Example: Step into the Spotlight! on LinkedInGroup rules in the Step into the Spotlight! LinkedIn Group set standards for how the community is run. They include no sales pitches and no self-promotion. Members expect relevant discussions that showcase the community’s expertise. Setting these expectations (and enforcing them) allows for the group to have a thriving community.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Write Social Media Guidelines That Help Employees and Protect Your BrandFoster friendlinessIf your group is valuable and fun, members will naturally want to further their relationships. Identify how to make those connections. We’ve hosted face-to-face meetups at Content Marketing World to bring our #CMWorld Twitter Chat community together, for example. When in-person events are possible again, look for ways to help your online community find each other IRL (in real life).A Content Marketing World tweetup (in Cleveland) featuring participants from three Twitter chats: #CMWorld, #ContentChat, and #TacoChat.Example: CMI LiveWhile in-person events aren’t possible, look for new ways to help your community feel like they know you (and you’re interested in helping them). CMI recently introduced a number of live shows that let our community ask the CMI team questions, get to know our #CMWorld Twitter Chat guests better, and learn from some of our creative contributors.Don’t forget the cookiesJust as good neighbors thank the person next door with their favorite cookies, brand communities can cook up some surprises too. CMI has been known to give a digital shout-out for birthdays, promotions, etc., and even a snail mail surprise or two to our community members.Even if you don’t have a cookie budget, you have the tools to build your brand in a neighborhood your audience members love in a way that will entice and engage them in a format that breeds respect and trust. And that’s the recipe for online community success.Consider this the invitation to join us in the CMI Slack community. And please join us during one of our live shows.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteMonina WagnerMonina WagnerMonina Wagner is the founder of Glass Slipper Social, a consultancy focused on helping brands connect with audiences through social media and community management. With a passion for bringing people together, Monina previously led community efforts for the Content Marketing Institute and brands like Nestle, Cleveland Clinic, and Sherwin Williams. Having an award-winning track record building and nurturing audiences, Monina is a proud finalist for the CMX Online Community Professional of the Year. In her free time, you can find Monina cheering in the stands at her daughter’s lacrosse games. She also sits on the Recovery Resources of Cleveland Associate Board. Follow her on Twitter @MoninaW.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsHow Top-Performing Enterprise Content Marketers Get the Work Done [New Research]by Stephanie Stahl| Published: February , | Trends and ResearchEditor’s note: Looking for the latest findings? Browse the Enterprise Content Marketing Research Study. Have you ever heard (or voiced) these content marketing laments? “If only we had more budget.” “If only we had more people.” “If only we had more time to prove this works.”Many content marketers believe these factors are the secrets to success. And, according to our latest study of enterprise marketers, there does seem to be a correlation.But remember, correlation isn’t causation.Let’s take a closer look at the insights from Enterprise Content Marketing: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends with Insights for (Enterprise refers to for-profit BB and BC companies with , or more employees.)Most successful enterprise content marketers are the most matureI’m not talking about mature as in the presence of a silver strand or two of hair. I don’t even mean the length of time the content marketing program has been around. Let’s look at the real meaning of “the most successful enterprise content marketers are the most mature.”The survey defines success as achieving your organization’s desired/targeted content marketing results. One-third report being extremely or very successful in the last months. We designate these respondents as top performers.Seventy-nine percent of this group consider their organization to be in the sophisticated or mature stages of content marketing (compared with % of all enterprise respondents).% of most successful #enterprise marketers are in sophisticated or mature stages of #ContentMarketing, says @EditorStahl via @CMIContent #Research.Share on XHere are the maturity descriptions used in the survey:First steps: Doing some aspects of content, but haven’t yet begun to make content marketing a processYoung: Experiencing growing pains but challenged with creating a cohesive strategy and a measurement planAdolescent: Having a business case, seeing early success, becoming more sophisticated with measurement and scalingMature: Experiencing success, yet challenged with integration across the organizationSophisticated: Providing accurate measurement to the business, scaling across the organizationKeep in mind: Maturity describes how advanced a program is – and that’s not necessarily tied to the program’s age.Maturity describes how advanced a program is – and that’s not necessarily tied to the program’s age, says @EditorStahl via @CMIContent. #ContentMarketing #ResearchShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Time-Saving Tips, Checklists, and Templates to Conquer Content Marketing Goals in Top performers centralize the content marketing functionWhen we compare those top-performing enterprise marketers against all enterprise respondents, we found notable differences in team size and organization.Content teams at top-performing organizations are more likely to be centralized. Forty-four percent of the top group “have a centralized content marketing group that works with multiple brands/products/departments throughout the organization.” Only % of all enterprise respondents did.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Get Your Content Governance in Order With This ThingTop performers have bigger (and growing) content marketing teamsForty-eight percent of top performers report having six or more full-time employees dedicated to content marketing vs. % of all respondents.And top performers are less likely than all respondents to rely on a small or one-person content marketing team to serve the entire organization (% vs. %). They’re also less likely to report no one dedicated full-time to content marketing (% vs. %).A chart that shows key areas where we observed a gap of at least percentage points between all enterprise respondents and the top performers among them.Click to enlargeForty-eight percent of top performers report the size of their content marketing team increased in the last months vs. % of all respondents. Only % said team size decreased vs. % of all respondents. Keep in mind, we conducted this survey in July , a few months into the pandemic.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Don’t Let Content Marketing Be a Dead-End Career [New Framework]Top performers have bigger content marketing budgetsThe top performers appear to have larger budgets for content marketing: % report budgets of more than $, at the beginning of Only % of the total pool report a budget of that size.More than half of enterprise marketers had $,+ #ContentMarketing budgets in , says @EditorStahl via @CMIContent #Research.Share on XWhen they took the survey in July, only % of top performers (and % of all enterprise respondents) anticipated spending less on content marketing in the second half of than they did in the first half.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Do Visual Content With Low, Medium, and High BudgetsThey changed quickly when the pandemic hitSixty-four percent of top performers strongly agreed their organization changed quickly due to the pandemic, compared with % of all respondents. The top performers also were more likely than all respondents to strongly agree that the changes they made were effective (% vs. %).HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Reinventing With Content: Brands Find New PathsTop performers focus on building loyal audiencesOn the whole, the adjustments top performers made when the pandemic hit weren’t all that different from those made by all enterprise marketers. However, more top performers revisited their customer/buyer personas (% vs. %).Image showing a chart: Enterprise marketers’ opinions about changes their organization made to content marketing in response to pandemic.Although that’s not a huge difference, it points to top performers’ efforts to understand their audiences’ changing needs. A few differences emerged between top performers and all respondents in other relationship-building areas not specific to pandemic response.Fifty-seven percent of top performers had established an online community – notably higher than the % of all respondents who had. (The survey defined an online community as a “space where your audience can engage with each other and your brand in the form of discussions, posts, surveys, etc.”)% of the most successful enterprise marketers have online communities, says @EditorStahl via @CMIContent #Research.Share on XSimilarly, more top performers report using content marketing successfully in the last months to build loyalty with existing clients/customers (% vs. % of all respondents).An image showing a chart of goals enterprise marketers have achieved by using content marketing successfully in the last months.Click to enlargeHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Your Audience Is Not the Same as Your Marketing DatabaseWhat do the findings mean for content marketing success?You could point to this study as a way to reinforce your “if only …” content marketing thinking. But here’s the hard truth. That would be a mistake.Yes, top performers reported higher budgets and larger teams than the overall set of enterprise marketers. But remember, top performers also tend to have more mature content programs. That means they’re experiencing success, measuring results, and scaling their efforts.When you can track results and show success (even with a small, relatively inexpensive trial program), it’s easier to make the case for securing additional budget to experiment with new ideas.Instead of pointing to your budget or your team size as limiting factors, look at what you’re doing with that budget and team:Are you building your content marketing strategy around goals that matter to the business?Are you building it based on personas that tell you what your audience cares about and what they need or want from you?Can you measure your progress toward those goals?Are you telling the story of your content marketing goals and progress to the rest of the business?Focus on these factors, and you may find it’s not the size of the content marketing program that matters; it’s what you do with what you have.Enterprise Content Marketing – Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends from Content Marketing InstituteHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Content Experts Share What Matters Most in Get all the results from Enterprise Content Marketing: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends with Insights for Click here to download.And sign up for CMI’s free weekday newsletter to be among the first to see our newly released research throughout the year (along with tips, trends, and other help to create more successful content marketing programs.) Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteStephanie StahlStephanie StahlAs managing director of Informa Connect’s martech group, I lead our marketing, insights, and innovation portfolios, which includes the Content Marketing Institute. Previously, I served as VP of content marketing for the technology portfolio at UBM (acquired by Informa in ), providing strategic guidance on content development, content optimization, audience engagement, and go-to-market platforms for technology clients. With more than three decades of media and event experience, I love helping shape new multimedia content and event experiences. I live in the Washington, DC, area with my husband, and we enjoy taking care of our many pets and visiting our two daughters. Connect with me on LinkedIn.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEvents Email Newsletter Ideas for More Opens, Clicks, and Sharesby Ann Gynn| Published: February , | Distribution and PromotionYour email newsletter database is valuable. After all, these people signed up to receive your content. They must be eager to consume it, right?And yet, the average email open rate in was %. That means less than one of every five subscribers you’ve earned looks at the content you send.Some daily e-newsletter brands have found better success. Morning Brew, theSkimm, and The Hustle have risen to the top of the newsletter game with open rates approaching % and subscriber totals that make the rest of us green with envy. The Hustle built something so good that marketing software company HubSpot recently bought it in a deal valued at $ million.What does it take to get people who’ve already expressed an interest in your brand’s content to open and (hopefully) read it? Here are some lessons content marketers can learn from these email newsletter successes.What does it take to get subscribers to actually open your #email newsletter? @AnnGynn offers bright ideas from the @MorningBrew, @theSkimm, and @TheHustle via @CMIContent.Share on X Don’t require a clickMorning Brew, theSkimm, and The Hustle newsletters are self-contained. Readers can consume and understand the topic without ever having to click to go to the brand’s website to learn more.That may seem counterintuitive to marketers. Yet, if your content’s goal is to build a valuable relationship with your audience, it makes sense: Don’t make your audience work harder for your content than they have to.Each newsletter also gets to the point quickly. For example, theSkimm boils its few-hundred-word feature story into a simple paragraph that appears at the end of the main article. Here’s one for the effect of the pandemic on women and mothers:The pandemic has exacerbated flaws in the US system that’s let down women and mothers. And it’s continued to highlight racial inequities. Now, some lawmakers are taking initiative to address the problems lingering for decades.By thoughtfully designing your e-newsletter with the audience in mind, you can better address varied reading habits. Create subheads and snippets for at-a-glance readers, and offer longer pieces and additional resources for in-depth readers. Keep in mind: Readers don’t exhibit the same behaviors every day. Someone may be short on time one day but have more time to read on another day. Or a topic may pique the interest of one reader but leave another less intrigued.Create subheads and snippets for at-a-glance readers, and offer longer pieces and additional resources for in-depth readers, says @AnnGynn via @CMIContent. #EmailMarketing #NewslettersShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How the Best Newsletters Get – and Keep – Readers’ Attention Craft custom subject lines – and be consistentEven though they signed up to receive your content, few people will work to find it in a crowded inbox. Make it easier for them to spot your e-newsletter – put your brand voice and visual identity in the subject lines. A consistent look will draw the eye more than random words.Both The Hustle and Morning Brew use emojis in their subject line. The Hustle chooses an emoji relevant to the content of the day.An image showing email subject lines with emojis from The Hustle. Each subject line has a different, relevant emoji that corresponds to the copy: a green apple, eye, hour glass, blue car, and green heart.Morning Brew uses the same emoji – a coffee mug – in all its daily newsletters. The image smartly aligns with its brand.An image showing email subject lines from Morning Brew. Each subject line starts with a coffee cup emoji.Although it forgoes emojis in its subject line, theSkimm stays consistent by putting “Daily Skimm:” at the start of each subject line.Consistent brand subject lines pay off for each of these newsletters. I’m partial to the Morning Brew’s consistent emoji for several reasons. It echoes the brand name, and it takes up little space, which allows more of the news in the subject line. I’m not a big fan of using “Skimm” twice in its emails – the sender and the subject line seem like overkill when space is at a premium.Visual consistency helps your #EmailNewsletter stand out in crowded inboxes. @MorningBrew’s coffee emoji cleverly echoes the brand name, says @AnnGynn via @CMIContent.Share on X Give credit to your voicesPutting names to the people behind your content lets your audience see your brand as made up of living, breathing people – not a faceless corporation only concerned about sales.All three newsletters incorporate that human side by crediting the people behind the newsletter – incorporating them at the end just like the credits used for movies. The Hustle includes a link to each writer’s social media profile and uses nicknames as appropriate.Here’s how a recent credit line looked:Yes, bylines give credit to your writers. But using only bylines omits the other valuable parties in the publishing process (editors, proofreaders, designers, artists, etc.) Let readers have some funEven if your content focus is informational or educational, you can still offer subscribers the chance for some fun. Morning Brew includes a games section featuring the Brew Crossword.An image showing a crossword puzzle example included in an email from the Morning Brew.Not all newsletters need a crossword puzzle, but most can benefit from a light touch at some point in the content. Think about including a joke, a meme, a video, or even a quote – as long as it’s relevant to your core topic and is in line with your brand voice.Think about including a relevant joke, meme, video, or even a quote in your #EmailNewsletter, says @AnnGynn via @CMIContent.Share on X Ask what your readers thinkOpen and click-through rates are helpful data. But that data identifies the action readers took – not whether they liked the content. Nor does the data indicate the reader’s overall thoughts on the newsletter.In every newsletter, The Hustle asks readers to let them know what they think – without having to fill out a form or send an email. They offer three simple visual options that require only a click. (The click goes to a thank-you page with an optional space to explain the vote.)An image showing how The Hustle asks for feedback in every newsletter. The image says How did you like today’s email? Readers can click on hate it, mehhh, or love it.Feedback from readers can be challenging, and it tends to come from one type of reader – those who don’t like something. You might also get a sliver of response from your biggest fans. By making feedback as easy as The Hustle does, you could get more responses from the group in the middle. Results from a survey like this can be viewed daily to assess a topic and quarterly to see what works better and what doesn’t work well overall.Make #EmailNewsletter feedback easy – as @TheHustle does – and you’ll hear from more than just your haters, says @AnnGynn via @CMIContent.Share on X Turn your email audience into influencersMost newsletters ask readers who liked what they read to share or invite others to read or subscribe. And most brands treat that invitation only slightly better than the microscopic text to unsubscribe.The Hustle, Morning Brew, and theSkimm all take better advantage of their interested readers. Each runs sharing programs that reward readers who invite others to receive their emails.theSkimm tracks referrals so readers can see how far away they are from receiving Skimm’bassador status, which requires referrals. (As the name says, Skimm’bassadors are brand ambassadors who are invited to an online community and private events as well as to receive exclusive content.) This is the landing page from theSkimm for its “share” community:Asking readers to forward the email is an OK step. A share incentive program makes it easy to keep track of who shares your newsletter (and with whom). Make it simple with prepopulated fields (like theSkimm does). You’ll find readers will be more likely to share and do it more effectively.Reflect before you hit sendYou invest time and resources to create e-newsletters. No matter your ultimate goal, you first have to get recipients to open them. By considering these six lessons from some of the best in the business, you can make smart adjustments to help your email open rates rise and your subscriber base grow.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Goals, Tips, Examples, and Lessons for E-Newsletter PerfectionAdd the Content Marketing Institute newsletter to your weekday inbox. It arrives with the day’s feature article talking how-to, tips, and trends. Sign up here.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteAnn GynnAnn GynnAnn Gynn lives up to her high school nickname (Editor Ann) as an editorial consultant for the Content Marketing Institute. As the founder of G Force Communication, Ann regularly combines words and strategy for BB, BC, and nonprofits. Former college adjunct faculty, Ann also helps train professionals in content so they can do it themselves. Follow Ann on Twitter @anngynn or connect on LinkedIn.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsHow to Create High-Converting Contentby Shane Barker| Published: February , | Content CreationAs a content marketer, your job is to use content to sell something – a product, service, or message. Maybe you already drive sufficient conversions. But do you really want to settle for sufficient?You can do better and improve your content marketing to double or even triple your conversion rates. Today, let’s focus on how to do that with the most important aspect of content marketing – your content. Here are five ways to create engaging content to boost your conversions.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: + Content Tools, Tips, and Examples to Make Your Writing Better Write a killer headlineYour headline is the first thing readers notice about your blog post or landing page content. Whether or not the headline captivates them likely determines if they continue reading the content or bounce from the page.Although different variations of headlines work, there are some common elements in successful headlines.Recently, Auriane Alix shared some of the commonalities she found when analyzing Medium headlines. They are similar to some of the findings by HubSpot and Outbrain, which studied , article headlines in Among the high-performance qualities:Headlines with seven wordsNumbers in the headlineFirst word features what, why, how, or how (setting expectations) orFirst word features the or this (indicating specificity)Write a killer-conversion headline using a number in seven words, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #WritingTipsShare on XYou can use these common characteristics of successful headlines as the foundation for writing killer headlines that convert. Clearly explain what the content is about in a few words, and if it needs a little bit more detail, include a short explainer after a colon or hyphen. And, when creating a list post, use a number.In addition to these basics, pick words and phrases that are more likely to convert. According to WiderFunnel, words like “you,” “because,” “free,” “new,” and “instantly” help drive conversions. You can find more high-converting words in a list of -plus power words compiled by OptinMonster.According to @WiderFunnel, drive conversions with words like you, because, free, new, and instantly, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #toolsShare on XHeadline analyzer tools like the ones from CoSchedule or Advanced Marketing Institute are helpful to test your headline drafts so you can pick one that is likely to perform the best.Headline analyzer tools like the ones from @CoSchedule or @AMImarketing are helpful to test your #headline drafts so you can pick the best one, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #toolsShare on XExample: The headline for this post – How to Create High-Converting Content – received an emotional marketing value (EMV) score of % from the Advanced Marketing Institute tool. That score is about double the average EMV score for most professional copywriters’ headlines.An image showing the title How to Create High-Converting Content and its emotional marketing value score of percent from the Advanced Marketing Institute tool.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT:The Easy A-to-Z Guide to Writing Great Headlines Words That Convert: Test, Learn, Repeat Intrigue readers with your introYour headline should attract readers. Your intro should intrigue them enough to make them stay. It should make them want to read more. In other words, your headline is the bait, and your intro is the hook.Your headline is the bait. Your intro is the hook, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #WritingTipsShare on XAnd wouldn’t it be great if your intro were a hook for search engines as well?That’s possible when you use tools like TextOptimizer that match your content to the user intent of potential searchers. They offer content-improvement suggestions so your content satisfies the needs of people who land on it from Google search results. When they get what they are looking for, they stay on your page longer and engage with it better.Use a tool such as @textoptimizer to match your #content to the user intent of potential searchers, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #SEOShare on XFor blog posts, the first three to four sentences are the intro. They should be to the point and clearly explain how readers can benefit from the post. Otherwise, why will they keep reading?In the case of landing pages, the subhead acts as the intro and is equally important for intriguing and converting your audience. The subhead should highlight the main benefits, preferably with bullet points so the information is easier to scan and process.Example: You can find an excellent example of an effective intro on the consulting page of Content Marketing Institute. As you can see in the screenshot below, the first sentence talks about CMI’s consulting mission and focus. The second statement leads into the benefit for the audience.An image showing the intro of the Content Marketing Institute’s consulting page.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Real-Life Ledes: Why They Work (and What Could Be Better) Don’t forget to add visualsAdding visual elements to your text can make a huge difference in performance. It attracts and engages your readers while adding more substance. It also is an excellent way to break up longer pieces of text, making the content easier to scan and understand.Add visual elements to your text to make a big difference in conversion performance, says @shane_baker via @CMIContent. #blogging #visualcontentShare on XA BuzzSumo study of over million articles found articles with images every to words earned double the shares of articles with fewer images. Though the study was done in , the popularity of visuals with audiences has only grown.What makes the best kinds of visuals largely depends on the type of content you’re creating. These five types can help you increase conversions:Original graphicsTaking time to come up with something valuable and original shows readers your content is unique. Even if you don’t have an in-house designer to help you with this, you can always use tools like Canva to help you create them.Original graphics can work well as featured images for your blog posts. It’s best to try to come up with something fun and eye-catching yet still relevant to the topic being covered in the post.Example: Here’s an original graphic created for one of my blog posts. As you can see, the image instantly catches your eye and relates to the topic.An image showing an original illustration of a cell phone with a woman influencer amplifying a message. Charts and graphsIf you quote studies or stats to support your points, include charts and graphs to illustrate them. Charts or graphs alongside the text make it easier for readers to process the information.ScreenshotsIf you explain how something works, screenshots can enrich your content. They can explain visually in ways words cannot adequately express. For example, use them to illustrate how-to tips for a tool or the implementation of a strategy. You also can use screenshots as proof of claims made in the text.You can highlight, annotate, or edit your screenshots to explain a point better. To keep picture quality intact while editing it, you can use free photo editors like Instasize that are optimized for your target platforms.To keep picture quality intact while editing your screenshot, use a free photo-editing tool such as @Instasize, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #toolsShare on XExample: In a blog post about product launch ideas, I included a screenshot of the Instagram post for a Samsung Galaxy launch to show exactly how the brand used social media teasers and a countdown to market its product launch.An image of an Instagram post from Samsung. The image shows a simple black box with a bluish glow, a caption telling people to get ready for the next Galaxy, and launch date.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Make Your Blog More Attractive With These VisualsInfographicsComplex data and complicated concepts can be difficult to understand with words alone. In these instances, infographics can be helpful in explaining or illustrating the information. A Venngage study in found % of marketers found the format to be the most engaging form of content.% of marketers found #infographics to be the most engaging form of #content according to a @Venngage study, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent.Share on XTools like Piktochart and Infogram are great for creating eye-catching infographics, even for beginners. You can also use infographics to repurpose your old text. Look for some of your best-performing blog posts, then turn them into a shorter piece highlighting the main points. After that, use the shortened piece to create an infographic.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Ideas to Spark Great InfographicsVideosImages or text alone may be insufficient for explaining how a product works or how people can benefit from it. You could include a short explainer video on your landing page to help boost conversions. Or include video testimonials or reviews from customers and/or influencers.If you don’t have the time, skills, or resources to create proprietary video content, use stock footage websites. They offer videos that can be used unlimited times for a one-time fee. At nominal prices, you can access their large repositories of intro videos, Instagram Stories, animated logos, and YouTube templates.Include a short explainer #video on your landing page to help boost conversions, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent.Share on XExample: Conversion Rate Experts used video to help boost Crazy Egg’s conversion rate on its home page. Though the video message was the same as the text on the page, it worked for people who prefer visually delivered information and helped drive % more conversions.An image showing a video message on Crazy Egg’s home page.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Create Visual Content That’s Worth a Thousand Shares Use an easy-to-read formatAnother factor that influences your content’s ability to convert is the format. Writing about useful tips and information in huge chunks of text doesn’t make it easy for people to read and process. That delivery method can hurt your conversion rate because people don’t want to have to work hard to glean the details.To make your content more reader friendly:Break up blocks of text into shorter paragraphs. Don’t create paragraphs of more than five or six lines.Use bullet points wherever applicable to highlight key points.Add other elements like visuals to illustrate your points and break up text blocks.Include subheads whenever appropriate to make your content easier to read.Example: You can see reader-friendly formatting in many CMI articles – short, easy-to-scan paragraphs, subheads, and screenshots. What’s really noteworthy is the use of the Better Click to Tweet plug-in to highlight key points (and make it easier for readers to share the point on Twitter.) You can see it in this post from Jodi Harris.A screenshot of a click to tweet shown in a blog post.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT:How to Optimize Your How-to and List PostsMust-Have Checklist to Creating Valuable Content Create a compelling CTAYour call to action should convince people to take a desired action. Maybe your CTA is at the end of a blog post, urging people to subscribe to your newsletter or download your latest e-book. Or maybe it’s a CTA on your landing page for a product or service. Even your video content needs a CTA to drive conversions.Even your #video content needs a call to action to drive conversions, says @shane_barker via @CMIContent. #WritingTipsShare on XWherever it is used, make sure the CTA is compelling:Explain clearly what you want people to do. Make it actionable by beginning the sentence with a verb. For example, “Get your free guide now” or “Start saving today.”Get to the point. If the CTA is at the end of a blog post, you can write a detailed sentence. For a landing page, limit it to five to six words.Focus on what they’re going to get or how they’ll benefit from the action.Create urgency with words like “now,” “instant,” or “today.”Create exclusivity using words like “custom” or “exclusive.”Highlight benefits with words like “free” or “save.”Pick a couple of the tips to craft each CTA. Then run an A/B test to see which drives more conversions.Example: The OptinMonster landing page showcases an excellent example of a compelling CTA. “Get OptinMonster Now” is short and to the point. It explains what people will get and uses the word “now” to create a sense of urgency.An image showing an excellent example of a compelling CTA. Get OptinMonster Now is short and to the point.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Can’t Get That Click? Simple Strategies for CTAs That Convert [Examples]Don’t settle for satisfactoryYou may be a novice content marketer or an expert just looking to expand your knowledge. Either way, these easy and effective tips can help you improve your content to boost conversions.Are there any additional tactics not covered above that have worked well for you? Please share them in the comments.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Tools to Optimize Your Old Content for New ConversionsAll referenced tools come from the author. If you have a tool to suggest (your brand’s or another’s), please add it in the comments. How’s this for a compelling CTA? Get free content marketing advice every weekday. Subscribe today to receive the CMI newsletter.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteShane BarkerShane BarkerShane Barker is a digital marketing consultant who specializContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationContent Marketing UniversityConsulting and TrainingContent Marketing CertificationEvents Content Marketing Examples That Say: Enough About Me, Let’s Talk About Youby Content Marketing Institute Team| Published: February , | Trends and ResearchOK, the Super Bowl took place a couple of weeks ago. Sorry, Tom Brady haters, it’s over. But conversations about the ads brands invested in (or chose not to invest in) continue. One lesson brands seem to have learned – it’s not all about them. Here are three examples we noted this week.Go #ANutAboveInstead of a Super Bowl ad, Planters launched a year-long content and cause marketing initiative to give away the $ million it would have spent. The idea is to recognize people (and organizations) who commit “little acts of extraordinary substance help make the world a better place,” as the video explains.Sanjiv Gajiwala, U.S. chief growth officer at Planters parent company Kraft Heinz, told CNBC the campaign represents a new direction for the company’s marketing. “Instead of the brand talking about itself, he said the company wants to have more frequent, everyday connections,” the article notes.The article quotes him as saying, “For us, that means reorienting our marketing teams to focus on agility, to think about how we can generate more meaningful content that gets connected to our consumers in more creative ways. And most importantly, around moments that matter to the consumer.”One recent beneficiary of the initiative is Troop , which includes girls from New York shelters: Planters bought , boxes of Girl Scout cookies to support the troop’s annual fundraiser.WHY IT MATTERS: When your brand is doing something good, don’t just announce it in a post or two. Use the opportunity to create an ongoing conversation. Though it remains to be seen how many people and organizations Planters recognizes, the intent is to continue the #ANutAbove program throughout the year. It offers a lot of good fodder for content – the requests for nominations, the awards to deserving people, how the recipients use the money, and updates on what’s happening with the recipients throughout this year and beyond. Check out the chatter and examples on the campaign hashtag already..@MrPeanut returns to life with a focus on moments that matter and the $ million #ANutAbove campaign to reward little acts of extraordinary substance via @AnnGynn @CMIContent. #ContentMarketing #WeeklyWrapShare on XHOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: CMI’s Ann Gynn likes Girl Scout cookies and was dismayed not to know any Girl Scouts selling them this year. So Mr. Peanut’s tweet caught her attention.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to be Purposeful With Your Purpose-Driven Content [Examples]Forgo uninteresting self-promotionSinger-songwriter Ben Cooper crafts an unusual monthly newsletter. Though music is his main gig (he’s best known under the moniker Radical Face), he considers himself a maker – using music, visuals, and writing.To marry those things, he created Hidden Hollow, which debuted last summer. As he explains on the site: “A life of constantly self-promoting is not a very interesting one. I love passing along all the interesting art that I find. Recommending books, films, TV shows, photographers, painters, illustrators, concepts, food, articles – anything that provokes emotion and thought – is so much fun.”An image of the Radical Face monthly newsletter titled Hidden Hollow Volume WHY IT MATTERS: Ben gets what a lot of brands don’t – the focus of your content marketing isn’t self-promotion. And it’s always worth a reminder for all of us. Ask: “Are we using our content marketing to build and grow our audience relationships?” Yes, the point of content marketing is to ultimately drive profitable customer action. But you’ve got to build the audience first.You might not know exactly what form that profitable action will take in the beginning. But, as Ben wrote in a Radical Face blog post introducing the newsletter, that’s ok:“I honestly have no idea what any of this will do, but I’ve decided I’m perfectly fine with that. Just compiling this first issue of the mailer has been a blast, and I already have content for the following three. So even if this largely only interests me, I’m getting a lot of joy out of sharing all these things, and writing out all my feelings about them. And I have always believed in the phrase ‘Follow your excitement.’ It tends to lead you to the most interesting places.”HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: CMI’s Cathy McPhillips shared it: “This is a musician that I absolutely love. He puts so much into these emails.”Ben Cooper of @RadicalFace gets what a lot of brands don’t – #ContentMarketing isn’t about constant self-promotion, as his Hidden Hollow newsletter shows, via @cmcphillips @CMIContent. #WeeklyWrapShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Easy Ways to Super Boost Your Newsletter Open RateAnd the winner is …We couldn’t conclude our Super Bowl conversations without letting our CMI audience know which commercial was voted best in the CMI Slack channel. The community voted on commercials. Two of the top choices went head-to-head on subsequent days.The final choice was between Amazon’s Alexa Body and Toyota’s Jessica Long Story. And the winner is:WHY IT MATTERS: The ad isn’t about Toyota at all (fitting for this week’s theme). Instead, it tells the story of the Paralympic athlete Jessica Long’s “unsinkable spirit.” But there’s also a lesson in the ad game that played out on CMI’s Slack channel and in mainstream media that write about advertising (USA Today Super Bowl ad meter, for example). Conversations around shared moments connect on many levels. Engage with your community in real-time to get their thoughts. (The CMI Slack conversation was live during the Super Bowl.) Include games, contests, and polls to get even more out of the conversation. Apply the lessons from these Super Bowl events to other big events. (Hint: The super-popular NCAA basketball tournament gets underway – hopefully – next month.)HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: Well, it’s the CMI Slack channel so …Which #SuperBowl ad won the respect of the #ContentMarketing community – and what can you learn from it? Find out in this week’s #WeeklyWrap via @CMIContentShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: If You Give a Community a Cookie … How to Create a Great Digital NeighborhoodIntrigued, puzzled, or surprised by an example, news, or something else in content marketing? Share it with us by completing this form. Your submission may be featured in an upcoming Weekly Wrap.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteContent Marketing Institute TeamContent Marketing Institute TeamThe Content Marketing Institute team byline indicates this article reflects the collective work of the CMI team. CMI is a global marketing education and training organization dedicated to advancing the practice of content marketing. We create and curate content experiences that teach marketers and creators from enterprise brands, small businesses, and agencies how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multichannel storytelling. Global brands turn to CMI for strategic consultation, research, and training and certification, and send teams to Content Marketing World, the largest content marketing-focused event, the Marketing Analytics & Data Science (MADS) conference, and CMI digital events every year. Follow @CMIContent on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and use the hashtag #CMWorld.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsGo Beyond Ego Bait and Create Roundups That Resonateby Aaron Agius| Published: February , | Content CreationThe least favorite blogging format is also the most successful – roundup posts.Yes, roundups still rank the most effective blog format, according to Orbit Media’s seventh annual Blogging Survey published in fall Roundups are the least favorite blog format but one of the most successful, according to @Orbiteers #blogging survey via @CMIContent.Share on XWith that in mind, let’s explore a few ways to do roundup articles better – that don’t just include quote after quote in hopes the experts will share and expand your audience – and still deliver the results your business demands.Tell a good storyDon’t publish a collection of straightforward advice, turn it into a story.Think like a journalist rather than a marketer. Write a story that truly matters to your audience and provides them with powerful insights.It starts with choosing a topic that resonates with readers.Focus on their most prevalent or important questions. What problems do they have to solve? What challenges do they face in their industry, their workplace? The answers lead to topics that have genuine value to your audience.Now, look for a tie-in to current events. If something newsworthy is happening in your industry, use that as a starting point. (Studies and surveys can be good fodder for this.)Choose a roundup topic that resonates with readers and ties to current events, advises @iamaaronagius via @CMIContent. #bloggingShare on XForbes contributor Ethan Carp used these tactics to craft a compelling roundup story on what’s ahead in for manufacturing. He doesn’t rely strictly on expert quotes to tell the story, using the results of two surveys to expand the narrative. By tying together timeliness and research, the piece goes from a collection of generic advice to a newsworthy roundup.TIP: If you don’t have any industry events to feature, media or news trends can be a great substitute.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Get Ranked and Read With a Topic Cluster ModelChoose the right experts Roundups are often referred to as “ego-bait” content because they often are designed solely to appeal to the egos of the quoted experts (who, flattered by the positioning as a “leading” expert, will share the content with their audiences). But roundups don’t need to be simply used as ego bait. Roundups are a great way of networking with others in your field while providing actionable insights to your audience.Go beyond strictly “ego-bait” roundups to create thoughtful conversations appreciated by the experts AND the readers, says @iamaaronagius via @CMIContent. #bloggingShare on XHere too, a journalistic approach is important since you need to ensure that you feature those experts who have something relevant and insightful to say about the topic. A mix of industry influencers and subject matter experts is an ideal way to share unique perspectives on the topic at hand.TIP: If an expert’s response isn’t unique or relevant, don’t include it. Think about your reader, not the expert’s ego.Expand your roundup expert list to include professionals from other fields who can provide additional context or unique perspectives. For example, media analysts, sociologists, or psychologists could offer keen insights into trends. Incorporating those sources can evolve your roundup into a truly unique story that really connects with readers.Quote experts in your roundups who work outside your industry to offer keen insights, says @iamaaronagius via @CMIContent. #bloggingShare on XA great example of this roundup type is the Fast Company piece, Common Beliefs About Productivity That Are Total Lies. Its expert sources range from a business coach to a management consultant to a software company CEO. Those multiple views offer a well-rounded view of the topic.In this roundup structure, the ego bait now resonates better with your audience and the extended audiences accessed by the quoted experts sharing it. On a side note, these more relevant roundups also are more likely to receive backlinks and garner thought leadership attention (i.e., media mentions, interviews, and speaking engagements).HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: A Proven Process to Curate Content and Publish a Roundup of Industry InfluencersDo a deep dive on dataA data-driven approach also can take your roundup to the next level. You can use it to shed light on the more nuanced aspects of a topic and ask the experts to address specific points in the research.For example, the basis of this Big Commerce blog article is its Omni-Channel Retail Consumer Shopping Report. It rounded up experts to share their insight on specific results, publishing their comment below each relevant graphic:An image showing a chart with results from the following question: What is the primary reason you buy from a brand’s website? Erik Christiansen, CEO and co-founder shares his insights on the findings below the graphic.While data can be a powerful way to craft a more interesting story, it also lets you build trust with your audience. By combining data and opinion, you can guide them from awareness to action.#Data is a powerful way to craft a more interesting story. It also lets you build trust with your audience, says @iamaaronagius via @CMIContent. #bloggingShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: No Need to Survey, You Already Have Data for Great Storytelling [Examples]Don’t be afraid to be disruptiveThe most effective roundups often possess a unique angle or perspective. Tackle tough subjects or craft typical topics with a fresh context. Say things others aren’t. Don’t avoid controversy if you have an authentic way to do it. A distinctive position creates a more meaningful conversation among your experts and attracts a wider and/or more interested audience.CMI’s Content Planning Guide is a good example. The marketers quoted in the roundup don’t pull punches when it comes to discussing the challenges marketers face in a landscape significantly changed by the events of Play a better roundup gameDone right, a tried-and-true format like roundups can have a notable impact on your business. Going beyond the strictly “ego-bait” purpose can help you create thoughtful conversations that will be appreciated by the experts AND the readers. Taking time to tell authentic stories backed by data featuring a range of experts builds trust with the audience and develops a long-term value for the brand.Connect and learn from content marketing influencers this fall at Content Marketing World. Register today for the best rates. Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteAaron AgiusContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationContent Marketing UniversityConsulting and TrainingContent Marketing CertificationEventsWhat Is Media Planning – and Why Should Content Marketers Care? [Video Show]by Robert Rose| Published: February , | Distribution and PromotionWhen you invest in content, you want the most people to see it. So you launch it where it has the best chance to be seen by the highest number of the right people in the shortest time.Unfortunately, that means your content fights with everyone else’s for attention.Does it make more sense to publish your content in a quiet space or try to stand out in a noisy one?The art of deciding where to place content for the biggest impact is called media planning. And it’s at the heart of every great marketing strategy.Media planning is at the heart of every great #marketing strategy, says @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent. #MarketingMakersShare on XYou might be wondering why I’m explaining media planning to content marketers. Isn’t that someone else’s job? There are entire roles and agencies dedicated to media planning. But if you don’t understand media planning concepts, you’ll have a hard time convincing those media planners to consider your owned media channels – the content marketing you pour hours and dollars into – in their media plans. And they absolutely should.Traditional media planning continues to shift to encompass modern, multichannel social media and content marketing. Now that so many content marketers run their own media channels, media planning must shift to consider owned content strategies along with paid media options.In episode two of Marketing Makers – the video series for those who make marketing work – I delve deep into everything you need to know about how media planning works, so you can talk with media planners about your content marketing and social media strategy in terms they understand.I’ll share the critical insights about how marketers need to rebalance their message distribution across paid, earned, owned, and shared channels in this post. I also encourage you to watch the video to learn more about:How the concept of media planning led to the creation of modern advertising agenciesWhy agencies used to give away content creation services for free (and why they no longer do)How media planning is changing in real-time in an interview with Marcus Collins, a marketing professor at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan.What is media planning?Media planning is the process of making decisions about where, when, and how often to deliver a message to an audience. The idea is to reach the highest number of the right audience with the right message only as often as you need to get the desired effect (brand awareness, leads, sales, or other business goal).For most of marketing history, media planning involved paid placements on media channels (print, radio, and television).But in the mid-s, media planning got a lot more complicated.Back when print, radio, and television were the main places to put content, media planners faced relatively few choices. Sure, they had options for targeting their desired audiences (which shows, at what time, and so on), but it was reaching a mass audience scale.But as hundreds of cable TV channels with smaller niche audiences sprang up, media planning began to change. Then came websites, email, search engine result pages, mobile apps, and social media. Decisions about media placement became exponentially more complex.And, because the requirements and characteristics of each media channel were so different, the number and types of creative pieces needed exploded, too.The more media planning changes, the more it stays the sameStill, the core concept of traditional media planning hasn’t changed.Even in , great media planning is about understanding which media channels gives you the best opportunity to:Deliver the right messageTo the right personAt the right timeSo enough people take the desired actionAt a cost that fits the available budget and goals.Great media planning delivers right message to right person at right time so enough people take the desired action for an allocated budget, says @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent. #MarketingMakersShare on XIt’s still about balancing the choice of getting attention in the middle of nowhere and trying to stand out in a congested media channel.To get the balance right requires understanding how the foundation of traditional media planning has shifted to modern media planning, social media marketing, and the use of owned media as part of the strategy.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Match Your Content to the Best Distribution ChannelMedia planning definitionsMedia planning hasn’t changed drastically. It’s still the process where – through experience, research, and (in many cases) gut instinct – marketers determine where, when, and how often content should be placed on chosen media channels in order to provide sufficient value for the business.You’re probably familiar with the concept of media planning and much of the vocabulary that goes along with it. But this show exists, in part, to answer all the questions content people might have about marketing that they haven’t felt comfortable asking. I’m offering these definitions for anyone who needs an introduction or a refresher course.To reach your target audience, you might buy access to them (as with advertising). You might try to earn their attention (as with public relations and organic social media). Or you might try to attract them to your own media properties (content hub, website, digital publication, and so on).To figure out which of these you should do and how much effort they require, you need to understand these marketing terms:Flight dates refer to the start and end dates for your live content. You assess the content’s effectiveness after the time. For example, you might define a flight as one month.Impressions describe the number of views of your content. Don’t equate impressions with unique viewers. If the same person views the ad or piece of content times, that counts as impressions.Cost per thousand (CPM) describes the cost of those impressions. For example, if a media platform promises , impressions for $,, that’s a CPM of $ (, x $ per thousand = ,).Net reach refers to the total number of people who could see your content. Net reach helps you understand how many times your content could be seen by the same person.Impressions are not the same as unique viewers. One person who views #content times = impressions, notes @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent. #MarketingMakersShare on XLet’s say you’re guaranteed , impressions with a net reach of % in a one-month flight. That means the media platform promises at least , of those , impressions will be unique people (who would each hypothetically see your content times).An ad repeated across a website or on TV is different from an article, show, or other type of content that once read or watched likely would not be viewed again by the same person. So, while a higher net reach is always a good thing, not all repeat impressions are equally valuable.Click-through rate in digital media is the average percentage of people who click to whatever you call them to do. (Conversion rates involve another step. Viewers click the link, then fill out a form or take some action when they arrive at the page.) This is sometimes called a conversion rate if they are going to fill out a form or in some way have to do things beyond just clicking. With social media, likes, shares, and follows might be measured separately but they also may be considered other types of “conversions.” Media plan is the combination of all the media channels you use in a time period to achieve strategic success. It’s sometimes called an integrated marketing communications plan. When someone asks what your integrated marketing communications plan is, they want to know how you use your budget across various media channels to reach a specific audience in support of your specific strategic business goals.Now you understand the foundational elements any media planner knows. But even though those core concepts haven’t changed, one fundamental shift shook up media planning again.Media planning when you are the mediaWith the rise of owned media as a strategy, content marketers (and the brands they work for) have become the media. Your website, your blog, your resource center, and your social media efforts all be working media too.Our media efforts become part of the integrated marketing and communications plan too.For example, consider Cleveland Clinic’s Health Essentials blog. Launched in , the publication grew from , monthly visits to million monthly visits in just months.Today, the blog attracts more than million monthly visitors, making it one of the most visited online health care destinations. With more than million Facebook fans and a half million Twitter followers, Health Essentials has a bigger audience than many media publications.Cleveland Clinic has become the health-care media. That means Health Essentials often wins when the Clinic’s media planners decide where to spend their budget for the best return on CPM and the best net reach.There is a lot of pressure on marketers to look at every new app, social media network, technology, or even different websites through the classic lens of media planning. But chasing audiences isn’t as productive as it once was. There are simply too many channels.If you chase audiences by placing content and ads on more and more media channels, you run the risk of fragmenting your audience to the point where it’s impossible to reach them at all.If you place #content and ads on more and more media channels, you run the risk of fragmenting your audience where it’s impossible to reach them all, says @Robert_Rose via @CMIContent. #MarketingMakersShare on XFor example, say your audience gets everything they need from your Facebook page. Now you’re locked into reaching them through Facebook, no matter the cost. Multiply that by Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, Clubhouse, and whatever channels come along next. It’s easy to see how you would have to prioritize which small part of your whole audience to address at any given time.But with a content brand, you’re no longer tenants on rented real estate. You’re the owners. You can create content that attracts and builds audiences your business values and who will, in turn, value your brand.You can use the classic and well-worn media planning methods to determine that value. But instead of determining the best place to rent – you’ll choose the best plot of your owned land.When you invest in content, you want to put it where you know the right people will see it.That might be a noisy, busy place.Or it might turn out to be your own backyard.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: The Core Roles of a Content Marketing TeamSubscribe to the Marketing Makers playlist on our YouTube channel or sign up for a CMI daily or weekly newsletter to get notified of new episodes. Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteRobert RoseRobert RoseRobert is the founder and chief strategy officer of The Content Advisory – the consulting and advisory group of The Content Marketing Institute. As a coach and strategist, Robert has worked with marketers at more than companies including global brands such as adidas, Roche, Salesforce, NASA, and Hilton. Robert is the author of four books. His latest, Content Marketing Strategy, was published by Kogan Page in September , and was called “a rich and much-needed understanding of content marketing” by Professor Philip Kotler. Robert is also an early-stage investor and advisor to a number of technology startups, serving on the advisory boards of a number of companies, such as DivvyHQ, and BrandLens.You can follow him on Twitter @Robert_Rose.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEvents Black-Owned Agency Leaders Talk Impact of on Business and Marketingby Ann Gynn| Published: February , | High-Level StrategyLittle more than two months after the pandemic shut down the world, the outcry for social justice and an end to systemic racism reverberated across the U.S.Brands, once hesitant to get involved in social justice or conversations perceived as political, began to speak out about police brutality, systematic racism, diversity, and inclusion. They issued statements, turned their social media profiles into black squares, donated to minority-connected causes, and pledged to work more with minority-owned businesses.Eleven months after the COVID- closures began and eight months after the increased calls for ending racism, we checked in with five Black-owned marketing agencies. Their businesses are now in an upswing. Most say the effects of the pandemic has had the biggest impact on that. Some say corporate commitment to work with Black-owned businesses has played a role too. And they all see opportunities for marketers to do more about underrepresented communities.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Content Can Perpetuate Racism and Inequity. It’s Time to Do BetterMinority-owned opportunities drive some businessGodson Michel, president of Blue Surge Marketing Agency, says his business is experiencing an upward trend since last spring. He sees more interest from larger companies, though much of the growth has come from first-time entrepreneurs.During the pandemic, people who lost their jobs or were laid off began recognizing the value in not being reliant on a single employer and diversifying their income streams. They’re increasingly launching brands, which need digital marketing support, to turn their passions into monetizable avenues.Blue Surge also has seen a business boost from brands wanting to work with a Black-owned digital agency. “We recognize this is an effect of summer ’s historic civil rights movement,” Godson says.Some of that work has included the development of minority-owned business directories. “With consumers being more conscious of racial inequity and the lack of centralized ways to support Black and African-American-owned enterprises, we’ve gotten more requests for starting directories in the past six months than in our agency’s entire history,” Godson says.In the past year, @TheBlueSurge agency has seen more requests to develop minority-owned business directories, says Godson Michel via @AnnGynn via @CMIContent.Share on XChristine Michel Carter, bestselling author of Mom AF, senior contributor at Forbes, and multicultural marketing consultant, has seen year-over-year growth for her business. The COVID- shutdown exposed and exacerbated hardships for working moms, and that prompted more employers to seek her counsel.She also has seen more companies saying they want to work with minority-owned businesses. While her clients aren’t having more conversations about diversity and inclusion, she has noticed an effect – the time to close deals has dramatically reduced. “I attribute this to organizations always hearing internal feedback about the importance of diversity and inclusion, but was the catalyst that justified investing in the topic,” Christine says. was the catalyst that justified in investing in #diversity and# inclusion, says @CMichelCarter via @AnnGynn @CMIContent.Share on XDigital drives most businessJuntae DeLane, founder and chief strategist of Digital Delane, has seen his business double since last spring. He says clients are investing in digital marketing because it’s often the only way they can engage their target audience during the pandemic.“As a full-service digital marketing agency, we were able to help them increase awareness and conversions in the digital space,” he says, noting that also included a rise in producing virtual events.Business doubled for @DigitalDelane in because digital #marketing was the only way most businesses could engage audiences, says @JuntaeDeLane via @AnnGynn @CMIContent.Share on XFor the coming year, he sees focusing the “new normal” – building brands, campaigns, and launches that consider the shifts in consumer behavior, technology, and diversity and inclusion.Digital marketing as the only option in also led to an increase in business for Content Monsta, the BB digital content marketing agency co-founded by A. Lee Judge. He says Content Monsta’s focus on creating multimedia pillar content meant much of his pre-pandemic business started with in-person video shoots or on-site podcast recording.Fortunately, they already had been expanding their digital services. “Remote live video and podcast production was on our services roadmap back in , but we did not expect that those services would be thrust to the forefront of our offerings in Being able to replace our in-person content creation with remote services was the key that allowed us to not just survive but to strive during the pandemic.” Lee says.Being able to replace our in-person content creation with remote services was key to not just survive but strive during the pandemic, says @ALeeJudge via @AnnGynn @CMIContent.Share on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How Content Marketing Can Save Your Digital Marketing StrategyBudgets get new liftSydni Craig-Hart is co-founder and CEO of Smart Simple Marketing (and a fourth-generation entrepreneur). The content marketing consultancy works with big BB firms like Google, Facebook, Oracle, and other technology brands, advising on how they can connect better with their audiences of women- and minority-owned firms as well as small businesses.When the pandemic hit, six months of revenue evaporated as three big contracts were put on hold just before they were signed. Smart Simple Marketing survived by using their savings and by securing a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program. The company’s good record-keeping and solid banking relationships helped it access the loan funds in just eight days. But Sydni knows her experience was rare among small Black-owned businesses. Traditionally, Black-owned businesses don’t have the access, networks, or money needed to navigate pandemic challenges.To help, in less than two weeks, Smart Simple Marketing produced a virtual summit to give small business owners tangible advice and have conversations that addressed their specific needs and circumstances. They continued their visibility campaigns via speaking, direct outreach, and digital marketing.By July, their existing clients began coming back, and by the end of the year, they had onboarded three new clients. Today, their revenue is right on track, and Sydni sees a bright for the business. The difference? The corporate teams working with Smart Simple Marketing now have leadership support for the multi-phase, high-dollar minority- and women-owned business projects they wanted to do long ago.Corporate leadership now supports the multi-phase, high-dollar projects involving minority- and women-owned businesses that their teams wanted to do long ago, says @SydniCraigHart via @AnnGynn @CMIContent.Share on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Stop These Reporting Mistakes and Win Budget Support for Content MarketingBrands can make better commitments to diversity and inclusionLooking beyond their own businesses, these marketing experts also have some thoughts on brands’ commitment to diversity and inclusion. All replied with some version of this: Big statements are OK. Actions are better. Relevant and helpful actions are best.Juntae DeLane sees some progress as more brands connect with and amplify Black businesses and share more Black voices and perspectives. “The narrative surrounding Black businesses is starting to shift as diversity and inclusion is fostered across all business functions,” he notes.But the picture isn’t perfect.The biggest misconception in marketing about diversity and inclusion, Christine Michel Carter says, is that “a myriad races on content + ‘we’ statements = diversity and inclusion.”As Lee Judge notes, “Unfortunately, for many, it’s just a hot topic that is fashionable to be a part of – not a commitment.”Unfortunately, for many, #diversity and #inclusion are a hot topic, not a commitment, says @ALeeJudge via @AnnGynn @CMIContent.Share on XCompanies don’t benefit just by “showing” their commitment to the public, he says. “Diversity in your content is no more than a façade if the company does not have diversity in its upper ranks.”Management should represent the same demographics the company is marketing to. “No company should assume that they understand a culture,” Lee says, or even how to market to a culture of people if no one from the culture is part of the decision-making process.”A company committed to diversity cultivates it, Godson says. That means listening to underrepresented voices, hiring them, putting them in leadership roles, and promoting them to equity positions.“What some companies may have gotten away with in will not work in ,” he says. “Avoiding and deflecting social and racial injustices, especially when they are the main headlining topics of the day, is a weak position. Even in the face of adversity, taking a stand lets consumers know you’re holding firm to your company’s core values,” he says.And if you’re not living those values? Beware. “Consumers can sniff out inauthenticity a mile away,” Godson says.Brands whose values drive them to take a stand against systemic racism must do more than making a donation, says Sydni Craig-Hart. “Writing a check does not absolve you of your responsibility to do the work. It’s not going to fix anything with your audience – no long-term impact,” she says. “It needs to create meaningful impact, to make a real investment, and to have a sustained commitment.”For example, she says, instead of writing a $ million check to a Black-focused nonprofit, a company would do better to spend:$ million for a supplier diversity program$ million for multicultural marketing$ million to empower employees to be empathetic$ million for financial literacy for minority-owned businessesHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Do Diverse and Inclusive Content Marketing That MattersMarketers need fresh thinking, tooAuthenticity requires rethinking all those internal marketing conversations.Sydni says marketing teams would do well to rethink how they understand their audiences. “In marketing, we make this mistake of creating personas in conference rooms with other people who look like us … We get cocky and arrogant about how well we know our customer,” she says.In #marketing, we make this mistake of creating personas in conference rooms with other people who look like us … We get cocky about how well we know our customer, says @SydniCraigHart via @AnnGynn @CMIContent.Share on XA fresh perspective is essential. And that doesn’t just mean making an internal team member who is a member of a minority the “expert” for all things multicultural. “It’s completely unfair,” Sydni says. “They’re not trained (on multicultural marketing). They don’t represent all minorities or even all the minorities in their own community.”Outside experts in multicultural marketing know what’s happening across industries and geographies and how to use that insight to advise and improve what’s being done at the company, Sydni says.And it takes the pressure off the employee: Voicing a different opinion or challenging the status quo is risky.In the end, demonstrating your company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion requires taking an action – and that can seem scary to even the most well-intentioned, Sydni says.But don’t let fear and anxiety get in the way or dictate your action or inaction. “It’s going to be uncomfortable. An action may be right, and it may not be. But you can’t not do – that’s making it about you,” she says.Do you know a great marketing presenter from a traditionally underrepresented community? Let us know and/or encourage them to apply to be a speaker at Content Marketing World by March Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteAnn GynnAnn GynnAnn Gynn lives up to her high school nickname (Editor Ann) as an editorial consultant for the Content Marketing Institute. As the founder of G Force Communication, Ann regularly combines words and strategy for BB, BC, and nonprofits. Former college adjunct faculty, Ann also helps train professionals in content so they can do it themselves. Follow Ann on Twitter @anngynn or connect on LinkedIn.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsForget the Super Bowl Ads – Brands Took Their “A” Game to Twitter [Content Marketing Examples]by Content Marketing Institute Team| Published: February , | Trends and ResearchThis week, we’re going down the rabbit hole of brand tweets during the Super Bowl. We’re measuring out our pasta cooking time with hot tunes. And we’re racing along with a brand underwriting a NASCAR fan’s dream job.No ad budget, no problemBrands figured out how to capitalize on the biggest collective audience of the year –without having to spend millions to air a -second ad during the Super Bowl.The deliciously entertaining Steak-umm Twitter account started things off with a simple plea: “(W)e couldn’t afford a supr bwl ad so now we’re tweeting to get attention please engage.”Individuals and corporate brands alike answered the call. Uno and Dentyne chatted in the thread alongside people like Michelle and Rick. Reddit, which paid for the shortest Super Bowl ad this year, got in on the game, replying: “We spent our whole budget on it so now we’re broke too. Wanna hang?”Steak-umms wasn’t the only brand bringing its “A” game to Twitter during the broadcast. Velveeta put its own spin on Super Bowl ad tweets, offering acerbic commentary on each one – without mentioning the brand name: NO THANK YOU TOO SCARY.” “MORE COLD CELEBRITIES PLEASE.” “INSURANCE COMPANIES HAVE GOTTEN TOO COOL/FUNNY – LIKE IT’S INSURANCE.”we don’t have a commercial for the big game but we wanted to be in the conversationour legal team says we’re allowed to live-tweet the commercials but only if we’re REALLY CAREFUL and don’t mention any other brands/celebrities/anything specificLETS DO THIS— Velveeta (@EatLiquidGold) February , WHY IT MATTERS: You don’t need an ad budget to take advantage of big events in the world or even in your audience’s lives. Join the social conversation with comments that fit your brand voice. But don’t just post tweets – make sure to engage with the audience. After all, if someone makes cornbread for you (like Rich did for Steak-umms), you should thank them. HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: We credit (blame?) SunnyD for sending us down that rabbit hole. We saw the juice brand’s tweet complimenting Velveeta, then spotted the Steak-umms thread in a SunnyD’s retweet.(BTW, thank you to all who joined CMI’s Monina Wagner and CMWorld Slack channel host Jeremy Bednarski for a live conversation during the Super Bowl. Join the channel to check out the conversation here.)You don’t need a #SuperBowl ad to capture attention, you just need great #SocialMedia #content. @Steak_umm @EatLiquidGold and @SunnyDelight showed how it’s done via @CMIContent. #WeeklyWrapShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: If You Give a Community a Cookie … How to Create a Great Digital NeighborhoodBarilla stirs the pot with pasta timer playlistSpotify playlists from pasta brand Barilla work as a backdrop to customers’ culinary experiments – and as a melodic timer. Drop the pasta in the pot, hit play, then drain the perfectly cooked noodles once the music stops.The Barilla Playlist Timer includes seven lists of different lengths and musical genres. Each list corresponds to the recommended cooking time a pasta shapes. Options include Mixtape Spaghetti, Boom Bap Fusilli, Moody Day Linguine, Pleasant Melancholy Penne, Best Song Penne, Top Hits Spaghetti, and Simply Classic Linguine. Covers of pop, hip-hop, and indie hits performed by Italian musicians make up the playlists. (None of the lyrics can compete with the old classic On Top of Spaghetti.)WHY IT MATTERS: Barilla Italia smartly connects an aspect of using its product (cooking) to an enjoyable content experience (music).It’s a wise move for brands to consider what happens after the purchase. Barilla’s playlist helps it stay top of mind (or ear) with its customers. After all, the grocery shelves are filled with pasta options. Barilla is playing on the idea that once you’ve sampled the catchy cooking tunes, you’ll be more likely to pick up another one of their signature blue boxes.HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: CMI’s Cathy McPhillips read this article from Delish..@BarillaUS #PlayListTimer offers home cooks a musical #content experience – and the promise of perfectly cooked pasta via @cmcphillips @CMIContent. #WeeklyWrapShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Brands Crank Up the Volume [Content Marketing Examples]Busch Beer offers fans a job with a NASCAR driverIn an unusual twist on sponsorship activation, Busch Beer created a contest that will reward one fan with a paid position ($, “salary”) as a crew member for NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick. The contest also is in conjunction with the new NASCAR Netflix series, The Crew, which debuts Feb. We’re interviewing for a $K paid position to join @kevinharvick’s racing crew. Yep, you could win the job of a lifetime.Tune into the #Daytona for your interview. No need to dress up, just get your fingers ready to tweet your answers live with #TheCrew #BuschContest pic.twitter.com/sZPdPtQE— Busch Beer (@BuschBeer) February , The job “interview” is a bit unusual, too. The first phase happens on Twitter (@BuschBeer) on Sunday, Feb. During the Daytona , Busch will tweet four questions. Applicants must answer all four to be considered for the second round. Ten finalists will be selected based on the creativity, originality, and best representation of the Busch brand. They’ll go through virtual interviews and background checks. The winner will receive $, and the opportunity to join the crew (specific duties to be determined) at the remaining races.WHY IT MATTERS: By asking people to “apply” for the job, Busch is guaranteeing entrants who are more invested than if they simply had to reply or retweet something. And Busch likely will end up with great content from the winner’s year as a crew member. It’s a big impact for a relatively low investment. HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: We wrote about NASCAR’s content partnership with Netflix – The Crew starring Kevin James – last year. When we checked in on its debut date recently, we saw the news about the contest..@BuschBeer contest offers one lucky fan a $, job on a @NASCAR pit crew. Read about this and other creative #ContentMarketing examples in the #WeeklyWrap via @CMIContent.Share on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Learn From the Best: Inspiring Content Marketing ExamplesIntrigued, puzzled, or surprised by an example, a news story, or something else in content marketing? Share it with us by completing this form. We might feature your submission in an upcoming Weekly Wrap.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteContent Marketing Institute TeamContent Marketing Institute TeamThe Content Marketing Institute team byline indicates this article reflects the collective work of the CMI team. CMI is a global marketing education and training organization dedicated to advancing the practice of content marketing. We create and curate content experiences that teach marketers and creators from enterprise brands, small businesses, and agencies how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multichannel storytelling. Global brands turn to CMI for strategic consultation, research, and training and certification, and send teams to Content Marketing World, the largest content marketing-focused event, the Marketing Analytics & Data Science (MADS) conference, and CMI digital events every year. Follow @CMIContent on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and use the hashtag #CMWorld.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEvents Social Media Tool Recommendations From Top Marketers of the Best Tools for Social Media Selected by Top Marketersby Aaron Orendorff| Published: February , | Content OperationsUpdated Feb. , Let’s be honest, social media is a jungle. Forget about the flood of apps, integrations, and add-ons, ust figuring which network you should invest in is overwhelming.What if you could ask today’s influential online marketers one question: “What social media tool is your all-time, desert-island, can’t-live-without favorite?”That’s what I did.What follows are – by any list or metric – big names in online marketing, content marketing, and e-commerce along with their top social-media tool and reason for loving it. InstagramAnn Handley, chief content officer, MarketingProfs“Instagram is my favorite social network because of its social storytelling simplicity. From fun personal accounts – like Small Chalk and Adam Padilla – to corporate brands, it connects more immediately and deeply with people than any other platform. I still haven’t forgiven them for introducing an algorithm. (Chronological was so much more in line with the ethos of the platform.) But I can’t quit you, Insta.”A screenshot of Ann Handley’s Instagram account. Her favorite social marketing tool for storytelling simplicity.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Instagram Marketing: Social Media Experts Share Top Tips TwitterJoe Pulizzi, founder, Content Marketing Institute“I use social media as almost a pure response vehicle. And I won’t start any new social media app, platform, or tool until I’m % committed to it. My goal with Twitter is to keep in touch and communicate my appreciation to those people that support me. Once I built an audience on those platforms, my goals and execution changed.”An image of Joe Pulizzi’s Killing Marketing Twitter account. His favorite social media tool for keeping in touch. BufferJoanna Wiebe, creator, Copyhackers“Buffer. Three reasons. () You can install a browser widget that lets you Buffer any page or image you come across to be sent immediately or later. () Its Content Inbox: I can enter the URL of a favorite blog and Buffer instantly creates a huge list of tweets from that blog. () The company is transparent. I don’t expect every company to publish what they earn vs. what they pay people the way Buffer does, but it’s a warm-and-fuzzy approach to helping disconnected folks like moi see the humans behind a software company.”An image showing Buffer’s website. BuzzSumoNeil Patel, entrepreneur and influencer, NeilPatel.com“With BuzzSumo you can see what is hot in your space on social media and what isn’t. From there you can craft ideas on the type of blog posts you should write to generate traffic and leads. The best part about BuzzSumo is it shows who has shared the content so you can reach out to those influencers and ask them to share your content as well.”An image showing a screenshot of Most Shared blog posts via BuzzSumo. AnimotoMari Smith, Facebook marketing expert“Native video is the top-reaching post type on Facebook and gets three times the engagement of link posts and two times that of photo posts. I love using Animoto’s gorgeous templates, themes, and stock music. Its marketing builder tool also makes it super-duper easy to add text overlays – vital for sound-off autoplay videos in the Facebook newsfeed because % of video ads on Facebook are watched with sound off.”HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Video Marketing Strategy: What Marketers Need to Know Moz’s Fresh Web ExplorerRand Fishkin, founder, SparkToro“Next to BuzzSumo – and without sounding biased – my favorite tool is Moz’s Keyword Explorer brand mention feature. It’s great for setting up mention alerts as well as finding content to share socially through keyword notifications. The mention authority feature works directly with Moz’s page and domain authority metrics and helps sort through all the noise you normally get with catch-all monitoring tools.”An image showing a screenshot showing the results of Moz’s Fresh Web Explorer Mention Authority Feature. Tweeps MapBrian D. Evans, founder, Influencive “The problem with a lot of marketing these days is that it’s not laser targeted and is far too broad. I use Tweeps Map because it gives me a visual representation of where my followers are geographically. I can then run targeting to followers from specific areas and make sure that the content is relevant and valuable for those followers.”An image showing a map of Brian Evans followers using the Tweet Maps tool. HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Data-Driven Creative: How to Use Twitter Data to Inform Your Marketing SumoJeff Bullas, CEO, JeffBullas.com “Sumo is a hybrid tool that’s a bit like a Swiss Army knife. It’s helped me thrive and survive in the wilds of the digital world by creating social-sharing buttons – onsite, SMS, Flipboard, and WhatsApp – and tracking my social counts on blog posts. The feature I really love is its Welcome Mat: a pop-up that captures emails. In less than months, it’s collected over , email subscribers.” TailwindCandice Galek, founder, Karma Honey Project “Tailwind has been a lifesaver over the years, allowing my team to work more quickly and efficiently when posting to Pinterest. It’s a scheduling app on steroids, helping you to choose not only when to post for maximum engagement but also what might go viral thanks to their pixel-matching technology and image recognition capabilities. You can seamlessly measure pin virality and repost that content to continue to grow your following on the platform.Don’t sleep on Pinterest. Their introverted user base is keen on consuming online content, and Tailwind helps you to get it in front of more potential customers faster.” ElevateJason Miller, head of brand, ActiveCampaign“I like to keep things simple and streamlined: Less is more. The tool I use religiously is Elevate: LinkedIn’s employee advocacy tool. I use it to share, organize, and measure all the content I post across my main three social accounts: LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. I share daily from Elevate and track engagements.”elevate-tool Twitter Promote ModeBrian Clark, founder, Copyblogger“Now that the days of organic social media distribution for content marketing are long in the rear view, the most valuable social media tools are the advertising features of the platforms themselves. Facebook (and Instagram), of course, but also Twitter given its high-profile resurgence. We’re testing Twitter Promote Mode, which for a recurring monthly fee promises to give constant broader reach – just like the good old days.”An image showing a screenshot of Twitter Promote Mode.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: A Quick-Start Guide to Paid Content Promotion Facebook Audience InsightsLarry Kim, founder, MobileMonkey“I’m big into audiences: figuring out what are the interests, behaviors, and demographics of your target customers. For this, I use Facebook Audience Insights because it tells you just about everything you’d want to know: job titles, education level, lifestyle, location, household information, purchasing behavior, and much more.“By better understanding who your target audience is, you can more accurately create content that they’re likely to engage with.”An image showing a screenshot of Facebook Audience Insights that shows you job titles, education level, lifestyle, location, household information, and purchasing behavior. Sprout SocialReilly Roberts, marketing manager, Common Thread Collective“Every marketer has their own approach and needs from a social media tool. Regardless of the tools’ unique features, the one need we all have in common is tracking the performance of the content we’re sharing. Not only does Sprout Social measure performance indicators like engagement and clicks, most importantly, it offers UTM tracking.“The ease of Sprout’s UTM Tracker allows my social efforts to be aligned with efforts to optimize and drive traffic, as measured by Google Analytics.”An image of Sprout Social’s UTM Tracker.Note: This article’s author works at Common Thread Collective.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Create Custom Metrics in Google Analytics Kicksta (formerly Kickstagram)Cammi Pham, partner, ThinkRenegade“With the new Instagram algorithm change, consistently posting at the right time has become even more important. Kicksta makes it easier to upload, process photos, schedule, and add hashtags to the first comment from desktop. For hashtags, I use % fixed and % tailored. This gives my team more time to focus on real-time engagement, which is life or death on social.” TikTokShanelle Mullin, experimentation & analysis lead, Shopify“Historically, marketers have been hesitant to jump on short-form video platforms, despite social media as an industry consistently moving in that direction (see Snapchat, Instagram Stories, Fleets, Reels, Shorts, etc.) Before TikTok, there was Vine, Dubsmash, Musical.ly, Triller, etc. Currently, forecasts predict TikTok will top B monthly active users (MAU) in , putting it among Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, YouTube, and WeChat. After TikTok, there will be another platform focused on short-term video.“Whether it’s running influencer campaigns with TikTok celebrities, using TikTok for Business to run paid ads, or building an organic branded audience, marketers would be wise to have a presence on this platform in and beyond. It’s not just for Gen Zers who love to dance; the rest of us are just better at hiding our (over)usage. Besides, the short-form video content you create for TikTok can always be distributed across *checks notes* almost every other major social media platform.” VenngageRoss Simmonds, digital strategist, RossSimmonds.com“My favorite tool is Venngage. As someone who really likes experimenting with the potential of visual content and visual communication, having access to an infographics tool that is so easy to use speeds up my visual output. Whether you are creating graphics for social, SlideShare, or a presentation, Venngage is super versatile and intuitive.”HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Ideas to Spark Great Infographics IFTTTPam Moore, CEO and founder, Marketing Nutz“I love using If This Then That (IFTTT) to enable native posting of images on Twitter that are originally posted to Instagram. You can set specific criteria by using hashtags or set it to post to Twitter automatically by default. IFTTT also offers a nearly limitless supply of social and cross-platform ‘recipes.’”HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: IFTTT Recipes to Help Every Content Marketer Work Better Rival IQJay Baer, founder, Convince & Convert“Rival IQ is a terrific tool to compare your own social media engagement rate and top-performing content versus your competitors’. Insightful and easy to use, it includes automated, custom reporting. One click and BAM – you have a PDF or PowerPoint deck with all the information you need to make better social media decisions. We use it daily.”An image showing a screenshot of Facebook Post Engagement Rate by week from Rival IQ. YotpoGriffin Thall, co-founder, Pura Vida Bracelets“Instagram has always been Pura Vida’s dominant channel. We’re the No. , most-engaged jewelry brand there and that has everything to do with our influencers, micro-influencers, aesthetics, and — above all — our amazing community.“But if I had to pick one tool, it’d be Yotpo. We have over , five-star reviews and that kind of social proof drives conversions like nothing else. Still, it’s Yotpo’s social integrations — things like easily sourcing, finding, publishing, sharing, and presenting user-generated content — and doing all that natively that makes it so irreplaceable.”A screenshot of the Yotpo user interface showing Pure Vida Bracelets lifetime total of star reviews: ,Image sourceHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Ways to Use Reviews in Your Content and Pitfalls to Avoid FollowerwonkMichael Brenner, CEO, Marketing Insider Group“Twitter remains my primary social media platform. But alone, Twitter’s unmanageable. That’s why I use Followerwonk to understand who my audience is, when they are most likely to engage, and to find followers who overlap with similar social profiles and influencers. Its analyze feature – which integrates with Buffer – tells you exactly when to post your most important updates for exposure.”An image showing a screenshot showing the most active results for Michael Brenner’s followers by Followerwonk. CoScheduleAndy Crestodina, co-founder and director, Orbit Media“This one is going to drive more traffic in less time than all your other tools combined. It’s like Buffer, but it never runs dry. Posts scheduled in CoSchedule can stay in rotation. Once you’ve vetted your best stuff based on historical data, set up CoSchedule to share on your network(s) of choice at least a few times per day. You just saved yourself six to eight hours per month at least.”An image showing a screenshot of CoSchedule dashboard. WordSwagRachel Pedersen, social media strategist“Ever wish you had a / graphic designer to turn your social media ideas into gorgeous graphics? Then you will love WordSwag. It is a mobile application that turns your ideas, quotes, and content into attractive graphics that can be shared on Facebook, Instagram, and anywhere. In less than five minutes, you have a high quality and visually appealing graphic that will make your followers think you have a graphic designer on call.”An image showing an Instagram account that uses Wordswag tool.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Tips From CMI’s Most Popular Visual Content Articles QuuuShane Barker, digital strategist, ShaneBarker.com “Quuu is a hand-curated and content-promotion platform. I use the promotion side to distribute everything. Each article is reviewed by a real person before it is approved because the goal is to promote only the highest quality content. Once the article gets the green light, Quuu adds it to its huge distribution network, which is cool, as I can then see the amount of shares and clicks for each article.”An image showing the amount of shares and clicks for each article using Quuu. OktopostMurray Newlands, co-founder, Due.com“Most BB companies on social media are missing a huge opportunity. Staff, customers, and clients won’t post positive comments unless they love you. Beyond that, you have to get proactive and make sharing easy. Oktopost’s amplify and collaborate features are built to do exactly that: internally and externally. But love has to be the foundation.”An image showing the social dashboard for Oktopost. AhrefsJosh Steimle, published author“By connecting Ahrefs to Google Search Console and with some simple configuring, I can monitor my own website as well as those of competitors to get ideas for new keywords I can use for blogging, YouTube videos, and social media posts.I especially like the “Search suggestions” feature in the Keyword Explorer section because it makes it easy to find keywords and see the data I want. Ahrefs gives each keyword a difficulty score, shows me local and global search volume, and expected clicks.While we tend to think of SEO as a Google+ website game, I also use this for LinkedIn, my favorite social media platform. By collecting keywords in the Rank Tracker section of Ahrefs, I can monitor which keywords have the most volume and include those words in my LinkedIn posts, using web search popularity as a hint as to what may also be popular on LinkedIn, or at least popular relative to other relevant keywords I’m targeting.”An image showing a screenshot of Ahrefs Search suggestions feature.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Free Keyword Research Tools for Content Marketers Facebook MessengerSujan Patel, co-founder, Mailshake“Social media is becoming more personal and customers are actually talking to companies. I’m not talking about comments or high-level conversations. I’m talking about customers ready to make a transaction. That’s why I love Facebook Messenger. Facebook has done a great job empowering business owners to communicate directly with their customers and, with the introduction of bots, Messenger is going to have a big impact in the coming years.”An image showing how Facebook Messenger communicates with customers. It shows the order confirmation and status of a customer’s shipment to delivery.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Don’t Fear Chatbots If You Have a Rich Content Strategy Shield – LinkedIn AnalyticsJohnathan Dane, founder, KlientBoost“There’s a new social media tool I’m in love with. It helps me and my leadership team see our organic LinkedIn growth in terms of engagement, reach, and followers. Shield helps you see side-by-side comparisons of which posts gave you the best metrics you care about.But it’s not just that.We pair this with targeting dream clients we’d like to work with by sending custom connection requests to get them into our LinkedIn sphere of influence (multiple KlientBoost people will send connection requests over time) so we can see impressions from people we truly care about seeing our content.Over time it feels like we’ve developed this “LinkedIn Mafia,” and I’m unsure if I should be sharing this strategy with you guys.” BrandJohn Rampton, CEO and co-founder, Due “I really like Brand’s dashboard to see every person who mentioned my brand on social media. I can then go and respond individually. This enables my brand to be on top of the good, the bad, and the amazing customers that are sharing feedback. You can even monitor your competition and take advantage of the potential customers out there that need your help.”An image showing Brand’s dashboard to see every person who mentioned my brand on social media.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Models (and Tools) to Understand, Predict, and React to Your Social Media AgoraPulseNeal Schaffer, social media consultant“AgoraPulse is a comprehensive social media dashboard along the lines of a Hootsuite, but it offers some unique functionality. The feature that I most love is auto post with queues. Basically, it’s a killer feature for companies who have lots of evergreen content and want to share it on a periodic basis across a wide variety of social networks. You can choose to post from your queue as often or as little as you’d like and stop sharing on a certain date, which is perfect if you are promoting an event.”An image showing an AgoraPulse screenshot of auto post with queues feature. QwayaEd Leake, managing director, Midas Media“Marketers often overlook one big aspect of social – native advertising. As a paid click and data guy, I love Qwaya because it allows me to treat and optimize Facebook as I would AdWords: robust campaign structuring, split-testing, and automation tool set. If CTRs drop or CPC jumps … pause it. Might sound simple, but when you’re managing big accounts and budgets, it’s a godsend.”An image showing a screenshot of Owava tool. EvernoteGerry Moran, global head of social media, Cognizant“The key to every successful social media strategy is content that tells a story. However, the story doesn’t always get crafted in one sitting. It evolves from a collection of photos, animated GIFs, infographics, a line from a song, a saying from my grandmother, everyday pain points, scribbled design thinking on a whiteboard, industry facts, etc. Evernote gives me a way to organize my storytelling, making my social media strategy more successful.”An image showing a screenshot of the Evernote tool. ClickToTweetBrian Dean, founder, Backlinko “ClickToTweet gives your readers an immediate and easy way to share your content by creating one-click boxes of preloaded Tweets, hashtags, and mentions. Blog integration is super non-technical and they even have a ClickToTweet generator you can use to add links to emails and PDFs. More opportunities to share equals more shares. It’s that simple. I used it on this post and got % more tweets than my average.”An image showing an example of a tweet using the clicktotweet tool.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: + Free Ways to Get More Traffic to Your Content TwitterGlen Gilmore, founder, Gilmore Business Network“At the risk of following Joe Pulizzi, Twitter is also my favorite tool. However, I use it a bit differently than most by creating niche accounts to share and hone my evolving passions while creating community and influence – @TravelEsquire, @FinancialSM, @HealthcareSMM, @SocialMediaLaw, @ChinaDigitalBiz, etc. Then I build Twitter lists to track key opinion leaders and the competition.”An image showing Glen Gilmore’s Twitter account. CanvaMatthew Toren, co-founder, Kidpreneurs “Canva is a very handy browser-based design tool that makes it super straightforward for non-designers like me to create impressive images. Visual content has become so important for social media posts to help tell the story of your post and content. I’ve noticed that my visual content gets about % more clicks vs. non-visual. I love the fact that I can optimize the size for whatever social platform I need to use the design for.”HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Stunning Examples Show Visual Storytelling at Its Best Instagram Story DMsAmy Porterfield, online marketing expert“I love how I am able to connect directly with my audience through Instagram Story DMs. It’s a game-changer. Because of the ‘Ask Me A Question’ feature, I have been able to not only see where my audience is struggling in their online businesses but also offer real-time, personal solutions to help them. In the past, I’ve felt a bit disconnected from my community across the various social media channels, but this has brought a new level of engagement that feels real to me and ultimately helps my business grow.”An image showing the Ask Me A Question’ feature. SendibleKristi Hines, freelance writer“Sendible has most of the features you will find in other social media management tools: scheduling, automated sharing via RSS feed, analytics, team management, and keyword monitoring. What sets it apart is the number of networks it connects to: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram (via email reminder), Tumblr, Medium, Instapaper, Pocket, Flickr, Delicious, Slack, and more.”An image that shows the number of networks Sendible connects to: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram (via email reminder), Tumblr, Medium, Instapaper, Pocket, Flickr, Delicious, Slack, and more. Bit.lyShayla Price, BB content marketer“Bit.ly is a must-have tool for your social media stack. The platform does more than just shorten links. You can use it to track links, measure performance from your campaigns, and learn which channels bring in the most traffic. I use Bit.ly to monitor the daily activity of all my marketing and growth efforts along with most of my clients so I can attribute and track my efforts.” PromoRepublicNatasha Zo, founder of Cosa Famosa Agency“I am on a mission to amplify the messages of multiply clients worldwide through social media. After we hit a tipping point as an agency, my team was not able to handle everything in the old, native way. I tried various tools before I found PromoRepublic, but none of them provided an all-in-one package — a social media calendar and editable content templates for clients to build their social media visibility and a “white label” platform to grow the agency business.The white-label platform, in particular, helped us to get more clients on board than we expected in a shorter period of time. One more benefit worth mentioning is their (also white label) reselling collaboration program, which helps me to increase ROI.”HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Time-Saving Tips, Checklists, and Templates to Conquer Content Marketing Goals in InShotDan Knowlton, co-founder, Knowlton“Since social media algorithms have evolved in and the platforms consistently penalize users for automation, we’ve cut back a lot with social media automation tools.However, one tool we continue to use to create social video content on the go is InShot. It’s super quick and easy to edit creative video in various size formats.” SemrushRobbie Richards, founder, robbierichards.com“While Semrush is better known for its SEO and PPC competitor research, it has more recently added a Social Media Toolkit to the platform. The toolkit is a handy one-stop-shop for managing and tracking all your social media profiles. In addition to the usual post scheduling, editing, and tracking, Semrush allows you to also uncover which content types and topics get the most engagement in the industry and for your competitors. You can even create campaigns and boost ads on Facebook and Instagram from directly inside the Semrush interface. It is a great option for anyone looking for a tool that goes beyond post scheduling and wants more granular competitor and industry insights that will drive topic selection and post frequency.”An image of the Semrush user interface showing when fans are online, people by countries, people by language, and demographics. PocketKevan Lee, marketing leader, Polly“Pocket helps me batch all my social media reading. I can find interesting stuff, save it to Pocket, get back to work, then read it all later. Plus, it has some smooth integrations with sharing directly to Twitter and Facebook or sending straight to Buffer. And it has its own recommendations area that might be one of the few remaining unknown areas to build a following and authority, not to mention collect content for curation.” Post PlannerDiana Adams, owner, Adams Consulting Group, Inc.“Sophisticated marketers know that engagement is the most important (and hardest) metric to nail, and that’s where Post Planner comes in. It was built for engagement and gives you access to the most viral posts on Facebook and Twitter (regardless of your niche). Plus, it provides a huge list of status ideas. My favorite feature is the recycle button to load up evergreen content so it posts once a week or once a month … or whatever.”An image of the post planner social tool recycle button feature to load up evergreen content. ClubhouseWilliam Harris, founder, Elumynt“The thing I love about Clubhouse, which is technically a platform but could also be considered a “tool,” is that I’ve been using it for casual, impromptu, “fireside chats.” No need to make a huge plan, you can start up a room with the right people and the right topic, send out a few invites, and the room can grow pretty quickly. But the content is what I love there. People seem to be willing to “say” more than they would on Twitter or LinkedIn. It’s more off-the-cuff, and you can really hear their passion through prosody — the energy engages you. And the best part is that you don’t have to be a “panelist” when the room starts. Anyone, regardless of their “follower count,” can raise their hand to be on the panel, ask a question, or give an answer, which can really open up doors for people that are just getting started.”An image showing a screenshot of a Clubhouse room. LinkedInBenji Hyam, co-founder, Grow and Convert“LinkedIn is great for prospecting. Before I do cold outreach, I look at the person’s profile and do as much research about them as possible. Simple touches like including common contacts, their job title, and past projects they’ve shared dramatically increase your chances of getting a response. Customize your messages and relate to them based on the information gathered. Above all, be personal not robotic.”HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: + LinkedIn Profile Tips for Marketers BufferJon Morrow, founder, SmartBlogger “Being completely honest, our teams don’t do a lot on social media … However, given that my goal with social is simply to stay active – and to get the most out of the investment – Buffer is my go-to tool for scheduling updates. It’s easy to use, time-efficient, and covers all my social-media bases.” RepostMonina Wagner, social media community manager, Content Marketing Institute“In social media, relationships matter. Repost is a simple yet effective tool that takes the challenge out of engaging with others by sharing content while giving credit. The app gives brands an opportunity to tell their story with user-generated content – creating a positive emotional experience, building consumer loyalty, and securing customer retention.”Monina Wagner shares her favorite tool is Repost. An effective social media tool that takes the challenge out of engaging with others while giving credit. UbersuggestChirag Kulkarni, partner and CMO, Medly PharmacyUbersuggest is a tool I love using for anything content, analytics, or SEO. One of my favorite features is the keyword ideas tab. After typing in a particular keyword, you immediately get access to data like the total search volume, pages that rank for that keyword, the estimated number of visits that the page gets, along with PPC numbers, all for free. It’s been extremely valuable for doing an analysis before pulling the trigger on optimization.An image showing a screenshot of Ubersuggest’s keyword ideas tab. Twitter PollsNadya Khoja, CMO, Venngage “I’ve found a lot of great value recently in conducting Twitter Polls as a way to pre-validate insights in order to guide new data-driven content ideas. In a recent benchmark study, we conducted on data storytelling, one major learning was that % of marketers are looking to report on market research data through visual content formats. But knowing what type of market research to conduct in itself is hard to decide. With Twitter Polls, you can get a strong idea of what direction to go into by asking simple questions to your audience. The ones that tend to perform better organically can be an indicator of what might also perform well through promoted channels as well. Besides, the data that you collect from those mini-surveys can make great social charts or social infographics to drive engagement from your target market!”A Twitter Poll example for internal guidance on a product update.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Free Ways to Get Original Data for Your Content BlogHeidi Cohen, chief content officer, Actionable Marketing Guide “My favorite social media tool isn’t a tool. It’s a form of social media: a blog. Your blog is owned media you support with quality content. Done well, you can optimize your blog for social media, search, influencers, and your business. On that front, two tools stand out. My favorite blog plugin is Yoast for SEO. And I love Feedburner because it distributes posts via email when they’re published. Like I’ve said before: ‘Hands down, email is the king of social media.’”Heidi Cohen shares that her favorite social media tool isn’t a tool, it’s a form of social media: a blog. HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Why We Are Still Talking About Email in YouTommy Walker, founder, WalkerBots Content Studios“You are your own best tool. Focus on the craft of writing and work constantly. Short-form, long-form, and everything in between. Twitter, and all the other social media sites, on their own, give you access, but it’s the writing that sparks interest and keeps them hooked.“Excellent writing carries itself and makes the rest of the work infinitely easier. Identify your patterns and break them. Seriously, this is a big one that holds everyone back.“Be unique. Earn your byline. Make it something to be proud of. If they can’t tell it’s YOU without the byline, go back, focus on your craft.”Please note: All tools mentioned in this article were suggested by a contributor to the article. If you’d like to suggest a tool, share the article on social media with a comment.Register to attend Content Marketing World in San Diego. Use the code BLOG to save $ Can’t attend in person this year? Check out the Digital Pass for access to on-demand session recordings from the live event through January , HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Tips To Write Engaging Content Previews for Social MediaCover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute. Aaron OrendorffAaron OrendorffAaron Orendorff is the VP of growth at FERMÀT. Previously, he served as editor-in-chief of Shopify Plus; his work has appeared in The New York Times, Forbes, Mashable, Business Insider, and more. If you’d like to connect with Aaron, reach out via social — he’s a sucker for DMs about ecommerce marketing, bunnies, and rejection.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsHow One Brand Grew a Massive Audience by Building a News Site [Example]by Ann Gynn| Published: February , | High-Level StrategyNow is the time for businesses to invest in publications they own and control.“There’s no one you need to pitch to have your stories placed,” advises Christopher Penn, chief data scientist at Trust Insights, who outlined the decline in mainstream media sites last fall.In , enterprise software company Nutanix had the foresight to tackle that challenge. With tech media focused on the biggest companies, Nutanix created its own editorial property, The Forecast.Designed to raise awareness of the Nutanix brand and showcase its experts’ thought leadership, The Forecast helps the company attract audiences it might not reach with traditional public relations and demand-generation marketing.Since its May launch, the site has attracted nearly , unique visitors, , page views, and more than , weekly newsletter subscribers. Nutanix optimizes for leads by retargeting visitors to the publication..@Nutanix created The Forecast content site as an alternative to traditional PR and demand-gen marketing. It’s attracted nearly , unique visitors since May via @CMIContent @AnnGynn.Share on XThe Forecast earned high honors in the Content Marketing Awards, landing finalist nods in three categories: Best Overall Editorial – Digital, BB Branded Content Campaign of the Year, and Content Marketing Launch of the Year.This behind-the-scenes look at The Forecast’s rise offers useful lessons for any brand looking to build awareness without relying solely on earned media.The editorial strategyThe initial idea and business direction for an editorial-driven news site came from Ben Gibson, chief marketing officer, Tonya China, now chief communications officer, and Jennifer Massaro, now vice president, global public relations and social media.The concept, according to the team, is to “(e)xplore ideas and technologies that are changing the way we live and how business gets done.”As Jennifer, who serves as its executive director, explains, “There are so many great stories to tell from the intersection of technology innovation and human experience. The Forecast gives us an authentic way to chronicle the times, define trends, and interview leaders and changemakers across different industries.”.@Nutanix’s owned #content site, The Forecast, gives the brand an authentic way to chronicle the times, define trends, and interview changemakers, says @Jmoocow via @CMIContent.Share on XEditor-in-Chief Ken Kaplan leads the editorial strategy and design. The guiding editorial mission is to “inform readers and help them overcome fears or apprehension about cloud computing’s massive impact on businesses, industries, governments, and our daily lives,” he says.“Understanding why these technologies exist and how they work can help leaders build a better future.”An image of The Forecast content hub built by Nutanix.Taking an industry insider’s perspective and using journalistic storytelling, The Forecast cover tech and business stories, practical advice for tech workers, and profiles of leaders in the tech industry.In addition to articles, the site also features original video content and provides a home for its podcast arm, Tech Barometer.The site publishes three to five new stories a week and shares those stories on Nutanix social channels and through a weekly newsletter.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Lackluster Blog? How This Tech Company Turned Theirs Into a Lead-Generation EngineGrowing an audience and businessThe Forecast’s target audience encompasses IT influencers, company investors, tech decision-makers, and people forging a career in IT.Between January and January , traffic from organic search grew from to %, which means readers seek and find Forecast content. Social, newsletter, and link referrals contribute about % of traffic as of January More than , Tech Barometer podcast segments have been downloaded.Organic search’s contribution to The Forecast site traffic almost tripled in months via @CMIContent @AnnGynn.Share on XWhile there is an element of paid content promotion, organic search traffic on the site has grown exponentially.An image showing how Nutanix’s The Forecast content hub site traffic tripled in months.Image source: SemrushThe Forecast ranks in the top three search results for targeted keywords and on the first page for other priority keywords.An image showing how Nutanix’s The Forecast ranks in the top three search results for targeted keywords and on the first page for other priority keywords.Image source: SemrushFor paid content promotion, The Forecast enjoys % lower cost per clicks and more than % higher click-through rates than industry averages, according to Michael Brenner of Marketing Insider Group who worked with the Nutanix team to build and implement its content marketing strategy..@Nutanix’s The Forecast enjoys % lower cost per clicks and more than % higher click-through rates than industry averages, according to @BrennerMichael of @MKTGInsiders via @CMIContent.Share on XHe says The Forecast is the fastest-growing content marketing platform he’s worked on and attributes the success in part to its strong editorial focus on thought leadership, which attracts engaged audiences.And it is getting attention both inside and outside the company, helping Nutanix raise its profile among industry influencers and beyond.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: The Best Reason to Do Content Marketing? Organic SearchBeyond the siteNutanix co-founder Dheeraj Pandey, CIO Wendy M. Pfeiffer, CMO Ben Gibson, and other leaders across the company connect the editor-in-chief with experts internally and externally. This access allows The Forecast to turn thought leadership into compelling articles.Ken, its editor, also has a presence beyond the site. He has been invited to share The Forecast experiences with content experts on industry panels and in social channel conversations.“We’re thrilled to see The Forecast grow and be recognized for the groundbreaking work we’re doing,” Jennifer says. “We’ve built an engaging site and now we’re determined to grow by leveraging our audience insights, journalistic instincts, and powerful publishing platform.”Enter your best work in the Content Marketing Awards. Sign up here to be notified when it’s time to submit your entries.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Convince Your Company’s Brain Trust to Collaborate on Content Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteAnn GynnAnn GynnAnn Gynn lives up to her high school nickname (Editor Ann) as an editorial consultant for the Content Marketing Institute. As the founder of G Force Communication, Ann regularly combines words and strategy for BB, BC, and nonprofits. Former college adjunct faculty, Ann also helps train professionals in content so they can do it themselves. Follow Ann on Twitter @anngynn or connect on LinkedIn.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEvents Brands Crank Up the Volume [Content Marketing Examples]by Content Marketing Institute Team| Published: February , | Trends and ResearchThis week, we’re chanting along to the latest viral TikTok trend, tuning in to sonic brand identity, and turning up the volume on a video book review.TikTok celebrates sea shanty singersTikTok user Nathan Evans’ rendition of a th-century sea shanty created unexpected waves on TikTok, sparking what the social media company says is the first viral trend of – #SeaShanty.When other users (including Andrew Lloyd-Webber) responded to the Scottish postman’s performance by adding harmonies via the platform’s duet feature, TikTok spotted an opportunity to celebrate the creative outpouring.The company worked with VaynerMedia to create a -second video montage illustrating the trend’s evolution. The ad spot, which airs in the United Kingdom television market, is the latest element in a campaign called “It Starts on TikTok,” according to an article in The Drum.“Modern marketing needs to move at the speed of culture to be truly relevant … and that speed has enabled us to celebrate a truly magical moment that started on TikTok and has captured the UK’s imagination,” TikTok’s head of marketing in Europe, James Rothwell, said in a news release. (TikTok isn’t the only brand capitalizing on the #SeaShanty trend ­– Polydor Records signed Nathan to a three-album record deal last month.)WHY IT MATTERS: Not every brand can be TikTok, but every brand can celebrate its communities. Whether it’s a community that attends your events, participates on your social platforms, or your products, it’s great to acknowledge your biggest fans. You could create a video tribute (like TikTok did) or an award or other form of recognition. CMI names a Content Marketing World Community Champion each year, for example.HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: CMI alum Jodi Harris shared VaynerMedia’s news release.#Marketing needs to move at the speed of culture, says @TikTok. Its -second spot celebrates ’s first viral TikTok trend: #SeaShanty via @CMIContent. #WeeklyWrap #SocialMediaShare on XMastercard gets loud with sonic brand identityThis week marks the second anniversary of the unveiling of Mastercard’s sonic brand identity.When the financial services company first introduced the -second melody in , Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Raja Rajamannar explained to Forbes what the company wanted from the audio:“ should be very pleasant. If it’s unpleasant, the brand doesn’t look good, so it has to be pleasant. It has to be simple … It has to be neutral, meaning it should not dominate any situation … and it has to be memorable; unless it is memorable you cannot connect it to your brand.“And it has to be hummable; that which you hum sticks in your brain much better… And it has to be versatile. Whether you are in Dubai, or in Shanghai or in Columbia, anywhere in the world, it should feel native to you.”Here’s the original audio soundscape:And here’s how the Mastercard melody plays in different locales:C Raja Sound of Mastercard Geographies from Jess Tan on Vimeo.In , Mastercard amped up its audio efforts, debuting an original pop single incorporating the Mastercard melody. Merry Go Round, written and produced by Sweden’s Niclas Molinder (who has worked with Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and Mary J. Blige) was planned as the first release from an upcoming Mastercard album called Priceless (after the brand’s famous ad campaign).What’s next? Raja told attendees at American Marketing Association’s virtual conference last year that a Mastercard musical is in the works..@Mastercard takes sonic brand identity to new levels with a melody, an original pop song … and, next, a musical? Let’s talk about this and more #ContentMarketing trends in the #WeeklyWrap.Share on XWHY IT MATTERS: Content marketers talk a lot about audio as voice becomes a growing avenue for content delivery. But we don’t hear much about audio identity. That’s something all brands should consider – even those with no plans to create musicals or release pop songs. Every brand can benefit from a consistent, identifiable voice (the audible kind).HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: CMI’s Monina Wagner heard Raja’s presentation at the AMA conference.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Did You Hear? Your Brand Needs a Voice StrategyTalking text in video book reviewTyler Meunier debuted a book-review video series created on the Prezi platform. (Though Tyler works as a marketing assistant at Snappy Kraken, he’s not doing this as part of his day job.) Tyler’s first book review – Seth Godin’s All Marketers are Liars: The Underground Classic That Explains How Marketing Really Works and Why Authenticity Is the Best Marketing of All. In about minutes, Tyler introduces his new series and dives into the highlights from Seth’s book.But Tyler doesn’t just read from a script. He illustrates points with charts throughout the video and offers an authentic touch by revealing the book’s relevancy to him.Watch the review here.WHY IT MATTERS: As a content format, video allows a more personal connection with audiences – it gives your content a face and a voice. Tyler’s video shows that a professional setting with topline graphics isn’t essential – something many people can appreciate as they broadcast from their homes. It doesn’t even have to be perfectly polished. Tyler’s first episode feels experimental, and that adds to the authenticity. HOW WE HEARD ABOUT IT: Naba Ahmed of Prezi shared it with the CMI team. Tyler used the Prezi platform to create it.Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good #ContentMarketing. This video book review (created on @prezi) charms with authenticity via @CMIContent. #WeeklyWrapShare on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Video Storytelling Tips to Engage Your AudienceNotice something interesting in content marketing? Share it with fellow Content Marketing Institute readers. When you’re intrigued, puzzled, or surprised by an example, news, or something else in content marketing, share it with us by completing this form. Your submission may be featured in an upcoming Weekly Wrap.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteContent Marketing Institute TeamContent Marketing Institute TeamThe Content Marketing Institute team byline indicates this article reflects the collective work of the CMI team. CMI is a global marketing education and training organization dedicated to advancing the practice of content marketing. We create and curate content experiences that teach marketers and creators from enterprise brands, small businesses, and agencies how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multichannel storytelling. Global brands turn to CMI for strategic consultation, research, and training and certification, and send teams to Content Marketing World, the largest content marketing-focused event, the Marketing Analytics & Data Science (MADS) confeContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsWill Wikipedia Think Your Page Is Notable?by Jonathan Rick| Published: February , | Content CreationYou want a Wikipedia page for your brand, your CEO, or even yourself. You know how to tell the story but aren’t sure if the page will pass the publishing muster.Your success lies in a single word – notability.Notability is the test Wikipedia editors use to decide if a topic merits its own article. You need to develop a case, using only sources that Wikipedia recognizes, which explains why the entry warrants inclusion in a global encyclopedia.Wikipedia’s requirements are exacting, especially for pages about living people. You can’t lean on a blue check mark on Instagram or a page on IMDb. Nor can you use the loftiness of a client list or celebrity endorsements. Those credentials are impressive, but they are unreliable, according to the Wikipedia powers that be..@Wikipedia editors don’t see a blue check mark as a credible source, says @jrick via @CMIContent.Share on XThe notability gold standard is media coverage and that encompasses a variety of painstaking criteria. Let’s dive into that rabbit hole.Criterion : The coverage comes from a media outletThe coverage you cite should come from the news media. Marketing and PR content, such as a news release, your website, or even the bio from a speaker’s bureau, doesn’t cut it. You want coverage in newspapers, magazines, television shows, radio shows, books – this is Wikipedia’s strike zone.Coverage in newspapers, magazines, TV are in @Wikipedia’s strike zone for sourcing, says @jrick via @CMIContent.Share on XWhat about blogs, podcasts, and e-newsletters? While these platforms are part of the media ecosystem, they’re generally not high-profile enough to meet the notability requirements. (Exceptions include SCOTUSblog, the Daily, and Stratechery.)HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: What You Need to Know to Get a Wikipedia Page PublishedCriterion : The outlet is notableNot only do the sources need to be independent, but they should be notable or part of the mainstream media. A local or trade publication (Think: ARLnow or PR Daily) is less helpful than a regional or national one (Think: The Star Ledger or CNN.)What counts as “mainstream”? That’s somewhat gray. As a rule of thumb, the outlet should employ editors and issue corrections when mistakes are made.Criterion : The outlet is independentYour media citations must be independent of the page’s subject. This criterion rules out anything you publish yourself. (Sorry, Kindle Direct Publishing authors.)It also rules out sources you might think are perfectly acceptable. For example, the Washington, D.C., chapter of the American Marketing Association published a profile of me, a volunteer for the group, on its website. Independent, this is not.Here’s another scenario: Let’s say you are a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and are featured on FreeEnterprise.com. Unfortunately, the site isn’t credible in Wikipedia’s eyes because it’s funded by the chamber.Be careful about mainstream outlets that have both paid and self-published platforms.Take the well-known website Medium. On one hand, much of the material here is self-published, which means it is not independent. On the other, sections of Medium, like OneZero, operate with full-time editors and reporter, making them fall into the mainstream category. To wit: You can cite onezero.medium.com; you cannot cite medium.com.The same holds true with sponsored content. It’s not a credible source because it’s pay to publish. Even if the content is published on a mainstream media site, it still doesn’t meet Wikipedia’s credibility standard. (Just ask The Atlantic, which was famously forced to rescind its puff piece on Scientology.)Sponsored #content on mainstream media sites don’t stand up to @Wikipedia’s credible source review, says @jrick via @CMIContent.Share on XWhy media coverage is the gold standardHere’s the view from Wikipedia: To be covered in the media, a reporter must believe the topic is important or interesting. The reporter’s content goes through a review process that traditionally includes fact-checkers, editors, and even lawyers.While media coverage may be a flawed form of validation, it’s the least flawed one available. Indeed, Wikipedia worthiness has proven to be such an equitable benchmark that social media companies, like Twitter, may soon use it in deciding which handles warrant a coveted verification badge.Criterion : The coverage focuses on the page subjectThe media coverage must include more than a mention of your subject. In other words: Being quoted once or twice in an article is not particularly helpful. Being quoted extensively is better but not necessarily sufficient. What you want is coverage where your topic is the focus.Criterion : The coverage is onlineOnce you have media coverage that meets the above criteria, then you need the original links. Put simply, if the article doesn’t appear online — so others can access and verify it — then you can’t cite it. This is part of Wikipedia’s ban on original research; every claim you make must be meticulously footnoted.Criterion : The coverage is sustainedFinally, you need to demonstrate the media coverage isn’t just significant but sustained. For example, if all the clips come from the past three months, then Wikipedia probably considers you to be “notable for only one event.” In such cases, your best bet is not to create a new page but to pursue inclusion in an existing one.TIP: I recommend at least six verifiable citation links for a page. While that isn’t a magic number, it’s a good test of notability.I recommend at least six verifiable citation links for a @Wikipedia page, says @jrick via @CMIContent.Share on XOther coverage optionsIf you struggle to round up sufficient mainstream media links, don’t despair. You can find alternative coverage examples, such as:Mentions of awards earned by the page subjectOp-eds written by the page subjectKeynote conference presentations delivered by the page subjectCreate with confidenceThe bottom line: Wikipedia is a maze of policies and guidelines. (Yes, those are two separate things.) These rules can be opaque, unforgiving, and even contradictory. (One of Wikipedia’s five pillars is “Wikipedia has no firm rules.”)These walls safeguard the encyclopedia’s integrity, contributing to its high rankings in Google. But they also lead to Wikipedia’s reputation for being inhospitable to the uninitiated.To avoid that fate, focus on that one word – notability – and all that it encompasses in Wikipedia.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Do Backlinks in Wikipedia the Right WayGet more tips on how to create successful content and more. Subscribe to CMI’s free weekday newsletter. Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteJonathan RickJonathan RickJonathan Rick helps individuals and organizations navigate Wikipedia. Follow him on Twitter at @jrick.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinContent Marketing Certification | Get the Building Blocks for Your StrategyLearn MoreSkip to contentContent Marketing InstituteAdvertiseContact UsSubscribeSearchSearch…StoriesResourcesTopicsResearch InsightsTraining & EducationEventsBrands Give COVID- Vaccine a Shot in the Armby Content Marketing Institute Team| Published: January , | Trends and ResearchThis week in content marketing, we’re talking about powerful campaigns to promote COVID- vaccines, canceled Super Bowl ads, and how the inauguration went to the dogs.The power of why – and authenticityWHO: Pfizer, BioNTech, and a consortium of medical organizations (through creative agency Mischief @ No Fixed Address)WHAT: The Because of This campaign uses public service announcements to encourage people to get vaccinated against COVID- Many of the PSAs use homemade videos to illustrate what can be gained if people get the vaccination: the personal connections everyone misses. Examples include a health-care worker greeting his child on the other side of a glass door, a hug between friends, a grandparent playing with a grandchild, and a family finding out about a new arrival.Mischief told Ad Age it searched social channels and other outlets for appropriate videos then got creators’ permission for the ones they selected.WHERE: Catch the videos on Pfizer’s YouTube channel, and check out the call to action at IT MATTERS: Emotion is a powerful tool for conveying a message and motivating people to action. The campaign also offers a great example of how to use authentic content to create a big impact on viewers. The agency could have used actors and professional videographers to create similar scenes, but the emotional impact would have suffered. Most viewers likely have some version of one of these videos on their phones.It’s also a great reminder of the right way to use other people’s content – get permission.HOW IT WAS DISCOVERED: CMI’s Monina Wagner learned about it from Morning Brew and found the videos brought tears to her eyes.New #COVID- vaccination campaign from @mischief_usa shows #ContentMarketing with real people in real emotional moments can move audiences – no actors or video pros needed. See why in the #WeeklyWrap via @CMIContent @MoninaW.Share on XHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Even BB Audiences Want Emotion in Their ContentBudweiser switches to a new gameWHO: Anheuser-Busch’s BudweiserWHAT: Anheuser-Busch InBev announced this week it won’t run an ad for its Budweiser brand during the Super Bowl – for the first time in nearly years. Instead, the company will donate the money it would have spent to the Ad Council, an industry coalition that produces PSAs, to promote the benefits of the COVID- vaccine. (Anheuser-Busch InBev still plans to run ads for its other brands, including Bud Light, during the Super Bowl.)The company does plan to run a -second ad about moments when being together has mattered during the pandemic on digital outlets. The video concludes with a message about one more way to help each other – by getting the vaccine. WHERE: This one’s more about where something won’t be – the Super Bowl. WHY IT MATTERS: Budweiser is joining a conversation that seems unrelated to beer – the COVID- vaccine. And yet, the vaccine could affect Budweiser sales – by enabling people to gather in bars and at parties where beer is offered.Almost a year into the pandemic, it’s time to ask (again) whether your brand should get involved in the pandemic conversation (even if you decide the answer is no.) As the Budweiser move shows, you don’t need an overt connection to be part of the bigger conversation. (That’s good advice for issues other than the pandemic too.)Anheuser-Busch’s decision also serves as a reminder that all brands should be evaluating their advertising and marketing budgets. Are you maximizing your investment for the current market? Should you reallocate dollars to better focus on and connect with your audience?HOW IT WAS DISCOVERED: CMI staff who are fans of football, beer, and Super Bowl ads pointed it out.A @SuperBowl without a @Budweiserusa ad? @AnheuserBusch’s move is a reminder to reevaluate #ContentMarketing and advertising spend. See where the Budweiser $ is going instead in the #WeeklyWrap via @CMIContent.Share on XBarking good contentWHO: Delaware Humane Association and Pumpkin Pet InsuranceWHAT: A -minute Zoom ceremony, dubbed the “indoguration,” honored Major Biden, the first rescue dog to live in the White House. Hosted by Jill Martin of the Today Show, the virtual event attracted more than , viewers and raised over $, for the Delaware pet shelter. It also garnered tens of thousands of post-event views and millions of impressions when the invitation went public.A banner that reads “Celebrate the Indoguration” with an image of a dog named Major Biden sitting at a podium.WHERE: Watch the Indoguration on Pumpkin Pet Insurance’s YouTube channel.WHY IT MATTERS: Instead of simply announcing the news (i.e., there’s a shelter dog in the White House for the first time), the humane association and insurance company created a clever content experience – something for people to engage and connect with.So it’s a bit disappointing to see Pumpkin Pet Insurance (and to some degree, the Delaware Humane Association) miss the opportunity to extend the experience beyond the Indoguration’s conclusion. As of this week, the insurance company makes no mention of the event on its home page. Visitors to the DHA website see a pop-up box with a message thanking everyone who participated in the indoguration. Once users click out on that, though, they see nothing about the event on the website.Remember, if you create a well-received content event, don’t think of it as a one-day thing. Plan on post-event promotion too.If you create a well-received #content event, plan on post-event promotion too via @CMIContent @KMoutsos. #WeeklyWrapShare on XHOW IT WAS DISCOVERED: CMI’s Kim Moutsos, a pet lover, shared the news.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Get More From Your Livestream After the BroadcastNotice something interesting in content marketing? Share it with fellow Content Marketing Institute readers. When you’re intrigued, puzzled, or surprised by an example, news, or something else in content marketing, share it with us by completing this form. Your submission may be featured in an upcoming Weekly Wrap. Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteContent Marketing Institute TeamContent Marketing Institute TeamThe Content Marketing Institute team byline indicates this article reflects the collective work of the CMI team. CMI is a global marketing education and training organization dedicated to advancing the practice of content marketing. We create and curate content experiences that teach marketers and creators from enterprise brands, small businesses, and agencies how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multichannel storytelling. Global brands turn to CMI for strategic consultation, research, and training and certification, and send teams to Content Marketing World, the largest content marketing-focused event, the Marketing Analytics & Data Science (MADS) conference, and CMI digital events every year. Follow @CMIContent on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and use the hashtag #CMWorld.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/arence, and CMI digital events every year. Follow @CMIContent on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and use the hashtag #CMWorld.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aAaron AgiusAaron Agius is an experienced search, content and social marketer. He has worked with some of the world’s largest and most recognized brands to build their online presence. See more from Aaron at Louder Online.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aes in influencer marketing, content marketing, and SEO. He is also the founder and CEO of Content Solutions, a digital marketing agency. He has consulted with Fortune companies, influencers with digital products, and several A-List celebrities. Follow him on Twitter @shane_barker.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/a to your site. Backlinks to your content on relevant websites also can help your site’s topical authority. Google sees backlinks as indicators that others trust your content enough to link to it. Guest blogging, content marketing, and public relations can lead to opportunities to earn links on other domains.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Get Ranked and Read With a Topic Cluster ModelLooking better to GoogleBy implementing all three of these strategies, you help Google see your high-quality content signals more clearly. In turn, Google will most likely reward your site by promoting your content more often and higher up in its search engine results pages.HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Be an SEO Difference MakerAll tools in the article are identified by the author. If you have a favorite tool to share, please add it in the comments.Go deeper into the tech behind your content with Manick Bahn and others. Join us June to for the virtual ContentTECH Summit. Register today.Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteManick BhanManick BhanManick Bhan is the founder and CTO of LinkGraph, an award-winning, mission-driven SEO and digital marketing agency. Manick is also the creator, founder, and CEO of the SearchAtlas SEO software suite. As a growth hacker, data scientist, and skilled programmer, SEO is Manick’s greatest passion and his life’s work. Follow him on Twitter @madmanick.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aContact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aMedia companies such as Disney segment their TV audiences into groups with shared interests. The audience for The Disney Channel is different from the audience for ESPN, for example.Streaming brands such as Netflix personalize their programming by recommending new shows based on what it knows about the viewing behavior of a person or household.Your content marketing program may use personalization, segmentation, or both at different times for different reasons.We asked some of the experts who are speaking at ContentTECH Summit next week for their take on the similarities, differences, and practical implications of each approach. Here are their (lightly edited) explanations and advice.Segment during planning, personalize for deliveryI would gather segmentation data for planning your content calendar, narrowing the target, and understanding the complexities of the audience. Personalization entails using segmentation and other data to serve up contextually relevant content at delivery.Without understanding audience segmentation, you won’t get personalization right. For example, Netflix uses machine learning algorithms to segment their customer bases, then personalizes the delivery of content by showing recommended content based on the idea that if you liked X, then you’ll probably like Y. The system believes you’ll like Y because people within the same segments as you also liked X and liked Y. – Megan Gilhooly, vice president customer experience, Zoomin SoftwareHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Now You’re Segmenting With Science: How to Use Quantitative PsychologyUse rules and tagging to avoid manual overloadSegmentation is something that happens when preparing marketing assets – the go-to-market approach, the various channels of distribution, and ultimately the destinations or experiences that you’re going to send the audience to.The personalization element is really where that starts to come to life for the buyer. When that happens, you can introduce personalization in ways as simple as knowing their first name all the way down to delivering the content that someone’s looking for at that exact moment.It’s tough to think about personalizing for every single buyer manually, one at a time. That’s why you need some segmentation rules. When you can apply those through content tags, you can start to think about matching everything together. – Randy Frisch, co-founder, chief marketing officer, and president, UberflipInvest in infrastructure to scale content reuse for efficient personalizationPersonalizing content and scaling content marketing have the same issue – the need for more and more content to satisfy the ever-increasing desire for a customer’s attention. That solution is content reuse.To reuse content effectively and efficiently, you must:Take long-form content and chunk it into small, nimble, reusable components that are free of formatCreate new content using small, nimble, reusable components free of formatDevelop components using best practices for writing for reuseOrganize and tag your content so it is easy to findBuild as many information assets as you need by mixing and matching your componentsApply format to your information assets at the point of publishingYou also need an infrastructure that supports component-based authoring and single-sourcing. Reusing the same content for new and different deliverables saves time, money, and allows you to personalize content and scale at the same time. – Val Swisher, CEO, Content RulesHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: These + Expert Tips Explain How to Really Scale Content ProductionEmployees are great personalizersPersonalization means you have to send real people marketing communications from other real people. Personalization is not some automated approach to pretend that you care about your prospects.That is why we believe that employee activation is the future of marketing. Encourage your employees to get active on social, create content, share what they know, and connect with real people. That’s the only way to achieve personalization that works to attract the best employees and new customers to your business. – Michael Brenner, CEO, Marketing Insider GroupSegment to resonate – and measure the impactIn a Contently study we just released, only % of marketers said that they created personalized content with specific audience personas in mind. This number is troublingly low. If you want to break through, you need to have a specific persona in mind when creating content.You need to know your audience inside and out. Speak to their challenges, needs, and opportunities. And ideally, you should leverage a content marketing platform that allows you to tag each piece of content by persona, measure how well your content is performing against each target group, and optimize your program accordingly. – Joe Lazauskas, head of content strategy, ContentlyHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: A Small Amount of Data Can Do It for BB PersonalizationPersonalize for ABM successA hyper-personalized strategy can be a game-changer for an account-based marketing program. The individual should feel like they are getting all the answers they need – almost like they have a personal shopper. They should feel like you are there for them in every part of their journey.Companies need to watch out for heading down the dark creepy path, however. If they’re on your site and you haven’t spoken to them before, it’s not about showing them that you know who they are. It’s about listening to and leveraging the right signals and showing them personalized value. – Jeff Coyle, co-founder and chief strategy officer, MarketMuseHANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: How to Make Your Content Personalized but Not CreepyGo for dynamic personalization – but don’t make it too complexBoth personalization and segmentation shine when they are dynamic and responsive to the customer journey. Some static segmentation, such as creating and distributing content by persona, is worthwhile (especially if personas are robust and up to date). But, ultimately, real-time personalization based on customer behavior will be even more effective because it’s timely, individualized, and hyper-relevant to what the person is seeking at that moment.A potential pitfall of both personalization and segmentation is the temptation to get overly complex. With seemingly endless ways to slice and dice audience data, content marketing initiatives can get hyper-personalized and muddy the waters in evaluating which personalization is most effective. It’s best to start simple and choose the most important one or two criteria on which to focus. – Ali Wert, director of inbound marketing, SmartBug MediaYou need bothThe biggest mistake for both personalization and segmentation is to not embark on either strategy. Brands are missing out on key customer insights and optimization if they’re not focused on personalizing or segmenting audiences (and scaling those efforts.)Segmentation has value because it groups customers based on similar identifiable characteristics, such as demographic information or similar digital behavioral patterns. Brands can provide recommendations for “customers like you” while helping to improve marketing campaign performance. Segmentation enables brands to learn more about their audiences so that messages and outreach can be better tailored toward customer needs.Personalization provides value in that it is making sure customers are receiving the most optimized and relevant experiences and messages for their individual needs. Personalization presents the right information for where a customer is in their specific journey with a brand and can help ensure their questions are being answered. Personalization also helps drive conversions, retains customers, and helps build trust between customers and brands. – Jill Grozalsky, product marketing director, Experience Platform, SitecoreWatch outAs Jill said, the key to success is to have a strategy for personalization and segmentation. Yes, your audience wants content that’s relevant to their individual needs. It’s also a smart practice to gather collective intelligence on groups within your audience.Are segmentation and personalization part of your content marketing strategy? How are you approaching them? Please share in the comments.Tell the analysts and data scientists in your organization about the Marketing Analytics & Data Science conference, co-located with Content Marketing World. Register today and save $ with promo code BLOGCover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing InstituteAnn GynnAnn GynnAnn Gynn lives up to her high school nickname (Editor Ann) as an editorial consultant for the Content Marketing Institute. As the founder of G Force Communication, Ann regularly combines words and strategy for BB, BC, and nonprofits. Former college adjunct faculty, Ann also helps train professionals in content so they can do it themselves. Follow Ann on Twitter @anngynn or connect on LinkedIn.EXPLORE CMI BRANDSContent Marketing WorldMarketing Analytics & Data ScienceContent Marketing UniversityContent Marketing AwardsChief Content OfficerWORK WITH USAdvertise/SponsorRequest Consulting ServicesSubmit an ArticleShare/RepublishPost a Job/Find a JobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aJobLEARN ABOUT CMIOur StoryOur TeamWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/aWhat Is Content Marketing?Contact UsJOIN THE COMMUNITYLinkedinInstagramFacebookYoutubeSlackI!LLDMIKwhoissourceRankKPINSummary reportDiagnosisDensityn/a