Get More Business By Selling Less of Yourself with Content Marketing

By Kelsey Boudin,
President and Founder, Southern Tier Communications Strategies, LLC

You know the traditional marketing scheme. You’re bombarded with marketing daily — somewhere between 4,000 and 10,000 messages from when you wake to the minute your head hits the pillow. And if you’re like probably more than a billion night owls and device-addicts around the world, the marketing onslaught continues even as your cranium supposedly “rests.” Ads and sponsored content pop up in strategic places and times, backed by the immense power of algorithms growing ever more sophisticated.

The question is, is it effective, this spy-and-pry style of marketing? Sure, I guess, sometimes, if the mood strikes. I seem to recall purchasing a golf swing trainer because an ad — powered by my recent history of internet searches — popped up in my Facebook feed. If you’re in the business-to-consumer (B2C) world it may work famously, but there are many other avenues of business in which a more trustworthy, less-in-your-face approach ultimately proves more effective.

Here’s the kicker: This part of the process IS NOT AT ALL ABOUT YOU!

Content marketing builds credibility, trust (and later sales).

First and foremost, content marketing seeks first for the consumer to find you organically. How? Just be helpful.

Build Trust and Credibility By Providing Answers to Consumer Questions.

Consumers have questions. You have answers. Content marketing allows you to provide those answers in the digital realm where they’ll be found when the consumer goes looking for them.

You can answer common questions pertaining to your industry or product on your company blog. At the very least, make sure to have a frequently asked questions (FAQ) page on your site to delight current customers and help prospects to understand key realities to make an informed decision — even if that informed decision doesn’t involve your services.

The key is not to talk about how awesome you and your products or services are. They’ve heard the greasy car salesman pitch before, and quite frankly, they’re smarter than that. They don’t want to hear how you “offer great customer service” or how your “product surpasses all rivals” or that you’ve “been in business 35 glorious years.”

They prefer to partner, to collaborate, to brainstorm solutions to their pain points. If you’re standing by their side from the beginning, they’ll be more likely to choose you in the end. Believe me, they’ll happily choose a company that’s only been in business three years who doesn’t boast great customer service or claim a superior product if they feel sufficiently helped and nurtured and ushered toward effective solutions. 

Build Trust and Credibility by Adding Value to the Conversation.

Every buyer has a journey. Aptly named, it’s called the buyer’s journey. It goes a little something like this:

1. Awareness – The buyer realizes that he or she has a need that needs to be met or a problem that needs to be solved. (Ex., “Our printer keeps jamming. We should get that fixed.”)
2. Consideration – The buyer sets out for answers why the problem could be occurring and how best to fix it. (Ex. “Why does my printer keep jamming?” and “How can I fix my company’s network printer?”) 
3. Decision – The buyer has found the right solution to the problem and will soon choose a vendor. (Ex. “This company offers the solution we’re looking for.”)

Your goal as a content marketer is to add value to the conversation at each of these stages. And not every step of the journey should lead to a transaction, but rather a call to action.  

If they’re reading your awareness-stage blog about common printer malfunctions, offer some free premium content appropriate to that stage, perhaps an e-book explaining printer errors in greater detail. If they’ve become a sales lead and are ready to buy, perhaps offer some great decision-stage testimonials. At this point in the relationship, they’re finally ready to hear how you’re the right choice.

Stop Talking About Yourself and Start Helping Customers

A great content marketing strategy will establish trust and build lasting relationships with customers. You’ll avoid wasted efforts on widespread spray-and-pray marketing schemes clamouring for millions of eyes in hopes a few will buy. You’ll also avoid the aforementioned spy-and-pry, which just gives most normal people the heebie-jeebies. 

On a larger scale, you’ll become a thought leader, which become legends in any industry.

For more guidance, don’t hesitate to reach out to an experienced content marketer.