Welcome to this free course to help you get started with Content Marketing. This introductory course gives you the tools to get up and running fast! We'll cover: 1) Getting to know your competitors 2) How are you different? 3) Getting to know your customers (and their pains!) 4) Content is not essay writing! 5) STOP! What you must do before you release your content! You will also find a Content Marketing Workbook at the end of the course to help you put what we have covered into action! If you would like to receive the occasional email about up and coming courses please sign up here! www.49digital.usefedora.com

1. @49digital
Kickstart Your Content
Marketing Strategy in
Five Easy Steps!

2. Hi, I’m Helena Hill
Welcome to this free course on
how to kickstart your content
marketing strategy! After
you’ve finished the slides you
will find a short workbook
where you can put some of the
things we’ve covered into
action and start converting
more visitors into paying
customers!

3. AGENDA
Intro: Finding time for Content Marketing
1. So you think you know your customers?
2. What makes your business different?
3. Do you really know your customers’ pains?
4. What content is not
5. Don’t press ‘Publish’ yet!
6. Bonus Workbook

4. FINDING TIME FOR
CONTENT
MARKETING
These days we’re all hearing the term
‘Content Marketing‘ almost as often as
other digital marketing terms such as SEO,
social media , inbound etc…
In fact, the difference between each of
these areas of marketing is diminishing as
the digital era firmly establishes itself as
the primary marketing channel for most
businesses worldwide.

5. So, if you’ve heard of Content Marketing you probably know that you
should be doing it.
However, as a busy business owner or marketing professional, other
demands on our time rarely allow for hours (if not days!) researching
what our audience wants, producing relevant, quality content and
developing strategy to get it out there.
In this free course we’ll explore how to kickstart your Content
Marketing strategy without having to spend much time doing it! In
fact, you should be able to do most of this work in 60 minutes!

6. LET’S GET STARTED!

7. Who Are Your
Competitors Anyway?
1

8. If you know your industry/business area well then this
really should only take a few minutes. For example, if
you run a Real Estate business, it’s more than likely that
there are other Realtors/Agents serving the same
geographical area.
Getting a good idea of who they are and what they’re
up to online is super easy – just pop a search term in to
Google! For example, a term such as ‘Realtors in Long
Beach WA’ brings up everything from websites to
Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, Google+ and Pinterest
pages!

9. Google search
term
Social media
results
Organic results

10. Taking a little time to visit
some of these pages will be
time VERY well spent. You
will find that there are some
businesses who have a
website as well as a
Facebook page, some that
don’t have either (oh yes, it’s
true!) and others that are very
active on several social
media channels.

11. Use what you find here to
determine which social
media channels are
suitable for your
business.
Visit competitor Facebook
pages and Twitter
accounts and take a look
at how often they post and,
most importantly, which
types of post attract the
most engagement with
their ‘likers’ and followers.
Memes?
Video?
Questionnaires?
Photos? Tips?
How to…?
Testimonials?

12. What Makes You Different?
2

13. Taking some time to find out what the
competition is up to may have been rather
enlightening!
Not only have you found out what (if anything) your
competition is up to online, you might well have
discovered that your business offers products or
services that they’re not or that you can do better.

14. Here’s your opportunity
to create some great
content.
www.49digital.usefedora.com

15. If you struggle with content creation here’s how to
get started!
Now, we’re not saying that you should name and shame your
competitors for not offering something; more that you should be
sharing what you offer to your customers!
So, what might these differences be?
Ask yourself, what makes my business
unique?

16. • free delivery?
• exceptional service?
• expertise in your niche?
• an unrivalled customer experience?
• a free trial?
• a product or service your competitors don’t offer?
• a superior product or service?
• something else?!
Is it…

17. 3
Getting to Know Your Customers
(and their pains!)

18. Unless you regularly offer
your audience interesting,
valuable, educational and
relevant content, the
likelihood of repeat custom is
substantially reduced.

19. Run the same search that you used for
competitor research. Take another look
at blog comments, social media posts,
replies and engagement. What do their
customers like or dislike about your
competitors’ services or products.
What could they do better? What are
they doing well? Can you solve a
particular problem or provide
something that is hard to find?
How do we keep them
coming back?

20. What Real People Really
Want to Know!
• Common Challenges (when selling a house)
• Tips (on how to get my house ready to sell)
• How to (choose a Realtor)
• Cost of (selling my home)
• List of (who to contact when I move)
• Why? (should I use a Realtor when selling my home)
• Guide to (buying my first home)
• Common concerns about (moving to an older house)
• Where to get help with (mortgages)

21. The sooner you discover what your customers actually
want and expect the better placed you will be to create
amazing content that is educational, informative and
helpful!

22. Content Means Writing Doesn’t It?
4

23. Go back to it again! Let’s take a Facebook page. A good Facebook page should be
made up of a variety of different types of posts. What do I mean by that?
Traditionally, content has been mainly text but with the rise of content marketing this
has changed considerably. For example, a business can post pictures, polls and
even video on their page. They can ask questions, share a white paper, recipe or
tell their customers about their latest blog.
Remember that research I asked you to do on your
competitors?
https://www.facebook.com/chilternsestateagents?fref=ts

24. Content Types
Webinars
Images
White papers
VideoInfographics
Blogs
Forums
Newsletters
Comments
Podcasts

25. BUT…

26. For example, if you’re a natural writer but not so confident on camera then
YouTube might not be for you! If you’re an artist then using social platforms
such as Pinterest or Instagram might be more your thing. If you’re a chef then
share recipes with your customers to try at home over Facebook, blog posts or
twitter.
Only use content and content marketing channels
that you feel comfortable with.
Be creative!

27. Stop!!!
5

28. Never publish content without first asking
yourself…
• Is my content valuable to my customers?
• Will my customers learn something from my content?
• Is my content relevant to my industry and my
customers’ needs?
• Does my content solve a problem or answer a
question?
• Would I buy from me after reading/watching/listening
to my content?

29. If you’ve researched your competitors, decided how
you are (or are going to be!) different and identified
areas of your industry where you can offer
something relevant, educational and valuable you’re
well on your way to being a savvy content marketer!
GO FOR IT!

30. Thank You!
@49digital
www.49digital.usefedora.com
facebook.com/49digital

31. YOUR CONTENT MARKETING
STRATEGY WORKBOOK
Use the following activities to kickstart your awesome content marketing strategy!
WS 1: Your competitors: Check the relevant boxes as you research what your competitors are up to online.
WS 2: How are you different? Note down five ways in which your business is unique.
WS 3: What your customer wants: From your customer research write down five to ten ‘needs’ and ‘wants’.
WS 4: Types of content: What types of content would be best suited to solving these ‘needs’ and ‘wants’?
WS 5: Quality Control: Check each box each time you publish content on your website or social media.

32. WS 1: Your Competitors
Competitor 1 2 3 Me
BusinessWebsite
Facebook
PageGoogle+
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
tumblr.
LinkedIn

33. WS 2: What makes your business
unique?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

34. WS 3: My Ideal Customer Wants To Know…
1. The pros and cons of a product or service
2. A ‘How to’ guide
3. Where they can buy…
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

35. WS 4: Content Type
Competitor 1 2 3 Me
BusinessBlog
Podcasts
Webinars
Memes
Newsletter
White papers
Forums
Other

36. WS 5: Quality Control - Is My Content…
1. Relevant?
2. Interesting?
3. Useful?
4. Valuable?
5. Sharable?
6. Engaging?
7. Passionate?
8. Educational?