By Jake Sorofman
Gartner, Inc.
Virtually every day, I talk to marketing leaders who are caught flatfooted by the content imperative. They’ve set up social listening posts and perhaps laid the foundations for multichannel engagement—only to realize that, on the average day, they have little to say!
You wouldn’t expect marketers, of all people, to be rendered speechless. But that’s roughly what happens when they’re asked to sustain the daily discipline of content marketing. For many, it’s unnatural to be interesting on-demand, creative under the duress of compressed distribution cycles. It’s unnatural to set aside the commercial pitch in favor of more authentic storytelling.
But marketers now know that yesterday’s interrupt-driven marketing strategies no longer work. They’re replacing these tired brand-forward, chest-thumping platforms and playbooks with an approach to audience engagement that vaguely resembles the basic principles of journalism, filmmaking, political and issues advocacy. They’re learning to become content marketers.
Of course becoming a content marketer is easier said than done and not something that happens by edict or accident. Brands are trying to figure out how to make this transition as a stepwise journey across a series of maturity phases. Here’s how they do it:
Phase 1: Documenting Capabilities
This earliest phase of maturity is decidedly an inside-out orientation that puts your offerings front and center to your brand promise and makes your relationship with audiences more monologue than dialogue. Like the prattling dinner guest who makes every topic about himself, this approach to marketing can turn engagement into alienation. But that’s not to say that a clear definition of your offering value isn’t necessary; it’s just not sufficient for true brand engagement.
Phase 2: Storytelling
Human beings are cognitively wired for stories. Discrete facts and data fragments may bounce off the brain, but when they’re organized around the narrative arc of a storyline, they’re more readily absorbed. Brand storytellers look to the simple architecture of literature to organize how they convert their value propositions into storylines. Here, exposition, rising action, climax and resolution become the structure of a storyline and the catalyst for deeper brand engagement.
Phase 3: Differentiated POV
The best content marketers have brands that stand for a higher purpose. They’ve developed a strong point of view that sets them apart from the competition. Apple stands for product design. Wal-Mart stands for value. Google stands for innovation. Zappos stands for customer service. What does your brand stand for? Figure that out and you’ll reveal a rich vein for storytelling.
Phase 4: Category Creator
The next phase of maturity reaches beyond rhetoric, as compelling as it may be, to focus on changing the buying criteria in your market. The goal here is to get your customers to think about a problem—and a solution—differently. The goal is to rig the rules in your favor by shattering traditional conventions. These disruptors collect an uneven share of the winnings. The best category creators combine product and service innovation with great content marketing that helps bridge the consumers’ “imagination gap” standing between the present they know and the better future your brand promises.
Phase 5: Thought Leader
Thought leader brands are actively sought out for their opinions and points of view. They’re seen as authorities in the markets they serve. How do they achieve this? By achieving excellence along three dimensions: product, content and operations. These are the brands that deliver more value, engage emotionally and demonstrably walk their talk. Take American Express, for example; a service-focused brand that invests in product innovation and long-term customer relationships. Its product and operational strength provides the foundation of trust that also makes the company an authoritative source of information. Its Open Forum community (www.openforum.com) has become a trusted destination site for business owners seeking guidance for growth.
Of course becoming a content marketer is equal parts inspiration and perspiration. The best wrought blueprints are merely ideas until someone learns to swing the hammer. That’s the daily discipline of the content marketer—and a story for another time.
Stay tuned.
About the Author
Jake Sorofman is a research director with Gartner for Marketing Leaders, from Gartner, Inc. Read Jake’s blog and follow him on Twitter @jakesorofman.
