Content Marketing

I got excited listening to a teleseminar with Joe Pulizzi, Newt Barrett, Chris Brogan and Paul Gillin on content marketing for two reasons.
1. It’s smart marketing
2. It works in both the online and offline environment

The funny thing was it’s really not new. The challenge of being unique and relevant has always been at the core of effective marketing. 

What is new are the tools to guide the customer through the online environment.

In my experience marketing financial services, the challenge was that products themselves were really at parity and there was no way to differentiate with the competition as everyone sells checking, loans and investments – unless you could become the “knowledge provider”.

Example: Bank One Business Banking developed branded, relevant informational brochures on topics like:
- Keys to A Sucessful Business Plan
- The 5 Cs of Credit
- Cash Flow Fundamentals

- Making the Most of the SBA
A series of informational pieces with interactive elements (worksheets, questionnaires, agency links) were developed and delivered to other respected sources like accountants, lawyers or brokers to pass along to the end-user. It made the influencer look smart, provided the customer with relevant information and positioned the bank as a trusted source that really understood the needs of the business owner.

They were highly successful because:
1. They understood the information needs of the customer
2. The information helped the customer advance their business and although it never mentioned a product, it gave them the information they needed to make an informed, confident purchase decision.
3. It gave customers value through their social network allowing them to respond when they were ready.

Fast forward 10 years and you’ve got an online example almost verbatim at MasterCard. 

Marketers now have tools like never before but many still haven't grown into them:
With tools like Zoomerang, Twitter Search, Addictomatic there’s no excuse for any marketer not to tune in to what customers are thinking.

Customers have access to the same Internet you do, so if you’re not revealing brand new data, your job is to be the filter – to comb through all the stuff that’s out there, edit it and serve it up in a way that suits your customer.

A favorite example of mine is Magellan's Travel site that has sorted through all the health, security, weather and electrical data to help guide the customer toward the most appropriate purchase based on their travel destination.

With SEO, Twitter, Blogs and other social media good content can be found and distributed again and again – if it’s really valuable it will be.

Other good examples listed on the call include:
HomeMadeSimple.com 

BeingGirl.com
RoyalCanin 

Ironically, I don’t have an example of an advertising agency or a marketing firm demonstrating content in this way. They all toss out what they’ve done, who they are and how many awards make them great.

If you’ve seen an example, let me know.
Otherwise it's shoes for the shoemaker? 

Call Me.

Three Hot Social (Media) Spots in Mpls/St.Paul

Everybody’s learning as fast as they can. Twitter feeds us blog links, which feed us site links and more wisdom. We share with friends and co-workers, test new site offerings, gadgets and aggregators.

But there are three solid organizations in Minneapolis that provide face-to-face learning and networking and if you live here and aren’t taking advantage of them already – start now. Each has a unique format and online offerings so there are benefits to be had by taking advantage of all three. They are:

• The Minnesota Interactive Marketing Association - MIMA
• Social Media Breakfasts of Minneapolis St. Paul - smbmsp
• UnSummit 

MIMA

MIMA hosts monthly events, a website, blog and e-newsletter. They are the oldest and the largest of the three with 900 members and are very well sponsored. Because of this, their events have a more formal tone, great food, a cash bar and a higher ticket price.

This week’s event offered a very bright panel discussing Digital Reputation Management. It was well-facilitated, underscored the long term investment required, provided real-life scenarios and gave some easy action steps. It was valuable to hear these corporate executives share their stories and the wisdom learned. In the spirit of social media it felt very honest and transparent.

I would have preferred more real-time demonstrations of their recommended tools and in a perfect world, the in-person registrars could have done a better job demonstrating Reputation Management. But it’s hard to be perfect. Their next event is rationally titled Inbox Insanity and I can't wait to attend. There is also a new MIMA group on LinkedIn.

Social Media Breakfasts 

Smbmsp is next in age and size with over 360 members. Their website is very social in nature with member profiles, forums, photos and member blogs. Their events are less formal than MIMA, smaller in size and less expensive.

The last one I attended was a case study presentation of a cause effort that went viral and landed swiftly in the headlines of CNN, and over 252 other media outlets. It was a fun story, illustrated the shifting influence of blogs vs traditional media and reinforced the importance of solid writing, strong headlines, clear action steps etc.

I was struck by the open generosity of the audience during the discussion period. I have been attending business breakfasts for over 20 years and the nature of the online space is showing its impact in real life. There is less emphasis on posturing and more on sharing and ideating about how to move forward in this changing technology and dicey economy.

They aren’t as polished in their recap of past events but they excel in sharing member activity. Sign-up to become a member and attend the next event on Social Media and Job Searching.

UnSummit
UnSummit is the newest of the three having had its first event only last October. It began because the MIMA Summit was sold out and there was enough of the community left out and hungry for dialogue that they decided to go rogue.

This format offers workshops on various topics so you choose which are most relevant to you. At the October event there was even an all-day session used to design a social media strategy for the hosting establishment. Packed into the back party room, the various groups huddled together so as not to shout down their neighboring classes. It was the most informal of the three but also the most intimate and generated lots of lively discussion. They do a good job of recapping and Phil Wilson also provided a detailed wrap-up.

The UnSummit is really all about participating in the discussion. Registration is now open for the March event on Hacking the Recession and you can also post any session ideas you may have.

In this moment of our recession it is critical to be learning, connecting and generating ideas for growth. Now you can choose breakfast, lunch or dinner, whatever suits your social style.

New Years Resolution #101: Integrating social media into my company. Ugh.

Day 1: We are nowhere…

Just like a New Year's weight loss program, you know you need to bite this bullet. But how do you start integrating social media into your company? 

Simply. Easily. This is a fun diet.

Play. Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or FlickR, let your team engage freely. Easy.

Get personal. Share photos on FlickR, and events on Facebook. Also easy.

Share about business. Develop a unified(group name) tag on Delicious to share industry information and follow specific #Hashtags on Twitter. Easier.

Learn from each other. Share in-person or on ning.com about your SM experiences. A little harder – especially if you have any shy types or ego maniacs on your team. But you’re used to that.

Day 2: Having fun - but is it relevant to the business?

Listen. Set up iGoogle pages gathering feeds to all the bloggers in your industry . Try browsing all your SM spaces on flock.com. Allow one hour a day to read what’s gathered. Listening is required.

Experience it. Join rich social spaces with one-stop access to resources, those that help you get and stay organized and ensures your own personal growth in a category. Try Mint or Ravelry or find one in your industry. Benchmark. Easy work.

Evolve. Use Twitter, iGoogle, Delicious and the like to their fullest to track competition, what’s being said about your industry and your brand – not to mention changes in technology. Did I already say listening was important? Pay attention.

Drive. Get blogging. It's free. Post at least once a month. Hobbies, religion, politics – the sky’s the limit. Then get optimized. Harder.

Day 3: We must launch or we’re doomed. Doomed!
O.K. You’ve dinked around and have started to experience the benefits and realities of social media. But now you are tasked with building into that space for your own brand. How?

Get a good partner.
In fact, get a good team with a business strategist, marketing and pr savvy as well as interactive skill sets. Find a partner that can help you integrate social media into your entire customer experience and one who is listening and learning every day. This landscape is not static and with mobile in the mix, it now evolves 24/7 at 360 degrees – you’ll need a team that can do that too. They need to think on their feet.

Think holistically. Act specifically.
Social media can enhance every aspect of your business. It can be the biggest customer feedback mechanism you’ve ever seen. If your culture is risk adverse, start small and in a somewhat measurable way – then expand and speed up.

Use brand evangelists.
Find your most dedicated employees and happiest customers and get them active in your social space. They’re positive and they’ll keep it real. Keep in regular contact with your industry’s blogosphere.

Solve for the customer.
You already know all about them. Build tools for their growth through your brand and make it real. Fluff is out. Real is in.

Be Appropriate.
Know when to join the conversation and when to stay quiet. The US Airforce has a thoughtful response continuum - make one.

Stay flexible.
The days of projecting a static brand image are gone. Your brand must live and breathe and demonstrate its value every day. Muscle up and swing forward. It's a jungle out there.