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A Recap of Content Boost’s Latest Content Marketing Crash Course

It was an exciting day at Content Boost last Thursday, Oct. 29, as our content marketing Crash Course—our ongoing seminar aimed at offering tips and tricks for organizations to enhance their content marketing effectiveness —was a great success.

Attendees made their way into the conference room for the first set of presentations, presented by our in-house team of content marketing experts.shutterstock_183663350

In case you missed it, here are some major takeaways from the day’s activities:

Plan, plan and plan some more: The vast majority of B2B companies already realize the benefits of content marketing, as 88 percent are currently using it. So if your business is one of the 22 percent of companies that aren’t using content marketing, your direct report may need some convincing as to why he or she should invest in such a strategy. This was the focus of the first presentation given by our Director of Brand Strategy, Allison Boccamazzo.

So, how do you get your boss to say yes to content marketing? You need a plan, the focus of which should be centered on four crucial steps outlined by Boccamazzo:

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Let’s Talk About That Blog of Yours

At this point, you’re already sold on the idea of starting a blog for your business, and using it to move forward with content marketing like 81 percent of B2B organizations are currently doing.

So what’s holding you back from getting started?

shutterstock_230245711You have questions. Lots of them. And so you’re dragging your feet about moving forward with the project, as you don’t want to rush into the process and risk painting your organization in the wrong light. Meanwhile, your competitors are pumping out multiple blog posts per week.

If this describes your situation, I understand what you’re going through. After all, there are a lot of things to consider when starting a blog, such as:

Tone and style: Should your blog be loose and creative, or strictly business? A blog is a direct reflection of your corporate brand, and so it’s vital that your messaging aligns with the image you are trying to create for your company.    Continue reading “Let’s Talk About That Blog of Yours”

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Understanding a Blog’s Position in the Sales Funnel

A lot of people ask me, “should my business be blogging?”

It leads me to believe that there is still, amongst the majority of professionals—particularly at the small-to-medium sized shutterstock_283237730business level—a fundamental misunderstanding as to how blogs fit into the sales funnel.

If you don’t grasp how the sales funnel works, it can be easy to dismiss a blog as a frivolous expenditure and thus, a gigantic waste of time. But rest assured, blogs have an important place in the sales process.

Here is how a blog fits into the sales funnel. Keep in mind that the sales funnel works from the top-down: Continue reading “Understanding a Blog’s Position in the Sales Funnel”

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Three Important Elements of Every Engaging Blog

shutterstock_301366778Marketers behind the brands with large blog readerships rely on much more than just good luck to attract their readers. Instead of crossing their fingers each time they press “submit” on the latest post, these marketers employ a wealth of strategic elements that make their blogs the most attractive to their audiences.

Just take look at this article from Bussiness2Community.com that lists five of today’s most successful corporate blogs. Each of the featured blogs is unique and immediately sets the tone for what its personality and content will be like. In other words, each of these featured blogs draws in and captivates the reader before he or she even begins reading the content, due to a few important key elements.

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Why My Road Trip Got Me Thinking About Content Marketing Strategy

shutterstock_269296442In my opinion, there’s almost nothing quite like getting out on the open road, when everything feels new and the possibilities for adventure are endless.

I just recently enjoyed the incredible experience of driving coast to coast. What I valued most about the trip was the experience of driving, rather than flying, and being able to take in all of the scenery and changing landscapes as I made it from state to state. Taking in all of the sights, from mountains to flatland to deserts, made me think about my country and traveling in brand new ways that I’d never have realized had I foregone the car and hopped on a plane.

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Is Your Marketing Department About To Take Flight?

Now that we’re about to turn the corner into July, many of your employees could be taking time off from work for various reasons—like for vacations, conferences, weddings, you name it. July and August are prime months for being out of the office and sometimes, paid time off requests can pop up out of nowhere and when you least expect them. It’s important, therefore, that you look ahead and figure out whether you have the manpower to see your editorial department through this time of limited resources.

Gone FishinAfter all, while your employees can always take time off from work, your blog and social content need to keep rolling. Otherwise, if you pause your calendar and focus on other tasks while your main writers are out of town, you could risk losing readers who may forget to come back. Continue reading “Is Your Marketing Department About To Take Flight?”

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Are You Suffocating Your Brand’s Content Without Even Realizing It?

It’s time we had an important talk: Your editorial process is killing your beautiful content. Here’s why.

shutterstock_282923051First, one of your staff writers creates a witty, thought-provoking article for your website. Next, the piece must go to an editor—or two—for quality inspection before landing back on your writer’s desk. It may go back and forth multiple times. After that, the post may go to a high-ranking executive for messaging approval before being passed along to a board of directors. Finally, it must pass through your legal team. Several weeks—or sometimes months—later, the post winds up on your website—a tired, bland, and likely outdated version of its former self.

And you wonder why nobody is sharing your content on social media! Continue reading “Are You Suffocating Your Brand’s Content Without Even Realizing It?”

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How do I Reach my Target Audience? Crystal Knows

As content marketers—and professionals in the marketing outsourcing business—we are always searching for new tools that will make us better at our jobs and therefore make your content marketing strategy that much stronger.

One tool we talk a lot about here in the cubicles is buyer personas. They aren’t a piece of software or a neat gadget that makes life easier. Rather they are descriptions of our client’s target audience that help us hyper-focus our writing and create the top notch copy you come to expect from us here at Content Boost.

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Top Takeaways From the Content Boost Crash Course, Part 2: Afternoon Sessions

Looking back on the second half of yesterday’s Content Boost Crash Course, the word that comes immediately to mind is “action.” While the first half of the day was focused on educating attendees about the basics of content marketing—the ins and outs of blogging and the need to engage with customers via social media, for example—the afternoon was all about how to put those strategies into motion and move forward with an integrated, revenue-driven content marketing strategy.

shutterstock_134665622What is the best way to get started with content marketing in your organization? As Content Boost Director Carrie Majewski intimated during a presentation titled “Getting the Boss to Say Yes to Content Marketing,” approaching the boss about investing in content marketing may be intimidating. She advised participants to lay such fears aside, however, as, in truth, most decision makers are ready to move forward with content marketing. Majewski backed up her claim with a study from DNN which shows that the top three priorities for marketing executives are to acquire new customers (87 percent), increase customer retention (86 percent) and increase brand awareness (80 percent).
Continue reading “Top Takeaways From the Content Boost Crash Course, Part 2: Afternoon Sessions”