The Key to Creating More Effective Content

Guest blog by Dennis Bridges, MBA

In my last blog post for X5 I talked about marketing, more specifically how to build and share your message more effectively.

One of the steps I mentioned was understanding where and when to share that message, mostly with respect to social media. The last few weeks I haven’t been able to get that thought out of my head. I’ve noticed more and more that we – as a society – are addicted to distraction. People are walking around glued to there smartphones or tablets…there are screens everywhere!  In bars, waiting rooms, bathrooms, cars, offices, bedrooms, nothing is sacred. The other night I was visiting my old roommate and he was watching the hockey game while surfing the web on his tablet and tweeting his opinions from his smartphone. We can no longer be force fed information, because we have too many choices for where to focus our attention.  When was the last time you watched a TV commercial…were you even paying attention to it or did you hit fast forward once you remembered you could? You’re not alone.

What does this mean for your message and the way you need to communicate that message? It means you might need to change up your process! The key to creating more effective content is to stop thinking as the content provider…and start thinking as the content consumer!  A few questions to ask yourself:

• What are you doing when you notice advertising?
• What are you doing when you’re on LinkedIn or Twitter?
• Are you bored on the train or in the elevator?
• Are you trying to avoid being awkward or “creepy” waiting for a friend or a co-worker in a public place?
• Now, when you’re doing those things what catches your attention?
• What type of media or topic of content would you interact with?

Companies and people that are going to be successful in the next 3-5 years are the companies and people that understand how to tie their brand to valuable content that engages consumers. That begins with creating content that adds value. Don’t focus on what you’re getting out of it…what will the consumer get and will they be satisfied with that? If they won’t be satisfied, you can bet they won’t open your next email, click your next link, take your next survey, or meet you for another coffee.

So what’s the new process?

• Outline your message/purpose (click here to refer to my previous blog)
• Reverse your process. Take the content consumers perspective
• Ask and answer the above questions
• Identify what content or competencies you have that will add value and support the credibility of your brand
• Take that content and engage people with it through a variety of channels