marketing.
Google Reader - Organize RSS feeds from media sites and blogs (courtesy Andrew Davies, Simon Henault).
Backtype - Follow and share comments on the web (courtesy Andrew Davies).
Ning - Create your own social networking site (courtesy of Kyra Reed).

Twitter Management

Tweetdeck - The ultimate Twitter management system.
Hootsuite - Manage multiple twitter accounts from one dashboard.
Twitterfeed - Set your RSS feeds to post automatically on Twitter.
Twitter Search - Find anything on Twitter real-time. For tagging, use the # (hash) tag (#magsu event)
Tweetmeme - Find what's hot on Twitter.
Twilert - Twitter search alerts via email.
Yammer - It's Twitter for inside the company walls (courtesy of Paul Dunay)
Tagalus - Directory of Twitter hash tags (courtesy of Kyra Reed)
MyTweeple - Manage tweets and followers. Especially good for managing multiple profiles (courtesy of Laurie Dunlop).
Twitter Facebook App - Updates Facebook via Twitter (courtesy of Greg Padley).
Selective Twitter Facebook App - Updates Facebook only when you use #fb (courtesy of Greg Padley).
Seesmic - Managing with multiple accounts (courtesy Brad Hays).

Content Sharing

delicious - Share your content through bookmarking. Great way to share with teams (courtesy Michelle O'Hagan).
Slideshare - Upload your PowerPoint presentations for all to see.
YouTube - The #1 video sharing site.
Vimeo - an alternative to YouTube
Tubemogul - Distribute your video to them and they'll spread it to other video sharing sites for you.
StumbleUpon - Randomly generates content for users by interest area.
Digg.com - Content sharing site (great for tech and news).
Marketwire/PRWeb - Distribute your content using social media online news releases.
Google Custom Search - Set up your own niche search engine on your site or blog.
Scribd - Share original writings with others (courtesy Andrew Davis).
Squidoo - Set up your own targeted vertical content lens (courtesy Ambal Balakrishnan).
Flickr - Share/upload/find photos (courtesy Wendy Boyce).

Blogging/CMS Tools

WordPress - My recommendation for a blog CMS platform. Our custompublishers.com blog uses WordPress. I also recommend using this CMS for any small-business website (also courtesy Tina Bentley).
TypePad - Set up and blog in just a few minutes. This blog uses TypePad (also courtesy of Britton Manasco).
Joomla - Another option for blogging/CMS platform. Joomla users praise it.
Drupal - Extremely versatile CMS platform (courtesy of Dan).
Technorati - Blog directory. Find the blogs in your industry so that you know which ones to listen to.
IceRocket - Search for blogs and blog posts by category. IceRocket's Trend Tool will tell you how "hot" your keyword is.
Google Blog Search - First rate blog search tool.
Tumblr - Post anything quickly and easily.
Zemanta - Great for adding additional content and links (courtesy of Drew McLellan).
Posterous - Post to a blog by sending an email (courtesy of Richard Shatto).
Tipjoy - Simple social media payments (courtesy of Greg Padley).

Measurement

Google Analytics - I recommend using Google Analytics even if you have a paid analytics service (courtesy Cim Buser).
Hubspot - I'm a customer. I use Hubspot to track the performance of my keywords and competitors' keywords (courtesy Gretel Going).
Website Grader - Hubspot product that will grade your website on a number of analytics and social media indicators. Great free tool!
Alexa - Some high-level information on website traffic for any site.
Compete.com - Excellent comparison tool for web analytics-type information.
Quantcast - Provides good overview of analytics and site demographics (courtesy of Kyra Reed).
Woopra - Analytics on steroids (courtesy of Kyra Reed).

Operations

Google Apps - Runs all email and calendar functions through one place. We use it and love it. Basic option is free.
Google Docs - Share Word documents, spreadsheets and presentations via secure invitations. Great for editing a document with multiple people involved.
Microsoft Live Workspace - Like Google Docs but with Microsoft. 5GB free space (courtesy Kate H).
Teamwork Project Manager - Easy-to-use project management tool.
BaseCamp - An alternative to Teamwork Project Manager. Also very easy to use.
aMember - Handles paid memberships for websites (courtesy Simon Payn).
Junta42 Match - Finds expert providers for web content projects.
Freemind - Open source mind-mapping software.
Mindmanager - One of the best mapping software programs around (courtesy Kavita Jhunjhunwala).
Mindmeister.com - It's like Google Docs for mindmapping (courtesy George Kao).
Box.net - Save everyday work files...access from anywhere (courtesy Michelle O'Hagan).
Xobni.com - Outlook plugin that helps track down files easier (courtesy Craig Hodges).
ExpertMagnet.com - Free service to find professional service providers.

Other Cool Online Tools

Blinkplan - Creating flatplans for magazines (courtesy Kevin Lund).
Jing- To create screenshots for clients when something needs to be explained (courtesy Tom Deeter).
Gimp - Quickly edit images from Flickr (courtesy Tom Deeter)
VisualCV - Online social media resume (courtesy Michelle Corsano).

What did we forget? Comment below...

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Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael A. Stelzner EMAIL: mike@stelzner.com IP: 99.157.80.86 URL: http://twitter.com/mike_stelzner DATE: 06/02/2009 01:56:35 PM Joe - What a fab list!!! I think Twitter should be part of the basics :) - Mike ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/02/2009 02:05:03 PM Mike...ask and you shall receive. So moved! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Meg Guiseppi EMAIL: meg@executiveresumebranding.com IP: 70.15.145.102 URL: http://www.executiveresumebranding.com DATE: 06/02/2009 02:48:51 PM WOW! What a terrific, indepth list! I'll definitely pass this on to my c-level executive clients as great starting point for e-branding. Thanks for taking the time to put together such an exhaustive list. -Meg ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kyra Reed EMAIL: kyra@markyr.com IP: 76.168.90.53 URL: http://markyr.com DATE: 06/02/2009 03:26:44 PM Nice list!! I have a few that you missed: Twitter Tagalus - a dictionary for hashtags http://tagal.us Analytics Woopra - analytics on steroids http://woopra.com Conversations/Listening NING http://ning.com Measurement Quantcast http://quantcast.com SEO SEOBOOK Tools http://tools.seobook.com/keywords-tools/seobook ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/02/2009 03:35:43 PM Kyra...excellent. I added the first four per your suggestion (see above). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Gaelen O'Connell EMAIL: gaelen.oconnell@mindjet.com IP: 72.5.121.166 URL: http://www.mindjet.com DATE: 06/02/2009 07:37:30 PM Wonderful list, I'm going to compare it with the sites I already visit and dive into some new opportunities for Mindjet! I'm also excited to see MindManager here, I hope it is providing you with some nice value. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah Evans EMAIL: prsarahevans@gmail.com IP: 64.107.32.125 URL: http://www.twitter.com/prsarahevans DATE: 06/03/2009 11:09:54 AM Thanks so much for putting this together! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Bearden EMAIL: brian@zsalvo.com IP: 66.64.45.46 URL: http://www.zsalvo.com DATE: 06/03/2009 11:58:34 AM Joe, Thanks for taking the time to put this list together. I will be glad to promote your site on my CNN Houston local radio program. This information will be valuable to my listeners. Thanks Brian ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/03/2009 12:04:08 PM Thanks Brian...appreciate it. Let me know if you need anything else. jp ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: George Kao EMAIL: georgekao@gmail.com IP: 68.123.27.67 URL: http://GeorgeKao.com DATE: 06/03/2009 12:49:55 PM Mindmapping: My favorite tool is http://mindmeister.com -- it's like Google Docs for mindmapping. The free version is excellent. I pay for it to have unlimited mind maps. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/03/2009 12:53:00 PM Thanks George...just added to the list! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 06/03/2009 03:46:41 PM Joe: Great List! Thanx for putting this awesome list together. I would also like to add squidoo.com to your mega list. Squidoo is a popular publishing platform and community that makes it easy for you to create "lenses" online. Lenses are pages, kind of like flyers or signposts or overview articles, that gather everything you know about your topic of interest and put it all in one place. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/03/2009 04:14:47 PM So added Ambal. Thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Niti Dhani EMAIL: nitidhani007@gmail.com IP: 124.124.223.73 URL: DATE: 06/04/2009 07:14:30 AM Amazingly comprehensive list-all at one place! I am a social media enthusiast and like to read up on such news and posts. I also came across a series of webinars on the social media and business by Dave Evans-noted social media expert. The latest one on the social web and operations is today-you can register at-https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/971324730 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate H EMAIL: kate_ol_team@live.com IP: 204.120.69.211 URL: http://www.officelive.com/ DATE: 06/04/2009 01:00:26 PM This is truly an incredible list! I really appreciate the brief descriptions. One addition for the Operations List: Microsoft Office Live Workspace. It offers users the ability to create, save, access, and share documents and files online (5 GB of storage for free!) and fully supports the whole MS Office Suite. There is even a plug-in for MS Office that lets you save your files to your online Workspace directly from whichever Office program you are using. Cheers, Kate MSFT Office Live Outreach http://www.officelive.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/04/2009 01:06:29 PM Thanks for reaching out Kate. So added. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michelle Corsano EMAIL: michelle@burstmarketing.ca IP: 67.71.138.144 URL: http://www.burstmarketing.ca DATE: 06/05/2009 07:57:43 AM VisualCV Best Online Social Media Resume www.visualcv.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Laurie Dunlop EMAIL: ldunlop@netstrategies.com IP: 173.8.11.229 URL: http://www.netstrategies.com DATE: 06/08/2009 09:36:43 AM Thanks for compiling this wonderful resource page Joe! The categories are spot on. I also like http://www.mytweeple.com. It is a much quicker way to manage friends and followers, especially if you use targeted Twitter accounts for differernt customer profiles. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.155.25 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/08/2009 09:52:44 AM Laurie/Michelle...great suggestions. Added above! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cheryle EMAIL: cheryle.ross@xerox.com IP: 13.8.137.10 URL: http://www.xeroxdirect.com DATE: 06/08/2009 06:26:58 PM Thanks for the great list, Joe. It's especially helpful that you've broken everything down into categories and included brief descriptions. I will be sharing this with my peers at Xerox. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Greg Padley EMAIL: gpadley@optonline.net IP: 67.94.186.170 URL: http://5691gerg.com/?s=twitter DATE: 06/10/2009 12:52:31 PM Here are a few more for the listing: http://tipjoy.com/ simple social payments for great people twitter facebook app - update fb status via twitter http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2231777543 twitter fb app that updates status from twitter ONLY when you tag it #fb http://apps.facebook.com/selectivetwitter/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Bubner EMAIL: markbubner@gmail.com IP: 121.220.127.248 URL: http://www.expertmagnet.com DATE: 06/10/2009 09:29:53 PM Thanks Joe, it's a great list. I'm using a few of them already, but will look at the others. Not sure if this should be in 'Operations' or 'other cool online tools', but I'd look at adding ExpertMagnet.com It's a web App that business can use free of charge to find professional service providers, or, if they sell those services, to get visibility of work in their area of expertise. http://www.expertmagnet.com Regards, Mark ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brad Hays EMAIL: bradhays@gmail.com IP: 70.151.54.67 URL: http://www.twitter.com/bkhays DATE: 06/11/2009 01:59:33 PM Joe - I like TweetDeck, but I am disappointed that I cannot manage multiple accounts using this app. Tweetie and Seesmic Desktop are my "go-to" Twitter applications now. Thank you for putting this list together, great job! Regards, Brad (bkhays) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Judith Berkowitz EMAIL: sfjberk@mac.com IP: 76.14.67.85 URL: DATE: 06/12/2009 12:05:36 AM Also there's Plaxo (like LinkedIn: business) http://www.plaxo.com/ MyLife (formerly Reunion) http://www.mylife.com/ Classmates http://www.classmates.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sam Feinberg EMAIL: samfeinb@gmail.com IP: 64.151.45.183 URL: http://www.webbychat.com DATE: 06/12/2009 12:23:35 AM Very nice list…but you left the best off! I know cause helped build it. Here comes the shameless offer… Try http://www.WebbyChat.com PROMO CODE = BLOGGER_CHAT to save bucks or the FREE plan to turn blog into sticky in under 5 minutes (use blogspot widget or cut and paste html) All visitors can chat as soon as they arrive (login is an option, but is not required like other chats) Full moderation and event scheduling features Current blogs that are using have seen a dramatic rise in time on site and viewership. We fully support. Responses to feedback are within hours not days -Samwel http://www.webbychat.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Torsten Herrmann EMAIL: therrmann@chainrelations.de IP: 87.155.75.163 URL: http://www.chainrelations.de DATE: 06/12/2009 12:36:50 PM I like http://www.hittail.com for analytics. It builds a long tail of keywords over time and suggests keywords for which it's worth to write an article. Here in Germany http://www.tweetranking.com just started. It's to recommend Twitter accounts. Plz try and recommend @torstenherrmann for categies #PR #Marketing #B2B #ContentMarketing :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Gayle Bridgeman EMAIL: gayle.bridgeman@yahoo.com IP: 99.7.165.168 URL: DATE: 06/12/2009 02:38:21 PM Thanks for the great tips and resources Joe! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 97.17.46.101 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/14/2009 11:14:45 PM Just made another update based on everyone's recommendations. Keep them coming...great stuff. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Edward Izzys EMAIL: edwardizzys@gmail.com IP: 59.162.215.105 URL: http://www.seotrafficspider.com DATE: 06/17/2009 03:08:37 PM Interesting! I feel like there is a scarcity of good marketing today. Good marketing means which can convert the leads into sales. The only marketing that has moved me in the last couple of years is Social Media Optimization. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Wendy Boyce EMAIL: wboyceseo@gmail.com IP: 64.128.179.19 URL: http://www.socialpmchick.com DATE: 06/22/2009 04:22:09 PM This is a fabulous list - I'd be interested to know why you did not include http://www.flickr.com in your list of social media tools. Would love to hear your insight on that. Thanks! @socialpmchick ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rex Riepe EMAIL: rex@ivylees.com IP: 97.104.83.223 URL: http://presskitn.com DATE: 06/26/2009 09:35:53 PM Do-It-Yourself Public Relations- Use social media to get your business news out. http://presskitn.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Felicity Marsh EMAIL: martec123@googlemail.com IP: 78.105.104.82 URL: http://martec.co.uk/ DATE: 07/09/2009 05:16:06 AM Great list of things to look at! I will be trying a few of these today! Felicity http://martec.co.uk/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Felicity Marsh EMAIL: martec123@googlemail.com IP: 78.105.104.82 URL: http://martec.co.uk/ DATE: 07/09/2009 05:18:38 AM A great list of things to look at! I will be trying a few of these today! -Felicity http://martec.co.uk/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: woody EMAIL: nifty79@gmail.com IP: 122.172.35.77 URL: DATE: 07/11/2009 03:12:20 AM There is another Social Media Marketing i.e., through web comments. Advertisors can use tools like "commentino" with the help of their writers, can promote their business/products. "commentino" writers will post comments in right forums/discussions and give forum participants more choices. From Advertisers point of you its good ROI as they pay only for comments that meets their requirements. For commentino details follow http://snipr.com/mf6jo ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: affiliate marketing business EMAIL: magtitinapa@gmail.com IP: 112.200.154.202 URL: http://adoborepublic.com/coaching-and-mentoring/ppc-coach-affiliate-coaching-and-mentoring DATE: 07/20/2009 04:42:47 AM you got it all man! Social networks that give a high backlink points and traffic to your site. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan EMAIL: dandurick@gmail.com IP: 65.183.159.254 URL: http://www.dandurick.com DATE: 07/27/2009 02:29:15 PM Under Blogging/CMS Tools you need to list Drupal (http://www.drupal.org). It's an opensource CMS with a large (and fast growing) base of users and contributors. There's a large list of modules to extend its functionality, there's control systems in place in ensure security, and it's very flexible. Drupal beats out Joomla and Wordpress (if you want more than blogging) any day. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.97.48 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/27/2009 10:06:39 PM Thanks Dan, great addition and so added. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bruna Martinuzzi EMAIL: bmartinuzzi@increaseyoureq.com IP: 24.87.93.223 URL: http://www.increaseyoureq.com DATE: 08/24/2009 10:13:26 PM Dear Joe: this is an incredible list! A true act of electronic generosity. Thank you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vancouver wordpress designer EMAIL: mayur@fullmotiongroup.com IP: 24.80.114.92 URL: http://www.fullmotiongroup.com DATE: 09/16/2009 09:04:51 AM Really great list! Thanks for the quantcast link :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: brian EMAIL: brian@anistock.com IP: 213.202.168.166 URL: http://www.anistock.com DATE: 09/16/2009 12:59:31 PM great article as a refresher or anyone getting into social media ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Eduardo Lima EMAIL: eduardo.sugahara@gmail.com IP: 201.83.48.253 URL: DATE: 09/17/2009 09:30:58 PM DropBox is missing. A great backup/file share web site... www.getdropbox.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mitch Speers EMAIL: mitch@vitalbusinessmedia.com IP: 64.20.10.162 URL: http://emediavitals.com DATE: 09/23/2009 12:01:01 PM Great list Joe! Here's another for the Content Sharing section: Screenr (http://screenr.com) which offers screencasts for Twitter. Free, no download, easy, very cool. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: mlm leads EMAIL: admin@bizsourceplus.com IP: 203.177.74.138 URL: http://www.bizsourceplus.com DATE: 10/05/2009 11:52:28 AM Fantastic List, thank you for putting this thing together. With this i find it no hard times for me to look on and do the research for my daily work. Keep it up, hope you make a list also on how to look for a prospect in terms of marketing. Hurray!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: François EMAIL: myspace.marketingmanager@gmail.com IP: 84.97.159.222 URL: http://www.myspacemarketingmanager.com DATE: 10/13/2009 07:04:16 PM I would add a tool to manage all your social media contacts in one place (your PC...). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lea Charlton EMAIL: almcsffiliates@yahoo.com IP: 74.109.195.40 URL: http://www.almcsolutions.com DATE: 10/18/2009 02:11:31 AM I would like to introduce The Payer Player as a social media marketing tool. This portable social widget not only helps their members but all of the social networks that it is integrates with (including Twitter, Facebook, Youtube), plus provides Live Broadcasts, VOIP and PCMobile2Chat. http://www.thepayerplayer.com/pittsburghseo - lets not forget the viral capabilities and that Shaquille O'Neal is endorsing it ... this is a seious post. I hope you read the infomation and learn how to incorporate The Payer Player in your social media marketing process. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shortcuts to Internet Millions EMAIL: fpjprns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.146.39 URL: http://www.jeffpaulreview.com DATE: 10/19/2009 06:20:32 AM Your post is indeed very informative. These days not only amateur webmasters are doing internet marketing but also young grad students are promoting their less professional sites as their practice and projects. Articles on starting an internet marketing business are available on the internet easily. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ricky EMAIL: blogswala@gmail.com IP: 59.177.44.174 URL: http://www.nimlok.com/ DATE: 12/13/2009 02:27:15 AM Great post! more then 42 tools like this is by far more than anybody normally needs. I have personally used many of them but about 75% of them are still new for me.Some very good tools in there. Still, I wonder if there will be a free Facebook tool… ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Social Media EMAIL: magnus.lundin@gamsun-media.se IP: 85.226.72.151 URL: http://www.gamsun-media.se DATE: 01/02/2010 03:13:06 PM Thanks alot for putting this together. Have a great 2010. Best, Magnus Lundin http://www.Gamsun-Media.se ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter EMAIL: pallavi.pare@gmail.com IP: 122.177.211.147 URL: http://www.fullservicead.com DATE: 01/08/2010 02:30:25 AM It’s really nice blog about online advertising and good to share this marketing Knowledge. Online marketing is really gaining rapid popularity. To promote our site or product we have to do advertising so that people should know about it. Even i used to promote my site and sell my product online through fullservicead.com and my business is really growing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: George rosenberg EMAIL: rosenberg.george7@gmail.com IP: 122.174.83.166 URL: http://www.expertadvertisingsolutions.com/ DATE: 01/18/2010 05:55:47 AM This is one of the forms of internet marketing and i found it very useful in increasing the traffic to the website. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Becky Joubert EMAIL: bjoubert@marketstealth.com IP: 98.230.134.14 URL: http://www.networkmarketingsolved.com/social-media-tools/2009/10/27/using-social-media-tools-is-a-win-win-baby.html#entry5636952 DATE: 02/07/2010 05:10:27 PM What is there to say? It's a huge list that needs to be explored, because there are so many sites I am unaware of. I bookmarked this post to be able to have a little time to check that out. Thanks for breaking them up in sections. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: HotWheels EMAIL: e3media@ymail.com IP: 71.197.110.134 URL: http://www.e3media.us DATE: 03/13/2010 10:53:42 PM AWESOME! What a terrific list! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patrick Long EMAIL: riskbounce@gmail.com IP: 203.87.176.2 URL: http://www.seomarketingireland.eu/ DATE: 05/25/2010 11:52:32 PM Great list of Social Media Marketing Tools!! In SEO, using social platforms is a less cumbersome and more enjoyable way of letting people know more about your product.. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adam@How To Make Money Online EMAIL: glemoh101@yahoo.com IP: 41.238.7.252 URL: http://www.4money-making-online.blogspot.com DATE: 07/18/2010 11:49:46 AM Nice list , I have something you miss about twitter: 1- twitter directories: -http://justtweetit.com/ -http://wefollow.com/ -http://www.twellow.com/ 2- twitter analysis: -http://twitterholic.com/ -http://twittercounter.com 3- twitter lists: -http://tweepml.org/ 4- make money with twitter: -http://www.revtwt.tk ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alex Avery - Inbound Marketer, Search Marketing and Analytics Consultant Melbourne EMAIL: ahavery@gmail.com IP: 58.96.95.228 URL: http://alexavery.com.au DATE: 07/25/2010 10:01:17 PM Great list. A fantastic checklist and resource. I would add a few others. Here are three: Gliffy: http://www.gliffy.com - simple and free website design tool (also has other functions). Your Open Book: http://www.youropenbook.org - search unsecure Facebook status updates for social media monitoring. Postling: http://www.postling.com - simple tool for posting and scheduling updates on Wordpress, Facebook, Twitter and Flickr. Handles multiple accounts. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bhaskar Samuel EMAIL: sam@web-radiance.com IP: 59.92.33.29 URL: http://web-radiance.com DATE: 08/03/2010 07:20:11 AM I have not gone for native searching of Outlook emails ever since I started using GetMail of http://www.searchterrain.com. GetMail has fetched them for me with just a few character input. It is interactive and responds to each character input. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Construction Tool Boy EMAIL: myconstructionreviews@hotmail.com IP: 180.190.161.83 URL: http://www.myconstructionreviews.com DATE: 09/06/2010 09:35:34 AM Amazing information. Great list and easy to navigate. Got new ideas and learning from this posts. Excellent! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rahul EMAIL: ciyan21@yahoo.com IP: 115.108.119.198 URL: http://www.allaboutsite.com DATE: 09/07/2010 12:37:27 PM This is a fabulous list - Allaboutsite is also good one. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing for Small Businesses [podcast] STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-for-small-businesses-podcast CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: Junta42 Events CATEGORY: small business marketing DATE: 05/28/2009 10:19:05 PM ----- BODY:

Big thanks to my good friend Susan Friedmann, CSP for having me as a guest on her radio talk show, Riches in Niches, this week. As you'll hear, Susan is a real pro and we had a great time chatting about the subject of attracting and retaining customers with content marketing.

Susan's radio audience is mostly small business marketers, so we talked specifically about what small, smart companies can do to become trusted advisers for their customers (and turn prospects into buyers).

In part one of the broadcast [12 minutes], we covered:

What exactly is content marketing?
What types of content can be effective as part of a content marketing strategy?
Why delivering valuable information to your customers is a key to driving your business?
What happens if you are not a writer? Can you still be a content marketer?
Why has marketing changed so much in the past few years?
What does it mean to put on a publisher's hat?
Why strategy rules?
What does it mean to set up listening posts?

In part two of the broadcast [10 minutes], we covered:

Why consistent communication is the key?
Start simple.
How often should you update your website?
How to package your information that will position you as an industry expert?
Setting up the content calendar.
Biggest mistakes small businesses make with content.
Resisting the urge to "sell" too much in your content.
Don't wait for perfection. It will never come.

Big thanks again to Susan and the folks at WS Radio for putting this together. I hope you enjoy it!

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Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: hannahhkelly EMAIL: hannahh.kelly@gmail.com IP: 174.129.253.45 URL: DATE: 06/03/2009 08:16:08 AM Hi, Nice post, especially the videos, they were excellent. Thank you so much for sharing such valuable information. Here is the contribution from my side. http://www.webguild.org/2009/06/capturing-the-value-of-content-marketing.php?p=p2 The article is also on content marketing and also tells us the how effective the content marketing is for B2B marketers. Do go through it once. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why You Need to Publish a Custom Book: Q & A with Eloqua's Steven Woods STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-you-need-to-write-a-custom-book-q-a-with-eloquas-steven-woods CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: case studies DATE: 05/27/2009 08:36:47 AM ----- BODY:

I had the opportunity to sit down with Steve Woods (CTO at Eloqua) recently when we were both speaking at Online Marketing Summit - DC. We came to the subject of our respective books (mine Get Content Get Customers, Steve's Digital Body Language) and how they serve as the ultimate marketing tool.

Readers of this blog know that we (Newt Barrett and I) originally self-published Get Content Get Customers in 2008, with McGraw-Hill picking up the rights to the book in 2009. Outside of this blog, the book has been the #1 driver of success for both myself and with the organizations I'm involved.

With that in mind, I wanted to know what Steve's book has done for him, both personally and for Eloqua. Steve was nice enough to share his time and answer my questions below. After you read through this, you, as a professional and a stakeholder in your company, should think seriously about writing a book that positions you as a trusted expert in your field.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Just talked to Steve who said he'd be happy to give away a copy of his book to our readers. Anyone who comments is automatically entered in a drawing to receive a free copy. So...comment away. Thanks Steve!

Joe - What was the purpose behind writing the book?

Steve - We’ve been working with marketers for 10 years to understand how they are interacting with today’s new buyer. These marketers have all realized that today’s buyers have fundamentally changed; they use Google, various online sources, and social media to find their information, rather than interacting with a sales person. As a marketer, they are looking at how to engage with this new buyer and facilitate their overall buying process, rather than trying to sell to them. As we’ve helped these marketers, we’ve had a great opportunity to dig deep into what it takes to be successful, and the mistakes you can easily avoid as you evolve your marketing organization. Every time we spoke with our customers, they were very interested in the lessons of what pitfalls to avoid, what is critical to think through, and how to succeed in today’s B2B marketing environment.

As the space has evolved, there have been a lot of new companies springing up who are suggesting that it’s a problem that can be solved with technology alone. Today’s marketers know that engaging with today’s new buyer requires a new way of thinking about their business, not just another flashy piece of software. So many marketers were asking us to help them think through the business problems, rather than just the technology, that we knew we had a story that needed to be told.

Why a custom print book over something else?

I think there’s still something about the format of a book. Regardless of whether it’s a physical book, or on Kindle (we did both), the length of the format lets you dig into an area more deeply than you would if you were reading a one or two page article online. We wanted to give marketers something that they could take on the plane, relax, and make their way through, getting immersed in the topic for a few hours. I’ve had many marketers tell me that that was exactly how they read the book, and when they landed, they had a host of new ideas to take back to their teams and get started on.

I think each format has its own unique characteristics, and they work best when they are used together.

Talk a bit about the process for getting the book written and produced.

That was an interesting process. I would say that it took about a year, start to finish, to do the writing of the book. I still had a day job, so much of that was on planes. A trip from Toronto to San Francisco gave me at least 3 hours of uninterrupted writing time, for example. However, I also wanted to share the stories of how various marketers were tackling the challenges of engaging with today’s buyer, and where they were succeeding. To do that, I had the marketers behind 30 of the most fascinating marketing challenges tell their story, and included those in the book.

The interview, editing, revision, and approval process for those 30 stories took almost as long as the writing itself, but was probably the most interesting for me, as I had the chance to talk with some of the best marketers around.

Interestingly, I found out that you only need cover art and an ISBN number to get your book up on Amazon. We had it live for pre-order at least 6 months before the books were ready.

Start to finish, it was about 18 months to complete the book. I outlined a rough time line in a blog post I wrote when the first copies arrived, for those considering the process.

How do you balance the need for not being “promotional” in a book with the need to drive business?

It’s a good question. I wanted to make sure that we didn’t talk at all about our technology or solutions in the book so as not to be promotional. However, in educating the market about what’s possible, how to think about the challenges and opportunities, and what is critical for success, the book has been a big driver of business for us. I would say that it helps in three ways:

Early Stage: as marketers are thinking about their plans and initiatives, having them aware of what’s possible in the space, and how they can engage with today’s buyers better and more effectively leads to a higher level of interest in our space in general.
Mid-Funnel: each story in the book gives readers an idea of what’s possible. Some of those stories trigger an “aha” moment, and lead to a conversation about a way we can help that marketer’s business that may not have been thought of previously.
Buying Stage: the book gives marketers a more comprehensive view of all the people, process, and technology elements that are needed to succeed. Armed with this, they are better able to ask deep questions and get beyond the “pretty demo” phase when they are evaluating solutions.

So, although the book itself is not promotional at all, it definitely helps us in all aspects of the sales cycle. The more educated potential buyers are about our space in general, what’s possible, and how to truly achieve success, the better we do.

Once you have a book created, how do you best leverage that marketing asset? How do you get the word out about a book?

It’s a great asset to leverage, and we are using almost every channel to leverage it. The Digital Body Language blog talks about many of the ideas in the book and both drives awareness and keeps the conversation going. We use everything from Twitter and email marketing to press releases and banners to drive awareness of the blog as a central point in promoting the book. Similarly, the book provides a great foundation for webinars with other thought leaders in the industry, relations with social media luminaries like yourself, speaking opportunities, and direct client engagement.

So, what kind of results are you seeing because of the book?

The results have been fantastic so far, and we’re just getting started. It’s the stories that really help; we’ve had so many examples of people we were talking with who read an example and said it was exactly what they wanted to do. That led to a great conversation about their business and how we would make them successful. However, the real indicator of success was when they went out into the market and did their research into alternative solutions. When they came back to us saying that they had seen a variety of pretty demos, but were now able to ask the hard questions about how their business would get to success, I knew we had succeeded with the book.

Would you do anything different?

Like any first experience it’s a learning experience. I think that if I did it again, I would start the conversations in social media well before the book launches. We started the Digital Body Language blog at around the same time as the book launched, which meant that it was still building momentum well after the book was out. Starting the social media conversation around the topics in a book well before the book launches allows you to build buzz and momentum prior to the launch.

How about a second book?

Definitely something under consideration… There has been a great response to a lot of the topics I’ve covered on the Digital Body Language blog that were somewhat outside of the book’s main topic. Not sure of exactly what the book would look like or when, but it’s definitely something I’ve been thinking about very seriously.

Related Article:

10 Keys to Writing a Book when You Have Absolutely No Time to Write a Book

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Pam EMAIL: pam@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: DATE: 05/27/2009 11:12:00 AM Joe, thanks for this post. I had not heard of this book and we are always looking for a way to get into the marketers head to see what their issues and concerns are. Thirty examples in one place looks like a great resource to me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 128.107.239.233 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 05/27/2009 02:25:45 PM Joe: Great interview with Steve! Understanding buyer's signals and communicating with them is 50% art and 50% science. Steve's article over at http://www.sandhill.com/opinion/editorial_print.php?id=239 got me interested in the Digital Body Language book. Thanx for the book recommendation. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jimmy Talcott EMAIL: jim@i23.biz IP: 71.250.133.167 URL: http://jimmytalcott.com DATE: 05/27/2009 07:55:35 PM Well. This has been a great experience for me as a brand new internet marketer. I mean, I am really on top of the web and have been since 97, but I never "got" marketing online. Hence why I have been busy designing websites instead of getting filthy rich. I would just like to commend you on the presentation and concept behind what you are doing. The way it is positioned is flawless and I got sucked in bouncing around several sites checking everything out... and now this! A chance at getting this amazing book for free! A perfect piece to the puzzle, resulting in further engagement with me, the visitor, and cultivating this exciting conversation through my participation. The level of motivation is high.. so it worked.. I hope I win.. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michele Linn EMAIL: michele@linncommunications.com IP: 69.14.164.27 URL: http://savvyb2bmarketing.com/blog DATE: 05/27/2009 09:48:40 PM Joe: Excellent interview. I'm a fan of both your and Steve's blogs, and both of your books are on my soon-to-read list. Although I don't have plans to write a book - yet - the tips are really useful and something I'll come back to. Thanks for the great read! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joyce Foster EMAIL: joyfos@astutesolutions.com IP: 66.162.185.211 URL: http://www.astutesolutions.com DATE: 05/29/2009 09:15:17 AM Thanks for the post, it's great. I hadn't heard of this book, but definately want to read it. I've been in marketing for 15 years and honestly everything I do today is different than traditional marketing, it's been interesting to observe the impact of the Internet and social media channels on marketing and advertising. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ken EMAIL: ken.foster@rsmi.com IP: 66.98.99.155 URL: DATE: 05/29/2009 09:27:03 AM Joe - Thanks for the info and I'll be sure to pick up a copy of this book. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Barb Sawyers EMAIL: barb@barbsawyers.ca IP: 69.159.194.244 URL: http://barbsawyers.wordpress.com DATE: 05/29/2009 09:51:24 AM I really appreciated the practical and honest advice. I'm working on a book to help people write more effectively. I've read too much about banging one out in a weekend or 90 days. Quality takes time. Did you publish drafts on your blog to get feedback or just save everything for the book? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steven Woods EMAIL: steven.woods@eloqua.com IP: 204.244.25.242 URL: http://digitalbodylanguage.blogspot.com DATE: 05/29/2009 11:02:51 AM Barb, It's a great question - I definiely should have published drafts on my blog, or topical articles, in advance for feedback. Unfortunately I didn't start the blog until nearly launch time of the book. If there was anything I would do slightly differently, it would be to start the social media and blog efforts in advance of the launch. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stephanie Tilton EMAIL: stilton@tentonmarketing.com IP: 96.237.60.71 URL: http://www.savvyb2bmarketing.com DATE: 05/31/2009 07:46:25 PM Joe and Steve, Thanks for sharing these insights. It's helpful to see practical tips on how to write a book. I'm curious to know if any of Eloqua's customers have decided to write a book after witnessing Eloqua's jump into custom publishing. Joe - I love "Get Content. Get Customers." And Steve, I've been devouring the ideas and research findings in the Digital Body Language blog and Eloqua webcasts. Your book is next up on my reading list. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 97.47.180.245 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/01/2009 07:15:20 AM Thanks Stephanie. Really appreciate the kind words. From my perspective, I talked to two people last week who attended one of my speeches that is starting to work on their corporate book. I think you'll start to see more of this happen. Best Joe ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rory Gold EMAIL: rory@rorygold.com IP: 190.7.197.250 URL: http://rorygold.com DATE: 06/06/2009 03:47:12 PM I'm new to this but I'm reading tonnes of blogs and really there is a lot of great information but nothing as indepth as what you're laying out here. Stay Gold Rory Gold ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Letting Your Customers Tell Your Story - Nxtbook Map STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: letting-your-customers-tell-your-story-nxtbook-map CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: digital magazines DATE: 05/21/2009 08:15:18 AM ----- BODY:

When possible, showing how your customers use your product is always the best option. It's also challenging.

Digital publishing provider Nxtbook Media found a way to do just that - with a little help from Zappos.

Showing that customers read digital magazines is not easy. You can't take a picture of them (yet). Sure, you have a lot of great statistics, but it's tough to bring those statistics to life.

Enter Nxtbook Map. Nxtbook Map shows in real-time around the world who's reading a Nxtbook digital magazine. According to Nxtbook's marketing guru Marcus Grimm (@marcusgrimm), someone opens a Nxtbook every two seconds. With Nxtbook Map, you can see this in real time. Truly powerful stuff.

And for the Zappos connection. The idea for Nxtbook Map was taken from Zappos' Map, where you can see people are buying shoes from Zappos in real-time around the United States.

So often we focus on creating content that doesn't already exist. While that's important, we also need to look at leveraging the content we already have.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Kodak: Why Content Strategy Is the Key to Marketing STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: kodak-why-content-strategy-is-the-key-to-marketing CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 05/19/2009 09:14:02 AM ----- BODY:

I had the pleasure of meeting Tom Hoehn from Kodak at Online Marketing Summit - DC last week. Tom has a really cool job at Kodak, where he is director of brand communications and convergence media.

After my presentation on the Keys to Social Media, Tom and I got to chatting and we realized that we focus on many of the same things, the most important being the creation and distribution of valuable, relevant and compelling content as a core part of marketing. Tom was nice enough to participate in this Q&A about Kodak's content strategy. There's some gold nuggets in here...enjoy! Thanks Tom!

Joe: Does Kodak have a content strategy that's a part of their overall marketing strategy? If so, how do you integrate it into the plans?

Tom: Yes, our content strategy is two pronged. First, we focus on content creation that showcases our products in use. We have a long history of doing this. Our Tips and Projects Center is the best example.
It is chock full of examples, projects, tips, and inspirational photo essays. The second part of this strategy is about distribution. We use the content in a number of different permutations and distribute through our various channels based on seasonality, promotions, etc. Channels include our website, blogs, partners sites, social media, e-mail tips, etc. You can see our social media presence at http://www.kodak.com/go/followus.

Joe: When you hear the phrase "content marketing", does it mean anything to you?

Tom: It means everything to me! Seriously, we love how people use the products we make to tell the stories of their lives. It is great to work in a category that enables people's self expression. Giving voice to those stories and inspiring others is what it is all about.

Joe: What does Kodak call the process of delivering consistent, educational and entertaining information to customers?

Tom: Our job. It is an expectation of our customers that we walk the walk and talk the talk and have quality content. We make sure that we leverage Kodak's businesses and sponsorship for content at every turn. It is in our DNA.

Some examples include:

Doing red carpet interviews along side other media outlets during the recent Celebrity Apprentice finale that included Kodak
Activating on numerous fronts during last summer's Olympic Games in Beijing.
Showcasing our presence in golf with the start of the Kodak Challenge, which includes a fantasy game that will launch next week.
Making your Inauguration moment more memorable by combining professional content with personal content.
Featuring beautiful images on our homepage. Each week we connect the photos to a blog post that contains information about them. This week we are featuring photos in conjunction with the Cannes Film Festival. When we are not featuring photos from events or special occasions we use photos submitted by our visitors. Take a look at the previous selections at the blog posts dedicated to these stunning homepage photos.

So there you have it, we are nuts about content! ;-)

Joe: How do you take customer education to the next level to drive increased loyalty and sales?

Tom: The next level? In my mind it isn't always about what we think people want to learn. Amplifying the voice of the millions of people who take pictures, do cool things with them, and share with others is the big opportunity for us. People take 70 million pictures every day with Kodak cameras. Yes, you read that right. Don't you think that is quite an incredible wealth of source material that can be tapped?

Joe: Kodak has been in the middle of social media for a while now. What's worked really well? What are you no so sure about? What hasn't worked?

Tom: Our blogs, starting with A Thousand Words, have been active since September 2006. That is ancient history in the social media space - in terms of large companies blogging it is positively prehistoric! The stories and photos we have shared from everyday Kodak people have been acclaimed by many. We get kudos for recognizing the space and how to use it. We are adding value to the conversations that are occurring. We are not shoving marketing messages at people. That doesn't work and we knew that from the outset.

Our distributed publishing model has worked really well for us. We decided not to have a few dedicated Kodak rockstar bloggers and opted to have many employees contribute. It helps to spread the work. I am happy to say we have published every business day since our launch - that is no small feat. A wise person by the name of Joe Pulizzi ;-) mentioned that "Frequency" is an important aspect of blogging. It looks like we embraced that from the get go. Every post contains a few photos (of course), most have more. One post I did actually had over 200 clickable thumbnails (but that is a story for another day).

A benefit we saw that was unexpected was the employee pride in contribution. They loved the fact that anyone could contribute their stories and were proud to share with family, friends, and their networks.

Joe: How is Kodak promoting the use of social media within the company? Do you have set guidelines?

Tom: We have a simple social media policy that was crafted with input from marketing, legal, our IT group, and corporate security. It contains very sound and practical advice and isn't overly restrictive. We promote the use of social media channels to product marketing groups and adoption rates vary. I find that people are eager to learn and we are happy to share our experiences.

Joe: What's the next great frontier regarding online content? (is there one?)

Tom: It is the power of you. Instead of everyone being famous for 15 minutes perhaps we will be famous to 15 people. Telling your story requires content. Text, photos (yes!), videos (naturally!). What stories are you telling to your network?

Joe: How about print? Do you do any print magazines/newsletters for BtoC or BtoB? Wondering what your take is on the distribution of print content?

Tom: Yes, we do print and make products that support print. Did you know Kodak has commercial businesses that are in the printing and packaging industries? It is a multi-billion dollar per year category for us. That being said, we use print for B2B publications for our Entertainment Imaging (motion picture)
and Graphic Communications (printing) businesses. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that print also extends to personal needs. Are your precious memories locked on a hard drive somewhere? I hope not!

I hope you found this Q&A helpful.Thanks Joe for inviting me.
Leave a comment I would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks, tom @tomhoehn on Twitter

Relevant Articles:

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: MarkThink EMAIL: msimmons@sixapart.com IP: 204.9.177.10 URL: http://markthink.typepad.com DATE: 05/19/2009 01:31:41 PM Thanks, Joe. Great article. Kodak's blogs and social media campaigns are perfect for their brand. I'd love to see them take the design of their blogs to the next level -- bigger pictures, more slideshows, etc. Thanks for sharing the interview. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Chrille Hillorn EMAIL: hillorn@yahoo.se IP: 213.115.50.94 URL: http://www.twitter.com/hillorn DATE: 05/21/2009 08:17:41 AM Great article Joe, keep up the good work! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Edward Izzys EMAIL: edwardizzys@gmail.com IP: 59.162.215.44 URL: http://www.seotrafficspider.com DATE: 06/12/2009 02:21:16 PM Interesting! I feel like there is a scarcity of good marketing today. Good marketing means which can convert the leads into sales. The only marketing that has moved me in the last couple of years is Search Engine Optimization. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Gentlerain Marketing EMAIL: vtps001@gmail.com IP: 59.90.247.70 URL: http://www.gentlerainmarketing.com DATE: 06/27/2009 03:25:26 AM You people are sharing great information.. This information is useful to all internet marketers!!! Content is called as king of websites. Spider scrawling the sites based on the content of web site... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: katrina morgan EMAIL: crazylover2111@yahoo.com IP: 98.178.151.10 URL: DATE: 07/02/2009 03:23:22 PM hi my name is katrina i am currantly a student at community care college i have been given an assignment to do a presentation on marketing and my my partner and i coose your company is ther any way you could give me some pointers on how do this ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Internet Marketing EMAIL: fpjpssns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.146.54 URL: http://www.jeffpaulsuccessstories.com DATE: 10/26/2009 11:26:08 PM Nice Article..Marketing strategy used to increase the sales in business.Customer satisfaction is the main goal of marketing strategy.Marketing strategies may differ depending on the unique situation of the individual business. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: fathers day EMAIL: kimtaylor22@gmail.com IP: 122.169.29.182 URL: http://www.zoombits.co.uk/gifts-and-gadgets DATE: 10/27/2009 02:52:54 AM I just love to see a company that isn't tool-centric and that has a strategy that makes sense to them. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Blogging for Internet Marketers EMAIL: samsingh78@ymail.com IP: 122.169.66.113 URL: http://the-professional-blogger.blogspot.com/2010/04/issues-for-internet-marketer-to-survive.html DATE: 04/29/2010 06:54:33 PM incredibly informative post. Among 1 in the ideal ever examine. All I can say is blogging can be an artwork and you happen to be an artist. Perfectly,If writing is surely an fine fine art, then, running a blog and site-building is a single way of using phrases to can come up with an art. This could be caused by the truth persons who're into running a weblog would be the types who're artistic on their exclusive sense, cautiously choosing phrases that would most efficient describe their feelings, sentiments, wishes, desires, and everything. Sam singh ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Richard Sheffield EMAIL: sheff@mindspring.coim IP: 97.80.168.161 URL: http://www.contentstrategyweblog.com DATE: 07/24/2010 02:07:06 PM Great to meet you recently in Atlanta. This idea of content marketing vs. content strategy is an interesting sell to big corps. I'm going through some of the same struggles here at my company but I think we are making progress. Thanks again for the talk. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.109.182 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 07/25/2010 02:05:53 PM Thanks Richard...yes, definitely great to chat. I think it's going to be a very interesting next couple years. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shaqir Hussyin EMAIL: shaqirhussyin@yahoo.co.uk IP: 66.41.155.192 URL: http://CarbonCopyPROMarketing.info/?t=ExpertSB DATE: 07/25/2010 09:29:27 PM Great and informative article about how big companies, like Kodak, deal with content strategy with their marketing programs. Thanks for the post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: James Anderson EMAIL: fridge2305@yahoo.ca IP: 96.53.208.24 URL: http://www.professorofprofit.com/1/ DATE: 07/26/2010 09:16:56 PM Hi Richard, Thanks for the article. I am trying to do what Kodak is doing but on a more personal level. In my site I am trying to teach this type of use of content in such a way that they are not just trying to sell something, but rather form a relationship. Thanks again, J Anderson www.professorofprofit.com/1/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Darrin EMAIL: darrin.chappell@gmail.com IP: 75.106.27.24 URL: http://perpetual-traffic-formula-information.com DATE: 07/29/2010 12:17:30 PM Nice article Joe, I have always enjoyed Kodak's campaigns, I think that it always brings up memories of times past and brings up a very good point... they are doing something right. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andre Nilsen EMAIL: digitalteam@gmail.com IP: 84.0.200.231 URL: http://www.qualitynetworkers.com DATE: 07/30/2010 03:15:08 PM Hi Joe. Content is very important, but there are 2 other factors that Google now (2010) emphasize a lot as well, and that is: - Backlinks - Activity on your site Get these 3 elements in place and you'll be fine ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Internet Marketing with Liz EMAIL: admin@lizebiz.com IP: 213.172.34.198 URL: http://internetmarketingwithliz.com DATE: 08/02/2010 11:05:43 AM I think that the most important thing is to balance content for search engines with content for humans. I've seen some sites lately that are nothing but strings of keywords or spun articles which make no sense at all. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brent EMAIL: brent@biginternetmarketingtools.com IP: 206.255.97.37 URL: http://www.biginternetmarketingtools.com DATE: 08/05/2010 12:39:12 AM Excellent article. Kodak has always been a leader. I agree with Andre, content, back links & site activity will take you where you want to go. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jessa Ridell EMAIL: jessacabaleshandang2005@yahoo.com.ph IP: 121.1.53.46 URL: http://www.website-seo-reports.com DATE: 08/05/2010 09:39:37 AM Amazing how Kodak made it's way to the top and sharing their best ideas regarding their marketing stategy. Like the "content Strategy" that's been growing as a practice within the industry of web development since 20 years ago. Until now it still draws interest to online-business minded people. Aside from content management which means "everything" to some content strategist, others wanted to get the correct SEO, which is "most valuable" to them and get higher ranked in search engines. Given so much time and depth study I've created a SEO analysis report which you can enjoy the first report for free. Anytime, Anywhere and Anyone can order on their webpage at http://www.website-seo-reports.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dirk Marine EMAIL: info@seolinkvineproductreview.com IP: 98.202.167.254 URL: http://www.seolinkvineproductreview.com/link DATE: 08/14/2010 09:33:13 AM As a recently layed off worker, I have time (after looking for work) to really get involved with content marketing. The information provided here really opens up resources to take it to the next level. I've written an article that is available to anyone interested in SEO ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Peter Dunin EMAIL: peter@mail.com IP: 212.183.140.22 URL: http://www.sixfigurerenegade.com DATE: 09/27/2010 10:10:47 AM really interesting and informative post,thanks for sharing. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Thoughts About Online Marketing: The Week in Review STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-thoughts-about-online-marketing-the-week-in-review CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: online content marketing DATE: 05/14/2009 10:22:23 PM ----- BODY:

I was on the road again this week (this time DC) for two presentations (Speakerbox and Online Marketing Summit) on content marketing and social media, one MENG webinar (from Reagan National airport) and what seemed like dozens of meetings. While on the plane trip home, I jotted down some things I learned about, discussed with others, or thought about along the way. Thought you would enjoy.

Analytics - The three most important areas to continuously monitor for content improvement are the bounce rate (exit rate after just one page), most popular/least popular content pages, and top referring sites (where your customers are coming from). What else?
Looking for good eBook examples. David Meerman Scott's blog, right hand side bar.
As I discussed Twitter with practically everyone, it seems the lastest Twitter tool that is catching on is HootSuite. It allows you to manage multiple Twitter accounts. Looking forward to diving in.
More and more people are starting to understand content marketing as I travel the country. It's the buzz word for 2009 as far as I can tell...and I'm not sure if that's good or bad. I may have to start talking about something new.
Online Marketing Summit has flat-out the most approachable marketing attendees on the planet. Everyone is smart, helpful, outgoing and willing to learn. Kudos to Aaron Kahlow and team.
Over the last three weeks I've given seven presentations. Here's some interesting stats from the combined audiences (marketers and publishers). % of people that have made a buying decision using the following over the last three to six months. Yellow Pages (5%), Direct Mail (10%), Print Advertising (5%), Search Engines (90%). I heard David Scott ask these questions during a speech and I've been using them ever since. Thanks David.
More stats on social media usage - 40% are using Twitter, but only half of those people are actively using it. About 95% are on Facebook. Last year at the same time, that number was about 20%. Amazing adoption of Facebook. Next year at this time, I expect that almost everyone will have a Twitter account like it or not.
The best way to get more speaking opportunities is to give more speeches (I know, obvious right?). Last two days I've done three presentations and have six offers for additional speaking opportunities. Very cool.
I read the best article ever about travel tips this week from Peter Shankman. Great blog...always helpful and interesting.
Writing one blog is hard. Making time for another is a bit easier, but still takes time. Launched a new blog targeted at content providers this week. Check it out. The Junta42 blog is a TypePad blog. The CustomPublishers.com blog uses the WordPress Thesis theme, which I found from reading Brian Clark. So far, I like what it can do.

And last but not least...after talking about Blendtec religiously for the past two days, I end my day at Reagan National waiting for my to-go Omelet Sandwich before I get on the plane, and this was in front of me.

What did you learn this week?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Susan Friedmann EMAIL: susan@richesinniches.com IP: 74.71.249.227 URL: http://www.richesinniches.com DATE: 05/15/2009 09:45:46 AM Joe, you're awesome and have such a great way of giving a succinct summary of the online marketing world. Really appreciate your contribution. I totally concur that OMS is the best program out there. I'm telling everyone who wants to learn about online marketing that it's a "must attend" event. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/15/2009 12:00:14 PM Susan...you're too kind. Well, after all, we met at OMS!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rick Liebling EMAIL: rickliebling@gmail.com IP: 38.100.167.2 URL: http://www.eyecube.wordpress.com DATE: 05/18/2009 10:17:25 AM Hootsuite, from the little I've played with it, is very useful. Content Marketing is hot Joe. I find myself thinking about it a lot and am starting to discuss it with my colleagues. I'm a big believer in content as a tool and think the time is now to leverage this. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karl Kleinbach EMAIL: kkleinbach@acom.com IP: 66.102.140.79 URL: http://www.acom.com DATE: 05/22/2009 04:56:52 PM Been to OMS 3 times, lots new to learn every time. New speakers and new topics in a great format, OMS truly rocks! No doubt Content Mktg here to stay, still not bought completely into Twitter. IMO better suited for B2C and niche B2B, but not general B2B. To quote Monk, I could be wrong, but I don't think so. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Last Day to Save on Social Media Success Summit 2009... STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: last-day-to-save-on-social-media-success-summit-2009 CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 05/13/2009 11:30:25 PM ----- BODY:

Wanted to send out this final reminder on the early bird savings for Social Media Success Summit 2009. If you are interesting in the best of social media learning, today's the day!

Social Media Success Summit 2009 is the first major online event dedicated to helping businesses succeed with social media marketing. OVER 500 of your peers have already signed up.

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Presenters include bestselling authors and social media marketing experts such as Gary Vaynerchuk (Wine Library TV), Darren Rowse (Problogger), Mari Smith (Facebook guru), Jason Alba (wrote the book on LinkedIn), Ann Handley (MarketingProfs), Brian Clark (Copyblogger), Chris Garrett (Authority Blogger) and Denise Wakeman (BlogSquad).

Here are some of the sessions:

* How to Create a Mega-Following and Mega-Sales With Social Media Marketing
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* How to Productively Engage in Social Media Marketing
* Five Reasons You Need to Be on Twitter (and Tools to Help You Manage)
* Social Media Start Up: 3 Key Tools to Build Your Social Media Marketing Plan
* How to Attract Tens of Thousands of People in Mere Days
* Using Social Bookmarking for Improved Traffic, Links and Visibility

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: If You Are a Marketer, Watch this Video of Gary Vaynerchuk STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: if-you-are-a-marketer-watch-this-video-of-gary-vaynerchuk CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 05/08/2009 01:51:59 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks Gary Vaynerchuk. In a few years this will be the norm, but right now most companies still don't get it. See more of Gary at this exclusive social media event.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dr Wright EMAIL: info@Wrightplacetv.com IP: 75.25.3.191 URL: http://www.wrightplacetv.com DATE: 05/13/2009 06:39:09 AM Most large companies have so many things in place that do not allow them to use a flip cam without approval. Many online businesses are using press releases online to drive people to their site, so they do not care about your points. However, I completely agree with you. Dr. Letitia Wright The Wright Place TV Show http://wrightplacetv.com www.twitter.com/drwright1 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ContentKeith EMAIL: keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com IP: 76.209.226.115 URL: DATE: 05/15/2009 10:04:01 PM Gary (via Joe): right on! I particularly appreciate the analogies to communication within a relationship and even a marriage -- if we are holistically aware of our partners (customers) and their corresponding needs, we should be more than able to anticipate potential bumps in the road. Proactive communication is rooted in solid communication strategy: understand your audience and 'proact' (not react)! ContentKeith Nutlug Content Marketing keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jay Lee EMAIL: jay@interad.com IP: 58.230.160.46 URL: http://www.adkorea.com DATE: 05/19/2009 04:13:17 AM Very Useful video! I appreciate your valuable posting. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Racheal Mack EMAIL: imarketconsulting@gmail.com IP: 70.134.70.145 URL: http://www.imarketconsulting.com DATE: 06/03/2009 01:50:38 AM I agree with you 100% Racheal Mack www.imarketconsulting.com imarketconsulting@gmail.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mayur Jobanputra EMAIL: mayur@fullmotiongroup.com IP: 24.80.114.92 URL: http://www.mayurj.com DATE: 10/20/2009 09:25:27 AM Thanks for this video! I got into a whole bunch of Gary's videos. He is awesome! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Steps to Personal Branding Success STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-steps-to-personal-branding-success DATE: 05/08/2009 07:14:33 AM ----- BODY:

I was invited by the great teams at Advancement and DATAForge to talk about personal branding success and wanted to share the presentation.

There are some excellent personal branding specialists that I follow (thanks Dan Schawbel), but the presentation below was based mostly on what I feel has made me successful.

What I emphasized to the group was that you don't have to do all ten steps to be successful. The most important part is that you pick the steps you can commit to and consistently execute those steps.

10 Steps to Personal Branding

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

10 Steps to Personal Branding Success

Update Your Online Profiles Now. LinkedIn, Facebook, and your Google profile are the most important. If you don't have it already, buy your domain name. As a standard practice, all business cards you collect should be sent invitiations via LinkedIn. Finally, hire a professional to take your picture.
Start a Blog/Get Involved in the Conversation. I use Wordpress and TypePad for my blogs, and you can be up and running with either in a short period of time. Follow and comment on the top 10 - 20 blogs where your customers are hanging out. Answer questions on LinkedIn Answers and Yahoo! Answers. Follow your name, brands and keywords at Google Alerts. Find and get active in a Google Group that makes sense.
Write a Book. Okay, this is a tough one. If a book is out of the question, start with an eBook. If you can do it though, start here (writing a book when you have no time to write a book).
Create and Distribute Content of Interest to Your Customers. Develop a permission-based newsletter and consistent white papers/ebooks that will help your target group and position you as the industry expert. Share presentations on Slideshare. Use Twitter to distribute helpful information in your expertise area (here are eight Twitter steps to follow). Give away the "secret sauce".
Write for Everyone (no matter how small). Yes, it's great writing for media sites such as AdWeek or Chief Marketer, but if you are asked to write for someone...anyone, do it. Even the smallest blog site can influence someone that you may not have had an opportunity to reach.
Pick 2-3 Key Associations and Get Active. Once you do, always go to cocktail receptions, get on the committees/boards, and don't commit to anything unless you can do it well.
Speak, Speak, Speak. Once you start doing the first six points, you'll start getting asked to speak at events. Remember, sometimes small, intimate events can spread your content farther than large events (so don't dismiss them).
Always Be Helpful (even if you feel like you are wasting your time). You will start to get many people coming to ask you for help and advice. That's great! Sometimes you can't help everyone yourself, but you can point them in the right direction. Follow up with everyone.
Pay Attention to Google. You are who Google says you are. If you can't be found in Google either at all or for the right things, you won't be found. It's that simple.
Get Behind a Charity/Cause. Hopefully, you are already doing this, but building your personal brand has to be about more than just you. Pick one charity to get behind and make something happen for the better.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: yinka olaito EMAIL: yinka@yinkaolaito.com IP: 83.229.92.14 URL: http://www.yinkaolaito.com DATE: 05/08/2009 07:51:04 AM Great thoughts and thanks for being original. That is the best anyone can be. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: @CreativeFusion (Anne) EMAIL: creativefusion@hotmail.com IP: 66.212.182.253 URL: http://www.morethanprofit.ca DATE: 05/08/2009 08:16:19 AM Great post Joe. I know from experience that you practice what you preach. You have always gotten back to me quickly when I've sent you a question. Haven't quite figured out how you keep up! Also good to be promoting social cause involvement. Just read in Zoomer magazine from Rudyard Griffiths book Who we are: A Citizen's Manifesto that 10% of Canadians are responsible for 80% off annual volunteer hours. (You never know--the life you change could be your own!) Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/08/2009 09:00:50 AM Thanks Anne...great point about the volunteer hours. Just doing something can make all the difference in the world...you just don't realize the possibilities until after you do it. Cheers ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rod Claar EMAIL: rodclaar@effectiveagiledev.com IP: 173.10.91.198 URL: http://www.effectiveagiledev.com DATE: 05/08/2009 10:40:53 AM Thanks Joe. I think everyone should do some of these in today's economy. If you job is not 100% secure for as long as you will want it, you need to keep your online profiles up to date, write a blog, be helpful and volunteer. Rod Claar http://rod-claar.net http://www.EffectiveAgileDev.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ambal Balakrishnan EMAIL: ambal_d2d@yahoo.com IP: 12.5.186.27 URL: http://clickdocuments.com DATE: 05/08/2009 02:17:09 PM Joe - Awesome List! Thanx for collecting so many great ideas in one place! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mike D. Merrill EMAIL: mike@mikemerrill.com IP: 173.57.49.215 URL: http://www.mikemerrill.com DATE: 05/08/2009 04:54:34 PM Great List Joe. Enjoyed the presentation and blog post. Mike D. Merrill Twitter @mikedmerrill blog http://www.mikemerrill.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Authority Networker EMAIL: dearnicholasklein@gmail.com IP: 124.106.46.94 URL: http://authoritynetworker.org/attraction-marketing-formula DATE: 05/08/2009 07:22:28 PM Making yourself an indispensable source of information can establish your credibility, reputation and identity as an authority networker. The more helpful and valuable your information is the greater the chance those customers will purchase from you. This is the concept behind attraction marketing, a new internet network marketing lead generation tactic where you develop ongoing relationships with clients and become a person of value by educating them first and then moving them along the buying path in your communications. These clients will also bring in more business for you via referrals. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jay Ehret EMAIL: jay@themarketingspot.com IP: 24.162.143.211 URL: http://themarketingspot.blogspot.com/2009/05/be-interesting-you.html DATE: 05/09/2009 02:35:00 PM Joe, if I could add one to your list of 10, I would expand on slide #9. Don't just be unique, be interesting. When your brand is on display, it should be the interesting part of your personality. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/11/2009 08:27:55 AM Great point Jay. Well said. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ardath Albee EMAIL: ardath@marketinginteractions.com IP: 98.149.229.198 URL: http://marketinginteractions.typepad.com DATE: 05/12/2009 10:36:54 AM Joe, Thanks for sharing this list. And for practicing what you share so well. My favorite - Lethal Generosity! That pretty much says it. Ardath ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dr Wright EMAIL: info@wrightplacetv.com IP: 75.25.3.191 URL: http://www.wrightplacetv.com DATE: 05/13/2009 06:49:45 AM Getting behind one charity or cause is a great branding op. People need to tell the story and reason behind the charity they are working for or with. Sometimes it has natural synergy, sometimes it is a personal thing. If a you tell the story it will enhance your brand. Dr. Letitia Wright The Wright Place TV Show http://wrightplacetv.com www.twitter.com/drwright1 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julie Cottineau EMAIL: Julie@BrandTwist.com IP: 68.198.141.25 URL: http://www.BrandTwist.blogspot.com DATE: 05/16/2009 08:05:00 AM This is so perfect and timely. I am working on this right now. I've been thinking (and doing) most of these things but it's so helpful to see it in one place. Just launched my blog on innovation and branding. (step 2) www.BrandTwist.blogspot.com Thanks! Julie ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/16/2009 10:10:23 PM Great start Julie. The blog looks fantastic. Keep me posted. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Prepare the Way: We will all be media companies STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: prepare-the-way-we-will-all-be-media-companies CATEGORY: business-to-business CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 05/06/2009 12:40:21 PM ----- BODY:

Sat in on a great panel yesterday with Amanda Watlington (Searching for Profit), Christina Howe (Avid) and Rebecca Lieb (eConsultancy) discussing what the world's leading brands are doing.

The discussion was all about content (loved it!).

One attendee asked this question to the panel. "Right now social media is hot, but what is the next big thing we should keep our eyes on?"

I was the first to answer, and this immediately came to mind, and it will happen (is happening).

Over the next few years (not sure exactly when), we won't be able to tell the difference between media companies (publishers) and companies that off non-informational products and services.

Look at it this way. Advertising and traditional marketing is becoming less and less effective. Engagement is fostered today by delivering consistent, relevant, compelling content to our customers (like P&G) - or - showing them a good time (like Blendtec) [for more on that, check out this custom content post about UPS]. That content creation is the fodder for getting involved in the online conversation and positioning your brand as a trusted solutions provider.

At the same time, media companies that have developed great brands and loyal audiences around delivering content are having trouble selling advertising. They all know that traditional advertising (even online display in some cases) is not going to bounce back. So, they are looking at developing products their readers can buy like data products, online software tools (i.e., Smartools from MarketingProfs), and actual manufactured products ala what Martha Stewart has done.

Whether you are a brand that offers products and services or a brand that offers information as the product, this completely changes your business model.

This is coming, and soon. Actually, it may even be here but we haven't noticed yet.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steve Seager EMAIL: steve.seager@gmail.com IP: 94.210.41.25 URL: DATE: 05/06/2009 01:26:56 PM Genius point. It IS here, we have just been distracted by the 'shiny-ness' of new/social media :) Am working on this issue with European clients as we speak been. Good to know the innovation fuss over social media is dying down and we are getting to the crunch. We follow your blog, and are working like rabid hamsters to kick our clients' little butts to get them one step ahead of the game. Keep spreading the gospel man! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan Hutson EMAIL: dan@pokethebeehive.com IP: 64.47.116.130 URL: http://www.pokethebeehive.com DATE: 05/06/2009 04:03:28 PM Hi Joe. I think you've made a pretty compelling case in various posts for the idea that many companies (and perhaps other types of organizations) are on the road to becoming a new type of media company. In some ways it seems to mirror what happened with magazine publishers: A publisher with a niche title adds complementary titles to broaden (or deepen) the niche, then adds non-magazine product like conferences, books, custom publishing, etc. to develop ancillary sources of revenue that capitalize on the original brand and capabilities. Eventually you might even forget that first humble magazine title that got it all started. This seems to be similar but from another direction: Widget manufacturer builds a customer base that opens opportunities to add magazines, newsletters, books, conferences, etc. to the product mix, maybe achieving such success in these ancillary businesses that they get out of the original widget business that inspired it all. Who's to say that Starbucks will always sell coffee? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/07/2009 07:42:01 AM @ Steve...thanks for the kind words. Don't get me wrong, I love what social media can do, but without anything valuable to say, social media can't do much. @ Dan...right on. Actually, I've been watching what Zappos is doing with their brand right now. It looks like they are positing their brand around a certain "culture" of products, which pretty much opens them up to serving a certain kind of culture with any type of product. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: John Cass EMAIL: john.cass@idealaunch.com IP: 75.147.51.158 URL: http://www.idealaunch.com/blog DATE: 05/07/2009 11:17:38 AM Joe, I think you make a great point about the removal of clear lines between media companies and brand companies when it comes to publishing. What's interesting to me is that companies may be further ahead in using some of the available tools for monitoring and triage. If you look at some of the listening platform vendors (listening platform was coined by Forrester) you begin to notice that some of them are integrating their monitoring services with CRM. Customer relationship management is a bigger issue for brand companies. While journalists have not traditionally engaged the community individually companies have, but with other resources. I think it will be interesting to see how brand companies influence media companies. Those technologies are going to help both brand and media companies with content creation. This is what's exciting about content marketing, the goal and strategy of valuable content is driving engagement. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: dominique EMAIL: dominique.lahaix@ecairn.com IP: 67.188.127.178 URL: http://blog.ecairn.com DATE: 05/07/2009 12:31:09 PM Very good post ! I think the real big thing is when Workgroup within corporation will behave as Media companies. So far we're already experiencing this at brand/ corporate level and at individual level (with all the discussion around personal branding). Corporate groups used to do that for economy of scale and in a context of mass media. With the market transforming into communities the need for agility and customer focus offset the economy of scale one gain in centralized communication. Branding will therefore transform into providing training/education to workgroup on consistency. Individual behaving like media is OK for gurus (Scoble...) but won't scale. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Tim Lloyd EMAIL: timlloyd150@hotmail.com IP: 212.183.134.66 URL: http://www.linkedin.com/in/timlloyd1 DATE: 05/08/2009 09:26:03 AM This is an interesting post. Do you think that the new media aspect to all businesses will be handled exclusively in-house, or will media services continue to be outsourced? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/08/2009 10:07:45 AM Tim...great question. Here is what I think. Right now, you'll continue to see a mix of in-house resources and usage of ad agencies, pr firms, direct marketing firms, seo firms, custom publishers, traditional publishers and freelance journalists help them execute the media. Gradually, organizations will develop strong content proficiencies as part of their marketing department, which will lessen the need for large-scale outsourcing. Don't get me wrong, there will always be outsourcing, but it will be for different things since the marketing of tomorrow is all about engagement through content. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russell Sparkman EMAIL: russell@fusionspark.com IP: 66.165.9.53 URL: http://www.fusionspark.com DATE: 05/08/2009 11:44:52 AM Hi Joe, re: Organizations developing in-house content capabilities and proficiencies ... I understand the probability of this happening in large companies. But in "small businesses," which are a major backbone of the economy -- not to mention non-profits, government agencies, etc. -- I would imagine continued reliance upon outside agencies for content strategy and content development will prevail for the long term. I can't imagine some of our small business clients, for example, hiring content professionals to be on staff. But, maybe this is just the wishful thinking of a content provider! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/08/2009 11:50:00 AM Hi Russell...I agree with you, especially for small businesses. I think what I'm getting at is that the idea of content marketing just becomes plain old marketing. People will start to get it and understand the value of a content strategy. They will then have expert resources in house, ramp up or outsource. Don't worry, there will be plenty of opportunities. Large businesses, though, will need to act like media companies to really grow (IMO). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vince Giorgi EMAIL: vgiorgi@charter.net IP: 68.117.35.141 URL: http://www.touchpointcity.wordpress.com DATE: 05/09/2009 12:28:47 AM I agree, Joe, that once bright lines are blurring all over when it comes to media, marketing and ontent. A company that recognizes the power of great content to add value for a business-critical audience can essentially become a "media company" overnight. The same goes for individuals. But given a potentially boundless proliferation of media sources and content streams, I keep picturing (and pitying?) the poor consumer or business person. Already challenged to process a tsunami of news, information and inspiration coming at them. More coming at them each day. Maybe that's why I think the best media brands -- say, for example, the top trade magazines in their respective verticals -- are likely to survive and prosper long term. After all, there are only so many hours in the day. More and more, consumers of content might look to their favorite media brands as designated monitors and packagers of what's most useful. Certainly media companies will need to adapt. But they're in the catbird's seat to play that role of content aggregator and filter for an audience with which they have a relationship, and whose information needs they understand. In fact, maybe traditional media companies will begin to evolve their business models to focus more on being content collectors and arbiters -- what's good, what's not, what's worth the audience's time -- rather than producers. And, to your point, is this already happening? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/11/2009 08:26:39 AM I agree with you Vince, but here's a clarification - We will rely on both media companies AND enterprise-side companies to keep us informed and educated (as we do today in many cases). This will just grow stronger. Those that do it well will prosper. Yes, media companies are in the catbird's seat, and they will evolve into helping their readers choose what's best - but that doesn't mean that advertising will be enough to support the business model. They'll need to develop products and services for either readers or advertisers that go beyond sponsorship. A number of btob players have been working on this model for a while (data products), but I believe we will see expansion into more areas. What do you think? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kirk Cheyfitz EMAIL: kirk.cheyfitz@storyworldwide.com IP: 66.65.132.192 URL: http://www.storyworldwide.com DATE: 05/12/2009 08:26:00 AM Joe -- The interplay between content and conversation also was the hot topic at Digital Hollywood last week in Santa Monica. Here's a blog post that examines one intersection of brand content and social media: http://tinyurl.com/o3ku2y ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 15 Steps to Small Business Online Marketing Success STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 15-steps-to-small-business-online-marketing-success CATEGORY: small business marketing DATE: 05/01/2009 07:21:11 AM ----- BODY:

We've been working a lot lately on a list of necessary steps to take with your online content. As we compiled the list, it became clear that this would make a very helpful checklist for small- or medium-sized businesses. As you'll see, not a lot of detail, but a great list to check against.

If you see any additional ones to add to the list or other helpful links, please comment below.

Fresh Web Content. A minimum two times a week, update your site with fresh, relevant content for your customers. An easy-to-use content management system like WordPress will help.
Hire a Journalist. If you don't have the resources to consistently develop content, hire a journalist or outsource your content to an expert content team.
Install Google Analytics. Many small businesses have a website but aren't paying attention to who's coming to the site and how they are getting there. Use analytics information to find out more about your customers and how you can solve their pain points.
Set Up RSS Feeds for Your Content. Google's Feedburner or Feedblitz will work just fine.
Start a Blog. Starting a blog may be the key to your program. Post at least twice a week and talk about what is going on in your industry. A blog should not be promotional at all. When done right, you will position yourself and your company as a thought leader.
Comment on Blogs. Find the 15 to 20 best blogs that you feel attract your typical customer and post at least once a week.
Site News Section. Develop a news section within your site. Keep it updated each month. For a more robust option, check out HP's newsroom.
Regular Online News Releases. Plan for at least one “online news release” per month. This could promote the eBook, fresh content, events, new promotions, etc. As long as it’s valuable, you can promote it. Here is an example.
Develop an Enewsletter. Developing an outbound communications tool is critical to maintain and grow relationships with customers, and will faciliate spreading your content. Be sure your newsletter is "opt-in" (they gave you permission).
The Free Content Giveaway. Create an eBook as a packaged content download for your customers and prospects. If you need your customer information (leads), you may opt to ask for basic information before download. If you want your content to spread and be shared, set it free. Here is a great discussion about "gated" content. Some excellent eBook examples are David Meerman Scott's "New Rules" and our "Trust" eBook.
Twitter Tips. Instead of creating a Twitter account that is all about you, think of your Twitter account as a channel. Determine what your ideal customer pain points are, and then deliver content through your Twitter channel that they would benefit from. Use Twitterfeed to automate your RSS feeds from your blog or web articles. Use Tweetdeck to manage your Twitter conversation. Here's a Twitter primer to get you started.
A Facebook movement. Instead of creating a Facebook fan page for your company, create a movement or cause. I thought Shama Hyder did a great job of this with her ACT Blueprint.
Set Up Your Company in LinkedIn and Maximize Your Profile. PR 20/20 has an excellent post that will get your LinkedIn profile into shape.
Pay Attention to Your Google Profile. Here's a step-by-step to setting up your Google profile.
Listen and Learn. Set up your Google Alerts account to track what customers are saying about you, your brands and the keywords that drive your business. Here's a quick how-to on Google Alerts.

Just a reminder...these are all tactics to use as part of your content strategy. Determine your content strategy first, then use these steps to execute that strategy.

Related Articles:

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rick Friesen EMAIL: rfriesen@cariboucreekloghomes.com IP: 208.81.155.202 URL: http://www.cariboucreekloghomes.com DATE: 05/01/2009 11:57:50 AM EXCELLENT summary! Really appreciate this! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Hanna Kroeger Healer EMAIL: hannakroegerhealer@gmail.com IP: 70.66.83.196 URL: http://www.kroegerhealer.com DATE: 05/01/2009 04:24:38 PM These are great tips! I also appreciate your newsletter. I especially like #10. The Free Content Giveaway. I think it will bring great attention to my web site, my insights, and abilities! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Lyndsey Walker EMAIL: lyndsey@pr2020.com IP: 216.130.3.82 URL: http://www.pr2020.com DATE: 05/01/2009 04:51:58 PM Joe, great tips. These are extremely valuable to a small business owner. Thanks for including PR 20/20! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Deirdre Reid EMAIL: deirdreid@gmail.com IP: 71.137.111.216 URL: http://deirdrereid.wordpress.com DATE: 05/02/2009 12:28:21 PM Such a valuable post for small (or any size!) business owners and managers -- bookmarkable! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bob Rosenbaum EMAIL: bob.r@themarketfarm.com IP: 96.11.99.129 URL: DATE: 05/04/2009 09:18:15 AM Great stuff Joe. Thanks. new site looks good too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jared O'Toole EMAIL: jared@factor77.com IP: 70.101.171.91 URL: http://tv.factor77.com DATE: 05/04/2009 09:44:36 AM Commenting on blogs is a great tool! Not only will it bring some traffic to your site but you will hopefully catch the eye of the blogger. Thats how you get stories written about your projects. Also what beats doing some marketing but also learning a lot as you read through blog posts! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: CoconutWater EMAIL: mark@needcoconutwater.com IP: 68.115.250.250 URL: http://www.needcoconutwater.com DATE: 05/06/2009 01:13:57 PM Great article! Straight forward and full of detail. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: atul chatterjee EMAIL: atul.writer@gmail.com IP: 122.163.146.42 URL: http://www.vistasad.com DATE: 05/07/2009 05:51:49 AM These aren't steps but a full fledged program!! John Chow in his book Make Money Online wrote that if you don't give a full RSS feed, don't give it at all. Can one send out a newsletter on an irregular basis. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/07/2009 07:31:27 AM Like anything Atul, consistency is the key. Great point. This is not like Ronco's "set it and forget it." You have to work this process to be successful. Cheers! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Paul Internet Business EMAIL: shumaar@hotmail.com IP: 71.6.173.9 URL: http://www.jeffpaulproducts.com DATE: 05/20/2009 12:46:59 AM Hi, Great post! I felt great reading your blog post. I’m working with my friend in a small internet marketing business as a web developer. When I’m free I go around for some IT info ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Local Internet Marketing EMAIL: maureendonovan9@gmail.com IP: 58.68.1.210 URL: http://www.indieresults.com/ DATE: 06/02/2009 06:46:50 AM Excellent Post... Nice Tips. I think there is no denying that marketing your business online is a necessity in today’s market and social media networking is more effective way for new small business popularity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: seh EMAIL: seh323@gotsmail.com IP: 76.184.82.37 URL: DATE: 06/22/2009 10:50:41 PM I think the 15 topics you mentioned are perfect. One thing I didn't notice was anything about video. This section of online marketing seems to be exploding. The obvious site for video uploading is youtube, but I found another site. They'll give you a free account and help you with a marketing campaign to create traffic. The site is www.adwido.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: tristancaleb EMAIL: tristancaleb1@gmail.com IP: 125.22.249.142 URL: http://www.expertadvertisingsolutions.com/ DATE: 06/23/2009 06:37:03 AM These tips are very useful for me.n general Internet Marketing would include SEO and other tools available online. There are many strategies that we could implement which would help to generate good amount of traffic and also create a presence in the search engines. For more information please visit :http://www.expertadvertisingsolutions.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Paul Shortcut to internet EMAIL: fpjpaulpns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.146.49 URL: http://www.jeffpaulproducts.com DATE: 09/29/2009 02:25:36 AM The success for online marketing is dependent on adoptibity of SEO key rules and guideline in order to avial a preferrable web postion . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Paul internet marketing EMAIL: fpibrns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.146.11 URL: http://www.internet-business-review.com DATE: 09/30/2009 12:48:02 AM These secrets to SEO and Internet Marketing gives clear picture on how to acieve appropiate position on top search engines . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Outsourcing Tech Support EMAIL: jaimeportman1205@yahoo.com IP: 122.53.68.2 URL: http://www.openaccessmarketing.com DATE: 02/22/2010 08:39:09 PM An insightful and articulate post! Thank you for your thoughts; you bring up an interesting point. Valuable thoughts and advices. I read your topic with great interest! Really nice post. Very good points. I hope plenty of people see it. -Jaime ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Callaway Goes Digital with Online Magazine Launch STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: callaway-goes-digital-with-online-magazine-launch CATEGORY: digital magazines DATE: 04/29/2009 01:01:19 PM ----- BODY:

I had a nice email conversation with my friend Nick Green from MacDUFF about their recent launch of the Callaway Online Magazine. Here are some of the outtakes.

Joe - Why did Callaway decide to produce this?

Nick - MacDUFF approached Callaway Golf about a year ago with the idea. With print and US Postal Service charges on the rise and marketing budgets under stress we felt the time was right to go online. Callaway is a technological leader in golf and believe the iMAG can reiterate their stance.

(Note from Joe - MacDUFF refers to a digital/online magazine as an iMAG. MacDUFF built the Callaway iMAG using flash technology.)

Joe - How is the digital magazine/iMAG distributed?

Nick - Through Callaway's home page (it's on the navigation bar), a regular email blast to their consumer database and other social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. We are also encouraging consumers to share the content through a share function on each page.

Joe - What type of statistics can you share?

Nick - We literally just launched it and the reaction has been terrific. No stats to share yet, but our client is thrilled distribution costs have fallen 60%! The printed magazine was distributed quarterly to 800,000 people. We are testing the iMag without the print option. A six-page refresh is going up this week, which we will continue each month.

The initial reader response has been amazing. Video downloads, shares, forwards are all ahead of our expectations

Joe - How does it integrate with the print magazine?

Nick - It is promoted through the print magazine and features additional content, video golf instruction and read on content. Our print readers can get it and it is also open to all those with web access.

Joe (in Summary) - We've seen customers across the board in multiple markets opt-in to receive digital magazines in replace of the print version. It's possible to see up to 20% of readers choose to convert from the print to the digital version (in addition to some new additional online-only distribution - often international).

In Callaway's case, it looks like they are taking this opportunity to invest in fresher, more sharable content for their customers. Only time will tell whether this will be a successful move, but it's clear that brands from every sector are starting to invest more print custom magazine dollars into either digital versions or web content. The print isn't going away, but it's definitely being cut. The marketers I talk with are pocketing half the savings, and taking the other half and investing it on the web.

We'll catch up with Nick in a few months to see how things are progressing. Thanks Nick!

Related Articles

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Fergus Stoddart EMAIL: fergus.Stoddart@edgecustom.com.au IP: 125.255.10.171 URL: http://www.edgecustom.com.au DATE: 07/16/2010 03:56:46 PM It would be great to see a follow up to this. Now it is up and running what are the results? We still have a number of very sceptical clients about this format. The KLM example still seems to be the one that can demonstrate success which is strange with a digital format that is so easily trackable. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Not Web Content, Quality Web Content STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: not-web-content-quality-web-content CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: online content marketing DATE: 04/23/2009 10:02:07 PM ----- BODY:

Interesting research from the Aberdeen Group on how web content management technology is transforming digital marketing. This is a gated report, so you'll have to sign up to get it...but there is some quality information in here about the evolution of web content.

Portions of the report discuss the corporate goal of improving web content. Getting content is usually not the problem for businesses. Almost all organizations have truckloads of content. The challenge is taking information inside and around a company and creating valuable, relevant compelling content from that information.

On that note, the top three web content strategies for improving web content as discussed in this report are:

Improve quality of web content.
Use segmentation.
Integrate web content management strategies with other technologies.

Number one (improving the quality of web content) wins this battle in a landslide. And rightfully so.

The disconnect in most businesses is this: the average company still generates the majority of their web content/information focused on the company, brand products or services. That's great for the few customers that know exactly what they want.

The rest of your customers and prospects are saying "I don't care about your products and services. I care about myself and my personal and business needs."

Are you among the 81% of businesses looking at improving the quality of your web content? Then create content that addresses what your customers care about. Solve their challenges. Solve their pain points. Be relevant. Become their trusted adviser.

That's how you improve your web content - and is the start of a content marketing strategy.

Special thanks to David Drickhamer for sending on the report.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Barb Sawyers EMAIL: barb@barbsawyers.ca IP: 69.159.194.244 URL: http://barbsawyers.wordpress.com DATE: 04/24/2009 11:18:57 AM My top advice on quality content: Clearly state your main idea and how it affects your target audience in the first 25 words. Vital for anything read online. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jenny Pilley EMAIL: jenny@creare.co.uk IP: 86.139.157.108 URL: http://www.crearecommunications.co.uk DATE: 05/01/2009 04:17:01 AM Excellent advice. I think concise content that isn't full of jargon is a great way to attract your audience. I agree completely with the fact people want to know what they can get out of your service not just what you've achieved. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Bonchek EMAIL: mbonchek@trumancompany.com IP: 98.229.98.36 URL: http://www.trumancompany.com DATE: 05/03/2009 11:43:51 PM Another way to create quality content is to showcase your customers as thought leaders ... not testimonials, but their views on organizational and industry issues. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: atul chatterjee EMAIL: atul.writer@gmail.com IP: 122.163.146.42 URL: http://www.vistasad.com DATE: 05/07/2009 06:02:12 AM Agreed. But Joe most company owners feel egotistical about their own offerings. Therein lies one problem. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 05/07/2009 07:29:12 AM I would agree Atul...and that is the problem. In order to "sell more" today, you actually need to "sell less". By focusing on valuable, relevant, compelling content for your customers, you'll build credibility and trust and they'll want to work with you. It's not easy. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing: Buzzword STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-buzzword DATE: 04/23/2009 03:32:55 PM ----- BODY:

Content Marketing: Buzzword of the Year or Marketing Strategy?

Had a great conversation with Lisa Petrilli from MENG today about the evolution of content marketing. Back in 2000, Jim McDermott (Penton Media's Director of Custom Media) and I were kicking around concepts to turn our small custom publishing group into a content marketing agency (big thinking at the time for a business publisher). Although we didn't know if we invented the phrase, we knew that was our ultimate direction - to help companies market their products and services by creating consistent, valuable content through print, electronic and in-person channels - was dead on.

When we launched our startup Junta42 in 2007 we were the search engine dedicated to content marketing (we've changed a bit since then). At that time, there wasn't a marketer who knew what content marketing was.

Fast forward to today, and content marketing is everywhere. Just this week I've read some outstanding articles on content marketing from Valeria Maltoni, Copyblogger.com and Rick Liebling.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Collected Stories of Social Media STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-collected-stories-of-social-media CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 04/21/2009 08:00:38 PM ----- BODY:

I picked this up from SlideShare by Seth Goldstein, CEO of SocialMedia.com. This is one of those presentations that just don't come around very often. If you have an executive that just doesn't get social media, show them this.

Favorite quote: "Social media is about enabling lots of little stories to be created by lots of different people at the same time."

Thanks Seth!

Social Media Stories

View more presentations from Seth Goldstein.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Five Content Marketing Ideas that Will Pay Dividends STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: five-content-marketing-ideas-that-will-pay-dividends CATEGORY: branded content CATEGORY: case studies CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: digital magazines CATEGORY: eBooks CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 04/20/2009 11:20:50 PM ----- BODY:

Really cool eBook by Amplifier Content Marketing (full disclosure: Amplifier is a client of mine) called "Five Music Marketing Ideas that Could Pay Dividends Now".

Truthfully, the five ideas in this eBook could be applied to any industry, not just music. Also includes some amazing examples and case studies.

Five Music Marketing Ideas That Could Pay Dividends Now

View more presentations from Glenn Sabin.

The five ideas to seriously consider now for your brand (according to the eBook) include:

The Content Filter - Be the "editor" in a market and present people the best content in that market or that topic. Be the enabler of the information they are looking for.
The Microsite - Become the trusted expert on a particular niche topic (on a different URL than your company URL, i.e., Mercedes Benz Online Magazine).
The Magalog - Combine that outdated catalog with the compelling content of a magazine and give your customers something to really engage in.
The Digital Magazine - Go no further than checking out what KLM is doing with their digital magazine, iFly.
The Tweeter - Same concept as the "content filter" or "microsite" model...just distribute the content through Twitter.

Download the full PDF of the eBook here. Thanks to Glenn Sabin from Amplifier for putting this together.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: sam EMAIL: slsfadify@yahoo.co.uk IP: 88.211.30.66 URL: DATE: 04/23/2009 04:39:58 AM ok ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Al EMAIL: al@youcansubmit.com IP: 74.185.181.119 URL: http://www.youcansubmit.com/blog/ DATE: 04/28/2009 08:08:27 AM Good Post thanks al ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Digital Magazine Examples - KLM Leads the Way with iFly STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: digital-magazine-examples-klm-leads-the-way-with-ifly CATEGORY: digital magazines DATE: 04/16/2009 08:40:33 AM ----- BODY:

I had an interesting email conversation with Sak van den Boom at CustomerMedia.nl about digital magazines recently.

We can't seem to find a company doing more with the digital magazine format than KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and their digital magazine iFly. If you haven't seen it before, it's one of the very few digital magazine examples that fully integrates flash and video into a customer experience, and tracks customer usage. It's worth checking out.

But is it working? Definitely. After each issue is released, an email is sent to KLM customers, who then click through to the magazine issue. That way, KLM can track the behavior of each of their customers from the email. KLM can then track this information back to repeat ticket sales (the ultimate goal for the magazine is to sell additional tickets to their customers).

Here are some of the findings.

After their third issue, KLM has found that iFly is the best marketing tool they have EVER used to sell repeat tickets.
The average reader spends 20 minutes with the magazine.
Half read more than five pages.
20% read the entire magazine.
Frequent flyers are heavy users of the magazine.
The click-through rate of iFly is higher than any other online campaign from KLM.

(thanks to Sak and Arjen Bonsing for putting together these incredible stats)

Digital Magazines in the States

To find out why more of these types of digital mags aren't produced by US corporations, I went to experts Marcus Grimm from Nxtbook and Cimarron Buser from Texterity.

From what I can gather, most digital magazines start as print, not as stand-alone digital magazines. Since that is the case, most publishers take the PDF-version of the magazine and optimize it for the web (integrating flash, video or RSS after the original print version is created). It also seems that many US companies opt for using microsites or independent websites instead of digital magazines, such as P&G have with homemadesimple.com or beinggirl.com.

Also, the investment in custom flash technology does cost quite a bit more for custom programming, which is another reason why people simply tweak the PDF versions.

Regardless, Marcus and Cim were able to share some great digital magazine examples, including:

Project Analog - Example flash cover animation.
Driver's Republic - Integrated video with some interesting advertising options.
Lancaster Chamber of Commerce - PDF-based magazine with integrated flash.
Organic Style - Includes interactive recipes and fashion close-ups.
Linked - Brings in live feeds.
Consumer Goods Technology - Solid BtoB example with interactive elements.

The Future of Digital Magazines
There is no doubt that digital magazines have always been a great option at giving publishers a proven digital replica option for their magazine, which can increase international subscriptions, and allow publishers to be more choosy in who they send their printed version to.

For marketers like KLM, it's a excellent option if you want to track exactly what your customers are doing. Stats like the ones that KLM have received are much more challenging to get on a website version (as it pertains to one-to-one customer information). Also, if I already have a print magazine version, a digital replica is a no-brainer.

That said, if I were to start an online magazine, I'm not sure I would use a digital magazine format. Seems like it may be better to open it up via a website and make it more possible for customers and prospects to actively share the information.

(Added after conversation with Marcus - interesting take "website is better to attract customers, digital magazine may be a better option for retention efforts...hmmm).

What say you?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Craig Hodges EMAIL: craig.hodges@edgecustom.com.au IP: 165.228.115.199 URL: http://www.edgecustom.com.au DATE: 04/16/2009 09:45:32 PM what a great example of what a digital magazine can be---using the best of flash and video to get results for a client. With my custom publisher hat on the biggest challenge is getting clients to think of the digital mag as a "blank canvas" and start again-- not be a cheaper alternative to mail as a distribution model. We've always said that it should be a new communication piece with different ways of getting a message across just the same as a microsite is to a custom magazine. Are digital mags going to make it?---well if we keep seeing examples of this ilk they may well get there as a viable option for our clients to get their customers to move in the right direction.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: calvin lloyd EMAIL: uceceo@gmail.com IP: 70.63.110.87 URL: http://www.ucemag.com DATE: 04/25/2009 12:53:02 PM i say check out UCE Magazine, a standalone digital magazine with a global readership: http://www.ucemag.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: ted EMAIL: flerie@zonnet.nl IP: 86.92.57.111 URL: http://www.bomvol.com DATE: 04/26/2009 07:21:50 AM ever checked www.bomvol.com ? This is the best example i've ever seen. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.96.235 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/26/2009 08:20:11 AM @Calvin...UCE doesn't look like it's a company sponsored magazine (at least I can't find it if it is). @ted Looks cool. Is there an English version? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bright 4 EMAIL: gawin@bright4.nl IP: 80.101.211.80 URL: http://www.bright4.nl DATE: 05/04/2009 09:58:35 AM Nice examples idd, although I must say that this is not so innovative and new... We worked on an online magazine for KPN (Dutch telecom provider) for it's Hi Paars brand at the end of 2006. Including user tracking etc: http://www.paarsmagazine.nl Now we would probably change a lot of things (3 years more experience), but they still use the site and update the content often. It is indeed a nice bridge between the paper feeling and online world. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Andrew EMAIL: andrew.davies@idiomag.com IP: 86.149.12.0 URL: http://platform.idiomag.com DATE: 05/05/2009 08:09:47 AM UCE Magazine looks great - but yes agreed Joe, I dont think it is a company-sponsored mag. thanks very much for the details on iFly - really fascinating! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Three Things Now! - Content Marketing, Listening and Social Media STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: three-things-now-content-marketing-listening-and-social-media CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 04/14/2009 09:39:32 PM ----- BODY:

I gave this presentation last week at the Esource Utility Marketing Conference in Phoenix, AZ.

Three Things NOW! - Content Marketing, Listening and Social Media

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi.

Here are a couple key takeaways from the presentation above.

We Have Come Full Circle
Centuries ago, the information world as we knew it was shaped by many voices. Thousands of newspapers and pamphlets from across North America was how people become informed through media.

Then came big newspapers, big television, big radio. We went from many voices to few voices.

Today, there are more voices than ever before (we have come full circle and are back to the beginning).

What that means as marketers is that we need to adjust where we place our attention and budget. 70% of marketing dollars still goes toward "bigger, placed media". Knowing how media has changed, does this still make sense? Probably not.

Marketing Today is Publishing
For our marketing to succeed, we, as marketers, need to understand what successful publishing is. The majority of our marketing spend needs to be dedicated to the creation of consistent valuable and relevant information to our customer segments.

But even that's not good enough? We need to develop this information in ways that can easily be spread.

I've never had anyone send me a print ad, or forward me an online display advertisement. But I've had many forward an interesting article, video, or piece of branded software.

If your content is something that your customers are willing to share, you've unlocked the secret of engagement.

Be the Trusted Expert in "Something"
Being a provider of some product or service is not good enough today. You need to be the trusted expert of something. Figuring out what that "something" is for your customers will ensure that you actually have long-lasting relationships with your customers.

Social Media Should Be about Listening FIRST
If you aren't using social media tools such as blogs, Twitter and Facebook to listen, forget about distribution. Never has there been greater opportunity to talk one-on-one with your customers. Don't screw that up by shoving content down their throats before you really understand what their pain points are.

My Four Rules to Twitter

Never answer the question "What are you Doing?" Who cares? No one. Focus on what your customers' informational needs are. Answer that.
Assign Ownership. Make someone responsible. This should be someone's job.
Be Democratic. Don't be so presumptuous to think that only your organization creates and distributes great content. Nothing will make you the trusted expert faster than to distribute the best content from anywhere you can find it...even from your competitor.
Be Human. People do business with people today, not companies. With Twitter, there is no other option.

Content and Social Media - Follow These Steps!

Understand who your customer is and where the pain points are.
Develop consistent, relevant content in multiple channels.
Let go of all control. Let your idea spread.
People share your ideas, link to your content.
Content is found through social media and search engines.
Customers start relying on you for your expertise (relationship!)
You are the trusted solutions provider in your industry.

Thanks to the great folks at Esource for putting together an unforgettable event.

<p>Slide 51</p>

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Stephanie Tilton EMAIL: stilton@tentonmarketing.com IP: 96.237.60.2 URL: http://www.savvyb2bmarketing.com DATE: 04/15/2009 09:35:23 PM Joe, I love how you laid out the 7 steps for content and social media. I think many marketers struggle to make the connection between creating relevant, meaningful content (that isn't focused on their offerings) and how that will ultimately lead to business. These steps show the natural progression and help bridge the gap. Though tangential, this makes me think of a study showing that the majority of people tend to choose organic search results over paid listings. They view advertisements skeptically because they know they're being sold to. They rightfully view product/service-focused content the same way. Once marketers honor the fact that prospects are hungry for promotion-free content, they can take the conversation to a new level. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 67.191.68.66 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/16/2009 07:31:23 AM Thanks Stephanie...great point. If a content strategy is committed to, there is nothing better to begin having conversations with your customers. It's just hard for companies to be patient, and actually dedicate resources to content that does not talk about their products. I am seeing glimmers of light though... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Moving from Journalist to Content Strategist STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: moving-from-journalist-to-content-strategist CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: journalists DATE: 04/09/2009 10:00:59 PM ----- BODY:

I've had a number of journalists email me recently about making the transition to become a content strategist.

So, I've been sending out notes to a few content marketing / content strategy experts to get some responses to that question. My good friend Simon Kelly from Story Worldwide was nice enough to offer his expertise in this area. Here are some outtakes from our email discussions.

Joe - How would you define a content strategist?

Simon - I would define a content strategist as someone who marries the best practices of investigative journalism, magazine editorial planning, information architecture and marketing planning.

Joe - Sounds like a tough task. How would this be executed?

Simon - The content strategist needs to pay closer attention to story-listening (the investigative peeling away of layers to unearth the brand truth and take a narrative, as opposed to data-driven, approach to consumer, brand and category insights) to define a brand’s story platform. This platform informs the brand’s authority to publish content and enables the content strategist to create a content plan that supports both the marketing objectives as well as the audience information needs.

Content strategists that are trained in journalism know that a content plan needs to engage an audience over time and build trust through a consistently authentic voice that delivers useful and entertaining experiences each time (aka publishing), as opposed to most branded web-site launches that may start off with a bang but soon fizzle over time due to lack of a long-term content plan.

Joe - What do journalists need to do to make the transition to becoming a content strategist?

Simon - In order for journalists to successfully make the transition to becoming content strategists they have to add another dimension to their editorial mind/skill set - that of the brand: its story, its needs, its filter and voice, then go about it following familiar editorial steps.

*********

I truly believe that we are seeing an amazing opportunity for journalists, but not in the jobs and roles that made journalism famous. Brands are the ones that need the help of journalists now more than ever. Why? Because in order to survive as a business today, you have to learn how to tell a story that is relevant to your customers. Journalists can do that.

Simon's advice is a great start for those who are looking for the next great opportunity.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Megan Tsai, Red Wagon Writing EMAIL: megan@redwagonwriting.com IP: 24.245.35.125 URL: http://www.redwagonwriting.com DATE: 04/10/2009 09:43:44 AM As a former TV journalist turned copywriter and consultant specializing in content creation, I finally know what to call myself. Thanks for the great insight and for recognizing the unique skill set former journalists bring to content marketing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dave Pool EMAIL: dave.pool@comcast.net IP: 68.35.174.179 URL: http://www.davepool.com DATE: 04/10/2009 11:16:43 AM Simon Kelly should also appreciate that a journalist turned content strategist (buzzword alert!) or whatever should have learned somewhere along the line the difference between "its" and "it's" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 67.191.68.66 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 04/10/2009 08:26:42 PM @ Megan...wonderful news. @ Dave...that's my fault. Lack of proofreading. That's what I get for blogging when I'm in sunny Florida. Thanks for the heads up. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott Frangos EMAIL: scott@webfadds.com IP: 97.120.115.17 URL: http://www.webfadds.com DATE: 04/11/2009 04:38:31 PM Hi Joe - Great post. Years ago, I began as a Journalist and my blog writing tool was a Smith Corona manual typewriter. Then.... whoosh, and fast forward, blowing past those who said "I'll never use a computer", "the computer cannot do typesetting", "the computer cannot be used to do art", and (sorry photogs), "digital will never replace film". This is just another way of saying that a number of skills have been encapsulated into communications work. You still need some specialists (designers are not usually good copy writers and vice versa), but as you laid out -- some skill sets continue to converge. The trick is to know the difference. And yes, we can use more than 10 percent of our brain capacity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Julie Espinosa EMAIL: julieannespinosa@gmail.com IP: 68.2.60.171 URL: http://julieespinosa.wordpress.com DATE: 04/13/2009 02:14:32 AM I think that many journalists are leery of swearing allegiance to corporations, and may not feel comfortable aligning with a brand for its communications needs. The dilemma may be informed by the traditional split between PR and journalism. But there's more to the practice of content strategy than merely shifting your allegiance. It's truly about blending the considerations of reporter, editor AND publisher, and getting all three aspects together is no easy task. But for those of us attempting it, we're finding more opportunities "to engage an audience over time and build trust through a consistently authentic voice that delivers useful and entertaining experiences each time." And that's a potentially very satisfying challenge! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: simon kelly EMAIL: simon.kelly@storyworldwide.com IP: 38.104.68.190 URL: http://www.storyworldwide.com DATE: 04/13/2009 08:11:31 AM Thanks for your comment Julie. I think the dawning realization is that in this new post-advertising age the brand is the publisher. For sure, many journalists are leery of this shift, but as some people have realized, its not journalism that needs fixing, but advertising. The new advertising model is a collaboration between publisher (brand), editor and audience. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rachel Lovinger EMAIL: rachel.lovinger@gmail.com IP: 12.155.21.10 URL: http://blog.rachellovinger.com DATE: 06/14/2009 09:58:51 PM I feel the need to point out that Content Marketing is not synonymous with Content Strategy. Yes, Content Strategy is concerned with branding, business needs, and storytelling, but there are many aspects of the practice that have nothing to do with marketing or messaging. For example, in my work, I'm very focused on the "data-driven" aspects of content and user experience that, for some reason, Simon Kelly claims Content Strategists don't have to think about. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 97.17.46.101 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 06/14/2009 10:24:57 PM Thanks Rachel...I agree with you that content marketing and content strategy are two different things. Probably better to say that content marketing is a subset of content strategy. Especially for online, content strategy employs a number of UX/IA issues that have not normally been a part of the content marketing process. Perhaps Simon has a take on this as well? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO Web Design EMAIL: ebizsubmit@hotmail.com IP: 221.120.250.101 URL: http://www.ebizwebworks.com DATE: 01/16/2010 12:49:46 AM good job ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Keeping Score - Measuring the Effectiveness of Content STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: keeping-score-measuring-the-effectiveness-of-content CATEGORY: measurement DATE: 04/06/2009 01:20:09 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Keith Wiegold for today's guest post. Great stuff!

Scene: in swanky men’s locker room of Bushwood Country Club

Judge Smails: “What did you shoot today, Ty?”

Ty Webb: “Oh, you know I never keep score, Judge Smails.”

Judge: “Then how do you measure yourself against other golfers?”

Webb: “By height?”

-- Caddyshack, 1980

Right now, maybe more than ever, your content marketing efforts deserve a little measurement. Amidst budget cuts and strapped resources, elements of a marketing communication plan that lack at least some metrics linking back to effectiveness tend to be early casualties. “Nice to have” is often “first to go.”

But more than simply protecting your endeavors (and their corresponding budgets), measurement should be a vital element in any content marketing strategy – bear or bull, boom or bust. Content that fails to link back to marcomm objectives is surely “content” with a lower case “c.”

Even placing some very basic metrics in place takes the first few steps to ensuring your content is doing its job – to your client or yourself -- and can lead to increasing effectiveness by applying learning from the measurement’s results.

Here is a quick list to get your content marketing strategy in the swing of measurement:

I object

Simply put, set objectives. Define what ‘success’ means for your program and get it down/approved in writing.

Make certain your objectives are not only measurable (including specific growth number and timelines), but can be achieved directly through the use of content marketing. Think of it this way: Content marketing should not be tasked with ‘cutting operating costs by 15%” but can be challenged to “reduce customer churn by 15%.”

Remember that the flow begins with a Business Objective, then a Marketing Objective, next a Marcomm Objective, and finally a Content Strategy. Your strategy should be solving the Marcomm objective.

Budget, not fudge-it

Prior to writing word one, creating app one, or snapping photo one, put in place a budget for measurement. More times than I care to recall, marketers would eschew this as ‘cost savings’ up front, preferring to “get on with” the creative. Inevitably, someone (CFO, COO, etc.) somewhere else in the organization raises questions (usually just after the initiative begins, or worse – as budgets need slashing) about effectiveness, ROI, accountability. The base investment budgeted before ‘the work’ begins anticipates this, and puts in place a means for continuous improvement to the content marketing efforts.

Bench ‘em

This goes hand-in-hand with both setting objectives and budgeting. Again, before the initiatives are introduced to the marketplace, take a benchmark reading of your planned metrics. Comparing post-effort results with pre-effort marks is valuable for new initiatives to existing efforts and brand-new initiatives alike. Remember, tracking studies compare similar metrics over time, and they have to start sometime. No time like the present.

Old Softie

Legacy efforts, as well as off-line efforts, often look to ‘soft measures’ to determine effectiveness. Mostly determined by four- through ten-point scales, these softer metrics seek to measure customer self-reported awareness, attitudes, and intention. Traditional thought suggests there is a large enough disconnect between reported intent and actual behavior to render these softer self-reported metrics ineffective; however, the most recent views on the subject find ‘reported intention’ as a better predictor of brand loyalty when compared to actual behavior – which can suffer from tactical promotions more readily than deep felt intention.

Oh, Behave!

Our digital age provides the opportunity to link actual behavior directly to content marketing efforts. Metrics such as time spent on site, page views per session, repeat visits, and even click-throughs can indicate activity from the result of content marketing. Marketers with ecommerce capabilities can measure the ultimate behavior, transaction, and the role content plays on cross-sell, up-sell, and retention, amongst other metrics.

A Little Experiment

Our forefathers in direct marketing have passed along to us in modern day integrated marketing the building blocks of segmentation, test/control, A/B testing, and other disciplines based in the creation of Experimental Design.

On the most basic of levels, a simple Experimental Design will hypothesize what your Content Marketing Strategy aims to achieve on behalf of the Marcomm objective, then puts in place a test to measure it. Choose a target segment that you believe will be most influenced by your content efforts and test that against a secondary segment. Or take a key segment and randomly separate out a test portion (those who receive the content) and a control portion (those who do not) and measure the effect over time. You’ll need the assistance of a data analyst, but will be pleased with the quality of measurement your data will unleash.

It’s in the Hole!

While this is a simple primer of a checklist for involving measurement in your content marketing strategies, remember these two key points:

Measurement is about planning. And if we fail to plan…..
More than simply protecting your investment, measurement is about learning – and applying these learnings toward enhanced engagement and increased results.

Now….how ‘bout a Fresca?

Keith Wiegold is Chief Content Evangelist at Nutlug Content Marketing, and creator of C.A.R.E ™, a proprietary strategic framework for Customer Acquisition and Retention through Engagement. He can be reached at keith[at]marketingcontentstrategy.com.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jean EMAIL: jean.fleming@gmail.com IP: 66.178.161.10 URL: http://www.bnj.com DATE: 04/07/2009 03:48:17 PM Great stuff and such an important topic as ROI is coming home to content efforts. Would love to get your thoughts on how to benchmark engagement. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Nigel Dean EMAIL: nigel.dean@yahoo.co.uk IP: 194.145.223.7 URL: http://www.twitter.com/nigel_dean DATE: 04/08/2009 09:42:03 AM Excellent post. I think content marketing has a great future but needs firm objectives, suitable metrics and measurement of the results. Fail to do this and we will never improve, can't align content within our overall marketing strategy and can't argue a hard case for Content Marketing in the boardroom. From my situation, that is essential. If you can't argue the case, it ain't going to happen! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Keith Wiegold EMAIL: keith@marketingcontentstrategy.com IP: 66.99.235.2 URL: DATE: 04/08/2009 05:22:46 PM @Jean and @Nigel: thanks for the comments! Jean -- would enjoy chatting further about benchmarking engagement. Contact me on Twitter (ContentKeith) or via email keith (at) marketingcontentstrategy (dot) com . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: N.Jonathan Christopher EMAIL: jnchris.nannety@gmail.com IP: 124.125.107.145 URL: http://www.p2w2.com DATE: 04/09/2009 01:26:57 AM Content marketing efforts needs those who have creativity and passion to be successful apart from planning the metrics and having firm objectives. -Jonathan http://www.p2w2.com ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Eight Tips for the Twitter Beginner STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: eight-tips-for-the-twitter-beginner CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 03/31/2009 04:43:56 PM ----- BODY:

I've been traveling non-stop recently - from California to New York to Florida to Europe and back. Everywhere I go, I ask people about their Twitter usage. Not surprisingly, I see about 10% or less usage across the board (not including the online marketing audiences, which have generally been north of 50%+ usage).

I've read a lot of really good Twitter posts recently, including the Ultimate Guide to Everything Twitter to How Huge Brands Are Using Twitter to 101 Ways to Be Rocked by Twitter. All good and useful. Yet, I still get questioned from most marketing executives who truly believe Twitter is a waste of time. About a year ago, I agreed with them. Now, Twitter is one of the most important business tools I use and drives more than 10% of our total website traffic.

So, here are just some baby steps that you usually don't learn until you are well into your Twitter career (struggling to figure out how to use it). Hopefully these will be helpful.

Don't ever answer the question "What are you doing?" No one cares that you are drinking coffee and just finished dinner. Answer the question with something that is always informative or helpful. This could be a link to a great article or a video that caught your attention. If you want to tell people that you love a particular song, link to the song (now that's helpful). Better yet, continually link to helpful content that your customers need for their careers.

From a business standpoint, if you focus on a particular subject, you'll gain a core following quickly. For example, 90% of my tweets focus on some aspect of content, marketing or publishing. If those interest you, you can follow me @juntajoe.
If you are using Twitter on the Twitter website you probably don't get all the hype. What you need is a Twitter management system like Tweetdeck or Tweetgrid. That way, you can not only "listen" when people are talking about you, but you can also search on keyword phrases or follow hash tags (#contentstrategy) that are important to you. I prefer Tweetdeck.
If you have a blog or article RSS feed, use Twitterfeed to automatically "tweet" your post or article. I've talked to dozens of people who were using tinyurl.com and manually doing this process until they found Twitterfeed. Once that's done, use the Twitter Facebook app to automatically update your Facebook status through Twitter.
Be democratic. Don’t just push out your own content all day long. Push out interesting and relevant stories that aren’t yours (possibly even your competition). You’ll be viewed as a much more credible source if you are seen as a market servant, instead of just a traffic hog.
Complete your profile. I'm so surprised at the number of people that don't even complete their name in their Twitter profile. You'll get less followers without a name.
Don't use Auto Direct Message. Only use direct messaging for personal notes. Auto DM's are way too impersonal and salesy for any social media, including Twitter. Don't believe me? Read this post by Robert Scoble.
Lethal generosity. Read this blog post by Shel Israel on the concept of lethal generosity in social media. Give until it hurts and you will gain followers quickly. Just like our content marketing...relevant, valuable information creates fans out of customers and prospects. It works on Twitter as well.
Shhh...listen! Remember, Twitter's most important function is as a listening device (also called "listening post"). Whether it's you, or your social media staffer, someone in your organization should be listening to what's being said about you, your brand, and your industry.

If you haven't already, it's time to take this tool seriously.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Emily Sheetz EMAIL: sheetz.e@gmail.com IP: 68.46.184.52 URL: http://phillywordsmith.blogspot.com DATE: 03/31/2009 10:50:58 PM Thanks for a great post, Joe. I am loving these easy Twitter tips. They are great for passing along to friends who are new the game. I also get sad when people are not on and do not even care about the potential of Twitter. It has proven massively effective for several companies. Why would you ignore that? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.111.196 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/31/2009 10:52:43 PM Thanks Emily...it's only a matter of time. Keep the feedback coming! jp ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: yinka olaito EMAIL: yinka@yinkaolaito.com IP: 83.229.92.14 URL: http://www.yinkaolaito.com DATE: 05/08/2009 08:45:00 AM very instructive, i will tweet it on my twitter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: roket EMAIL: asi_boyz@hotmail.com IP: 81.213.160.175 URL: http://www.rokettubem.com DATE: 08/08/2009 08:19:53 AM very instructive, i will tweet it on my twitter. ----- PING: TITLE: Top 10 Twitter Basics Questions Answered URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/11/twitter-basics-questions-answered.html IP: 10.17.151.32 BLOG NAME: Junta42 blog DATE: 11/10/2009 08:51:38 AM Just about every day I answer a question about using Twitter, the microblogging tool. I've put them together in this handy post. Enjoy, and, if you like getting information on content marketing, feel free to follow me @juntajoe. Question #1... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Future of News STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-future-of-news CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 03/30/2009 09:50:00 AM ----- BODY:

Nine minutes of time well spent if you are interested in the future of news. This report by CBS investigator Jeff Greenfield covers the downfall of newspapers, how consumer behavior is changing, and a few of the solutions for the newspaper industry (including a micropayment model).

What's most interesting to me is how many non-media companies are beginning to report on their industries similar to the way a newspaper covers a community now. There may be a couple ideas in here on what your team of content strategists can do to position your company as a more trusted resource.

You'll also note in this video the changing of the competitive set for newspapers. What they don't mention is that many of our information outlets are starting to come from corporate blogs and news sites.

Watch CBS Videos Online

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dan Hutson EMAIL: dan@pokethebeehive.com IP: 76.175.204.111 URL: http://www.pokethebeehive.com DATE: 04/05/2009 07:18:50 PM I thought this was interesting but pretty basic and oriented toward an audience not really deeply knowledgeable about what's happening in journalism (it is a mass media report, after all). One of the problems I see is that too many mainstream journalists seem unable to separate the product from the delivery channel. "Newspaper" is a vehicle; "journalism" is the product. The death of newspapers is no more the death of journalism than the death of the horse-drawn carriage was the death of transportation. Another problem I have is the view some hold that newspapers are the highest form of journalism. I bow to no one in my admiration of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal for what they accomplish. But there are far more lousy papers out there then great ones. I haven't read it yet, but the reviews of Dave Cullen's Columbine suggest that all the media got that story pretty much wrong from the word go. Cullen took years to put together what sounds like the most accurate and incisive account of what happened and why. Maybe the future of great journalism lies in a "wiki-style" approach where important stories are told, revised, retold and continually evolve into what most closely approximates reality. Now that's a service I'd pay for. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: New Get Content Get Customers Out Soon STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: new-get-content-get-customers-out-soon CATEGORY: get content. get customers. DATE: 03/27/2009 03:27:00 PM ----- BODY:

Excited to show you the new cover for the revised and updated paperback version of Get Content Get Customers (Turn Prospects Into Buyers with Content Marketing), which will be available in bookstores on May 22nd.

Thanks to David Meerman Scott for providing the cover quote, and Paul Gillin for writing an outstanding forward.

For those of you not familiar with the book, here's more on the initial version, which was self-published. Since then, McGraw-Hill (our current publishers) purchased the rights to the book and, tada, the book you see to your right. Content marketing in action.

And, by the way, the paperback does include new case studies and has a few expanded pages on social media content marketing.

I really believe that anyone passionate about a topic should write a book. If that's you, check out this post I wrote a while back - "10 Keys to Writing a Book when You Have No Time to Write a Book."

To pre-order the paperback version, click here.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Social Media Marketing Industry Report STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: social-media-marketing-industry-report CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 03/26/2009 09:18:18 PM ----- BODY:

An excellent report from Michael Stelzner on the state of social media marketing today. Michael received responses from over 900 marketers, and compiled this report that shows trends on social media in general, usage of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and others.

Download the report here.

A couple key statistics:

72% of marketers have either just started or have only been using social media for a few months.
64% of marketers spend five hours or more per week using social media.
Advanced users of social media (more than two years) spend over 20 hours per week using social media (wow!).
50% of marketers state that social media generates qualified leads.

Great stuff Michael. Thanks!

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ruthie Appleby EMAIL: RuthieLive@gmail.com IP: 24.59.141.88 URL: http://Ruthietalk.ning.com DATE: 03/27/2009 01:46:04 AM Excellent! Ruthie http://Ruthietalk.ning.com (my social media site!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Annie EMAIL: ann.marisz@gmail.com IP: 59.93.163.84 URL: http://www.advertisingb2b.com DATE: 03/28/2009 09:02:35 AM relevant post with the time as content marketing is slowly growing ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: When BBC (Bad Branded Content) Strikes STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: when-bbc-bad-branded-content-strikes CATEGORY: branded content CATEGORY: case studies DATE: 03/25/2009 10:09:36 PM ----- BODY:

I was on a Continental Airlines flight yesterday and starting leafing through their in-flight magazine, Continental. I may be the one person out there that actually seeks out and reads advertorials (ad placement in the form of content).

That's when I came to an advertorial from Valenti International, the upscale professional matchmaking service. First off, I have nothing against Valenti, but this was one of the best examples I've seen in a while of bad branded content.

Here is the first two sentences of the Valenti's advertorial story Ending the Endless Search.

Irene Valenti, the founder of professional matchmaking service Valenti International, is overflowing with insight about the ways of the world. A visionary and creative thinker, she is blessed with an amazing intuition that led her to found Valenti International nearly two decades ago.

To be honest, I stopped reading at that point. Unless the reader was Valenti's parents or husband, I'm not sure why you would read much further. This is the kind of branded content that gives branded content a bad name.

The lesson: all content, even paid advertorial, needs to focus on the needs and wants of the reader in order to be effective. It's that simple.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Matt Ambrose EMAIL: matt@copywriterscrucible.com IP: 81.156.54.18 URL: http://copywriterscrucible.com DATE: 03/26/2009 07:26:25 AM Agreed: showy writing isn't sales writing. Words used merely to sound impressive have little benefit to offer other than to flatter the subject's sense of self importance. Readers motivated by their own goals in life will simply turn the page and move on. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Tear Your Content Walls Down - Why Gated Content Might Not Make Sense STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: tear-your-content-walls-down-why-gated-content-might-not-make-sense CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: eBooks CATEGORY: measurement DATE: 03/24/2009 10:35:36 AM ----- BODY:

So much amazing information to share from the Branded Content Conference in Miami - but one key point I wanted to share now was from David Meerman Scott's presentation on World Wide Rave.

David shared some key statistics on white papers. Almost all brands create and distribute white papers - those 8 to 20 page downloadable pdf's that are now staples in most marketing programs.

Many, dare I say, most brands (including my own company) "gate" their white papers. To "gate" a white paper means you put an information requirement in front of the content in exchange for getting access to the white paper. This could be as simple as an email address, or as complicated as purchasing information.

Here's the point David made. According to his statistics, a white paper or eBook will be downloaded 20x and up to 50x more WITHOUT a gate in front of it.

Please go back and read the last sentence again.

What is your objective?

Most people gate their content for lead or customer management purposes. This means they want the prospect's information in order to sell them something, or they want more information about the customer in order to sell to them more precisely. Makes sense, right?

This is a solid marketing objective, but is it the "best" objective, or even the "right" objective?

Shouldn't our goal with the creation of branded content be to spread our ideas? Doesn't it make more sense from a marketing perspective to have fifty people engage in our content instead of one?

And here is a key point that David made clear. Who are the customers you have that will actively share your content? Bloggers. What customers do you have that usually DO NOT download gated content? Bloggers.

So, not only are we limiting the people that will get access to our content, we are cutting off those customers that will actively share it with their audiences.

The Possibilities

Let's say you received 1,000 leads via your white paper download. From David's numbers, let's even take a more conservative 10x more downloads if we remove the gate. This would give us 10,000 downloads with no lead data. Of all those people, let's say that 1% would share this/blog this with their audiences (with a VERY conservative audience of 100 people, although most blogs get much more).

With those numbers, the total possible content reach for gated content would be 2,000 people. Non-gated content would be 20,000 people.

And take this note to heart - I haven't seen one piece of branded content "go viral" and massively spread that was gated. If you have, please let me know. What's more important to you?...lead information on the few, or the opportunity to spread your brand to decision-makers who you are not talking with right now.

There are times and places to get customer information. Is that time or place in front of the content you want shared actively?

I have a pretty good feeling that I'll be removing the "gates" to our content very soon. How about you?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Emily Sheetz EMAIL: sheetz.e@gmail.com IP: 68.46.184.52 URL: http://phillywordsmith.blogspot.com DATE: 03/24/2009 12:01:09 PM I love Scott's approach with this. He talked about it a lot on his blog. Just share share share. That is what I've been doing and I've found enormous success with it in a rather short time. People love doing business with people who know what they're talking about. What better way to spread your ideas and knowledge than to just give the heck away! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Miller EMAIL: jmiller@wattnet.net IP: 65.204.104.66 URL: http://www.wattpoultry.com DATE: 03/25/2009 09:01:48 AM I actually disagree with this...a 10x to 20x multiple for "ungating" our white paper program I think is completely unattainable. Full disclosure: we are in the global animal agribusiness and global pet food sectors and our professional communities are small compared to B2C and other B2B sectors such as electronics. I'll stick with gating the white papers on our portfolio and providing "leads" (of course, for a fee) to our sponsors until I get feedback that they are not getting enough for their investment. So far - so good. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/25/2009 09:21:20 AM Hi Jeff...I would agree that in your business (you need to collect information in order for your business model to work), you need to ask for upfront information. Do you have information on the number of drop-offs you see on a white paper download page? What is your conversion percentage? With David's point, he doubts if we would ever have had 300,000 downloads of his white paper/ebook if he made registration a requirement. I would agree with him...but my question is, how many would you lose and how many of those people would then not share the information you put together? Let me know when you get a chance, and thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patsi Krakoff aka The Blog Squad EMAIL: pkrakoff@gmail.com IP: 189.162.17.57 URL: http://www.writingontheweb.com DATE: 03/25/2009 09:29:02 AM I've always gated my stuff in order to build up various lists of people segmented by interests. Once they're on a list as having downloaded a particular ebook, white paper, or audio file interview, they are drip-fed autoresponder messages to follow up and upsell them to other similar products or services. But I don't kill them with frequent messages or incessant calls to buy. There are also messages that are purely educational to build trust and relationships. I'm in the e-newsletter services, content services, and blog consulting business. Digital information is a major marketing tool for me, as well as a source of income since clients can buy information and content for their own use. I respect David and you, Joe, and this is a 180 degree marketing turn for me to take. I will have to think it over and then experiment. Right now I'm working on an ebook and my whole purpose is to build up a list of people who want more on this topic. Part of me says, "I can't let it go out the door to anonymous people without being able to market to them afterwards!" And the other half says, "If I could get this into the hands of 10-50 times more people, surely some of them will end up coming back to me anyway." There's only one way to find out: try it. I'll get back to you on this... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/25/2009 09:35:25 AM Patsi (and Jeff) - I'm with both of you actually. I've always felt that there are times to gate content, and times not to gate it. We get most of our sign ups to the Junta42 site through the white papers and ebooks, so (like you Patsi) we can market to them later and build a relationship with them. So, what I guess I'm searching for (like you) is a when to gate, and when not to gate, your content. Let's see if I can get some more experts to comment on this issue. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Miller EMAIL: jmiller@wattnet.net IP: 65.204.104.66 URL: http://www.wattpoultry.com DATE: 03/25/2009 09:56:47 AM "Do you have information on the number of drop-offs you see on a white paper download page? What is your conversion percentage?" Great question. Candid answer: not at this time. That said, we are on target to release our next generation of web sites by June 1. One of the many upgrades on these sites will be the ability to track "conversions" much better. I'd also like to show the professionals on your blog the 2 latest additions to our portfolio...robust social networking sites built on the *free* Ning platform: http://www.animalagnet.com/ for the global animal agribusiness community http://www.sawdustsoup.com/ for the N. American professional woodworking community We will release our pet food industry social networking site in the next month. I want to thank you, Joe, and the others on this blog for the great feedback on all things "social networking" and custom publishing. We are now selling custom content programs and linking them to our social networking sites as part of their programs. Working very well so far. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/25/2009 09:59:29 AM Great sites Jeff! I like the basic customization...has a nice feel to them. Keep me updated on the custom sales...sounds like things are taking off! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Meerman Scott EMAIL: david@freshspot.com IP: 173.106.162.18 URL: http://www.webinknow.com/ DATE: 03/25/2009 11:08:55 AM Hi Joe, It was great to finally meet you this week at the conference. I would really love it if you could give us statistics about your number of downloads before and after if you do end up ungating your stuff. I think the issue here is goals. If your goal is simply to build a list, than a gate is fine. If your goal is to expose people to your ideas, a gate is a bad idea. It is worth considering that a gate is actually a holdover from the direct mail business when the only way to deliver a white paper request in hard copy was via a Business Reply Card. Marketers just used the same things online. My ideas are always that online is different. One other point. Many companies have terrific success with a secondary offer in the white paper or ebook. In other words, the initial content is free with no gate. Then at the end there is an offer for those who are interested. That second offer captures people who are REALLY interested. David ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michael A. Stelzner EMAIL: mike@whitepapersource.com IP: 99.157.80.86 URL: http://www.WritingWhitePapers.com/blog/ DATE: 03/25/2009 11:28:44 AM Hey Joe (and David); Here's my thought on this... IT DEPENDS. Yes, that's right. It depends why you created the content in the first place. If you sell expensive or complex products and need to feed leads to your sales organization, then following a "smart" gated process would be wise. However, if your product is an idea or concept (like a book) and your goal is exposure, then it makes total sense to ungate your content. Only GOOD content is shared. If your content sucks, go ahead and gate it. Two examples, yesterday I released some GOOD content and more than 10,000 people downloaded it in one day. My objective here is exposure, not leads. See http://www.whitepapersource.com/socialmediamarketing/report/ Example 2: I have a paper called "How to write a white paper" that has been "registered for" by more than 70,000 people. I use their contact data to grow my very large list and sell them my products. It has been very successful (just Google white paper and you'll see it there #2). So, both work and depend on your goals and objectives. How's that for an answer?? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.111.196 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/25/2009 02:09:22 PM @ David/Mike Great analysis on both parts. As always, it comes back to the objective. Of course David...the next white paper we launch will go ungated, so it will be interesting to see how it performs against the other ones. Mike...great report! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jean Fleming EMAIL: jeanf@bnj.com IP: 66.178.161.10 URL: http://www.bnj.com DATE: 03/27/2009 11:30:47 AM Great article and informative comments. I would add that as an agency, we are beholden to the goals of our clients, which are usually short term lead-gen rather than idea sharing. We are working on ways to passively profile users so that we gather the same info slowly, without the portcullis-like form up front. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brian Clark EMAIL: copyblogger@gmail.com IP: 71.170.6.144 URL: http://www.copyblogger.com DATE: 09/01/2009 08:42:08 AM David hits it on the head with his point about providing content first and then using a call to action to collect information after, rather than before. New studies show that reciprocity is stronger than reward in the context of opt-in information. The whole idea of promising content in exchange for an email address or RSS reader addition is based on reward – essentially I’ll give you this stuff if you do what I want. Reciprocity is a much stronger psychological motivator. If you deliver great content and then ask for the subscription, the research shows that twice as many people will go ahead and subscribe at that point. As Mike says, that means the content can't suck. I think this is a big reason why gated is still preferred. I explained yesterday that this was part of the reason I "ungated" my Authority Rules report. You can check that out here: http://www.copyblogger.com/authority-rules-report/ (there is also a link to the research I refer to). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.99.219 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 09/01/2009 08:50:06 AM Excellent points Brian. As you know, love your Authority Rules concept and your take on whey gated content is still preferred. Do you have any metrics that you'd be willing to share on the results of Authority Rules to date? ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Change is coming faster than you think STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: change-is-coming-faster-than-you-think CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 03/19/2009 01:17:04 PM ----- BODY:

If you have told yourself recently that new media marketing will not affect your industry or your business significantly because of FILL IN THE BLANK, then watch this video.

Change is happening faster every second. What changes will you make?

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Richard Shatto EMAIL: wordstorms@gmail.com IP: 75.157.31.41 URL: http://rshatto.wordpress.com DATE: 03/19/2009 05:04:34 PM Joe, this is an amazing compilation of past and future facts and statistics about information and the future in our age of technology. (That's an awful sentence but I don't have time to clean it up.) The question posed at the end is equally amazing. Since I don't believe it can really BE answered, I'm glad they didn't try... although it is certainly fun to ponder. Thanks for continually sending out great "content", I look forward to yours more than most. ~rs ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Gee Ranasinha EMAIL: gee@kexino.com IP: 83.194.111.57 URL: http://blog.kexino.com/ DATE: 03/20/2009 04:28:51 AM It's a great video. But what is not made clear is that this is an update of the famous "Shift Happens" video by Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod that was created in 2006. http://shifthappens.wikispaces.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: peterK EMAIL: info@proseo.dk IP: 62.199.1.206 URL: http://www.proseo.dk DATE: 03/22/2009 04:55:28 AM Great informations and statistics, really relevant stuff. Cheers for awesome post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karl Foxley EMAIL: karlfoxley@googlemail.com IP: 86.0.225.75 URL: http://karlmfoxley.com DATE: 03/23/2009 05:39:25 PM This is a very powerful thought provoking video. Great research and some amazing facts. Great work and thanks for sharing. Regards, Karl ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Brett Duncan, MarketingInProgress.com EMAIL: brett@marketinginprogress.com IP: 216.110.25.2 URL: http://www.marketinginprogress.com DATE: 04/01/2009 12:37:40 PM Wow. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Abhishek Shrivastava EMAIL: abhisfortitude@gmail.com IP: 129.7.239.184 URL: DATE: 10/20/2009 04:40:13 PM Amazing video Joe! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Why would you buy advertising? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: why-would-you-buy-advertising CATEGORY: predictions DATE: 03/19/2009 01:11:27 PM ----- BODY:

It's an honest question, and was the major discussion in an interview I had today with Lauri Sihvonen, a reporter from Markkinointi&Mainonta (a publication dedicated to marketing and communication professionals in Finland) at the Ateljee bar in Helsinki.

Lauri's magazine is a mostly paid subscription publication, but they also drive revenues through online and print sponsorship. His advertisers are trying to target M&M readers to sell their products and services. Let's say that over the next few years, his advertisers were able to collect the information they needed about the M&M readers they wanted to target, and combined it into their own customer database.

Here is the question I asked Lauri: If that was the case, why would someone advertise?

Let's really think about this. In general, companies advertise to:

Reach New Customers.
Remain With Prospects Through the Buying Process.
Because Your Competition is Advertising.
Because it Pays Off Over a Long Period.
Generate Store/Site Traffic.
Make More Sales.
Because There is Always Business to Generate.
Keep a Healthy Positive Image.
Maintain Employee Morale.

I'm sure there are others, but those are the biggies.

But as companies gather the information they need about their customers and prospects, the need to advertise is almost eliminated. If a brand has similar assets to a media property, why wouldn't they just go direct (through content marketing), rather than go through a distributor?

Neither of us had an answer to the question - why advertise? New markets? Possibly. New Product? Could, but why if you already can communicate directly. Credibility? Maybe, but a brand that provides quality relevant and valuable information can quickly develop a relationship with customers/readers. Site Traffic? Content works best.

All that, and it's still an interruptive media choice (not permission marketing), and is almost always the most expensive choice....and...there are more free distribution choices available than ever before (just in case brands don't have the databases they need).

It's Not Just Print

And, as we all know, the move away from advertising has been happening for a while.

Advertising is projected to be down 13% this year. Could be more.

Advertising Age itself just announced that it was cutting its number of issues from 50 to 43 or 44 this year due to the drop in advertising. “It’s pretty horrible,” said editor Jonah Bloom. “If a publication loses 50 or 60 percent versus last year, that’s half your revenue that disappeared! A great quote from someone I was talking to the other day said I’m just kind of hoping if I can get to 15 or 20 percent down, I’ll be somewhere in the middle of the pack. You know what I mean? It’s pretty serious. In our case, we feel like we’ve built a number of non-print-ad-related revenue streams.”

One problem with the online strategy Jonah - online advertising is less expensive and may be better option for marketers than print, but it is less effective each year since 2004, as click-through rates continue to decline.

It's advertising in general that's the problem...all forms. Brands are going direct, both because they can and they have to in order to stay relevant with customers.

So this was Lauri's final question..."If that's the trend, and advertising will never come back, what are media companies to do?"

My answer: If the company is built upon sponsorship revenue, find a new business model, and quickly. Most media brands have excellent credibility, a great database, industry expertise and some have the best journalists. Those assets are a great place to start to offer products and services that are not sponsorship based.

In many markets in the very near future, the look of a non-media brand and a media brand, in terms of their general activities, will be nearly identical. Everyone is a publisher and media companies need to provide products and services to survive.

What say you?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ardath Albee EMAIL: ardath@marketinginteractions.com IP: 98.149.229.198 URL: http://marketinginteractions.typepad.com DATE: 03/19/2009 05:52:25 PM Excellent points, Joe. I'd love to see some ideas about new revenue models for media companies. I think Tippit is capitalizing on these changes although they started out as a "new media" company. Also, this post raises another question I'd like to toss out. Why would you buy lead lists? I'd say it's pretty much the same argument. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 62.237.32.34 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/19/2009 06:02:09 PM I like your thinking Ardath. New Media business models should make for a great blog post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jan Schochet EMAIL: jannc01@charter.net IP: 69.134.120.197 URL: http://www.AlpineWebsiteAdvantage.com DATE: 03/20/2009 01:36:34 PM Here's a model that actually does two things simultaneously. 1) It publishes good news--not in the religious sense, but real good news, rather than sensationalist horror stories that fill many regular newspapers and TV news stories and 2) does it online only. I "heard it on NPR." Here's the URL: www.goodnewsnetwork.org The founder used to be a reporter for traditional media. Interesting story. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Engago Team EMAIL: engagoteam@gmail.com IP: 81.244.22.20 URL: http://www.LEADSExplorer.com DATE: 03/21/2009 04:42:01 AM In B2B 7 out of 10 deals start with an Internet search. Thus your leads are in most cases visiting your website. The problem is only 3% will ever register for a white paper download or contact you directly. This can be solved by implementing a web service that reveals the company names of your website visitors. Additionally you can qualify these companies as leads by the visit data: search terms used, pages visited, duration of visits, repeat visit and information about the company and its' business. Then you can cold call on warm companies as you can find contacts with the Internet Data Mining provided. Interesting: www.LEADSExplorer.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: dadaas EMAIL: dadaas@gmail.com IP: 78.0.210.60 URL: http://www.dadaas.com DATE: 03/29/2009 01:35:53 PM Yea, everyone needs advertising. To promote brand or just to get more people talking about you. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Five Content Marketing Books You Need to Read STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: five-content-marketing-books-you-need-to-read DATE: 03/17/2009 11:04:07 AM ----- BODY:

Over the past month, I've had a large amount of flying time to Europe and back. That means it's been the perfect time to catch up on my reading.

Below are books that I've read and taken something significant away. I believe they can help you too (these are in no particular order).

#1 - Content Rich by Jon Wuebben

I recently had the chance to chat with Jon, and subsequently read his book. Here's my take: if SEO copywriting and content creation is important to your business (it should if it's not), this is a must read. Jon knows this stuff and will show you step by step how to do it. This will change the way you think about online content.

Best for: Anyone trying to increase conversions from search engines.

#2 - World Wide Rave by David Meerman Scott

You won't find a bigger fan than me of David's previous book, The New Rules of Marketing and PR. WW Rave is as good, if not better. If you are not a believer in the content marketing revolution, you will be after reading this book. It's a game changer. The examples are priceless. Need executive buy-in? Buy them this book.

Best for: Decision-makers that don't understand how the Internet has changed the game. Opportunity is now.

#3 - HVAC Spells Wealth by Ron Smith

As some of you know, I've done a bit of work in HVAC (Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning) publishing and marketing in my day. Through my travels I've had the opportunity to meet and work with Ron. Okay, Ron's book is not really about content marketing. But it IS one of the most practical small business operations, sales and marketing books I've ever read. Ron's examples are geared toward consumer service businesses, but the tips are priceless. Ron includes dozens of what he calls "1%ers" (small changes that when added up are game changers). I started making a list of them. I'll share in a future post. Great stuff. Get the book.

Best for: Owners and executives that need to focus more time on customers, and less time on internal politics. The process detail in invaluable.

#4 - The Zen of Social Media Marketing by Shama Hyder

Shama was kind enough to let me preview a copy of this eBook before she released it. What I truly love about this book revolves around "the art of giving." Social media is about giving of your expertise in a way that helps your ideas spread. If you are a social media novice or a self-proclaimed social media guru, you will take some points away that will help your business. No doubt about it. Good for any sized business. Includes concrete best practices for Twitter and Facebook.

Best for: Businesses unsure about how to proceed into social media.

#5 - Personality Not Included by Rohit Bhargava

I didn't start using the term "authenticity" until after I read this book. Today's marketing environment means that brands needs to stand for something, and back that up with ideas and content that are meaningful to customers. We don't have a choice anymore. Rohit's examples are worth the price of admission.

Best for: Marketing executives trying to grasp the integration between new and traditional marketing. Those trying to find a connection with customers.

Also (warning...sales plug), I have to mention our book, Get Content Get Customers as well (revised paperback to be released in May). I've seen this book in action with both businesses and media companies, and I can guarantee that it will make a difference in your business if you implement these steps.

Finally, I haven't read it yet, but I'm intrigued by John Blossom's Content Nation. That's the next one on my list.

Any others that I should add to my content marketing reading list?

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shama Hyder EMAIL: shama@clicktoclient.com IP: 173.71.26.80 URL: http://clicktoclient.com DATE: 03/17/2009 11:40:10 AM Woo-hoo! Not only did you guys make my day by listing my book (humbled!) but also added to my reading list for this week. You know you rock right? : ) Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: David Meerman Scott EMAIL: david@freshspot.com IP: 173.106.13.54 URL: http://www.webinknow.com/ DATE: 03/17/2009 12:51:48 PM Thanks Joe, for including my book. Looking forward to meeting you in Miami in a few days! David ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bernie Borges EMAIL: bernie@findandconvert.com IP: 72.77.172.74 URL: http://www.findandconvert.com/blog DATE: 03/17/2009 03:17:48 PM Joe, This is a great list. I've read some of these books (not all yet). BTW, don't hesitate to plug your own book. It's worthy of being on this list. I can say that b/c I've read it and enjoyed it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Emily Sheetz EMAIL: sheetz.e@gmail.com IP: 68.46.184.52 URL: http://phillywordsmith.blogspot.com DATE: 03/17/2009 03:45:59 PM I am so excited to check out these books. I am already an avid reader of David Meerman Scott's blog and books. I can't wait to tap into Shama Hyder's and the others on the list! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ardath Albee EMAIL: ardath@marketinginteractions.com IP: 98.149.229.198 URL: http://marketinginteractions.typepad.com DATE: 03/19/2009 04:35:40 PM Thanks, Joe. I just bought 3 I haven't read! And yours - which I have - definitely deserves to be on the list! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ron Smith EMAIL: ronlsmith2@bellsouth.net IP: 74.244.249.250 URL: http://www.ronsmithhvac.com DATE: 03/21/2009 03:09:33 PM Joe, Thanks for mentioning my book and I'm looking forward to working more with you in the future. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: lucky m EMAIL: filtersupply@gmail.com IP: 122.173.128.245 URL: http://www.filter-supply.com/ DATE: 07/29/2010 01:13:00 AM Joe thank you very much for the book.it's outstanding.I am so excited to check out these books. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 10 Commandments for Custom Magazine Failure STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: 10-commandments-for-custom-magazine-failure DATE: 03/12/2009 12:16:56 PM ----- BODY:

This topic was created for two reasons.

First, I'll be giving this presentation in Helsinki, Finland next week for their 2009 Customer Magazines Symposium.

Second, I was inspired by the book, The Ten Commandments for Business Failure, written by former Coca-Cola CEO Donald Keough (good book by the way). After reading, I thought it would be interesting to look at custom magazines in this way.

So here's the quick overview. To be sure, if you follow any of these commandments, your custom magazine will be an utter failure.

The Ten Commandments for Custom Magazine Failure

Commandment #1
Keep Thinking Like a Marketer

Some custom magazines are often positioned as glorified sales brochures - lots of company news, case studies that tell how great the company is, and advertorial type informational pieces. For a custom magazine to work, brands need to remove the "sales speak" and start to think like a publisher - with the #1 goal of providing valuable and relevant content to the reader.

David Tokheim from Six Apart put this nice roundup together about thinking like a publisher, including:

Give them something to talk about
Listen
Foster relationships through social currency
Align with influencers to create something remarkable

If you cannot take your sales hat off and communicate like a publisher would, your custom magazine is bound for failure.

Commandment #2
Talk about Yourself A Lot! - Sell, Sell, Sell

If you mention your company or brands more than a few times on each printed page, you're in trouble. In one test of a recent corporate magazine, we found up to 19 mentions of the company's brand and products on just ONE PAGE. How valuable could that be?

One of the cores of content marketing is that you can actually sell more in the long run by selling less (best case, not at all) in your content. Custom magazines are no different.

Commandment #3
Keep Doing the Same Thing

The majority of custom magazines still use this formula:

Create glossy custom magazine
Mail magazine to targeted customers or ship to distribution locations
Upload content to website/microsite and/or create digital magazine replica
Repeat in three months

A custom magazine today cannot just be a custom magazine. Here is what the custom magazine of the present and the future looks like.

Record interviews (video/audio) for later repurposing.
Develop a news release schedule pre- and post- issue release.
Discuss upcoming issue on your magazine blog (editor). Set up RSS feeds.
Post video interviews via YouTube or Vimeo. Embed in your blog post.
Print and mail/ship your magazine.
Send digital replica version to international audience or online subscribers.
Upload content onto magazine website. Be sure content is sharable via social media (Facebook, Digg, StumbleUpon)
Provide a “remarkable” download on magazine site (eBook, white paper, etc.). Here's an example.
Continue to provide relevant content on magazine website – articles, blog posts.
Use Pay-Per-Click, targeted specific keywords to drive people to your online magazine or download (in addition to the SEO magic of consistent, compelling content.
Continue news release program (plan for at least one, best for two per month).
“Listen” to who’s talking about what online (more to come on this).
Upload articles to key vertical and social bookmarking sites.
Other social media – Facebook group, LinkedIn group, etc.

Commandment #4
Wait for Better Timing to Expand

There has never been a better time for marketers to leverage publishing tools than right now. The rules of the game have changed.

If you create and develop consistent and relevant content to your customers, buyers will engage in it as credible, just as they have traditional expert media content. This is happening now!
Check your databases. Do you have customer information and permissions to communicate directly with your customers and prospects? You most likely do.
Traditional media is losing journalistic talent. Hire some!
There are no technology barriers.

Commandment #5
Don't Leverage Free Online Tools

If you want your custom magazine to fail, don't use:

Google Alerts
Twitter
Twitter Search
Tweetdeck - Twitter Management Tool

Usage - Finding new stories, new distribution channels, listening to customers prospects, speaking one-on-one with customers, becoming a part of the conversation in your marketplace, developing real relationships with customers and prospects.

Commandment #6
Create Multiple Marketing Objectives

Many marketers want to accomplish the following with their custom magazine:

Customer Retention
Lead Generation
Thought Leadership
Lower Customer Service Costs
Open New Markets
Inspire Former Decision Makers
Magazine to Pay for Itself
Solve World Hunger

That's a recipe for failure. Too many goals = lack of focus. To succeed, focus on one key goal.

Altair uses its customer magazine to form relationships with key decision-makers.
SFPE uses its association magazine to maintain/grow its membership.

Commandment #7
Ignore Traditional Media in Your Market

Five out of every 10 magazines and newspapers will go out of business, scale down their frequency or move entirely to the Web,” predicts Andy Cohn, vice president and group publisher, Fader Media.

The opportunity? Do what camera manufacturer Adorama did with JPG magazine and invest in traditional media outlets. Brilliant move.

Any struggling media properties in your market? Buy them.

Commandment #8
You Don't Need a Content Audit

If you want your custom magazine to fail, don't develop processes to extract the best content from inside your organization. Don't do a content audit.

The future of a custom magazine is about developing a content strategy that makes sense so you can actually "be the publisher".

Commandment #9
Let the Customer Figure Out the Action Step

If you don't have a call-to-action (some additional piece of content or valuable information) on almost every page, you'll start to have problems. Custom magazines are about creating or maintaining a behavior change, but you have to have an understanding of what you actually want your customer to do.

Commandment #10
Disregard the LEGO Principle

If you want your custom magazine to fail, don't pay any attention to LEGO magazine. Starting out as your basic custom magazine in the 80s, this top-tier magazine has spread into an email newsletter, branded music, in-person events, a social network, variable versions (LEGO Club Jr., Brickmaster), spin-offs (Bionicle magazine), and even an on-demand TV Channel.

To ensure that your magazine will not be successful, don't pay attention to what LEGO is doing.

What did we miss?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Arjun Basu EMAIL: abasu@spafax.com IP: 207.139.42.35 URL: http://www.spafax.com DATE: 03/12/2009 03:24:51 PM Excellent post, Joe. I have sent it to all senior staff, account mgs and editors. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/12/2009 03:28:05 PM Great Arjun...had a lot of fun with this post - and it also took way too much time :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Maglitta EMAIL: joe.maglitta@ziffdavisenterprise.com IP: 24.61.45.33 URL: http://www.ziffdavisenterprise.com DATE: 03/12/2009 03:28:48 PM Joe - Enjoy your work and thoughts daily. Had to write on this one. Great articulation. Keep em coming! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/12/2009 03:30:40 PM Thanks Joe...you need to post more often! Appreciate you taking the time. It's easy to keep status quo with custom magazines, which is why this post is probably timely. Cheers Joe ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Patsi Krakoff aka The Blog Squad EMAIL: pkrakoff@gmail.com IP: 189.162.77.57 URL: http://www.writingontheweb.com DATE: 03/13/2009 08:40:35 AM This is fabulous, Joe. But as much time as it took, you need to go back and do it over again ... and maybe again. I'm thinking this has bigger ramifications and applications...like to more than just custom magazines...like for business blogging, and all writing on web pages. Okay, don't want to create more work for you. I'll just steal your ideas and rework them into a post on the 10 Commandments for Business Blog Failure... ;-) Great stuff, I'm sure the Finns will luv it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/13/2009 08:43:14 AM Funny you say that. I've been getting some comments on that and was thinking the same thing. Glad you enjoyed it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Erica Stritch - RainToday EMAIL: estritch@raintoday.com IP: 216.15.121.98 URL: http://www.raintoday.com DATE: 03/13/2009 12:02:09 PM Thank you, Joe for a really great post! How about an 11th Commandment - "Don't try to create a community among your readers." User generated content and community are going to play huge roles in the future. Readers want to hear and learn from other readers who are in the same situation. If you aren't the one facilitating this conversation and making this connection possible, you can be sure your competitors will be. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/13/2009 12:04:24 PM Love it Erica...I might have to steal that one! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Erica Stritch - RainToday EMAIL: estritch@raintoday.com IP: 216.15.121.98 URL: http://www.raintoday.com DATE: 03/13/2009 01:47:26 PM Be my guest - and best of luck with the Finns. You'll knock 'em dead with this content. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Discount Business Cards EMAIL: faith@digitalroom.com IP: 122.52.242.242 URL: http://www.digitalroom.com/business-cards.html DATE: 03/14/2009 02:22:52 AM Love your ideas. Will be reading your other posts too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Janet EMAIL: china40@gmail.com IP: 97.53.183.197 URL: DATE: 03/14/2009 03:28:40 PM I subscribe to TheBlogSquads newsletter/blogs and saw your post today. I'm starting an online fitness magazine and didn't know where to begin. This is some awesome information. Can't wait to get started. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vince Giorgi EMAIL: vgiorgi@charter.net IP: 68.117.35.141 URL: http://www.touchpointcity.wordpress.com DATE: 03/14/2009 04:12:31 PM Great post Joe. Here might be Failure Commandment No. 12 (or 0.5?). 12. Expect Your Magazine to "Pay for Itself" This might not be quite so common today as in years past, but experience suggests too many organizations approach a custom publishing opportunity with the assumption it must be at least partially, if not fully, "liquidating." This is typically a recipe for disappointment. And it's why some high-potential custom publishing strategies never get off the ground. Yes, it's important to "think like a publisher" in terms of delivering relevant, compelling content. But assuming ad sales will defray a signficant amount of your investment in the magazine is typically unrealistic, not to mention faulty strategy. A well-executed custom magazine is, arguably, the most powerful DM touch you can put in front of a key audience. But the value/ROI comes not in whether the magazine becomes a revenue-generator per se. Instead, the focus should be on whether it drives metrics such as engagement, direct response and brand perception/affinity. Vince www.touchpointcity.wordpress.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/14/2009 09:05:11 PM Vince...that one is fantastic and I can't believe I left it out. We've all heard that a million times before, and marketers still believe that they can defray all the costs associated with their magazine. Great stuff, and thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Gordy EMAIL: goshgordy@hotmail.com IP: 196.207.2.10 URL: DATE: 03/15/2009 03:11:34 PM You just saved me time and money with that piece Joe. My clients should read this! Am sure the Finns will have a great time. Wish it was here. Keep it coming. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/15/2009 03:13:39 PM Thanks Gordy...let me know what your clients think! Cheers Joe ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karl Foxley EMAIL: karlfoxley@googlemail.com IP: 86.0.225.75 URL: http://karlmfoxley.com DATE: 03/16/2009 09:22:13 AM This was a great and informative read. I certainly agree Joe Pulizzi as I see this adapting and applying to the business blogging community. Thanks for posting. Karl ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Glenn Laudenslager EMAIL: glaudenslager@gmail.com IP: 128.103.8.112 URL: http://www.chargeahead.wordpress.com DATE: 05/09/2009 01:34:15 PM Excellent post Joe. Well-said, completely on point. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Enter the Content Strategist: Content Strategy as an Asset STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: enter-the-content-strategist-content-strategy-as-an-asset CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 03/10/2009 06:11:14 PM ----- BODY:

Wanted to share an excellent presentation from my good friend (and past content strategy co-presenter) Kristina Halvorson (@halvorson) from Brain Traffic.

Couple of points that I think are important to pull out of this presentation:

Everything you do today in marketing can and should be web content (see Slide 55).
Readers of this blog already know this, but the role of what we call the "content strategist" is one of most important roles in a marketing organization. Any aspiring journalists out there? Start the path to becoming a content strategist.
Content, or the delivery of valuable information for your customers to evoke some action, is often discounted by brands (a pesky, last-minute detail).
Unorganized, irrelevant content will confuse customers and hurt the brand. Relevant, organized content is an asset (and a powerful one at that).

I especially love the commentary on how we are "using brands" today. Yesterday Gerber...Today Babycenter.com. Yesterday Hush Puppies...Today Zappos.com.

Nice job Kristina.

Content Strategy: The Care and Feeding of Your Biggest Brand Asset

View more presentations from Kristina Halvorson.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Postcard Printing EMAIL: faith@digitalroom.com IP: 122.52.242.242 URL: http://www.digitalroom.com/Postcard-Printing.html DATE: 03/14/2009 02:23:51 AM Brilliant post. Some great stuff in here. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: buy darkfall gold EMAIL: s.js6637481@yahoo.com IP: 58.212.4.79 URL: http://www.buydarkfallgold.net DATE: 07/10/2009 02:16:29 AM I agree with you 100% -- very good write up, makes sense :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: darkfall gold EMAIL: pixeltracer123@gmail.com IP: 58.217.168.106 URL: http://www.playerassist.com/darkfall/ DATE: 07/16/2009 03:00:02 AM Brilliant post. Some great stuff in here. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Dangers of Social Media in the Workplace - A Real Life Example STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: career-dangers-in-social-media CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 03/08/2009 07:28:25 PM ----- BODY:

Big thanks to Heather Rast (@heatherrast) for sharing her real-life story of how social media involvement affected her corporate career. This is a very important topic that affects nearly all businesses today. In Heather's case, you'll see that her social media activity led to some significant problems with her former employer. You'll also hear from Heather that she'd do it all over again, despite what happened to her.

When I heard about Heather's situation, I was anxious to get this story out. We can all learn from this issue - as owners, employees and personal brandkeepers. Would love to get everyone's thoughts on this. Thanks!

By the way, Heather and I first met via Twitter. Heather put a ton of detail into this, and I truly appreciate her time. - Joe Pulizzi

What types of social media/social are you involved in?

I’m actively involved in: my blog, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Delicious, StumbleUpon, LinkedIn, FriendFeed, and Flickr. I had active presences on each of these before the incident and remain active today at those sites.

Can you give us an overview of what happened, as it relates to your social media involvement?

I was employed by a software development company, and my role was director-level. My role included leading a team of ten Web interface designers and content strategists. My focus was entirely on the best ways to present and market our client brands on the Web.

After being involved in social media, I learned that my mindset toward it was not shared by all. Others may be more circumspect, calculating, methodical, and generally more reserved in their approach to growing and learning. By comparison, I prefer to do research, consult with experienced persons, and leverage my intuition to make first steps, closely evaluating results but persisting in moving ahead.

Our company did not have a freelance or social media policy. Because of my level of responsibility, I thought it within my purview to choose methods for generating interest among outside parties about what my team did, and what we had to offer. I used Twitter to share ideas like “Just had a great client meeting. I think they’re understanding what a SEM campaign can do for their short-term search goals.”

One of the persons who didn’t agree with my approach/style decided to selectively cull certain Tweets from my stream, and present them to executive management. They asserted that I was sharing confidential client information and using poor judgment. My personal Facebook account (the daily status updates) was also called into question, as was my blog in the topics I wrote about. But the impetus for the sudden focus on me, I believe, was primarily Twitter. Interestingly, I wasn't the first person to use Twitter and refer to work-type topics.

The reality is, I never mentioned a client by name, and I never detailed any client project. But the suggestion by my accuser was that if a client found my Tweets and used the time stamp, they could deduce that I was talking about them.

In the end, my saving grace, I believe, was that my boss lacked the bandwidth to easily assume my duties. There were some additional punishments, and the sum total effect sufficiently caused a lot of reflection about earning a livelihood, while also being confused about what the company really thought I could and should offer.

What would be your advice to others in your situation?

Certainly, I learned the hard way that Tweets can be parsed, and meaning can be applied to my words without benefit of context. That those actions intentionally distort facts is immaterial. I find that very ironic—that some “well meaning steward of the company” can twist my words to suggest I’m a poor representative of the company.

To others that feel a compelling need to share, exchange ideas, and grow via Twitter, I’d say this: if you don’t own the company (and therefore don’t have autonomy), ask what the corporate social media policy is. If you find it flexible enough for your needs, then great—advise your boss in writing that you’re an active in blogs/social media and that you will adhere to rule 4.2 section A or whatever. Be up front and intentional about your after-hours involvement in communities.

If a policy doesn’t exist, go on record providing samples (IBM and Dell are readily available and often referenced [jp-here's Edelman's]) to Human Resources, and state that in absence of a policy, you will adhere to these best practice recommendations; when such time as the company develops their own you’ll be happy to comply.

Would you do it again, and why?

I’m no longer with the company, although I still believe in their product and believe a great many talented people work there. But my disappointment in their inability to channel my talents effectively for the good and growth of the company is tremendous. I had previously been heralded for my contributions. One dissenter was all it took to turn the heads of critical decision makers. I didn’t have a chance to have a rational discussion about the issue. But to be fair, maybe I should have seen trouble coming.

Several months have passed since this went down. Yes, I’d do it all again. Why? Because I’ve met some tremendous people on Twitter. People who share and encourage, people who help me grow. These groups expand my reach and make me feel part of something bigger. Long term, I’d be unhappy and dissatisfied abstaining from social media. And in the end, I believe the very pieces of me that are attractive to employers would be eroded if I didn’t Tweet, blog, or otherwise connect.

The beautiful ending to my story is that I’m now with a company who has full disclosure of my blogging and Twittering—they very much support my writing and sharing and frankly hope to leverage my connections for the benefit of the company—something I’m totally okay with because it’ll make me smarter and showcase skills that will ultimately add to my marketability as a MarCom professional.

Yes, in this economy it’s risky to fly right if everyone else is flying left. But it was the right (no pun) move for me, even if it was painful for awhile. I learned some lessons that will stay with me forever.

Lessons Learned:

Be very intentional about what I write anywhere. Have awareness about if the first and the fourth (example) sentences were stripped away, could my idea be misinterpreted, or used against me?
Have a healthy respect for dissenters. Threatened people will resort to surprising behaviors. Take actions to preempt their plans by being as transparent as possible.
You are replaceable, and your achievements are only as noteworthy as your weaknesses are few. Bad things can happen to good people.
Isolate what is really important to your career/professional happiness. Then make sure you’re working at a place that truly allows you do those things. Life’s too short to just work somewhere; find that career that offers fulfillment.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul Roetzer EMAIL: paul@pr2020.com IP: 216.130.3.82 URL: http://www.pr2020.com DATE: 03/09/2009 08:27:47 AM Joe, Great work. This is a very timely topic that every organization active in social media needs to consider. Thanks to Heather for sharing her story. Paul ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rob EMAIL: ryoegel@napco.com IP: 209.92.232.26 URL: http://pubtalk.pubexec.com DATE: 03/12/2009 02:57:49 PM Joe - Take a look at Do Social Media Sites Pose a Hidden Threat to Publishers?: http://www.pubexec.com/blog/do-social-media-sites-pose-hidden-threat-publishers-301111.html ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.124.218 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/12/2009 03:04:46 PM Interesting Rob...all the more important for publishers to take time and create a social media policy that makes sense. Now's the time. Thanks for sharing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jean Gibson EMAIL: Jeangib@comcast.net IP: 72.54.34.26 URL: DATE: 03/12/2009 03:51:48 PM How nice of Heather to share. Very helpful. Thank you. I'm curious to know how old Heather is. Although well meaning, her actions did not seem to be well thought out across the board. All too often younger (I'm 45) people tend to react and want to be seen for something new and innovative. Project teamwork is what its all about. You know what they say...Stay close to your friend - even closer to your enemy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Heather EMAIL: rastheather@gmail.com IP: 209.136.24.187 URL: DATE: 03/12/2009 08:04:34 PM Jean, I shared my experience, which clearly represents only one perspective on what transpired, with Joe because I'd come to trust him and enjoy his work. I assume he viewed my story, so to speak, as a way to bring color to a very relevant topic he thought relevant to his audience. This being print and not a deeply detailed depiction of events, some very important nuances have been lost, and likely best kept that way. I don't feel compelled to jump on bandwagons or make noise for the sake of gaining attention or interest, and if I'm reading your suggestion properly, that's possibly the impetus for my actions in your opinion. Not applicable. I've 17 years in marketing, branding, and advertising (to answer your question, placing me late 30's), representing global and national consumer brands. And I'm humbled by the stellar talent I've had the good fortune to lead and build teams from. I very well know the value of joining together to approach a common goal and generate results. But I think you miss the point by going down that path, and I'm unclear as how the last sentence fits in with the rest of your comment. I'm sure I can't sufficiently comment back in this space. It's important to consider, however, that preemptive measures can only be taken when there are known (or anticipated) risks involved--which frankly implies intent of some sort. In my case, I had no such intent, and simply failed to recognize (or fully appreciate) the harbored feelings that ultimately started a chain of events, for passive-aggressiveness is not in my nature. I hope this brings the possibility of such things happening into the forefront of others minds so that they might take other measures. Still, it's my personal opinion that for lack of a SocMed policy, a biz doesn't reasonably establish fair license to "wait and see," to judge what might crop up--too ambiguous and open to interpretation. Most, including myself, are comfortable working within boundaries that are clearly defined. Upon reflection, I think the possibility exists that the issue was less what I chose to write, and more than other(s) were uncomfortable with determining how the use of SocMed tools fit in the equation. I might be wrong. Again, only one opinion/perspective. Thank you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: nancy chou EMAIL: nancy_chou10@hotmail.com IP: 99.185.41.134 URL: http://www.ncmktg.com DATE: 03/13/2009 01:28:32 AM Wow, the candor and relevance of this post is priceless. Thx for sharing such insightful post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jessie Somosierra EMAIL: jsomosierra@yahoo.com IP: 203.111.236.47 URL: http://frjessie.blogspot.com DATE: 03/14/2009 03:57:12 AM A very reflective mirror of reality not only in cyberworld but also in our daily lives. Yes bad things happen even to well intentioned good people ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Alex Schlotzer EMAIL: alex.schlotzer@gmail.com IP: 61.95.65.186 URL: http://alexschlotzer.wordpress.com DATE: 03/16/2009 11:12:34 PM Thanks for posting this story. It's all too familiar really in this day and age. Your story highlights a few issues. One of them being the company's failure in having appropriate policy in place, and why companies need to be diligent about changes in the workplace and engagement of new technologies. The other one is that union representation can often prevent the situation Heather found herself in - bullied and hauled across the coals because the company didn't have a policy in place. From the story provided it didn't seem Heather was ever given an opportunity to explain herself and since the company lacked the policies the worst 'punishment' it should've dealt out was a verbal warning. It's the responsibility of the company to outline all policies and to develop policies where deficiencies are highlighted. Again, thanks for posting such an important story that could adversely affect people's working lives. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: A Recession Content Strategy that Works - Look at Monster.com STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: a-recession-content-strategy-that-works-look-at-monstercom CATEGORY: case studies DATE: 03/04/2009 11:32:42 AM ----- BODY:

Times are tough, and the folks at Monster.com are responding.

I was forwarded this updated career advice section from Monster (thanks @jimkozak) and from the looks of it, they are responding directly to the informational needs of their customers.

Let's take a look at challenges faced by those people looking for or trying to keep their job:

What jobs will be readily available with the passage of the stimulus bill?
If I'm downsized, what do I need to do now to protect my career?
How much am I worth in a downturn?
How do I protect my job in a tough economy?
Can I still get a raise in a recession?

Those five questions that employees are struggling with are actually the first five articles on the Monster.com site.

The Payoff: Monster.com positions themselves as a trusted solutions provider for the jobs market. If someone relies on Monster to get information related to their career, do you think they will use Monster.com when the time comes? I say yes.

What can you learn from Monster.com?

Can you create information specific to your website that focuses on recession-related buying patterns?
What objections are your sales reps finding because of the economy? How can you take those questions and turn them into answers on your website?
What is that one piece of information that your customers cannot live without during tough financial times? Why can't you create it?
Can you deliver ongoing, valuable information to your customers and prospects without actively selling your product or service?

If you as a company aren't providing this kind of information in this manor, I can pretty much guarantee you that your competitor probably is. They will become the trusted provider of information relevant to their lives.

It's too risky NOT to publish valuable content marketing information to your customers and prospects. It's a cost of doing business today. Like it or not, you are a publisher.

What will you publish today?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Karl Foxley EMAIL: karlfoxley@googlemail.com IP: 86.0.225.75 URL: http://www.karlmfoxley.com DATE: 03/07/2009 09:29:04 AM This is a brilliant post and something that can readily benefit my coaching clients. I'll be certain to send them the link. Great info (as usual). Karl ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.107.230 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/08/2009 02:45:44 PM Thanks Karl...glad you enjoyed it. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Scouting for Content - Girl Scouts Head to the Social Web STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: scouting-for-content-girl-scouts CATEGORY: case studies DATE: 03/02/2009 08:27:13 PM ----- BODY:

The following is a guest post courtesy of Jackie Ross.

Content marketing just received a healthy dose of girl power.

The beloved spreader of good deeds and great cookies, the Girl Scouts, has expanded the conversation beyond the community center and campfire and into new arenas like chat rooms and blogs. It’s all part of a recent brand makeover that uses content to reach the hearts and minds of American girls.

Old-school pastimes like cookouts and sing-alongs haven’t disappeared from the Girl Scout lexicon, but the association has wisely refocused on how to best achieve its mission to “build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.” And “the how” is through communications.

Blogs, chat rooms, videoconferencing, and student-penned books give girls a voice and a platform where they can connect to each other and the causes they care about. A Go Girls Only section of the Girl Scouts website gives girls a forum to “Sound off and be heard” and read “What’s up?,” the latest news from the association.

"Now we're talking the language they're used to,” the Girl Scouts' multicultural marketing manager told The Washington Post.

So the value of the Girl Scouts, as it turns out, is not Thin Mints and Macaroons. But instead the messages – the content – that empowers the association’s members to connect and engage.

Jackie Ross is Director of Corporate Development for the World 50, where she builds and manages small, private networks of C-level executives.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: will EMAIL: wrmassie@gmail.com IP: 67.93.36.158 URL: http://www.modernfeed.com DATE: 03/04/2009 01:15:48 AM thanks for the post jackie. good example of an organization with a great brand connecting to its members in new ways ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Two Presentations Worthy of the Digital Content Marketing Revolution STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: two-presentations-worthy-of-the-digital-content-marketing-revolution CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 03/02/2009 11:45:13 AM ----- BODY:

Found this video via @robertcollins on Twitter regarding SHIFT's new digital content marketing practice. Worth the few minutes.

The New Digital Content Marketing from Bob Collins on Vimeo.

Prepare yourself for more of this to come. PR firms, agencies, publishers, direct marketers and SEO firms are all after the gold rush we call content. They are all starting to realize that none of the traditional marketing will work without content creation that people want to engage in.

There isn't one company out there that is not trying to figure out how they can help their customers tell better stories. This is the world we live in now...and he who has the most engaging content will win.

Below is another presentation that I really liked from Bud Caddell (via Imagination) on how fan creation is the lifeblood for tomorrow's businesses. How do you create fans? Create and share something remarkable. Most of the time...it's content that does the trick.

The Fan Economy: Becoming Fan Focused

View more presentations from Bud Caddell. (tags: entourage hbo)

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Michelle O'Hagan EMAIL: mohagan@imaginepub.com IP: 65.161.179.98 URL: http://www.imaginepub.com/marketingmatters/ DATE: 03/02/2009 12:47:56 PM Thanks for this Joe! I saw this on Twitter this morning and Bud's piece last Friday. Content marketing is getting a LOT of traction on Twitter as more and more companies/agencies enter the space. I suspect many agencies that lack content experience will struggle, but this movement continues to prove the theory that giving your audience something they care about is the best way to build a relationship. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.107.230 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/02/2009 12:51:55 PM Thanks Michelle...I agree with you...those agencies that don't understand the content strategy process will struggle. It seems easy, but it's actually quite a leap for traditional-minded companies (as you know). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Todd Defren EMAIL: tdefren@shiftcomm.com IP: 65.96.210.190 URL: http://www.pr-squared.com DATE: 03/02/2009 01:19:31 PM The fact that it may be a leap for traditional firms is fine by me! ;) Thanks for finding and using our video, Joe. You're right that this is essentially about storytelling: but now the audience helps to tell the story. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.107.230 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/02/2009 01:21:53 PM Ha...really cool stuff you're doing Todd. Keep us posted over here at Junta42. Loved the video! I felt left out ;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bob Collins EMAIL: bob@shiftcomm.com IP: 65.204.16.194 URL: http://www.shiftcomm.com DATE: 03/02/2009 01:37:26 PM Joe - Thanks a ton for picking up the content creation service news from this morning and better yet - sharing the video with your community. It's one of the reason I love video so much - if it's fun, engaging and of value to your community - then it gets shared. It's that the core of good marketing, creating something of value that people want to talk about and share with others. Michelle - alas you are correct. I feel there is more unlearning that needs to happen within some traditional firms than new learning - layered on top of old world thinking. Let us know if anyone is looking to create great new content to help tell - spread their story. ~Bob Collins @RobertCollins (Twitter) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Junta42 Releases New Top Blogs List - "Marketing with Meaning" Leads the Way STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: junta42-releases-new-top-blogs-list-marketing-with-meaning-leads-the-way CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 02/24/2009 08:55:35 PM ----- BODY:

We're excited to announce the fifth installment of the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing blogs. Congratulations this month goes to Bob Gilbreath and the team from Bridge Worldwide, whose Marketing with Meaning blog just squeaked by Brian Solis and PR 2.0.

This quarter's update included a record 224 blogs, up from 187 last quarter. In addition, the Junta42 Top 42 are now featured as part of the content marketing category at Alltop.com (which will be updated soon with the new 42).

Here is the complete Top 42:

1 Marketing with Meaning
2 PR 2.0
3 Chris Brogan's Blog
4 EyeCube
5 Conversation Marketing
6 Web Ink Now
7 Conversation Agent
8 Online Marketing Blog
9 ContentMarketingToday
10 Copyblogger
11 Marketing Interactions
12 Writing on the Web
13 The Toadstool
14 Keysplash Creative
15 The Social Media Engager
16 Influential Marketing Blog
17 Be the Voice
18 Buzz Marketing for Technology
19 AriWriter
20 Winning the Web
21 Web Strategy by Jeremiah
22 Hard Knox Life
23 Litman Live
24 Buzz News
25 Drew's Marketing Minute
26 Left the Box
27 Dan Blank
28 Nick Burcher
29 Craphammer.ca
30 Conversational Media Marketing
31 Nigel Hollis
32 Social Media Explorer
33 Chaos Scenario
34 The Content Wrangler
35 Eat Media Blog
36 Insights & Ingenuity
37 Ducttape Marketing
38 Servant of Chaos
39 Emerson Direct Marketing Observations
40 Seth's Blog
41 ViralBlog
42 Social Media (Re)Loaded

Click here to see the news release, which will be distributed on Wednesday.

Click here to see the entire Top 42 Content Marketing blogs. To view the selection criteria, click here.

Again, congratulations to the Top 42, and keep up the great work!

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: dominique EMAIL: dominique.lahaix@ecairn.com IP: 67.188.127.178 URL: http://blog.ecairn.com DATE: 02/25/2009 07:52:28 PM Thanks for the list. We also publish a list of top 150 (out of the 1000 social media marketing bloggers that we monitor): http://blog.ecairn.com/2009/02/09/top-150-social-media-marketing-blogs/ Best ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sarah EMAIL: dzone_db@yahoo.com IP: 61.247.243.70 URL: http://www.craigslisttool.info DATE: 04/04/2009 06:14:41 AM I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often. Sarah http://www.craigslisttool.info ----- PING: TITLE: Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs Released - Tipping Point Rises to the Top URL: http://blog.junta42.com/content_marketing_blog/2009/07/top-42-content-marketing-blogs-released-tipping-point-rises-to-the-top.html IP: 10.17.151.31 BLOG NAME: Junta42 DATE: 07/30/2009 11:13:52 AM Well, after a slight delay to coincide with the launch of the new Junta42 redesign, the Junta42 Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs have finally been released. Definitely, our most competitive and thorough list, the Top 42 is a collection of... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: A Strategic Approach to Content and SEO STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: a-strategic-approach-to-content-and-seo CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 02/24/2009 10:48:04 AM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Lee Odden (website, Twitter) from TopRank Online Marketing for putting together one of the best overviews of online content, SEO and content strategy I've seen in a while.

For this article, Lee brought together Jon Wuebben President/CEO of Custom Copywriting and author of “Content Rich”, Heidi Cohen, President of Riverside Marketing Strategies, Adjunct Professor at NYU and Columnist at ClickZ, Heather Lloyd-Martin, President/CEO of SuccessWorks and Sally Falkow, President of Expansion Plus, Senior Fellow at the Society for New Communications Research (as well as myself).

Here's an interesting snippet that sums up the SEO versus content strategy issue:

It’s hard to think about creating an effective SEO strategy without first developing the content marketing strategy. Getting people to your web pages is one thing, getting customers to feel and think a certain way about your content, and then creating a behavior change is another all together. The two go hand in hand, but without a content strategy that makes sense for your business and your customers, the SEO strategy ...won’t accomplish the organizational goals and tactics of the business.

Check out the complete article here. It's worth the time.

Great job Lee!

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Writing SEO Content for Two Audiences: Humans and Search Engines STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: writing-seo-content-for-two-audiences-humans-and-search-engines CATEGORY: search marketing DATE: 02/16/2009 08:52:08 PM ----- BODY:

Web content and SEO often go hand-in-hand, but the techniques that help develop great web content and efficient SEO strategies are often very different. To discuss this important topic, I asked Bernie Borges (@berniebay) of Find and Convert to tackle the issue. Thanks Bernie!

Website content needs to be written for two audiences: humans and search engines.

Of course, humans are the target audience that respond to marketer’s call to actions and ultimately convert into a customer. But, we must not ignore the search engines when writing website content.

Just how do you balance writing for humans and search engines? For that matter how do you write for search engines.

To answer both questions let’s start with writing for search engines.

To see how search engines actually “see” your content, just select “view source” in your browser. Viewing the source is a good reminder of how the search engines digest your web pages. They don’t see any of the visual aspects of your website.

The first concept to consider in writing content for search engines is to make the content available to search engines within the first 100 lines of code. If you have a bunch of code occupying real estate on your web page before your content appears, you start with a serious handicap.

Next, each page of content should have a clear and unique theme. Search engines identify the main theme of each page in three word phrases. If the name of your company is Henry Johnson LLC and you sell orthodontic dental supplies, you want the search engines to interpret the theme of your home page as “orthodontic dental supplies” not as “Henry Johnson LLC” (assuming you want to be found in search engines for orthodontic dental supplies).

Each web page should have several ingredients in place including:

Clear title tags with a distinct theme such as “orthodontic dental supplies.”
H1 and H2 tags which support the main theme of this page.
Keyword density of the main theme of the page in the 5% range.
Hyperlinks from the main theme of the page to other relevant pages.
A human readable URL containing the main keywords from this page.

These suggestions above are SEO 101 guidelines. Here are some more advance guidelines for your SEO content strategy.

Broaden your footprint on the web by writing relevant content in other places, e.g., guest blog posts (such as this), guest articles, white papers, press releases, etc.
Write compelling content that others will link to such as industry-wide news, “best of” lists and generally any thought leadership or thought provoking content.
Blog about your industry. Find non-marketing staff to write interesting blog content and write often. The more bloggers who write in your company the better.
Respond to relevant blog posts with intelligent comments. Some blogs permit you to link back to your website.
Recruit staff to use Twitter. Have them post links to good content. Some of the content can be yours but not all of it. Promote other’s relevant content, not just your own content.
Link out to other relevant content. Show the search engines you care enough to share other good, relevant content by linking out to it.
Upload PowerPoint presentations to Slideshare.net. Link it to your website.
Link from your LinkedIn profile using keywords, not your company name.
Create videos and optimize them for search engines. Video is great content for search engines to index.
Create still photos and upload them to social websites with links back to your website.
Create a new section in your website with the sole purpose of populating it with a lot of content. The purpose of this content is for search engines. This section doesn’t need to be in your menu navigation structure as long as there is a legitimate link from a footer or header and it’s located in the sitemap. Populate this section with unique pages of content of not less than 250 words each.
Make sure you have a sitemap (for humans) and an XML sitemap (for search engines).

Now, let’s get back to writing for humans.

Write web page content in a flow according to how your website visitors will consume it efficiently. Write web pages with not more than about 500 words. Give visitors a reason to navigate to another page, eventually taking them to an action step.

The opposite of this approach is writing a long page of content with a call to action at the end. This is a common mistake. Often your visitors skim and don’t absorb a page with a lot of content. Break up long pages into multiple pages using the 500 word max guideline.

Link back to your home page from a keyword phrase that is the main theme. This actually serves both humans and search engines. The search engines give you more authority for the main theme when it’s linked to the home page. And, (human) visitors get reinforced that your website is about the main theme, e.g., “orthodontic dental supplies.”

In summary, writing SEO content best practices are an important part of an Internet marketing strategy. Remember that you have two audiences: humans and search engines. Writing for each audience requires a balance and awareness of the guidelines provided here.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.107.230 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/16/2009 08:54:12 PM Thanks Bernie...really appreciate you putting this together. A couple really good reminders in here. Joe ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Ben Curnett EMAIL: ben@matterhornmarketing.com IP: 151.205.90.50 URL: http://matterhornmarketing.com/marketing/ DATE: 02/17/2009 05:02:47 AM So many good tips in this post. I really like the bullet on your keeping keyword density of the main theme in the 5% range. Seems obvious, but I think a lot of website writing goes south on this point. Thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bernie Borges EMAIL: bernie@findandconvert.com IP: 72.64.244.42 URL: http://www.findandconvert.com/blog/ DATE: 02/17/2009 09:05:06 AM I like to reinforce basic SEO guidelines every once in a while in the context of discussing more advanced strategies. We should never overlook the fundamentals. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steven Woods EMAIL: steven.woods@eloqua.com IP: 204.244.25.242 URL: http://digitalbodylanguage.blogspot.com DATE: 02/17/2009 01:59:27 PM Joe, Bernie, Good discussion, but I think you're missing one big category. I see a lot of people who are obviously writing for "retweetability" or whatever the appropriate word is. Things like Top 10 lists, etc. These are most likely to have humans link to, Digg, or tweet about (with long term search engine implications), but they don't really drive thought leadership. This audience of "humans as path to search engines" seems to be the major category on many blogs. It would be interesting to hear your thoughts on that. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: san diego seo services EMAIL: incquil@gmail.com IP: 202.8.247.98 URL: http://crestmediainc.com/san-diego.html DATE: 02/18/2009 06:45:07 AM Of course, humans are the target audience that respond to marketer’s call to actions and ultimately convert into a customer.And using SEO is a best choice it is a hard work. by: ricka ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Doug - Velocity, B2B Marketing Agency EMAIL: doug@velocitypartners.co.uk IP: 81.159.141.15 URL: http://www.velocitypartners.co.uk DATE: 02/18/2009 12:38:32 PM Nice one. Good, solid common sense in an over-hyped area. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bernie Borges EMAIL: bernie@findandconvert.com IP: 72.64.244.42 URL: http://www.findandconvert.com/blog/ DATE: 02/18/2009 02:38:42 PM When people write content such as top 10 lists, if it is indeed a good list (and not crap) it can serve both the human audience and the search engines. Good content (such as top 10 lists) can attract external links while serving human visitors well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: johnbarnald EMAIL: johnbarnald@gmail.com IP: 121.246.165.204 URL: http://www.worldwidepeoplelocator.com/ DATE: 02/20/2009 12:01:10 AM Generally search engine 1st visits the sites which are having good stuff and quality and humans are the end users right!!,for that reason the content must be simple and attractive to the users. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jean EMAIL: jeanf@bnj.com IP: 66.178.161.10 URL: http://www.bnj.com DATE: 02/20/2009 02:54:00 PM Great post, Bernie, thanks! Question, though: What does 5% really look like from a writing perspective? Curious to hear your thoughts -- and from others. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bernie Borges EMAIL: bernie@findandconvert.com IP: 72.184.230.2 URL: http://www.findandconvert.com/blog/ DATE: 02/25/2009 09:28:32 PM If you write a page of content with 300 words, you wouldn't want to have your main keyword phrase mentioned more than about 15 times. Even at this amount the phrase should be slightly varied, e.g., accounting software, accounting software company, accounting software solutions. Remember, this is a max guideline, not a minimum. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: santa barbara cosmetic dentist EMAIL: rence1605@gmail.com IP: 202.8.247.21 URL: http://silessmile.com/html/santa-barbara-cosmetic-dentist.html DATE: 05/05/2009 02:53:23 AM Very informative blog i agree that the write web page content in a flow according to how your website visitors will consume it efficiently,it is important. Keep it up! by: florence ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kishore EMAIL: cutekishore@yahoo.com IP: 122.174.106.106 URL: http://www.techconet.co.in DATE: 05/21/2009 12:25:30 AM Nice comments and it reinforces the fact that it is absolutely important to do the basics right.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO EMAIL: shannon@webmarketingexperts.com.au IP: 117.194.225.27 URL: http://www.webmarketingexperts.com.au DATE: 06/19/2009 05:07:37 AM SEO is important because the billion internet users around the world visit websites they are looking for through search engines. Good Article. Some explanation on Keywords wud had been great! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO Services EMAIL: ebiz.submit@gmail.com IP: 116.71.50.195 URL: http://www.ebizsubmit.com DATE: 08/20/2009 06:37:07 AM These Search engine optimization services are phenomenal , if you are acting in favor of web exposure but if its not helping out , the way to success is SEO . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Website Design EMAIL: ebizwwns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.152.169 URL: http://www.ebizwebworks.com DATE: 09/16/2009 05:23:46 AM Great post ! Website designing and SEO services gives your website higher page rank on search engines like google with new content and websites tools . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Vancouver web design EMAIL: mayur@fullmotiongroup.com IP: 24.80.114.92 URL: http://www.fullmotiongroup.com DATE: 09/16/2009 08:37:24 AM Thanks for this post Bernie. Definitely great tips there. Question: why have pertinent content in the first 100 lines of your web page? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Make Money on the Internet EMAIL: fpjpssns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.152.9 URL: http://www.jeffpaulsuccessstories.com DATE: 09/25/2009 12:57:22 AM Internet marketing is indeed very different from traditional marketing. In the field of internet marketing the webmaster uses all possible means for promotion just for customer awareness and customer satisfaction . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: jeff paul forum EMAIL: fpjpfns@ecwmm.com IP: 202.70.152.121 URL: http://www.jeffpaulforum.com/forum DATE: 10/07/2009 04:29:23 AM I agree domain names are very important , these help bring preferable web traffic through attaining appropriate position on web search engines like Google and yahoo . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Course EMAIL: paramountstaff@hotmail.com IP: 124.182.129.32 URL: http://www.paramounttraining.com.au DATE: 11/08/2009 10:51:21 AM Yes helpful material. Thank you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: la habra dentist EMAIL: jessforq80@yahoo.com IP: 222.127.106.179 URL: http://www.designedsmiles.com/la-habra-dentist/ DATE: 12/10/2009 06:43:44 PM well in terms of converting traffic to sales it is best to target the readers of your site they are the ones that can convert to sales but without proper seo your site wont get into the top of serps. great read nice article. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: SEO Web Design EMAIL: trendmicrosg@live.com IP: 221.120.250.102 URL: http://www.ebizwebworks.com DATE: 01/03/2010 03:45:19 PM good job keep it coming ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Volker from Germany EMAIL: vo-la@web.de IP: 91.37.35.241 URL: http://www.ostseeblickholm.de DATE: 03/30/2010 02:00:33 PM Hello, ich bin gerade auf einer kleinen Reise quer durchs web. Nun bin ich also auf dieser tollen Homepage gelandet und muss sagen: Der Besuch hat sich gelohnt! Ich werde deine Seite auf jeden Fall wieder mal besuchen! Wenn du Lust hast, kannst du ja auch mal auf meiner Homepage vorbei schauen. Ich würde mich sehr freuen. Nun wünsche ich eine tolle Zeit! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Everyone is a Publisher...and Why this Really Matters (for you Media companies too) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: is-content-still-king CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: content strategy CATEGORY: custom publishing CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: publishers DATE: 02/12/2009 03:55:29 PM ----- BODY:

Thanks to BoSacks for passing over this Time article on Content Becoming a Pauper.

The story is worth the read, but here is a little snippet that sums up the author's point. As you can tell, he is taking the viewpoint on the value of content as it pertains to traditional media companies.

"The value of content has never been ethereal. It has always been directly tied to what owners could 'get' for it, either through advertisers or subscribers. For content to have a value, it could never be free. Its position as royalty depended on that.

Content is rapidly being devalued."

BoSacks Speaks Out
Okay, before I make my comments, I wanted to include BoSacks comments on this topic:

"I'm not sure where to begin with my comments on this article, and perhaps I should wait a day or two before responding. But then again, that is just not my way - vent first and think about it later.

The author keeps referencing the decreased value of content. I admit that I need to ponder the question, but right now I say that perhaps it is his company's content that is devalued, but not content itself. That may be splitting hairs, but somebody is always going to make money on content. Right now it is Google; next year or in ten years it will be somebody else. Google doesn't make the content, but they sure as heck have figured out how make money on the content. So it still has as much value as before, but perhaps not by the same companies. Get over it and start thinking in 21st century terms and actions."

@juntajoe Speaks Out
I think BoSacks' points are close to the mark. Who can deny that Google is making money off media content? And yes, someone always makes money off content. But the issue goes much, much further and needs to be looked at outside the eyes of the media model itself.

Content is more valued than ever before. When consumers need to find solutions, they actively seek out content (90% of buying decisions start on the web - Forrester, 2007) to find answers to their problems. It's content that supplies those answers, in the form of text, video, audio, and social media - and consumers have almost unlimited ways to get the content. The difference today is that consumers are finding those answers coming from their peers and their favorite brands as well as the media. Everyone is a media company. Everyone is a publisher.

Almost all marketing tactics are optional today. The one strategy that is not optional is developing ongoing content for your customers to help them make better buying decisions. Organizations and individuals around the world are trying to figure out how to create valuable and relevant content. While there is plenty of bad content out there, great content is in high demand.
Two Types of Media Companies. To BoSacks point, there is always someone making money off the content, but look at it this way: Money doesn't have to be made DIRECTLY from the content in the form of sponsorships and paid subscribers. Don't get me wrong, I still believe in paid content. I pay for content I really value, and have no problem with doing so (read this article on the suggestion that an online micro-payment content model could work similar to the way people buy songs on iTunes). Smart companies have been using content for centuries to develop relationships with consumers that ultimately (in the long run) sell products and services. MasterCard Small Business uses a content marketing strategy to sell more credit cards (over 50% of new signups come directly from informational articles). LEGO is one of the most prolific publishers on the planet. P&G uses content to sell more feminine products. Like these three examples, companies must produce content to survive as a business, and there are literally no technological barriers.

So, while media companies produce content to profit directly (like Time, Inc., NY Times, Wall Street Journal, etc.), other media companies profit indirectly from the content (MasterCard, LEGO, P&G, etc.). Professionals in both media and marketing need to understand this - we all compete for the attention of the consumer, hoping to build lasting relationships. If you produce software for design engineers, then a magazine brand like Machine Design is not only your partner, but a competitor as well.

While I was writing this post, I was also watching a BtoB webcast we sponsored on Marketing Outlook 2009. Mark Wilson, CMO from Sybase, talked about how Sybase employs "frugal and authentic marketing" as part of their current marketing program. That means that they are producing a ton of targeted, multi-platform content to their customers and prospects. This includes self-published books, video newsletters, YouTube videos, segmented enewsletters, white papers and other vehicles where they can efficiently and honestly tell their story and get involved in important conversations. Sybase is a media company.

Overall, I strongly disagree with Douglas McIntyre (the author) about the waining importance of content. It's needed and accessed by consumers now more than ever. Pure media content is still wanted and needed, but there is more competition today, and since the traditional media business model is threatened, quality corporate content is becoming more important than ever (corporations have the money to invest in content).

I'll end with this. I was talking to a media consultant last week who asked me my advice for struggling media companies. I told her that most media companies have great brands, and great relationships with readers. Readership/engagement isn't necessarily their problem. The issue is that their advertisers aren't advertising as much anymore, and their business models are based on advertising/sponsorship revenue. Since that's the case, a media brand can do one of two things:

Start charging for content or premium content (much like what MarketingProfs does so well, or a product such as Copyblogger's Teaching Sells).
Develop products or services that make sense in their industry. A lot of media companies are starting to do this, such as GIE Media, who has an incredibly strong data/research business.

It's funny. Marketers are trying to become publishers and publishers are trying to become marketers. I wonder when the day will come where we won't be able to distinguish one from the other.

It's closer than you think.

Subscribe - Junta42 - Outsource Your Content - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kirk Cheyfitz EMAIL: kirk.cheyfitz@storyworldwide.com IP: 66.65.132.192 URL: http://www.storyworldwide.com DATE: 02/20/2009 10:41:41 AM I certainly agree that the Time article is way off base. Actually, it is 180 degrees off. Which is completely untrue. It totally misunderstands the world of content and the direction of both technology and pop culture. Interestingly, it's one of a series of off-base articles published by Time about the content business--a business they apparently understand less and less well the longer they are in it. The other really wrong piece they published recently was Walter Isaacson's cover story, HOW TO SAVE YOUR NEWSPAPER. Essentially, it was a wishful plea about turning back history. I commented on it at the Story blog, postadvertising.com: http://www.postadvertising.com/post/2009/02/9/How-NOT-to-Save-Your-Newspaper.aspx What the traditional publishing industry needs now, before it dies, is an understanding that they can create content that will bring in money the way advertising used to produce cash (before advertising stopped working). This is a skill they could learn from content marketers like all of us. But their culture is preventing them from seeing it right now. I could go on forever -- but I'll spare you. I'll try to talk it through thoroughly at postadvertising in the near future and not clutter up Joe's site too much. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 69.38.252.83 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/21/2009 06:14:27 PM Kirk...in talking to quite a few traditional publishers over the last few weeks, the sacred cows are being slaughtered and they are desperately seeking a new model. That said, not sure they are willing or able to make the jump (some are, most can't), or whether they want to invest enough money in their customers to do the job right. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Web Content Strategy - The Official Presentation STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: 0 ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: web-content-strategy-the-official-presentation CATEGORY: content strategy DATE: 02/09/2009 10:06:40 AM ----- BODY: This is the presentation that Kristina Halvorson (CEO of Brain Traffic) and I gave at Online Marketing Summit last week. Gretel Going provided a great overview of this presentation on the OMS Blog if you want to see more of the copy.

Just a couple of my own personal comments from talking with marketers after the presentation:

Most marketers did not understand that they need a content strategy (but did after the presentation).
All marketers we talked to are hungry to find out how to develop a web content strategy, and learn how to sell their executives on the need to have one.
The concept of creating a web content strategy, or a more encompassing content strategy as part of their entire marketing organization, is a new concept for most of the marketers we talked to.
Content within an organization is still incredibly political (Who owns the content?).
Most marketing executives think that developing content should be the easy part ("Let's go get the content"), while in fact, it's one of the most challenging.
Journalists, freelance writers, and PR professionals who are looking for job opportunities should be looking at how to become content strategists. In Kristina's and my opinion, this area is the next great discipline.

Any thoughts? I'd like to hear them...

Web Content Strategy - How to Plan for, Create and Publish Online Content for Maximum ROI

View more presentations from Joe Pulizzi. (tags: marketing strategy)

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Presentation is very helpful to me EMAIL: beok2009@gmail.com IP: 93.173.194.160 URL: http://timpedia.com/internetmarketingtools/website-build-it/ DATE: 02/12/2009 03:49:14 AM I agree, this trend is becoming central and important The presentation was very helpful to me Thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rita Lewis EMAIL: ritalewis@wordstoweb.net IP: 69.138.174.62 URL: http://wordstoweb.net DATE: 03/02/2009 01:43:58 PM I know from my own experience trying to cull old and out of date materials that is all that my clients offer me in terms of content, that a content strategy is a difficult sell when the concept of "content" isn't well understood in corporate circles. I changed my freelance title to "content strategist" from "content manager" because just as you state, one of the most difficult parts of putting together a web site is convincing the client that the web has different content needs than does print. I haven't had any takers yet, but I regularly request a review of what WAS on a site and what is going on a new site, before I begin a web design. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 76.241.107.230 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 03/02/2009 01:54:35 PM Thanks for sharing Rita. Sounds like you definitely are on the right track re: "content strategist". I suspect there will be a growing need for people like you to help marketers tell their story. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Orange County web design EMAIL: faith.brooks30@gmail.com IP: 202.8.247.170 URL: http://crestmediainc.com/web-design-orange-county.html DATE: 03/25/2009 11:28:23 PM A website that is an effective marketing tool, converts visitors and gives you a return on investment, is based on a sound content strategy.Thank you for the post. -faith- ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Web Development Company EMAIL: ncrwilliams@gmail.com IP: 121.243.35.73 URL: http://www.dotcominfoway.com/ DATE: 03/31/2009 07:23:24 AM On the Internet content is king and always will be. This is because the Internet is the information superhighway and most people use it for information of some sort.Thank you for the post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: puting EMAIL: iputing@gmail.com IP: 218.0.242.107 URL: http://www.socialbeta.cn DATE: 06/26/2009 03:13:24 AM thank for sharing, i think the content is also the king in socail web times, no content, no marketing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: web 2.0 development company EMAIL: nataliewebb01@gmail.com IP: 117.241.104.221 URL: http://www.promatics.in/ DATE: 11/10/2009 04:06:30 AM well done kristina, congrats; the content is the key of increasing the traffic weight of any website, getting more visitors to read & having good PR for popularity of site . . . . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Evan EMAIL: evan.brown@yahoo.com IP: 95.85.160.225 URL: http://pricestech.com/ DATE: 08/06/2010 04:38:11 PM Thank you for the post. Content is always the king...and the money is in the list :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: slr best EMAIL: slrbest@slrbest.com IP: 95.85.160.225 URL: http://slrbest.com DATE: 08/06/2010 04:41:33 PM yes evan, the money is in the list but it`s more important to write quality content first... Isn`t it? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: craig EMAIL: craig.dorsey79@gmail.com IP: 87.80.56.201 URL: http://www.DataDrivenWebsites.co.uk DATE: 09/23/2010 05:52:01 PM Thanks for sharing, content is important ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: I Want to Give You $4200 Toward Your Content Marketing Project! STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: i-want-to-give-you-4200-toward-your-content-marketing-project CATEGORY: junta 42 DATE: 02/04/2009 12:20:17 AM ----- BODY:

We here at Junta42 are pretty excited to announce this, and I thought it would be best to do it with a two-minute video.

Here's the deal. Starting today (2/4) and running for 42 business days (ending on 4/2), any company that submits a content project to our free and no risk custom publisher matching service will be eligible to receive $4200 toward their content project. We're calling this "$4200 in 42 Days".

You may ask, what can $4200 buy these days?

Well, quite a bit we think. $4200 may cover the web content you need to keep your customers engaged in your products and services. It may cover the postage on your quarterly custom magazine project. It may cover one issue of your outsourced opt-in enewsletter. It may be just enough to keep you believing in the power of valuable, relevant and compelling content.

So why are we doing this?

First, we wanted to celebrate our first 100 content vendor matches through our Match service (the 100th match happened in early January). Our little idea to solve the marketer challenge for finding their perfect content provider has turned out to be a very helpful solution for companies like Research in Motion (makers of BlackBerry smartphones), First Midwest Bank, United Methodist Communications and more.

Some are calling us the eHarmony for custom publishing. I can live with that.

And second, we're hoping it's just the incentive you need to get your content project off the sidelines during this economic climate (or possibly, the incentive you need to outsource your project that is just not working with internal resources, or maybe to get rid of that content provider that's just not delivering the goods).

Hey, we know times are tough out there...but now is more important than ever for you to deliver valuable, relevant and compelling content to your customers and prospects. That's what creates engagement. That's what helps you become part of the customer conversation.

Developing and distributing great content for your customers is not easy, which is why we have over 90% of the top custom publishers/content agencies in North America ready and waiting to help you create something of real value delivered to your customers.

We also thought this would be a lot of fun. Who doesn't like getting money anyway?

Here are all the details on the "$4200 in 42 Days" program. Take a read...I think you'll find it worth two minutes of your time.

And here's our promise to you...if we can't find a content provider that matches your needs, we'll keep working with you to help you find a solution that makes sense (although, we're pretty confident we have the expert content publishers to help you get the job done).

Thanks, and on with the content marketing revolution!

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bobbee Cera EMAIL: rcera1141@comcast.net IP: 76.117.217.150 URL: http://www.bobbeecera.com DATE: 02/04/2009 11:40:42 AM Morning Joe......You were nice enough to get back to me regarding my publisher inquiry regarding a book just written & published entitled "Wishbones and Miracles. I have gotten a very encouraging response from Dorrance Publishing, and they want to publish the book in a smaller size in order to reduce the present cost. However, it is a subsidy publisher, so I would like to enter the content of the book for your contest. Could you get back to me as to how to send you a copy? tnx, Bobbee ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 97.206.125.59 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 02/04/2009 11:52:15 AM Hi Bobbee...I'll get back to you through email. You need to have a content project with a budget attached to it, but we'll see if we can find you some help. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: The Custom Content Conference You Can't Afford to Miss STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: the-custom-content-conference-you-cant-afford-to-miss CATEGORY: custom publishing council CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 02/03/2009 09:02:06 PM ----- BODY:

For you regular reader of the Junta42 blog, you'll know I don't promote many conferences. Well, here is the exception.

The 2009 Custom Content Conference is one you can't afford to miss if you are trying to figure out how to leverage custom content as part of your overall marketing or publishing strategy.

This year's conference (March 22 - 24) revolves around the theme "The Future of Branded Content" - and the Custom Publishing Council (who is organizing the event) has the speakers to prove it.

Here are the reasons why this is a must attend event:

The Speakers: Best-selling author and marketing guru David Meerman Scott is frankly a must see. Sam Sebastian of Google will give you the insights as to how Google sees the role of custom content for both marketers and publishers. Add to that Chris Overholt of the Miami Dolphins and Kate Thorp, CEO of Real Girls Network (among many others), and you won't be disappointed.
The Venue: South Beach (Trump International) in March sounds good to me, especially as Cleveland is buried in 50 inches of snow.
The Price: $695 for an event like this is a steal (even in a recession). Be sure to register before February 20th to get this price.
The Networking: Talk with some of the leading marketing and publishing minds in North America (by the way, I'll be there as well).
The Learning: Take home clear tactics and strategies you can use now to transform your marketing or publishing operation.

Disclaimer - I am a Custom Publishing Council board member, and Junta42 is a sponsor for this event, but don't let that fool you. I'd be going to this conference anyway (in a heartbeat).

One final important note - Don't be fooled, this event is for both marketers and publishers. If the new marketing reality has taught us anything, we are all media companies. We all need to understand how to create and distribute valuable, relevant and compelling content. If you aren't sure, contact me personally and I'll talk you into it.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Creating a Custom Content Project? Here's Your Four Options STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: creating-a-custom-content-project-heres-your-four-options CATEGORY: custom publishing DATE: 01/29/2009 09:16:57 AM ----- BODY:

I was reading this Seth Godin post on "What Would a Professional Do?" and I couldn't help to think of the challenge that all marketers face regarding content creation.

Every company, no matter what size, needs valuable, relevant and compelling (and consistent) content directed to their customers. It's not an option anymore, and the research is starting to show that more and more marketers are investing in content marketing, even during these tough economic times.

Even though we (at Junta42) are huge proponents of outsourcing content strategy and execution to custom publishers and content professionals, there are options.

In following Seth's rationale for hiring a professional, they are eerily similar to your content creation options:

Hire a custom publisher/content provider.
Be as good as a custom publisher.
Realize that professional-quality work is not required for your content and merely come close.
Do work that a custom publisher wouldn't or couldn't do, and use this as an advantage.

The first option is the best choice if you have the budget to outsource this. Content creation and execution, especially from an integrated standpoint where print, online and in-person integration are involved, can be extremely complex. Also, in many cases, it's actually less expensive to outsource. When I was with Penton Media, we used to sit down with brands and associations and show them "line-by-line" how they could actually save money by outsourcing their project. If you take in all the internal resources necessary for a content project to work, that's absolutely the case.

The second option is a solid option. If you have the expertise in-house, and the available resources to dedicate to manage the editorial process, understand the art of storytelling that can drive sales, execute each step from content to distribution to feedback, and measure the effectiveness, it can definitely be done. One of the big issues here (check out the mistakes in this blog post) is that many internal communications specialists have a difficult time developing a story that doesn't actively sell. Remember, we need to tell a story that is valuable and relevant to the customer. That means, for the most part, leaving the sales messages out of the equation.

The third option happens all the time. "We don't need it to be first-rate. We just need to get our newsletter, white paper, magazine out to our customers." If that's your attitude, don't do it at all. You're not doing your customers any service by sending them second- or third-rate information. Can anyone say SPAM?

The fourth option is an interesting choice. First of all, you can probably find a custom publisher to do just about anything. That said, there may be some content initiatives that only you could do. For example, Microsoft's Channel 9 project would have been impossible to pull off if an outside content agency came in to produce the project. But a Microsoft developer going around with a camera asking questions, altogether possible. And it's been an incredible success.

To Seth's point, the fourth option can be exciting. Today's environment allows you to be completely transparent with the content process. If you have an idea that is new and innovative (or at least new in your niche), try it. The worst thing that could happen is it doesn't work. Then you can try something new.

But if that's not for you, try calling in a professional.

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Debbie Corkin - Corkin Associates EMAIL: debbie.corkin@corkinassociates.com IP: 99.16.31.247 URL: http://www.corkinassociates.com DATE: 01/30/2009 04:19:34 PM Content marketing is a win-win situation! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Bernie Borges EMAIL: bernie@findandconvert.com IP: 72.184.230.2 URL: http://www.findandconvert.com/blog/ DATE: 01/31/2009 02:33:19 PM The biggest obstacle I see among companies who embrace the concept of content marketing is a lack of internal resources. For some reason contracting external resources is less desirable, probably because of the perception that "no one knows our business like us." That's where your point #3 comes in to play... @berniebay ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: dianne EMAIL: kuramakurama@ymail.com IP: 122.55.188.176 URL: http://diannekit.blogspot.com DATE: 02/07/2009 12:54:54 AM very nice and informative site.. i had a great time reading some of your post.. keep it up and hope to read more great stories ahead. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: 'Trust Me' and Branded Entertainment Take Us Closer to the Future of TV STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: trust-me-and-branded-entertainment-take-us-closer-to-the-future-of-tv CATEGORY: entertainment marketing DATE: 01/26/2009 09:12:19 AM ----- BODY:

I was able to catch the Thursday edition of the New York Times and read this article about 'Trust Me' - the new TNT drama about a Chicago advertising agency. 'Trust Me' premieres tonight.

The difference between this one, and say 'Mad Men', is that real products are being written into the script, including those from Unilever (Dove), Anheuser-Busch and General Motors.

The article calls this a "...growing trend known as branded entertainment..." In actuality, it's one step away from what we will come to know as common television programming.

Let me explain.

Television advertising is expensive and difficult to measure.
Everyone I know except for my kids skips TV ads.
Consumer attention is scattered between hundreds of choices, so the storyline must be great in order to get ratings. Most programs are canceled after just a few episodes.
Companies can now, through the internet and advanced databases, communicate directly with customers, rather than promote themselves around traditional programming (advertising).
People still watch great television (we watch one show in our house - '24' - but we do skip the ads), just as people still engage in great newspapers and great magazines.

If you agree with all this, there seems to be only one solution for corporations that want to promote their products and services through television - they need to become part of the programming (this may be the solution for the broadcasting business model as well). 'Trust Me' takes a leap into this area, but we will begin to see more programming dominated and created by one brand, similar to what Unilever developed with their 24-inspired series "The Rookie".

At this point, I'm not sure when we will see more of this type of programming, but it is coming. In order for corporations to use this channel effectively, they'll need to partner with content producers that understand how to tell a story, much like corporations have partnered with custom publishers for custom magazines, newsletters, enewsletters, microsites and so on. Of course, we believe in this model is coming sooner than later.

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Steven Woods EMAIL: steven.woods@eloqua.com IP: 204.244.25.242 URL: http://digitalbodylanguage.blogspot.com DATE: 01/26/2009 09:30:52 AM Joe, I enjoyed this post - thanks. I've seen a number of posts on "the death of television" lately, and my response has always been that it needs to evolve, not die. You do a good job of encapsulating how it will likely evolve. The content viewing format (passive viewers, no interaction) works well, we just need to evolve the content itself to make the economic model (skipped ads) work again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.157.123 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/26/2009 09:45:33 AM Thanks Steve...I think we are all tired with the death of television, death of newspaper, death of magazines rant (I've even talked about that too much). To your point, they are evolving into new and different business models. People still enjoy watching television...the problem it is becoming more of an issue to support program funding through advertising. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Dave Morse EMAIL: dave.morse@gmail.com IP: 207.250.76.6 URL: http://davemorse.net DATE: 01/26/2009 03:00:58 PM Love your blog and (specifically) liked this post. Over the last decade, I think the web has conditioned us to believe that free content with sponsored ads is ok (even if we ignore/tune them out). The "branded entertainment" that I'm waiting for is not simple product placements within a program, but rather, a radical change in the fundamental format of a program: uninterrupted programming with banner-style ads running in a small portion of the screen. So, instead of a program running from 7:00 - 7:30 with multiple commercial breaks, it would run from 7:00 - 7:15 with ads being displayed the entire time. Although I feel strongly that this model is coming, it will be yet another example of something for us to "tune out" in the future. But at least Madison Ave will, once again, have something to grasp for measurement. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.157.123 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/26/2009 04:19:17 PM Hi Dave...thanks...I think your model sounds interesting, and agree that may be one of them - especially more short-term. Long-term, I believe that the corporations will take over more and more of the content responsibility, essentially buying time for their own programming that they create. We may be a long time from that point...but that's the direction. Your model will most likely come first. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Charles EMAIL: csipe84@yahoo.com IP: 189.149.151.154 URL: http://interimmarketing.info DATE: 01/27/2009 04:01:30 AM I think the banner idea is an interesting one. I have noticed more banner type ads appearing in television programming with a logo and message popping up for a brief moment on a small area of the screen. I wonder to what extent sales of DVDs of programs have made up for the lost revenue in ads for content producers. Also, with more people watching television online on sites like Hulu which force you to watch ads, and brand placements, I think there is hope for good content producers in television. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: crawford.sr@gmail.com EMAIL: crawford.sr@gmail.com IP: 68.110.187.8 URL: DATE: 01/28/2009 09:59:31 AM Hey Joe, What goes around comes around. This ain't new. We're going back in time to the beginning. Think about that, and what it means to transparency requirements. Seriously. Honestly. Hit reset. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.157.123 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/28/2009 10:39:14 AM You are right. I keep thinking about the old Texaco series back in the day. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: dirk EMAIL: mail@dkayser.com IP: 83.236.220.242 URL: DATE: 01/30/2009 10:31:52 AM Is advertising like this allowed in the U.S.? I think its creepy to the max. They would be so busted in Germany. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.157.123 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/30/2009 03:50:48 PM Hi Dirk...the future of media at work around the world imo. More and more content is being produced and underwritten by corporations. Since no-one is watching the ads (outside of the Super Bowl), that's the only choice left. Thoughts? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Adam E. EMAIL: adam@placevine.com IP: 74.68.128.243 URL: http://www.placevine.com DATE: 02/17/2009 11:03:58 PM Great post- I think you've pretty much nailed it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Funny News EMAIL: francamara360@yahoo.com IP: 93.139.48.53 URL: http://www.htportal.org DATE: 04/02/2009 02:30:23 PM Yeam advertising will hit ground now. Everyone wants to advertise and thats problem, none watch all that advertising. Specially not on TV. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Striking Content Marketing Gold - Direct from the Content Experts STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: striking-content-marketing-gold-direct-from-the-content-experts CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/23/2009 04:02:00 PM ----- BODY:

Just finished our first book tour call with my co-author Newt Barrett (@newtbarrett), Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan) and Paul Gillin (@pgillin). Fantastic call. If you missed it, go here now. Much of this is also covered in our book, Get Content. Get Customers. Big thanks to Elizabeth Marshall for putting this together.

I was trying to jot down some golden nuggets from our esteemed panel while the session was going. So, in no particular order, here are some things you may find useful in your content marketing quest for gold.

For an additional resource, download this just updated white paper, "Attract and Retain Customers with Content NOW" (no registration needed...please share. We need all the content marketing believers we can muster. This white paper is great for executives that don't get "it".).

What is Content Marketing?

Content Marketing is all about valuable, relevant and consistent content delivered to a target customer group - the goal of which is to create or maintain behavior.

Content marketing is the art of understanding what your customers need to know and delivering it to them in a compelling way.

Instead of focusing on your product or service and selling them, you devote resources to creating information that your customers and prospects need.

Your marketing is publishing...you are a publisher.

Return on Objective

Paul's ROI Meaning - Risk of Inaction. Don't get paralyzed into trying to figure our return that you do nothing (get more on this in Paul's new book on Social Media Secrets).

Think "Return on Objective" or measuring each content marketing tactic with a specific action. Chris shared an example of a company who set up listening tools with the purpose of responding faster to customer praise and complaints. Focus on what you want the action to be...that's your return on objective.

Content Marketing Mistakes Made by Marketers

They give up on the content program too quickly. It takes some time to build a real relationship with customers. Some corporations start a newsletter or blog and expect magic to happen in three months. Usually doesn’t happen. Content marketing must be consistently delivered in order to really build a relationship.
They don’t understand the informational needs of the customer. Businesses need to leverage free online tools such as Google Alerts and Twitter as listening posts to then develop great content.
They don’t ask for help. Many companies leave this to internal marketing or pr people. Many times these people can’t take their sales hats off – so the content isn’t perceived as valuable to the customers. Almost all businesses can afford to hire a journalist or partner with a custom content provider who has expertise in content that is important to your customers. (That is exactly why we developed Junta42 Match). And, journalists are being let go by traditional media left and right. There is a huge opportunity for both journalists and companies to partner with each other right now.
They don’t integrate the content program with their overall marketing. In many companies, a corporate magazine, newsletter or enewsletter seems to fall outside of the other marketing initiatives. Integrating both can be powerful.
They see social media as just another distribution channel for selling – and don’t see it as an opportunity to get closer to customers and begin to better understand their needs.
They don’t plan. You need to plan out good content and not just rush to get content out when you see an opportunity. Editorial calendar anyone?

Useful Content Marketing Tools

Websitegrader.com - How is your website holding up? What are you not offering that could improve results?
search.twitter.com - Will help you find out who's talking about what important to your industry.
flickr groups - Paul says that there are 1200 people in a group that take pictures of bacon. Where's your group? Get involved in what's important to them.
Communispace - Private and branded communities.
Google Alerts - Monitor what's going on with words and phrases important to you (including your brand)

Setting Up Listening Posts

In order to create great content, you first have to listen and find out what your customers' informational needs are.

Survey tools...research doesn't have to cost you an arm and a leg - Zoomerang, SurveyMonkey, Constant Contact.
Twitter - Powerful listening tool.
Tweetdeck - Having trouble managing or understanding Twitter? Start by setting up phase searches in Tweetdeck (i.e., "content marketing"). Or try TweetGrid. Good post by Newt on using TweetGrid as a listening tool.

The B.E.S.T. Formula for Content Marketing Creation

Much more detail in the book on this, but here's the overview questions.

Behavioral
How do we want the customer to feel?
What effect must we achieve with them?
What action do we want them to take?
How will we measure their behavior?
How will we put them on the path to purchase?

Essential
What do our buyers really need to know?
What will provide the most benefit personally or professionally?
How can we present the content for maximum positive impact?
What media types must we include based on our current/near future customer behavior?

Strategic
Does this content marketing effort help us achieve our strategic goals?
Does it integrate with our other strategic initiatives?

Targeted
Have we precisely indentified the prospects we want to target?
Do we really understand what motivates them?
Do we understand their professional roles?

Case Studies

Digital Nomads from Dell - Chris says this is a great way for Dell to target a buying niche without actively selling.
HomeMadeSimple.com - P&G home and living tips site. P&G uses this for research and product development (very successful according to P&G). Also see BeingGirl.com for another example, a site targeting teenage girls (here's the ROI article on BeingGirl.com).
MasterCard Small Business - 50% of new card signups coming directly from a content page. 322% increase in traffic over one year.
Out-Law.com from Pinsent Masons - 250,000 uniques per month. Their sole marketing for the law firm. Two people dedicated to content marketing in the 100 person firm.
Miller Electric - Big user of content marketing. Print, online and in-person. Great example of a resources/business tools section here.
WillitBlend.com from BlendTec - According to Paul, over 120 million video downloads to date. Key to success was that they did a lot of planning in advance of the launch, which consisted of talking to bloggers and leveraging social media - which was a key difference maker.

Final Tips from Brogan, Gillin, Barrett and Pulizzi

Create content that is byte-sized and has handles...meaning that people can share it and make it actionable. "People don't read Moby Dick anymore" according to Chris.
Go niche - the smaller the better...and easier to solve your customer's informational needs.
Call your customers - find out what their challenges are so you can better share relevant content with them.
Listen first.
Just starting?...get a nice bed of content that will form the base of your site after you've listened. Why not start with a blog?

For more on each content expert, please visit them on their websites:

If you were on the call...I KNOW I missed many key points. Can you add in the comments so we can make this a more complete transcript?

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Paul Hydzik EMAIL: phydzik@gmail.com IP: 98.193.85.65 URL: http://BrandContact.blogspot.com DATE: 01/23/2009 06:01:53 PM A beautiful thing..."Instead of focusing on your product or service and SELLING them, you devote resources to creating information that your customers and prospects NEED." Because, at the essence, it's all about the customer. And how you connect through your content and conversations. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shawn Thompson EMAIL: shawntom@mac.com IP: 76.90.19.131 URL: http://twitter.com/yclept DATE: 01/23/2009 06:23:08 PM Thanks for the summary. I just knew someone was taking better notes than me. Which allowed me to listen. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sam EMAIL: scabal70@gmail.com IP: 75.15.16.2 URL: http://www.reviewmyweb.com DATE: 01/23/2009 09:26:06 PM Another good tool to marketers is the free competitive analysis tool ReviewMyWeb (http://www.reviewmyweb.com). Free internet marketing tool for see how you are doing against the competition. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Terri Holley EMAIL: terri@creativeblogsolutions.com IP: 208.250.69.26 URL: http://www.creativeblogsolutions.com DATE: 01/24/2009 05:59:13 PM Excellent teleclass and great information. The operative word is "relationships". The more relevant we are with our prospects, the stronger our relational capital. As a social media strategist and certified coach, I believe our ability to build strong relationships is the most important factor in successfully executing a social or conventional marketing campaign. And as more people become increasingly discriminate about how, when and where they spend their money, businesses that leverage their ability to build and strengthen relationships will not only thrive in today's economic climate, they will grow exponentially as things begin to improve. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Debbie Corkin - Corkin Associates EMAIL: debbie.corkin@corkinassociates.com IP: 99.16.31.247 URL: http://www.corkinassociates.com DATE: 01/25/2009 07:00:42 PM Content marketing just makes sense! The trouble is...how do we educate executives who still believe the traditional ways are the only way? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.157.123 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/25/2009 07:45:03 PM Hi Debbie...good question. Well, everyone will come around after a while...but to speed up the process, I've given the book to a few executives who then began to adopt content marketing. Those that don't understand aren't in tune to how people are making buying decisions. It's not that traditional marketing goes away...not at all. It's integrating the power of information into your total marketing strategy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Shortcuts to Millions EMAIL: fpjpaulpns@ecwmm.com IP: 116.71.32.17 URL: http://www.jeffpaulproducts.com DATE: 10/16/2009 02:12:15 AM Content Marketing is a consistent , relevant and content oriented means to market focusing target customer segments according to behaviors and perspectives . ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Change Has Come to WhiteHouse.gov STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: change-has-come-to-whitehousegov CATEGORY: social content marketing DATE: 01/20/2009 02:38:21 PM ----- BODY:

As the clock struck noon EST and Barack Obama was being sworn in as our next president, the White House IT department flipped the switch on the new White House website. (See the difference in these before and after screen shots.)

According to Macon Phillips, director of New Media for the White House (in the first blog post ever from the White House), the new website will focus on:

Communication - new briefing room, blog RSS feeds and email updates from the President, as well as a weekly video broadcast from President Obama.
Transparency - yes, we know the government can only go so far in how much they can share, but their goal is to create the most open administration in history (perception is reality, remember?).
Participation - submit your ideas to the President now.

Here's what I really like:

"One significant addition to WhiteHouse.gov reflects a campaign promise from the President: we will publish all non-emergency legislation to the website for five days, and allow the public to review and comment before the President signs it."

A bold strategy, and extremely challenging to execute properly even for a mid-size corporation, let along the white house. Nonetheless, the formula above is how you keep and grow brand evangelists. We've already seen it work it Obama's campaign, and now he aims to continue this as President.

It's not a complicated formula:

Content - continually publish high-quality information to customers and prospects (US citizens).
Set up Listening Posts and Enable Participation - continually gather information about the needs of your customers (blog comments, submission form). I can't imagine the staffing needed to do this correctly.
Be the Media - be honest and communcate directly with customers - engage with the community without a filter. This may be the first administration that will actually morph into their own media property (Go to the white house for news and updates before CNN or Fox?).

And after 10 weeks of Twitter silence, Barack Obama's Twitter account just went active again. This was the one area that I couldn't understand about now President Obama...the Twitter communication just stopped after election day. Glad to see the Tweet lights are on again. I hope it continues.

Are you a business struggling with new media marketing? If so, following the new plan from the White House and the President wouldn't be the worst thing you could do. Do you agree?

Subscribe - Junta42 - Find Content Vendors - Get the Book

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Free Teleseminar with Some of Marketing's Best - Brogan, Barrett, Gillin STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: free-teleseminar-with-some-of-marketings-best-brogan-barrett-gillin DATE: 01/19/2009 10:06:03 AM ----- BODY:

If you are free on Friday, January 23rd at 1pm, don't miss this free Author Teleseminar with Newt Barrett, Chris Brogan, Paul Gillin and myself as we talk about how to deliver information to customers that they really want.

Elizabeth Marshall has done a great job putting this event together.

Here's the event overview:

As a business owner or entrepreneur, your job is simple - to get more customers to buy from you. Easier said that done! After all, how can you possibly increase your sales when most of the traditional marketing tactics are a waste of your time and won't do a darn thing to help you reach them?

On Friday, January 23 at 1pm Eastern Time, meet Joe Pulizzi and Newt Barrett along with Chris Brogan and Paul Gillin, and discover how you can leverage content marketing to reach customers faster and easier than before. You will learn how to uncover what your customers really need and how to deliver solutions in a compelling and powerful way!

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Five Questions with Seth Godin STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: five-questions-with-seth-godin CATEGORY: marketing musings DATE: 01/15/2009 09:03:30 AM ----- BODY:

Lori Rosen, executive director for the Custom Publishing Council (a wonderful Junta42 partner), was nice enough to let us share this brief interview between her and Seth Godin. Thanks Lori and Seth.

1. Your new book is called Tribes – how do you define a tribe, and what is an example of a tribe in today’s social media landscape?

A tribe is a group of people connected by a culture, a language, a mission and probably a leader. Barack Obama built a tribe, so did Harley Davidson.

2. In what ways are marketers currently taking advantage of social media most prevalently?

"Taking advantage" is a dangerous phrase. Take advantage of this medium and the medium will shut you down. Instead, marketers feed it, take care of it, embrace it and make it work for their users and readers. So, threadless.com builds a huge t-shirt company, or littlemissmatch.com builds a $40 million retail business. And don't forget the bloggers (which are rapidly closing the remaining gap with all but a handful of newspapers).

3. What are marketers not doing with regards to social media that they should be?

They are selfish. Short-sighted. Busy asking: how do I make this medium work for me? instead of asking, how do I work for this medium?

4. What are three trends in digital marketing that you believe we’ll see a lot of in the next 18 months?

Dramatic explosion in user generated pages and videos and blogs and Squidoo pages
Final fall out of display advertising online
Huge bloodletting among packaged goods companies that depend on the masses to watch mass media

5. Can you give an example of a company who has effectively avoided “the meatball sundae?” – meaning, who has effectively implemented the new marketing paradigm? What made their marketing stand out above the pack?

I don't think anyone can argue with Apple's success. And there are dozens of churches that get it, and one particularly famous political marketer who starts changing the world in January.

Do you agree with Seth?

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jeff Miller EMAIL: jmiller@wattnet.net IP: 67.133.155.34 URL: http://www.wattpoultry.com DATE: 01/15/2009 05:47:45 PM With all due respect, let's hope the "political marketer" *can* change the world. I believe his intentions are grand...in the same breath, I think the track record of anything the government touches - especially when it intervenes in the private market - is abysmal. In the meantime, I'll continue evangelizing the power of social networking and content marketing in my respective industries. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Destry Wion EMAIL: destry@wion.com IP: 83.141.179.193 URL: http://wion.com DATE: 01/15/2009 07:08:12 PM "Dramatic explosion in...Squidoo pages" Funny guy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/16/2009 01:23:52 PM @ Jeff...who knows? But I think we all will agree that Obama changed the face of political marketing. @ Destry...I thought that was funny too. Can't blame the guy for throwing that in. He's been pushing Squidoo a lot lately on the blog. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Jerry EMAIL: jezzer70@yahoo.co.uk IP: 82.32.37.83 URL: http://www.jerryholliday.com DATE: 01/19/2009 01:07:47 PM Looking forward to reading that!..interesting view on the 3 upcoming trends..could it get nasty for mass media and 'broad' casting ? ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Content Marketing: The Present and Future of Public Relations? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: content-marketing-the-present-and-future-of-public-relations CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/14/2009 09:28:20 AM ----- BODY:

I gave a luncheon presentation entitled Content Marketing: The Present and Future of PR? yesterday for my new friends at Cincinnati PRSA.

Content Marketing: The Present and Future of PR?

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: cincinnati 42)

(Note: Some of the images look a bit distorted in slideshare).

Here's the high level overview:

Many traditional media properties are struggling to survive. For example, I had a conversation with Forrester research last week who stated the likelihood of 1/2 of all US newspapers to stop production in two years.
If these traditional media properties that PR used to get their message out are going away, what is PR to do? In any particular industry, who is helping to tell the story (companies, bloggers, etc.)?
Since PR professionals understand the value of, and how to develop a story, they are placed perfectly to be in the middle of the organizational content engine.
If PR's role is to help manage the information from an organization to its "public", doesn't that include the creation of targeted story-telling initiatives like custom magazines, enewsletters, blogs, white papers, etc.?
Many PR professional already do many of these things, but are they "owning" the production of content within an organization that is targeted to customers and prospects?
Is this PR's realm, or is it the realm of the marketer/corporation communications, the advertising agency, the custom publisher, or even the traditional publisher. Each of these group owners would say yes. But PR may have the advantage because they understand the value of the story.
The challenge is that the content distribution process has completely flipped on its head. Can PR professionals understand that they need to start communicating directly with customers and prospects, and not go through traditional media channels, to tell the story?

It was exciting to talk to many of the members after the presentation about how they believe they have now found their new career path, or how they can take their organization to the next level with content marketing. Makes driving through two hours of snow well worth the effort.

Here are some other helpful resources, based on the presentation:

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Check out this Social Media Event in Tampa Bay (Junta42 Discount) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: check-out-this-social-media-event-in-tampa-bay-junta42-discount CATEGORY: Junta42 Events DATE: 01/10/2009 01:16:51 PM ----- BODY:

My friend Scott Abel just let me know that he has a few more spots available for Web Content 2009: “The Impact of Social Media on Web Marketing Strategy”. The event is February 17-18 in Tampa Bay.

I asked Scott if he could offer the Junta42 community a discount, and he was happy to oblige.

Save $400 when you register by telephone using discount code Junta42, no later than January 17, 2009. Call Shari Spraker at Duo Consulting at +1 312.529.3000.

I'll be doing a presentation affectionately called "Please Stop Talking about Yourself: Is Your Web Content Killing Your Brand and What to do about It?"

Here are some of the reasons why attending may be worthwhile for you:

There are 12 inches of snow on the ground here in Cleveland. I'm under the assumption that the weather will be much better in Tampa Bay.
You'll learn about the social media landscape and how social networking tools, techniques, and tactics are changing web marketing strategy.
You get to hear me speak (Yay!).
Hear from content professionals who are leveraging social media tools and user generated content to extend their marketing reach.
Learn how popular Web 2.0 tools like LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and SlideShare are being used by web marketing pros to reach new audiences and generate buzz.
Discover how web content managers are incorporating social media into their web content management initiatives

I spoke at the Web Content 2008 event in Chicago and the attendees were raving about the program. So, if you can, give it a try.

Other Joe Pulizzi Events
Just in case you'd like to stalk me around the country, check out a few of these other upcoming public events I'll be presenting at...

January 13, 2009 - PRSA/Cincinnati Luncheon - How to Profit from the Rush to Content.
January 28-29, 2009 - eComXPO for eCommerce Marketers (Virtual Event)
February 4-7, 2009 - Online Marketing Summit/San Diego - If online marketing is important to you, this is a can't miss event.
April 1, 2009 - MarketingProfs Digital Marketing World Spring 2009 (Virtual Event)
April 7-8, 2009 - Esource Utility Marketing Conference 2009/Phoenix.
April 27-28, 2009 - Niche Magazine Conference/Denver (get on board all you publishers).

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Scott Abel EMAIL: Scottabel@mac.con IP: 32.153.162.161 URL: http://www.webcontentconferences.com/tampabay DATE: 01/10/2009 01:53:36 PM Thanks, Joe! We hope to see your readers at the event. And, for those social media consultants and services vendors, we still have sponsorship opportunities available! Contact me with questions. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate Richardson EMAIL: kate@stickywood.com.au IP: 203.217.22.63 URL: http://stickywood.blogspot.com DATE: 01/12/2009 03:34:04 AM Hey Joe, let me know if you post your preso on slideshare. I like the title so I reckon the content might be alright too ;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Larry Page EMAIL: info@timpedia.com IP: 79.179.75.166 URL: http://timpedia.com/internetmarketingtools/ DATE: 01/12/2009 07:15:22 AM Seems like its going to be a good one! Break a leg Joe and tell us how it went. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/12/2009 08:35:46 AM Thanks Larry and Kate. Kate...I'll be sure to get this on SlideShare at some point. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Don't Give Up! (but do give up the campaign mentality) STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: dont-give-up-but-do-give-up-the-campaign-mentality CATEGORY: content marketing DATE: 01/09/2009 09:12:50 AM ----- BODY:

Just read this post from Seth Godin on continuing to fight the good fight (it's really short, take a read). After I finished, I immediately started to think of content marketing/custom publishing efforts in corporations (big surprise, right?).

So many times, marketers get into the content arena with great (and often realistic) aspirations, but their timetables are too short. When expected results don't come in three months, they ditch the program to advertise, call more customers, or any other demand generation activity they can think of.

It's what I would call "resorting back to campaign mentality."

I know it's difficult. Marketing has trained us for years to run these time-based campaigns that have catchy headlines, cool creative, and costly media.

Content marketing is not about a campaign.

The creation of relevant, valuable and compelling content delivered to your customers should never stop. Repeat, it can never stop. Don't get me wrong, you continually evolve it based on the needs of your customers and changes in behavior, but delivering quality information to your customers (not sales information) means that you are trying to make a difference in their lives. Why would you stop that?

But to be honest, results take time. Most customers are skeptical when corporations begin to send them "essential information." They immediately try to figure out what the catch is. When they find out there is no catch, and you are still delivering this life-altering information to them, you change in their eyes.

You become their trusted solutions provider. You are not selling, you are helping. It's easier to buy from a solutions provider - that's the payoff!

When that threshold is passed, amazing things can happen. Don't give up!

If you are wondering how to get started, check out this white paper I wrote a few months back. Give it to your executives. Providing useful information to customers isn't an option anymore.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Mark Nagurski EMAIL: mark@reallypractical.com IP: 86.166.192.96 URL: http://www.reallypractical.com DATE: 01/09/2009 02:46:49 PM I've just finished writing some content pieces for a client on Six Sigma, Lean Manufacturing and the like. The term 'Kaizen' is used frequently - as in a philosophy of continuous improvement. I think it's a term that can be applied well here as well - as opposed to the campaign mentality of traditional advertising methods. Organisations must commit to producing useful content, not as a project, but rather as a way of doing business. Now having said that I feel a post coming on ... Kaizen Content ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Cindy King EMAIL: cindy@cindyking.biz IP: 88.138.88.136 URL: http://cindyking.biz/ DATE: 01/11/2009 03:21:43 AM Joe, I am always amazed at the type of easy solution people ask me for international online visibility. Sometimes I really do feel as if people think I am serving hamburgers. Of course, custom content is the easiest way to connect with target markets, no matter where they are. It is easy because you write content: - About what you are interested in - For an audience you like The only hitch is that you need to do it for a while. And people do not like sticking around. By the way, in my case, (1 post a day on 2 blogs,) and with content alone, I started feeling the tremors of interest around the 3 month period. As I learned more about my market and tweaked my content, I had definite confirmation of reaching my target audience at the 6 month period. And when I added a few social media to the mix, at the 9 month mark, things took off a week after. I agree: Choose your path and stick with it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/11/2009 09:20:07 AM @ Mark...Amen @ Cindy...well done. That sounds about right. It was at the 6 month mark that I actually found out I had readers other than my friends and family. Great content at the right audience for a consistent period of time. Not rocket science, but hard to do. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Recession Creates Opportunity - Invest in Marketing that Builds Assets STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: recession-creates-opportunity CATEGORY: marketing musings CATEGORY: predictions CATEGORY: story telling DATE: 01/07/2009 11:16:58 PM ----- BODY:

I talked to a medium-sized company today that was having some difficulty with their content marketing efforts. After about five minutes it was easy to see why.

The print newsletter and "magalog" were owned by customer service. The five enewsletters were ultimately managed by IT. White papers, eBooks and annual reports were executed by marketing. The website was split up between IT, marketing and sales. And no one was responsible for listening to the customer through social media tools. Frankly, most of the attention was still going to trade shows, direct mail and telemarketing.

Lots of wasted time and resources. Everything was being measured individually and no person had the power to bring the teams together. The worst part? - everyone was so worried about their little piece of the pie, no one was paying attention to the informational needs of the customer (Twitter? - what's that?).

Things are about to change because now they have no choice. Sometimes a recession creates opportunity.

What's Your Opportunity?

Every company, no matter the size, has marketing processes or strategies that used to make sense in the past, but now just don't work.

In the good times, these processes go on because a little bit of waste is okay, tolerated or ignored altogether.

In times like these, your marketing can't afford waste.

Look at your marketing and do the following:

Take a hard look at what's working and what's not working. You will probably find marketing that builds an asset is performing better (your website, your white papers, your videos - things that help you tell your story). Marketing that is created and disappears (online display, print ads, etc. - things that are difficult to tell a story) are either not performing as well or you aren't sure what it's doing.
Disregard relationships and well-worn marketing paths. You can't afford to play nice anymore. Make the hard decisions now when the opportunity is in front of you (Yes, you can finally fire that person/contractor/agency).
Don't pocket all the marketing dollars you are cutting. Reinvest a portion of those savings into assets and stories - your web content, your enewsletter content, your informational products, your "customer listening" staff. Focus on being the trusted solutions provider for your industry - invest in products that do just that.
Address duplicate content issues. (courtesy of Natanya Anderson) Many times we find that several groups in a company are trying to address the same content needs, but through their unique lenses (and not typically through the customers' lens). They are all telling a very similar story and creating multiple, redundant assets, none of which really meet the end-user's needs. If companies can centralize these efforts and make the focus of the asset development the user, they will most likely be able to create a single asset that performs well.
Execute.

The companies that take advantage of this great opportunity will be leading their industries after the dust settles.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Natanya Anderson EMAIL: natanya_anderson@powered.com IP: 66.179.216.253 URL: http://theengagedconsumer.powered.com/ DATE: 01/08/2009 09:33:11 AM Joe - great post. I'd add a 5th item to this list: Look for redundancies and consolidate. Many times we find that several groups in a company are trying to address the same content needs but through their unique lenses (and not typically through the customers' lens). They are all telling a very similar story and creating multiple, redundant assets, none of which really meet the end-user's needs. If companies can centralize these efforts and make the focus of the asset development the user, they will most likely be able to create a single asset that performs well. Abandoning sacred cows and old ways of working is hard, but I agree that those who can find the strength to do that now will be the ones to succeed in these difficult times. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/08/2009 11:32:03 AM Great point Natanya...I added this above as number four. Good stuff. Joe ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: How to Make Money with Content Marketing STATUS: Draft ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: how-to-make-money-with-content-marketing DATE: 01/07/2009 10:34:11 PM ----- BODY:

Like many of you I love social media. Connecting with new people everyday is one of the great features to this job. In any given day I get emails from people like you who read this blog (thank you) and from people who are checking out Junta42 or Junta42 Match, or see a Tweet on Twitter or saw me at a conference and so on. No matter who the person is, publisher, marketer, blogger, or business owner, one of the most common questions I get is something along the lines of "you put all this material out there for free, blogs, ebooks, whitepapers, how do you make any money?"

The answer is really embarrassingly simple. Content marketing. Even more so in these slowed economic times, people are still thirsting for good content. They want to know how to find and produce it as well as how to distribute it. Now of course they want to do it for free, which isn't always possible. But the goal is to remember your goal. If your goal is to be the expert in your field or industry then content marketing is the answer for you too. In order to be recognized as an expert, your job now it put all your good content out there. Get your brand all over the place so that consumers, when the need the information, and sooner or later when they need your product or expertise will turn to you for that. And that is where the money will be.

----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- -------- AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi TITLE: Visual Representation of Content Marketing: Do You Agree? STATUS: Publish ALLOW COMMENTS: 1 CONVERT BREAKS: wysiwyg ALLOW PINGS: 1 BASENAME: visual-representation-of-content-marketing-do-you-agree CATEGORY: content marketing CATEGORY: custom publishing CATEGORY: online content marketing DATE: 01/05/2009 05:02:28 PM ----- BODY:

I had a few of the folks at VizEdu.com send me this visual presentation of content marketing @Twitter, and I thought it was close enough to share.

I like what they've done, but as always with trying to depict a philosophy visually, it leaves a few things out. Possibly for the next version?

Couple thoughts...

This model completely leaves out content strategy, possibly the most challenging part of the content marketing process. Check out this article by Kristina Halvorson (@halvorson) for more on content strategy, as well as in my book where we discuss this in detail. As part of content strategy is doing the research on the customer's informational needs and setting up listening posts. Hard to distribute good content marketing without an ear to the ground.
A solid content marketing plan does not require viral or word-of-mouth to work. There are plenty of retention-based content marketing programs that don't need to be spread in order to achieve behavioral objectives. That said, great content should naturally spread (for example, this 2009 predictions post was my highest clicked post of all time in just a few days as it spread through Twitter, Facebook and Stumbleupon).
Content marketing does not only function online. Print content marketing, such as print newsletters and custom magazines/magalogs are still incredibly effective when done correctly (see the APA 25 minute research under Content Marketing Research). Customer events and roundtables are also a form of content marketing - the in-person kind. When planning your marketing, you should look at the all-important mix of online/print/in-person content marketing.

I must say, I'm still in awe at how the content marketing industry has changed and is evolving from custom publishing. Frankly, it's exciting and utterly confusing at the same time. How can it not be with all these terms?: content marketing, content strategy, inbound marketing, custom publishing, custom media, branded storytelling, private media, customer marketing, branded content and so on. Rick Liebling (@eyecube) calls this branding. For the most part, aren't they all pretty much the same thing?

Tell you what...let's all get together an pick a term. You with me?

If you liked this, check out 10 Content Marketing Tips to Start Now for 2009 or Content Marketing on the Rise for 2009.

Like information about content marketing? Sign up for my weekly eNewsletter.

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----- EXTENDED BODY: ----- EXCERPT: ----- KEYWORDS: ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate Richardson EMAIL: kate@stickywood.com.au IP: 203.217.22.63 URL: http://stickywood.blogspot.com DATE: 01/05/2009 06:37:27 PM Hi Joe, To your point, the presentation doesn't actually address the first step in any content strategy - understanding the content (or entertainment) needs of your audience. People often skip this step, yet it's the most important. Marketers confuse it with product needs, agencies mistake it for media consumption needs. In addition, people's entertainment and content needs change in relation to different channels. This is why straight re-purposing doesn't always work. I hear you on the number of terms we can attribute to content marketing. To be honest, I think the spectrum is so broad it's difficult to define. The purpose comes back to storytelling, but I think it's not a bad idea to get comfortable with not having to define everything in a short, pithy, term. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/05/2009 09:39:47 PM Hi Kate...I think I agree with you. One term may not do the job...so why try? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Rick Liebling EMAIL: sportspr@yahoo.com IP: 98.109.133.64 URL: http://www.eyecube.wordpress.com DATE: 01/05/2009 09:50:51 PM Joe, I thought was a good overview for people new to this area. I think I prefer the gang at Common Craft, but that's just personal preference. I must admit that I have a hard time with the term "content marketing". I always fear people will think I'm suggesting they market their content rather than using content as the marketing. I've written about what I call the Deeply Immersive Narrative Universe, but that's not quite right for what you're talking about. But Narrative Marketing might work. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate Richardson EMAIL: kate@stickywood.com.au IP: 203.217.22.63 URL: http://stickywood.blogspot.com DATE: 01/05/2009 11:16:54 PM Not sure Rick, I think advertising people could make a case for lumping their wares under narrative marketing. But I hear your point on content marketing. The last thing we want to do is make this area more confusing or obtuse for marketers. For me it's all about brand entertainment but that's specific to the wares I'm spruiking. Branded content seems to be the other term people use mostly in Australia. I tried to avoid the term 'branded content' because it sounds like existed content that's branded in a rather gratuitous fashion rather than content that's created for a brand. I also think entertainment suggests a connection with the audience where content does not. But I know entertainment doesn't fit everything. This is really semantics and not something clients really care about I'd say. Although I find it interesting! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/06/2009 08:14:30 AM @Kate @Rick The reason why I've always thought the industry should consolidate until one term is because I think marketers need it. There is so much confusion out there anyway, having 50 names for a type of marketing makes it all that more challenging. Marketers don't know what to call it, so how do they grow in a discipline that other marketers call something different. But to your points, I don't think I've heard the perfect fit yet, and there's the rub. The reason I use content marketing is because that was the first term that I used that marketers seemed to gravitate toward the fastest...where they "got it" the best. Haven't found another one that works as well - although simple "storytelling" works sometimes as well. jp ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Richard S. Papale EMAIL: rsppub@gmail.com IP: 204.17.105.239 URL: DATE: 01/06/2009 10:13:36 AM I am interested in visualization tools for business to convey stories visually (as done here). Any recommendations of other tools to use? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/06/2009 10:24:27 AM Hi Richard...Rick's recommendation of Common Craft is worth a look. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Sandeep Arora EMAIL: sandeeparora2@gmail.com IP: 58.68.79.30 URL: http://www.VizEdu.com DATE: 01/07/2009 07:32:37 AM Thanks for sharing our Flash Video here.This flash is basically about the "WHAT and WHY of Content Marketing". A next version could be "HOW, WHERE and WHEN on Content Marketing". Thanks for the seed idea and pointing it out. At VizEdu - we are on the frontline of Content Marketing- We are trying to create super awesome educational content - which has high value in itself. A byproduct of this effort will be the projects we get. I must say - it is not as easy as it sounds. This Interactive Flash took almost 7 days - with 2 resources (a Social Media expert and a Flash Developer). But hard work done for common good does pay off. Just wanted to share my implementation experience. Thanks ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russell Sparkman EMAIL: russell@fusionspark.com IP: 66.165.17.4 URL: http://fusionspark.wordpress.com DATE: 01/08/2009 12:54:14 PM I think that the Content Marketing Flash does a good job of explaining the essentials of the concept. The difficulty, I find, is getting entrenched mindsets to "get it." From a personal perspective, I feel we've been patiently waiting for a level of upper level marketing execs to either retire or die off, so that a younger generation more attuned to these concepts is in decision making power. Our first foray into this began in 1998, when I presented something titled "Toyota Offroad and Online Presents" to international marketing directors in Toyota's Tokyo Corporate office. That project ultimately become "One World Journeys" and was picked up for a two year "branded content" sponsorship by Seiko Epson, out of the Japan offices, in 1999, and launched in early 2000. We had an integrated offline/online strategy for the content that was proposed, but only marginally embraced/implemented upon by the client. But, that's a whole different story. The site's still live, at http://www.oneworldjourneys.com, if you want to view a project that qualifies as a "historical" site in the context of this discussion. Anyway, I bring this history up to support my thoughts on the use of the term "Content Marketing." Until we redid our logo last year, our business cards always had the words "Inspiring Digital Storytelling" printed under our logotype. This dated back to 2000. We've had a lot of years of experience in trying to persuade marketers of the latent power of quality "storytelling" content to reach audiences, online. It's been difficult, to say the least, to be convincing, but that has been changing for the past several years. While I like the term "storytelling," I'm afraid it comes across a little wishy-washy, and it's role has largely been misunderstood by the average marketing manager/director. I like the term Content Marketing, and have added it to my own blog. Still, I find it always needs explanation, amplification, to get across the essence. The flash here does a good job of getting across the essence, and I'll be using it to help teach my own client prospects for "content marketing." Ultimately, regarding the term, I'm wondering if what we're really talking about is Integrated Marketing (a term that seems to be in fairly universal use, and understood), of which Content Marketing and Inbound Marketing are specific practices, philosophies, etc. Just like "direct marketing" is a practice that resides under the umbrella of marketing communications. If I applied that to myself, I'd say that we're an integrated marketing communications firm, which advocates and practices the specific discipline of content marketing. This was long for a comment. Sorry! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/08/2009 01:05:16 PM Russell...I like your thinking, and agree with you about content marketing, simply because marketers respond to that the fastest...they seem to "get it" - at least in theory. Regarding storytelling - you may be right. Would a billion dollar company spend $$$ on storytelling?...maybe, maybe not...but they should on content. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Keith Wiegold EMAIL: nutlug5@yahoo.com IP: 75.103.4.44 URL: DATE: 01/08/2009 05:05:22 PM Joe (and Kate and Rick, et al): I believe what we have here are two questions -- 1. where does strategy play a role in the demonstration of content marketing, as above; and 2. how to get marketers to understand and take more seriously 'content marketing' In a stroke of convergence, the answers to each serve the other. The strategy process is an absolute necessity to formulate a plan where content plays a key role in affecting every customer segment interacting with your brand at every level of engagement throughout their lifespan as your customer. Detailed marketing objectives and corresponding content strategy should define each stage of engagement as the customer grows from suspect to prospect to customer, and from part-timer to loyalist to advocate. Attaching metrics to each stage to ensure the content is working toward marketing objectives is paramount as well. If we, as 'content marketing' evangelists, wish to have Marketer credence adhered to our efforts and beliefs, we must play by the same rules and be judged similarly as the 'established marcomm' efforts: namely, by and through sound strategy and measurable results. Happy to further this discussion with anyone/everyone! Viva le Content! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/08/2009 08:10:48 PM Keith... 1. Very deep, and correct. 2. You need a blog ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Kate Richardson EMAIL: kate@stickywood.com.au IP: 203.217.22.63 URL: http://stickywood.blogspot.com DATE: 01/08/2009 09:08:03 PM Wondering what else can we learn from other disciplines with 'wishy washy' or ill defined terminology? 'Social media' is one that comes to mind. Also to your point Keith, we all need to better educate our clients on how brand entertainment or content marketing can actually deliver results. I think clients have difficult comprehending how it can support their business objectives. Moreover its often lumped in the 'soft' or 'nice to have' category. Nice discussion Joe. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Russell Sparkman EMAIL: russell@fusionspark.com IP: 66.165.17.4 URL: http://fusionspark.wordpress.com DATE: 01/08/2009 09:42:07 PM For the readers here who aren't web site developers, or information architects, there's a book called "The Elements of User Experience" by Jesse James Garrett that would be an interesting read, I believe (this is a well known book amongst the web designer/info architect crowd). This book has influenced our own approach to developing a content strategy for clients, and for helping clients to see how that content can deliver results. To quote from the opening page of the Strategy section of the book: "The foundation of a successful user experience is a clearly articulated strategy. Knowing both what we want the site to accomplish for our organization and what we want the site to accomplish for our users HELPS INFORM ALL THE DECISIONS WE HAVE TO MAKE ABOUT EVERY ASPECT OF THE USER EXPERIENCE." (Upper case added by me for emphasis) As this pertains to working with a client, we define what the client's desired outcomes are from the initiative, and then plan the specifics of the content strategy to match specific desired outcomes. For instance, if a non-profit's desired outcome is increased online donations, we may recommend an emotionally compelling video to be associated with the Please Donate link. In fact, we've done just that for a non-profit client and have demonstrated that the content delivers results by showing that the Donate link associated with the video content is, after a homepage Donate link, the second highest referring link to the donate form. What's important about this idea is that it's planning content not just for content's sake, but matching particular types of content to achieve specific desired outcomes. Thanks for reading my comment ... like Kate, I think this is a nice discussion. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Destry Wion EMAIL: destry@wion.com IP: 83.141.179.193 URL: http://wion.com DATE: 01/09/2009 09:19:23 AM As someone who has wore different hats under the user experience umbrella, but which is nevertheless somewhat new to the labels "content strategist" and "content marketing," I find this all very interesting. I've been reading up on both lately to try and get my head around them and strategist fits more of my background activities than marketer. Still, the divide is a lot shorter now that "traditional marketing" is being replaced with this new kind, and thus increasingly relevant to what I do (in terms of hands-on). OK, there's that. So, in looking at this presentation, I'm a little troubled by one thing suggested in the slide showing Chris Brogan's definition of what content marketing is. In fact the whole presentation seems to take the tack that content marketing is the *development* of good (insert definition here) content rather than the promotion of it and the channels used in that promoting. To me -- and maybe this is simply my lack of marketing experience and confusion with the label "content marketing" -- marketing is about getting the product/service known, generating the buzz, etc, and that's where folks often like to make a distinction between good content (that which is produced by subject/medium experts and serves user needs) versus marketing pitch that a commercial writer might produce. I don't mean to sound unfair but we've seen these distinctions before. Thus, there seems to be a discrepancy in what the presentation is visualizing (it does convey using socialware channels, for example, as a means of distributing/culturing the content, which is what makes "content marketing" click with me) versus what reads on the slides (that being to develop good content as it might come from a skilled writer, videographer, designer of any type and so forth). I welcome any clarifications. As it is, someone else besides me might be scratching their noodle if they're also trying to distinguish roles. I guess it goes back to defining what good content is under a given set of circumstances (audience, objectives, etc.) Here's a related question, as I think the content strategist and content marketer roles reside in here somehow (among other hats): Let's say someone is responsible (actually being paid) for developing/growing a user community around a new open source product -- the product website, the community support hangouts, the blog communication, promotion in the social channels, etc -- what do you call the person who has a lead hand in all that? Pick a title out of a hat and add "Lead" to it? Thanks to @halvorson for the article tip. -dw (@Wion) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: Joe Pulizzi EMAIL: joe@junta42.com IP: 75.10.146.1 URL: http://blog.junta42.com DATE: 01/11/2009 09:23:30 AM dw...the question you raise is an important one. It almost seems like there are two sides - one that talks about content development and strategy, and the other that talks about content promotion. There aren't many that bring this together as one fluid process. That's exactly why we wrote our book to tackle that issue. Content strategy and content marketing and promotion must hand the baton to each other or it's all pretty much meaningless. Thanks for joining in on the conversation. -----

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