Your Magical Content Wand by Tara Hunt

“We need to be on Instagram!”says random non-social media using executive

stolen stockphoto of random

executive withwatermarkstill visible.

what are any of these properties without content?

no content content

A social platform without content is like a glass without wine.

(And yes, the glass enhances the body of the wine, so you should use the right glass.)(Not to mention, bad wine, like bad content, will leave the drinker with a bad aftertaste.)

“Content marketing is the only marketing that’s left.”Seth Godin, 2008

i’m quoting thisguy seeking your

validation, but you’ll understandwhy this is ironic

later on...

why content marketing?

• It focuses on the customer’s needs

• it creates and sustains long term bonds

• it encourages sharing and word of mouth

• it cuts through the noise

• it’s more fun for both you and your customers

• you can see the impact instantly

• people aren’t listening to/believing/giving a darn about advertising anymore

good content informs, listens & responds, tells a story, entertains and enhances your customers’ lives.

here are some examples (my favorite little company who uses content brilliantly + two of my own works of content art) ...

just a blender

great audience!

entertainBlendtec’s “Will it Blend?” iPad episode 15,666,175 viewshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAl28d6tbko

the ultimate goalselling high end blenders

starting from scratchwent from around 100 likes to 1,146 in 5 months. minimal ad

spend (80% earned)

inform

pinboards to inspireand share research

foursquare lists toguide users to

locations + leave tips blogging to provide deeperinformation + inspiration

in home design

the ultimate goaldrive traffic + signups to

their website

growing a personal/political brand

more than doubled likes, signed up 165,000 supporters, 11,000+ volunteers and raised $1.2M (in 4

months). No ad buy.

telling a story

the ultimate goalgetting out the vote

instagram hashtags encourage audience

participationsoapbox for great

policy ideas

flickr for on the road coverage of the tour

google+ hangouts for live/interactive broadcasting

the dryer, more formulaic part of this presentation...

PRODUCT(that thing you are selling + the facts: who, what, when, where,

how)

BRAND(how it will change your life/how you

identify with the product)

LIFESTYLE(associated common threads - ie.

holidays, current events, etc)

COMMUNITY(highlighting your customers, your

vendors, your employees)

types of content

the balance of these content types depends on your audiences preference

but if you are spending most of your time on this, you are using cheap tricks and it won’t

sustain...even Oreo will get old soon. ;)

magical content needs to be:• consistent (pick a schedule and stick to it as

close as possible)

• frequent (some platforms require more frequency than others - I’m not talking 5 posts/day...but don’t post every few months)

• balanced (how much are you selling and how much are you listening?)

• interesting (goes without saying)

• relevant (do you know your audience? do you know your own brand?)

• pro-active (understand the trends and needs of your audience before they happen)

• reactive (take feedback with a grain of salt. listen. improve)

• interactive (get in there and have conversations)

• quality (means more than a fancy camera and set...means you give your audience an experience)

• evolving (improving every single day)

• authentic (not manufactured authentic. authentic authentic)

• /have personality (don’t be a machine or a PR bot)

• positive (positivity always wins. defensiveness loses)

• right for the platform (don’t cross-post unless it’s applicable. PLEASE)

• awe inspiring (when you can, inspire and take it to the next level.)

• GOAL ACHIEVING (at the end of the day, doesn’t matter how awesome you do, if you aren’t achieving your goals, you need to rethink your strategy)

plan

postlisten

learntoo many people get hung up here + even more people start here scratching their heads.

truth is...you need to plan to fail. plan a few weeks out with some ideas from research...test them. be consistent. see what works

and what doesn’t.

and remember...it takes time. keep your eyes and ears open for opportunity and listen more than anything in the first few months.

here is a comparison of magic and not magic

case study: luxy hair vs. traditional beauty brands

888,355 subscribers126M+ video viewszero advertising $$

how did they grow this channel?

1. consistency - they committed to posting a video each week

2. relevancy - they started by watching trends - what their potential audience liked/wanted (oscar hair?), then as feedback came in, they answered requests

3. balanced - they do not make this about their extensions, but if you want those quadruple braids, it helps to use them! ;)

4. interactive - they acknowledge their audience (thanking individuals for suggestions)

5. quality - they take time to create great content. yes. it looks good. but it’s warm and genuine, too.

and the traditional beauty brands?a custom YouTube

template like this costs$50,000 in advertising(because it’s Canadian)

majority paid for

high viewslow subscribersmostly paid for

(average 90% paid)

a custom YouTube template like THIS costs$200,000+ in advertising

how did they f&*k it up?

1. (over) produced a bunch of adsvideos up front to throw up over a campaign period.

2. didn’t do much to listen. hired an outside firm to do ‘community management’ which consisted more of management than community.

3. threw a bunch of money at the adsvideos so they’d look like they were super popular

4. focused solely on product, themselves and their own needs (screw the customer, she is there to buy my product!)

5. thought quality meant high-paid fashion models and celebrities and HD cameras...didn’t think about what the ‘new’ quality means. don’t care, really.

lots of people ask me, “but, Tara, what brands do it well?” and instead of giving you the same list of 5 companies you’ve already heard of and are getting tired of hearing of, let me offer this additional metaphor...

https://www.etsy.com/listing/60007735/woodland-animal-pair-hedgehog-and-fox

are you a fox?are you a hedgehog?

HEDGEHOGS FOXES

Focus in on one thing Look at lots of different things

Like formulas Take a new approach to every situation

Mimic what others are doing (“best practices”)

Learn from others, but say, “It depends” a lot when asked what

is the best waySpecialized, stalwart, stubborn,

order-seeking, confident and ideological.

Multidisciplinary, adaptable, self-critical, tolerant of complexity,

cautious and empirical.

Seek out information to support beliefs.

May seem to people to be a little scattered...not ever *quite*

satisfied.

Old school traditional marketing way of thinking.

Emerging social era of marketing way of thinking.

best at content + social era marketing!

best at getting cushy, highly

paid corporate brand job!

severely misunderstood

and undervalued in corporate

america

which is why

very very few brands

‘get it’

show me a successful

corporate social campaign and I’ll show you a big, ass ad budget

behind it.

reasons why foxes leave

those jobs or drink heavily

here is a great example of those unemployable foxes that are doing it right...outside of corporate america...

In less two years:945,392 subscribers142M+ video views

$0 advertising...make a living on YouTube ad revenues

how do they do it?

1. work their friggin tails off - they were either ‘on’ and filming or editing the entire time I saw them.

2. filmed everything they did and made it interesting because they were interested in it

3. were ruthlessly critical of their own work - always improving, listening to feedback and growing

4. hardly planned anything - took advantage of the moment

5. pumped out content like a factory - but with a great deal of respect for their audience (asking them what they wanted)

“if you start using rules, you stop using your instincts.”

when asked about the secret sauce, Roman said something to the tune of:

(actually, it was more like, “that’s a dumb question. we just do stuff and some stuff works and some stuff doesn’t, but we learn from it and don’t follow any stupid formulas. Just our guts. Formulas are

for out of date marketers who have lost their common sense.” but my interpretation is snappier. ;)

how to hone your instincts + become foxier

• Put down the content calendar, the Seth Godin book and any blog post that lists best practices.

• Stop thinking of your audience as consumers. They aren’t sitting with index fingers hovering over the like button, eagerly awaiting your next witty post. It’s your job to earn their attention.

• Get outside of your industry and your comfort area. Talk to strangers. Read books about stuff that has nothing to do with your work or industry.

• Let go of fear. Don’t be afraid to fail. Embrace criticism. Lose control.

• When you fall on your face, celebrate it. You just learned something.

rinse and repeat until you are completely lost. then get drunk + write insane babble (don’t publish it online). read it sober. you may start to see an inkling...

and the magical content wand?

the truth is:

there is no magical content wand. there is only authenticity, hard work, trial and error, consistency, humility, empathy,

passion, desire and love. go ahead and pay for it if you want, but what you are buying isn’t real and comes at a higher cost than you think.

if you want real magic, put that money into making a better product and spend more time and effort on becoming a fox. hone your instinct. love your customers. don’t think of it as a content marketing strategy, think of it as the most delightful

thing in the world because you get to interact with the people who can help make your product better. this is the world’s best, most interesting, most accurate focus

group. and it’s free.

now that’s magical.

tara hunt (@missrogue)

author. speaker. entrepreneur. karaoke lover. pug owner. mom. digital & social strategist. boat rocker. fox with a hedgehog façade. dabbler. rambler.

tara@buyosphere.comwww.tarahunt.comtwitter.com/missrogue