Very interesting article written by Wes McDowell on Jan 10th, 2017, published on Small Business Trends.
Link: http://smallbiztrends.com/2017/01/content-marketing-for-boring-industries.html
Let’s face it, not every business niche is sexy. Just because what you do doesn’t make for interesting cocktail party banter doesn’t mean you have to give up on the idea of content marketing. You just have to be smart about it.
A wise editor once told me there are no boring topics, only boring writers. I suspect many people would be interested in learning more about what you do, the services you offer and the benefits you provide to clients or customers.
Content Marketing for boring industries
Getting ideas
For starters, imagine that you’re at a conference with other people in your profession. I’m sure you have interesting conversations.
- What are the latest developments in your industry that get you excited?
- What are the challenges you face?
The business of website development, or marketing, or writing is not that exciting to most people, but get a bunch of folks involved in those professions together and I guarantee you they’ll get excited talking to each other. I suspect it’s the same in your industry.
The trick is to package that excitement in an article that talks about what you care about, why it matters, and how it benefits people. The benefit might be to an individual or society in general.
Education
What are some things that someone in your profession knows that would help others if they knew, too? Remember, people are selfish. They want to know what’s in it for them.
And there’s a reason we say knowledge is power. People in technical professions know stuff that the rest of us don’t. Content marketing is a great business-building tool for people like you because you have an opportunity to educate and impress at the same time. You share your knowledge and reap the reward of being perceived as an authority.
That’s something marketers have learned from psychologists — people listen to those they perceive to have authority.
Self Protection
What sort of things about your profession might people find engaging?
To help answer that question, I reviewed some of the other psychological motivators that marketers use. The desire to avoid loss motivates many people.
Is there something that you or your business do that protects people from loss? The loss could be financial or material, or perhaps a health risk or even a risk to life. People fear loss and an article that shows how your product or service protects them from it in some way will get high readership.
Problem Solving
The point of content marketing is to build your business by providing valuable information to an audience made up of prospects for your products or services. You establish yourself as a knowledgeable expert, and when they need what you offer, your name comes to mind.
What is it you have done to help people solve their problems?
Think of your very best customer, as an example. How have your products or services helped this customer?
Your prospects are people like your best customer. Depending on the nature of your business, they may not be exactly like your other customers, but they are likely to have one thing in common — a problem that you solve for them.
People want their problems solved. Tell me a story about how you solved a problem for someone like me and I’ll be interested!
Audience Development
So, you’re getting the idea that you do have a story but wondering where you would publish articles about your business, right?
Here are some ways you can use content:
- A blog tied to your website is a good first step. Consistency is important with content management, so plan to post on a regular basis.
- You can use Facebook or other social media to drive traffic to your blog post. You might even use Facebook advertising to extend the reach and hopefully build traffic on both your page and your website.
- Getting others to share links to your blog post on their websites is another way to reach a larger audience.
- Your could combine blog post with other material to create an email newsletter.
The important thing is to focus on getting your articles in front of as many potential customers as possible on a regular basis.
Qual a linha que separa as funções do profissional de Marketing das empresas e as do planner de agências de comunicação?
