The new publishing model on the web is not about hype and spin and messages. It is about delivering content when and where it is needed and, in the process, branding you or your organization as a leader. Sometimes I call this Brand Journalism.
When you understand your audience—those people who will become your buyers (or those who will join, donate, subscribe, apply, volunteer, or vote)—you can craft an editorial and content strategy just for them.
What works is a focus on your buyers and their problems. What fails is an egocentric display of your products and services.
Marketers at the organizations successfully using the New Rules of Marketing & PR recognize that they are now purveyors of information, and they manage content as a valuable asset with the same care that a publishing company does.
One of the most important things that publishers do is start with a content strategy and then focus on the mechanics and design of delivering that content. Publishers carefully identify and define target audiences and consider what content is required to meet their needs.
Publishers consider the following questions:
- Who are my readers?
- How do I reach them?
- What are their motivations?
- What are the problems I can help them solve?
- How can I entertain them and inform them at the same time?
- What content will compel them to purchase what I have to offer?
To be successful, you need to consider these same questions.
Here are a few examples to check out, including a school district, a large B2B company, a small business, and a government agency:
Brand Journalism at Cleveland Metropolitan School District
How Raytheon implemented a brand journalism approach to content marketing
Rebekah Keat Grows Coaching Business by Marketing to Beginner Triathlete Buyer Persona
