Posts tagged content marketing
What a blog post will look like in 2020
Mar 27th
By Mars Dorian, {grow} Contributing Columnist
I believe that if you want to have success in the present you must anticipate the future. No crystal ball required.
Why? Because you want to sniff out trends to ride them. If you only act on what’s already happening, you’re getting sidetracked to second, third or even worse, fourth place. Like driving a Ferrari with two feet slammed on the brakes. Screeeech.
So, how can one even try to predict how content marketing, in this case blog writing, will look in the future ? Well, we have to remember the fundamental laws:
- Nature is lazy, hence, we’re lazy. We want maximum results with minimum effort.
- Content in the future will be based on this principle: Consume the maximum amount of content with minimum effort, whatever, whenever, wherever we want.
The following predictions represent my opinion and not the truth, so if there’s a time traveler from the future in the audience, don’t eliminate me with your ray gun because my predictions didn’t all come true in 2020. Cool?
Let’s roll. Six possible futures of the blog post in 2020:
1) High-end, low-end blogging styles.
I believe the normal 500 – 1000 word blog posts will enter oblivion because content will serve one of the two emerging reader camps:
Snippet readers – According to FastCompany, Facebook updates make for the most memorable writing. Strange, but it makes sense. With the ever-increasing battle for attention, people crave minimalistic, write-it-like-you-say-it content. Mini-blog posts that can be consumed like fast food, not rich in nutrition, but they give you the essentials.
Long-form essay readers – On the other site we’ll larger sized articles (1000 – 7000 words and more). These are going to be evergreen, in-depth articles, almost mini ebooks, that require more sitting and attention but reward you with more brain nutrition (aka valuable information!). They can be offered for a minimal fee, let’s say .99 cents or 2 dollars (think Kindle-single) or will be infrequently published in longer time intervals.
2) Mobile optimized content psychology.
I’m not talking responsive design and bigger fonts. I mean writing specifically for the mobile person in mind.
In Japan for example, cellphone novels are all the rage. They are romance and paranormal based stories in messaging style, created in a way that makes them readable on the go. Smirk all you want, but these sell up to 400,000 units per digi-novel. Even if you don’t plan on writing e-novels, this comes with mass inspiration for possible blogging ideas :
One thought one paragraph. Wayyy more white space to allow eyes to breathe. Simpler structure and bite-sized chapters so people can read between breaks / commute / waiting. And even more white space.
America’s best-selling fiction author James Patterson already implements this style. Maybe we should too.
3) Real time blogging.
This is the old model: Write a blog post, publish it, share on social media, wait for comments = clumsy and time-consuming. In the future, live blogging could be the alternative.
A content creator could say: Real time blogging from me, every Monday and Thursday. At a specific time, people show up online and interact live with the creator.
Baratunde Thurston did something like this with his last book. Fans could go online and see the words on the screen as he was in the act of writing.
4) Co-created content creation (alliteration ahoy!)
Like the example above, the idea of the author writing “to” their audience will be outdated. It’s going to be more of a dialogue. Mark Schaefer has often said the comment section on {grow} is better than the original posts. Well, now the comments can BE the post, as he could live-write a killer post, and YOU, the audience, could participate and share your info and expertise directly into it, in real-time. Think of it as valuable commenting live-embedded into the post.
5) True global blogging.
Most native English speakers don’t understand how few people in the world actually speak and understand English.
I live in the so-called European Startup hub Berlin, and even here most people can’t understand English that goes beyond High School level. Meh.
The advancement of online translation will change that. Every person with zero English skills will be able to instantly AND perfectly translate your blog post into their native tongue. And I mean perfectly, not awkward Google translate style.
Forget about only Europeans and North Americans commenting on your blog. The next comment will come from a Nepalese village girl that digs your article on advanced social media metrics.
6) Blog posts will be screen independent.
In a few years, people (including our future selves) will look back and laugh at our midget screens. In 2020, only savages will use static screens. Blog posts and digital content won’t be read on your portable screen, but everywhere “on” your surrounding.
How?
Well, you use your micro-chip infused glasses (like Google Glasses) and / or contact lenses to project the required information straight into your environment. Walls, streets, storefronts, heck, even your car could be used as a background for your digitally projected content. Information is going to be (screen) free.
Do you see where all this is going?
In a few years the blog post you know and love will no longer exist. Au revoir.
Just like diary-like journaling turned into blogging, blogging will turn into a different content style that will fit our ever-changing attention span and habits.
Forget how people do content marketing now and focus on how it will be done in the future. It’s time to blog back to the future.
Mars Dorian describes himself as a creative marketeer with a moon-melting passion for human potential and technology. You can follow his adventures at www.marsdorian.com/
Original illustrations by the author.
SEO Ethics and Content Marketing: Spammers vs.Thought Leaders
Mar 25th
By {grow} Community Member Andy Crestodina
Blogging is work. Finding time is hard, and pushing back deadlines isn’t easy. 29% of B2B marketers report that “producing enough content” is a challenge (source: B2B Marketing Survey). So why not outsource it?
Great! Let someone else do the work. But delegators beware. Ethical issues pop up when you outsource your blogging, especially when the goal is SEO. As usual, search is on the front lines of marketing ethics.
The ethics of outsourcing content isn’t black and white. There’s a spectrum of SEO ethics, ranging from the easy (but shady) to the difficult (but pure).
Link Spammers
The last few years have been tough for SEOs, especially those who relied on link networks, article spinning, and directory submissions to build links. Google’s rank-crushing (but cute-sounding) algorithm updates, “Panda” and “Penguin,” changed everything. So SEOs turned to guest blogging as a reliable, repeatable way to build links to client websites.
But when the search pros start writing, things get weird. For the first time, clients are able to review the work and not just the rank. They want to read the content for which they paid. And since SEOs care more about the links than the writing, the quality of the writing is low. All too often, the content and the host blog look suspiciously irrelevant, even if they are good for rankings.
It’s unethical because the writer doesn’t care about the writing. In fact, they don’t care if the content is ever seen by human eyes. All that matters is GoogleBot and the juice that the link provides.
The Ghost Writer
The next step on the spectrum is the ghost writer. Since the idea for the content actually originates from you, it’s more legitimate. In this case, you write the topic sentence, the opening paragraph, and/or an outline.
Yes, it takes time to discuss topics, but the SEO vendor does most of the work, researching the topic, finding host blogs, writing, and editing. In the end, they may put your name on it, which is where ethics come into play. The topic is yours, but not the tone. Although it’s not written in your voice, you’re signing your name to it.
The Co-Author
This approach is a true collaboration between you and the SEO partner. You know the industry, so you provide the ideas, but you also do the research and write the first draft. The quality is higher, but quality takes time. The post is two-thirds done when you hand it off.
The SEOs do the editing and optimizing. They’re good at this because they know how to research keywords and SEO best practices. They also know (hopefully) where and how to pitch the piece as a guest post.
In the end, it might make sense to give writing credits to both authors. But only one can get credit in Google as the author. Google Authorship doesn’t allow for more than one author. If you want full social media benefit, put the rel=”author” tag on the link to your own Google+ profile.
Thought Leaders
You know the subject. You know your audience. You care the most. This means you have the best opportunity to find the right topic and shape it with your voice. Through your content, you can become respected for your ideas. That’s what a thought leader is.
It’s the highest quality content. It’s the well-researched articles, the passionate op-eds, the detailed reference guides. This is time-consuming, “cornerstone” content. Not the kind of thing you write everyday.
As a thought leader, you’ll get all the social benefits: a growing following, better traffic through sharing, and new connections. You’ll be an author in the eyes of Google (you’re ready for Authorship and Author Rank) and in the eyes of your peers (you may end up getting invitations to speak at events).
The trick is to find the time…
Take the high road (or the highest road possible)
No one likes a link spammer. So go as far to the right of the chart as time will allow. I suggest combining your options.
- Be a thought leader …when you can. Set aside time to write every week. If inspiration strikes, carry the idea all the way through to completion. Let your SEO or marketing partner help you promote it. If you don’t manage to finish the piece…
- Leverage your SEO partners …but collaborate. Leverage your own time by sharing ideas, information, and connections with them. Let them finish the work so you can keep the content wheels turning.
I’m sure you’ve got a few thoughts by now. What do you think? Should SEOs even try to create content? Will brands ever find the time to write? I’m looking forward to the comments on this one…
Andy Crestodina is the Strategic Director of Orbit Media, a web design company in Chicago. He’s also the author of Content Chemistry, An Illustrated Guide to Content Marketing
Top image courtesy BigStock.com
Time, attention, and the content creation curve
Mar 7th
By Srinivas Rao, Contributing {grow} Columnist
If you’ve read any of my previous posts here on {grow}, you know that I view attention as a form of currency on the social web. In fact it’s the most valuable form of currency because it’s the start of every single relationship. However as the supply of attention decreases, the demand increases, and the mass attention myth becomes more prevalent, we need to give some thought to how we’re going to get people to spend their attention with us.
The Cost of Attention
“A link, a funny photo, a famous quote, or even a recipe or coupon are legitimate types of content, but these are not the types of content that will optimize your social media presence and bring you powerful, lasting results.” - Mark Schaefer
Interactions on the web occur across multiple channels and the amount of attention that people spend at each channel varies greatly. For the sake of this post, let’s use a rating system that assigns an attention cost (i.e. how much of their attention somebody spends with you). let’s take a journey together up the content creation curve:
Tweets/Status Updates
Attention Cost: 1
You’ll rarely hear anybody say “that status update changed my life.” As my friend Charlie Gilkey brilliantly pointed out, tweets and status updates don’t change lives, they interrupt them.
At best we might pique somebody’s curiosity with a status update. We might gain a new follower or fan. We’ll have their attention until the next shiny thing in the clickstream grabs their attention. The world of tweets and status updates is like a virtual flea market. People move from stall to stall spending tiny bits of their attention.
Blog Posts
Attention Cost: 3
A blog post is where your fans may linger but the attention is probably transient. A rule of thumb is that 80 percent of your visitors have never been to your blog and probably will never be there again.
Most people scan blog posts. But consistent blogging does create a valuable body of work that can lead to dedicated fans and a base of content that can establish a voice of authority. And blog posts can create conversations and engagement like no other content form.
Newsletters
Attention Cost: 3
Newsletters cost more of your attention because you made a choice to receive them. You gave somebody your email address. Access to your inbox is a bit like breaking out your wallet at the flea market and saying you’ll buy something small. Even Scott Stratten who is a self proclaimed social media “fanboy” once told me that “social is a terrible pull mechanism.” Don’t underestimate the power of email as a way to get people spending more of their attention with you.
Ebooks/Manifestos
Attention Costs 4
“Every major religion has a text. Your manifesto or free e-book is that for your blog.” – Jeff Goins
Marcus Sheridan is quickly becoming a guru of marketing through this form. He doesn’t sell ebooks. He gives away a 250 page bible on content marketing. It’s resulted in clients, speaking engagements, and much more. In his words “I’d rather land a $10,000 client or speaking gig than sell a ten dollar e-book.”
But the more important thing to observe is why this works. It requires a significant investment of somebody’s attention to read a 60 page manifesto or 250 page ebook. It gets them invested in your worldview. It also filters out the people who don’t resonate with your ideas. Here are a few other ebooks/manifestos that have catapulted people to prominence:
- Chris Guillebeau’s World Domination Manifesto has been downloaded over 100,000 times. Since publishing it, he’s gone on to publish two wildly successful books.
- AJ Leon wrote The Life and Times of a Remarkable Misfit. It’s been downloaded over 87,000 times since he published it just 5 months ago. The result is a fanatical fan base.
Podcasts/Videos
Attention Costs 5
95% of communication is non-verbal. When somebody hears your voice or sees your face you go from being words on a screen to being a real person. Consider the average time spent on most blogs. For me it’s roughly 2-3 minutes. Contrast that with somebody listening to a podcast for roughly an hour and it’s clear that it requires much more of their attention. It’s difficult to “scan” a podcast. As attention becomes scarcer and mobile devices become more prevalent, it’s no surprise that some of our greatest minds on the web are diversifying their content efforts.
Books
Attention Cost: 6
When we talk about how someone uses words to impact a tribe, what a manifesto or book book does is show that you’re serious. It makes a prolonged consistent argument. It demonstrates a point of view. It’s a whole river not a drop of water. – Seth Godin
Why are books so special? A book requires much more effort on the part of the creator and of the reader.
When you write a book it causes people to take you seriously. While there are plenty of people declaring the death of the publishing industry, getting a book deal with a mainstream publisher is still a huge credibility builder. There’s something about walking into a bookstore and seeing your book on the shelf that gives it a very special quality. Many authors will tell you their books don’t’ make money, but rather serve as a business card.
A book cements their authority on a subject. C.C. Chapman said when he asked an organization why they called him, they replied “because you wrote the book on the subject.”
The Relationship Between Attention and Effort
As you look down this list there is another important correlation. Each step on the attention ladder represents more commitment to attention, but also more effort on the part of the content creator.
- A blog post requires more effort than a status update
- An ebook/manifesto requires more effort than a blog post
- A traditional book requires more effort than both of the above
When I submitted this post to Mark the first time, he sent it back. He holds us to excruciatingly high standards. But it’s tough love because his high standards have resulted in some of my best work. That’s the trade-off — The more effort you give something, the more attention it gets. In Mark’s email to me he said something that could really summarize the entire the point of this post:
“The most important thing is to create something exceptional, even if it takes a little more time.”
Now, I’ll leave you with a question. Are you creating something that’s going to matter over the course of a lifetime? Are you willing to do the work?
Srinivas Rao writes about the things you should have learned in school, but never did and his the host-co founder of BlogcastFM. You can follow him on twitter @skooloflife
The Anti-Blog Post to Writing Better Blog Posts.
Feb 27th
I can’t read your blog.
In fact, I almost don’t read any social marketing blogs out there, because I’m done with wave bathing in the echo chamber. I’m done with it – people echoing echoes everywhere.
They read Seth Godin, a bit of Brogan, maybe a bit Gary V for the attitude, mash it all together and slam out another samey samey blog post. Bloggers in factory-mode.
I know this, because I was on this mode too. I kept repeating common advice, but I had nothing original to say. After a while, I burrrrned out. Like a TNT stick with both ends lit. Frizzzzzle. I knew it, and more importantly, my audience knew it. And after cranking out yet another lackluster post, one long-time reader remarked:
“Stop regurgitating, it’s getting pathetic. Tell me something original from your experience.”
Ouch.
It hurt, but the patient needed the medicine. I thought I was following all the blogging success advice, but it was leading me astray. Why ?
The answer may be James Altucher, who’s a notorious investor, entrepreneur and blogger. I don’t always like his work, heck, I often don’t even understand it. He’s irreverent and vulnerable, a human fly on my peripheral vision.
But he breaks every “blogging rule” there is to break, and breaks even the ones that don’t exist yet.
But there’s something magical about the way he writes. It’s like the wind, you can feel it but you can’t see it. His content is so unique and disarmingly honest you can’t help but smirk. It’s touching human hearts, and 5,000 to 10,000 Facebook likes per post(!) confirm that.
What’s the secret?
He doesn’t reside in the echo chamber. Everything he writes comes from him — his one-of-a-kind experience — the way he sees the world.
And that’s what inspired me to write the following anti-guidelines to craft content that’s not just another blasted re-hash on the perfect post, but a reminder of what makes great content truly special and compelling.
Now, don’t treat this like an exact formula, that would defeat the point of the whole post. Rather, it’s food for thought, by yours truly.
1) Everything’s related to everything. Use that to your advantage.
Without going too deep into meta-land, here’s a not-so-far-fetched revelation: People who only blog about what they read from other marketing bloggers have the scope of a tunnel view inside a straw.
They’re wallowing in the pool of idea incest. Instead of reading the same-old-same and echoing, extrapolate your niche knowledge from unrelated places :
- I have read posts from people talking about happiness when they’re stuck in a wheelchair, 24/7.
- I have read customer service advice from people dealing drugs on the street.
- I have read psychological advice from food decorateurs.
Every lesson you want to share with the audience can be linked to a more original example. Chose a unique experience from your life, and connect it with the point you want to make.
What has your recent Thailand journey to do with content marketing?
I don’t know. You tell me.
2) The more you systemize, the more you robotize
By now, there’s probably more blogging advice than bloggers out there. Follow it all, 1-2-3, and then you’ll succeed with viral posts that exceed 1,000,000 views. Right?
Nope. It’s the fast lane to mediocrity. The more I tried to find the golden formula of blogging, the more personality and emotion I lost between the lines. Whoosh.
Just as in Hollywood, most people (online) pretend, but nobody knows anything. The more systems and formulas you infuse, the closer you’ll robotize. Your post will be like an instruction manual for vacuum cleaners. Meh.
3) Cut to the core. Hack away the unessential.
This does not only mean a terse writing style, but also means finding the elephant in the room. Most people skate along the ice surface, but they don’t get below into the frozen water depths. All those shiny blog flares, like which share button to use or whether you should tweet at 9 or 9:05, are distracting you from making a point that will make your audience pay attention.
Give me the essence, baby, the one core thought that most people are afraid to address, but deliver it in a way only YOU can.
4) Style over substance. Sort of.
A lot of people will disagree with this, but here’s the thing – If all you provide is helpful information online, you’re competing with Wikipedia and thousands of robot algorithms that out-inform you. And with an unlimited choice of informational content, we humans pick the one that emotionally appeals to us.
So, style and attitude is what we come back for – whether it’s Seth Godin’s unabashed and clear writing, or James Altucher’s irreverent and vulnerable guide to life.
5) Allow your personal truth to shine through
Another biggie I struggled for almost two years — Keeping a cool, perfect and professional online presence seems to be the way to go, but it also got the emotional pulling power of a frozen brick. Marketing is all about evoking emotions.
It’s tough to go personal and open yourself up, especially with all those trolls out there, but that’s the only advantage you have over robots and computer-generated content. In a world where your potential customer and reader is a click away but also countries apart, separated by lifeless screens, there’s a huge emotional gap.
I want you to close that gap.
Conclusion
Before you create your next content, step back for a second and be still.
Are you creating an original piece of work, or are you merely soaking up the sound waves from the echo chamber? Tell yourself the truth. Then slap your face left and right.
Forget about all the average posts about which WordPress theme to use, how we all should have a tribe, and why we need a manifesto.
Been there, done that.
Instead, craft a post from the edge of your mind, with all the mojo, vulnerability, personal experience and original opinions — a little, uncomfortable masterpiece only you can come up with.
Give it to me.
Mars Dorian describes himself as a creative marketeer with a moon-melting passion for human potential and technology. You can follow his adventures at www.marsdorian.com/
Original illustrations by the author.
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-Mark SchaeferFollow Mark
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