content marketing for business: tips, tricks and trends

Allee Creative, LLC alleecreative.com @alleecreative facebook.com/alleecreative

“Content Marketing for Business: Tips, Tricks and Trends” I-94 Chamber of Commerce, 4/17/2014

Content Marketing for Business: Tips, Tricks and Trends

Presented by:!

Melissa Harrison!Allee Creative, LLC!

www.alleecreative.com!



About the Presenter Melissa Harrison!

Named one of the “Top 36 Content Marketers Who!Rock” by TopRank and Content Marketing Institute in!2013, Melissa has more than 13 years experience !helping organizations strategize and manage their !brands through traditional marketing, social media and !content marketing.!

Melissa is also a four-time recipient of the Hermes!Creative Award, a national speaker on the topics of !branding, content strategy and social media; and is !certified by Google Analytics Academy in Digital !Analytics Fundamentals.!



What is Content Marketing?

•  Customized!•  Two-way!•  Engaging!•  Educational and Informative!•  Solution-driven!•  Leads to action!



Debunking the Myths

Myth #1: Content marketing is the same thing as social media.



Debunking the Myths

Myth #2: Content marketing doesn’t cost much.

How much content marketing could you buy for that?



Remember…

While business goals between content marketing and traditional advertising may be

different, the content you create can be leveraged to have a much LONGER shelf life

than traditional ad space.



Debunking the Myths

Myth #3: Content marketing needs to be traced to a sale in order to be considered successful .

OR

You can’t track the ROI of content marketing.



Debunking the Myths

Myth #4: Content marketing is a quick, easy win .



So, is it effective?



Understand what content marketing means for your business.



Do not start without a strategy. Period.

The most effective businesses using content marketing:!1.  Have a strategy!2.  Have someone dedicated to manage this strategy!3.  Use 15+ tactics!4.  Use an average of 7 social media channels!5.  Spend between 32-39% of their marketing budget on

content marketing!



Uses for your business

•  Customer service!•  Industry pulse!•  Establishing trust and thought-leadership!•  Engaging younger demographics!



Social media: Which platforms to use

The “Fab Four”!– Facebook!– Twitter!–  LinkedIn!– Pinterest!



Tricks



Tools for staying on track

Tools for staying on track!– KPIs!– Content calendars!– Third-party apps!– Monthly review/analytics (spreadsheets!)!– Source lists!– Dedicated staff, outsource or combination of

both!



Blog Calendar

Example:!



Social Media Calendar

Example:!



Third-party apps

Scheduling posts!– Tweetdeck!– Hootsuite!– SproutSocial!– Native platforms (ie: Facebook)!

Monitoring mentions, engagement, ROI!– SproutSocial!– Google Analytics!– Radian 6!– Mention!



Trends



Video

Such as:!–  How-to!–  Product launch!–  Q&A!

Tools:!–  Vimeo!–  YouTube!–  Instagram!–  Vine!



Blogging

S.O.S!–  Strategy!–  Owners!–  Schedule!



Better Tracking/ROI

•  What’s it all for?!–  Event goals!–  Brand awareness!–  Increased attendance!

•  Ideas for measurement!–  Mentions!–  RTs/shares!–  Reach/engagement!–  # ‘likes’/followers!–  Top influencers!



RWD: Responsive Website Design •  One billion

smartphones were shipped in 2013!

•  2/3 of cell phone using Americans use them to check email and the Web (twice as many as 2009)!

•  Mobile has taken over!



Challenges?



DIY or Hire it Out?

Can you keep up?!–  Resources!–  Budget!–  Time Management!

Why it Pays to Hire Out!–  Consistency!–  Outside perspective!–  Continuous monitoring!–  Professional insight!



Questions?



Thank You!

For more information:!Melissa Harrison!

•  www.alleecreative.com!•  Twitter: @alleecreative!•  Email: [email protected] !