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The Problem
As a young, bootstrapped company, our client needed to prove that they could attract people to purchase their novel software product, but didn’t have tons of money to spend on marketing. Without investors expecting immediate returns, they had the luxury of playing a long nurturing game, but needed a cost-effective way to regularly market to prospects and remind prospects of the product’s value.
The Approach
We developed a slow and steady content production and publishing process, that could support our client’s mission of being being seen as a category leader while not breaking their piggy bank.
Keyword Research
We spent time researching website search traffic, paid media trends, and competitor usage of particular keywords. With an understanding in place of how frequently people were searching for information, coupled with how aggressively competitors were trying to be known for those terms, we developed a key list of keywords that we wanted to always rank on one page with any website search.
Content Planning
With our strategy in place, it was time to plan the execution. We developed a content calendar filled with short-form blog content (~600 words), and sprinkled in long-form white papers and e-guides (~2,500 words). This created a content cadence that: 1) was manageable to execute against, 2) offered a variety of content at just the right cadence, and 3) aligned with our need to showcase how our client’s product could holistically help their customers.
Content Production With Primary & Secondary Research
Planning great content is one thing, writing it is another. By leveraging publicly available secondary-research, coupled with performing our own primary research, we developed content that always included great data and a definite point-of-view on what that data really meant. This ensured that all of our pieces were information-rich, offered something our readers couldn’t easily find elsewhere, and solidified our client’s position as leading the charge in their product category.
Content Amplification
We established a strict process for pre-programming and sharing any new content via email to the company’s growing contact database and via their social media channels. Additionally, we added social sharing features throughout the content itself. After all, it wasn’t enough to produce great content. We needed to increase the odds of people reading it and sharing it.
The Results
Effective Influencing Channel:
Content ended up being an extremely effective middle-of-the-funnel nurturing tactic, ultimately influencing 40% of all prospects that finally converted as paying customers.
Creating A Thought Leader:
Because our client was working in a relatively new category, being one of the first to create valuable, rich content helped them be seen as a go-to thought leader in the space. Not only did this build credibly with prospects but it also made them a sought-after resource for speaking engagements and journalists.
Did You Know...
If you create great content, you’ll need a way to make sure it gets found. This is what “Content Amplification” is all about. It can mean sending it out via email, social media, or sharing it with relevant influencers or other parties for them to help promote too. The more places you actually place your content, the higher the likelihood of getting people to see it and engage with it. With increased reach comes increased changes of getting to new leads into your business.
