Ethical Marketing, One Step At The Time

by | Communication, Content Marketing, Digital Marketing

2020 has been a year of profound changes. Due to these changes, many of us have been moved to make an in-depth evaluation of how we live our lives, which are our priorities, and which tools we use to reach them. The big question is: are we living our lives in the best possible way?

As a digital marketer, I am interested in how people in my industry handle this question. And some of their conclusions resonate strongly with me. This year’s work-from-home and isolation requirements have resulted in many people taking to social media and spending more time online than ever before. We have also seen an increase in digital interactions for business purposes, replacing in-person meetings, conferences, networking events, etc.

But has this been to our benefit? In our October post, we discussed the social media dilemma and the implications it has for anyone who works in digital marketing. In these difficult times, people flock to social media platforms to feel connected to others, but togetherness is not necessarily a priority for these businesses. These platforms are corporate-owned and built to make money out of our data.

RELATED: Social Media Is Dead, Long Live The Membership Community

The Social Dilemma

The social media dilemma has an ethical side that we simply cannot ignore. As a content marketer myself, I have come to question the role I play in supporting the corporate goals of social networks, whether directly or indirectly. On the one hand, I encourage clients to develop a robust online presence, and social media is a crucial component of this. But on the other hand, I can’t help but wonder how fair is it to promote practices that may jeopardise my clients’ privacy and integrity. So is what I am doing 100% beneficial to my clients?

As things stand right now, I cannot say it is. This realisation has direct implications for my line of work, and I am sure many other marketers will be in the same boat. The main implication is that my old business model is no longer viable if I want to truly serve my clients’ best interests – and only theirs.

After giving this matter some serious thought, I have decided to transform my business one step at the time. I hope to document the process and the challenges I find along the way in an upcoming series of blog posts. The transformation starts by no longer offering social media as a marketing tool. My key focus lies on strategy and data-based content marketing respecting every aspect of GDPR privacy regulation. At the same time, I started developing different ethical marketing solutions.

The Case For Ethical Marketing

The concept of ethical marketing is not new; in fact, it was being discussed even before the famous documentary “The Social Dilemma” raised the question in mainstream circles.

Society changes, and so does technology. This change means we must be prepared to ask and answer honest questions about to which extent we should accept the interference of technology into our private or business lives. This is especially pertinent to social media marketing, as the nature of the data collected via these platforms raises serious ethical questions.

But we reach another crossroads: social media marketing (and to some degree most digital marketing nowadays) is effective precisely because of the vast amounts of personal data we now have access to. This allows for higher personalisation, which can be more satisfactory to the user and financially rewarding for businesses. So if we take this away from the equation, are we setting ourselves up for disaster? In other words, can an ethical marketing business succeed?

RELATED: Authentic Communication In Times Of Crisis

Towards Ethical Content Marketing

I believe that there will always be a market for companies who genuinely care for their clients. The expectation is already there, for example, in late 2019 a research piece found that brands perceived as “ethical” get more committed, loyal, and satisfied customers, among other competitive advantages.

As marketers, we need to promote brands and services and help clients find the perfect match between their offerings and what their users need. But in the new context, the marketer’s role has to take an educational or informational perspective. People cannot demand what they don’t know about.

Content marketing is a big win here because offering valuable content for free, instead of using it to track or collect data, is the best move. Ethical content marketing informs and empowers through content, prioritises freedom and privacy by promoting individual choice, responsibility, and well-being.

I have started to outline a few guiding principles that will help me evaluate marketing strategies against an ethical benchmark. This list is work in progress, but I believe it sets me in the right path:

  • Stay clear of spammy practices.
  • The ultimate goal is to build genuine connections, not getting more clicks.
  • Content should deliver value and uphold values.
  • Content should empower clients through knowledge, so they implement ethical practices in their online interactions.

But I also accept that I have my limitations. It is impossible to change the way algorithms work or to influence the privacy and data use policies of the big players. But that does not mean my hands are tied: there are things I can do to limit the influence of unethical practices in my day-to-day life and also in my business.

One of these things is re-learning to use the Internet and other digital products by focusing on how to do so safely. Privacy issues surrounding the online world are a top priority in ethical content marketing, so I’ve been experimenting with the best way to transform my habits first, before recommending them to clients.

These thoughts marked the beginning of my personal (but also professional) transformation towards an ethical online presence. The time has come to critically evaluate what digital marketers have to offer in today’s changing landscape – I hope you will accompany me in my exploration!

Top 10 Benefits of Content Marketing

by | Content Marketing

In the past, people would swarm their websites with advertisements to attract new clients. However, ‘salesy’ content no longer appeals to customers, and any forward-thinking marketer has to embrace a long term content marketing strategy. If you have not incorporated content marketing into your business, you are missing out on many benefits. Read on to know more about content marketing and its benefits to your business.

What Is Content Marketing?

Content marketing uses engaging pieces of content to attract customers instead of pitching products or services. The approach focuses on creating valuable content consistently to retain a clearly defined audience while driving them into action.

Traditional advertising methods may be useful, but they capture the audience’s attention for a short period. Besides, they do provide less value, and customers do not have a reason to stick around. Blog posts give customers informative and engaging content so that they can stick around for more. By the time the user decides, you will be their go-to site for information and products.

What Are the Benefits of Content Marketing?

Many businesses are wary about splurging money on content marketing because they do not understand its benefits. Getting people to think highly of your brand sounds exciting, but what other benefits of content do you get?

1. Increasing Site Traffic and SEO

In the past, most websites used keyword stuffing to improve their rankings on SERPs. However, with search engines improving their algorithms frequently, a website cannot thrive with low-quality content. Content marketing provides high-quality content that will enhance your rankings. Statistics show that businesses that combine great content with intelligent marketing strategies improve their search rankings. For instance, top blogs get 66.47% traffic from search engines due to high-quality content. With consistency in publishing valuable and relevant content, customers are likely to find your website. Repeat visitors will also share your content through their social platforms and drive traffic to your website.

2. Strong Brand Visibility

In digital marketing, businesses have to earn their customers’ respect and trust to make sales. Valuable content introduces you to potential customers and increases your online visibility. A strong brand personality will shine through your content, and you will carve out a market segment for your products. You can inject your personality through eccentric content like videos, infographics and strong calls to action.

3. Helping Customers With Purchasing Decisions

Customers go through a purchase funnel before buying your products. The decision to buy an item begins with searching for information on search engines or seeking referrals. Therefore, if you have high-quality content that provides relevant information, prospective buyers will land on your site. An excellent content marketing strategy will speed up the buyers’ journey, and they are likely to buy from you. Another way of influencing your customers’ purchase decisions is through the sales funnel. However, the process is slow, and the conversion will take a long time. Highly targeted content will help your potential customers to make up their minds faster.

4. Positioning Your Site as an Authority and Thought Leader

Digital marketing is levelling the playing field between giant companies and small start-ups in the same niche. Small businesses can compete with others by creating valuable content. However, if you want to increase your products’ visibility, you need to establish a footprint in your niche. You can use different types of content to engage and educate your audience. People will be more receptive to your products if they have contact with your brand through content. Besides, brand authority builds trust, and you can increase sales by converting readers to buyers and repeat customers.

5. Increased Sales

Nowadays, people are blocking ads that pop up on their browsers. Therefore, businesses need to find additional ways to generate sales. Creating a blog for publishing content is a great way to create new leads. High-quality articles will invite your target audience to engage with your products. This engagement allows you to convert readers with minimal effort. You can also use content to increase subscription to your mailing list, where you can provide personalised marketing and improve your sales.

6. Improving the Relationship With Your Audience

Content marketing allows you to focus on a specific segment of your audience. You can use your targeted content to guide new prospects through the buying cycle and lead them towards conversion. As you engage your audience, your bond will become stronger. If you nurture the relationship, your audience will be repeat customers and advocates for your brand through social shares and referrals.

7. Fuelling Your Online Marketing Channel

There are many popular types of content marketing media, including blog posts, videos, infographics and press releases. These pieces of content can fuel various marketing channels in your business. For instance, a single blog post can attract social shares, and you can feature it in your weekly newsletter. You can also use the post as gated content, where readers fill out a form to capture leads and collect data.

8. Improving Your Social Following

Referrals are any online business’s dream since 82% of customers seek recommendations from a friend before purchasing a product. Therefore, you can improve your website’s online presence by providing useful information that customers can share on their social media platforms. If you have a sizeable following, but you are not converting sales, you should also use content marketing to gain traction on social media. Ensure you maximise the value of your content through campaigns and tracking its performance.

9. Generating Leads

You can use your content marketing campaign to generate leads through calls-to-action that encourage customers to make informed decisions. For instance, you can guide customers to your landing page or another article that could provide additional information. If your customers enjoy your content, they will likely click the CTAs and proceed to make purchases.

10. Improving Your Conversion Rate

Sometimes you generate many new leads through your sales funnel, but your conversion rate is low. That can be detrimental to your marketing efforts. While various factors affect conversion rates, you can leverage the benefits of content marketing to improve conversion. Use high-quality content to answer questions about your products, improve your brand’s personality and highlight the benefits of choosing your brand.

Harnessing the benefits of content marketing will help you improve your brand’s visibility and increase your ROI. Your website will be authoritative and a valuable source of information in your field. You also have an opportunity to expand your reputation and invoke loyalty among your audience.

Generate Pre-Event Hype With Content Marketing

by | Content Marketing

As most event planners know, the ability to build momentum is a crucial factor in any event’s success. Events, conventions, trade shows or conferences, they all begin well before the opening session, so generating anticipation requires a coordinated marketing effort over months or even years. Content marketing has emerged as a strategic tool to build excitement around events. Still, event planners don’t always have the time or the know-how to develop a content marketing campaign and thus may end up missing out on the benefits of this marketing strategy. In this post, you can learn why pre-event content marketing works and find tips on how to implement it.

Related: Digital Transformation in the Meetings and Events Industry

Why Content Marketing?

Content marketing is a form of digital marketing that involves the creation of materials that provide information and/or entertainment to a targeted audience. This content can include anything from e-papers to video to blog posts to infographics and including social media, podcasts, etc. 

Content marketing is different from advertising or traditional marketing in that it focuses on value. Offering free, relevant, and useful information makes a positive impression on the audience and can influence the decisions, as confirmed by recent statistics: more than 70% of marketers say content marketing has increased engagement and leads. Moreover, content marketing involves lower costs than traditional advertising but has better conversion rates.

This strategy suits the events industry, which is becoming people and experience-centric increasingly. And since delivering value is also the key concept here, pre-event marketing is a natural match that can increase your chances of reaching your target audience. For instance, you can reach potential attendees who don’t know about the event. A content marketing strategy can position your event online, making it easy to find in search engines or social media feeds. Remember that a staggering 96% of event attendees do an online search before attending an event, so this is a golden opportunity to present your event as something that cannot be missed – FOMO itself can be a powerful took motivating people to attend!

Related: Tips For Encouraging User-Generated Content At Your Conference

Pre-conference content marketing can also reach those who have already registered and build excitement in the lead up to the conference or event. Some attend because their employees send them and not necessarily because they have a strong desire to be there. But if they see the value and relevance of the business event, they’re more likely to spread the word, and word of mouth is powerful marketing. Lastly, content marketing can reach those who are undecided, and a timely piece of content marketing may be just what moves them to take action.

Pre-Event Content Marketing Ideas

Curiosity is an important motivator, and teaser campaigns keep the audience guessing and keep your event top of mind. Here it’s essential to create anticipation without creating unrealistic expectations, so always get the input from a professional with experience in the marketing world applied to events. 

Content marketing and social media marketing go hand in hand. You should create a calendar of posts leading up to the event in a variety of formats. Visual content and in particular videos are a must, as new research shows that people remember visual content up to 6 times more than written content. Short-format sneak peek or behind-the-scenes videos do particularly well and reveal a more personal or candid side of the organiser. The videos can feature mini-interviews with keynote speakers too – don’t forget that a well-known speaker is THE reason why many people attend a live event.

Posts promoting your event shouldn’t read like a monologue but should be all about interaction with the audience. Ask questions, request feedback, run polls (there’s a dedicated feature on Instagram Stories) – in short, keep the conversation going. You can also create a LinkedIn group, which works well to promote conferences and other professional events and allow speakers and attendees to interact before the event.

Related: Three Ways In Which Social Media Are Becoming Increasingly Event-Centric

Pre-event content marketing lends itself well to gamification, which can boost engagement since it’s proven to tap into psychological mechanisms like motivation, self-confidence, and purpose. You can achieve this by encouraging potential attendees to share event hashtags and offer them a fitting reward for inviting others to register for the event or conference.

In any case, it’s essential to create a branded and coherent pre-conference content marketing strategy that specifically addresses the interests and needs of your audience. Remember that the scope of those needs and interest may go beyond the actual event, so don’t forget to offer value by publishing content with useful information about the destination, what to do near the venue, transportation tips, etc.

Conclusion

Pre-event content marketing can generate awareness, build loyalty, drive up attendance, and ultimately boost ROI. Inbound marketing one of the most valuable marketing strategies for conference and event planners wanting to reach and engage as broad an audience as possible. If you’d like to learn how a tailor-made pre-event strategy can benefit you, get in touch today. As an expert creating content that generates pre-event hype, I’ll be happy to explore effective content creation ideas for your conference or event.

Event Marketing Strategies to Avoid

by | Digital Marketing

Given the age we find ourselves in, all MICE events need to be marketed online as this is where our audience lives. As a conference organiser, it is imperative you create an in-depth digital marketing plan in order to do this successfully. If you have never attempted this before, it can prove quite the challenge and I strongly recommend seeking the expertise of a professional. Further to the technicalities involved in digital marketing, there are quite a few event marketing strategies to avoid.  Failing to do so will result in a half-filled venue, or worse; a negative post-conference response from attendees. Here are 7 event marketing strategies you need to avoid.

Ceaselessly Promoting The Event

Although difficult to measure, I assure you that shamelessly promoting your event 5 times a day online will push people away rather than attract them to your conference.

This is not one of the effective event marketing strategies. Instead, your audience may start seeing you as annoying and that is the very last thing you want.

The solution:

Start promoting your event about three months before starting with a single social post and email, three times a week. When building up to the meeting, you can then post more frequently, but do so in a creative and exciting way.

Mix it up, think outside of the box. Talk about the benefits, keynotes and entertainment rather than constantly reminding people to purchase a place.

Failing To Communicate The Event Purpose

From the word go, you need to be concise about what it is your event, be it a conference, meeting or exhibition is going to offer to attendees.

Do this by clarifying the event. Is it a networking event? A tradeshow? Further to this, elaborate on the value this event will provide the attendee.

Confusing Your Audience

Every time you communicate with your audience, whether across social media or via email, it should only contain a single message.

You do not want to confuse your audience by touching on multiple aspects of your event in one post or email. Stick to one message followed by a call-to-action. If you start promotion well ahead of time, you will be able to cover all the information you need to communicate.

Promise Too Much

Do not over promise. If there is any doubt that you may not be able to deliver on something, then refrain from including it in your itinerary.

Further to this, perhaps include a disclaimer that notes that some activities may be subject to change. You do not want people purchasing a place at your conference for a specific speaker or workshop which ends up getting cancelled.

Tip: For major activities, have a plan b just in case.

Ignoring Your Target Market

Effective event marketing strategies are built upon a deep understanding of a target audience. All your digital marketing efforts need to be focused on your core audience. This is decided by the following demographic and psychographic factors:

  • Age
  • Location
  • Gender
  • Income level
  • Education level
  • Marital or family status
  • Occupation
  • Personality
  • Attitudes
  • Values
  • Interests/hobbies
  • Lifestyles
  • Behaviour

You should establish and understand all the above before you start advertising your event online. Certain groups of people respond differently to different forms of online marketing. Depending on what age and gender make up your target audience, you will need to utilise certain platforms accordingly.

For event promotion, I recommend LinkedIn and Twitter. LinkedIn for professional interaction and Twitter to join in on relevant industry conversations. Sometimes subtly promoting your event within a conversation online is just as effective as setting up ads. If you can get people talking about it organically, there is no cost involved.

Rely Exclusively On Your Team For Shares  

How can you expect to maximise your reach if you solely rely on your internal team for sharing the event and its relevant information online to their followers?

Selling tickets, or filling places is a numbers game. So, in order to reach the maximum amount of people, I recommend asking your most loyal followers and your speakers or VIP guests to mention it to their followers, sharing it across multiple platforms to their own audience.

Disregard Post-Event Marketing

A mistake that many rookie marketers make is that they disregard post-event marketing. This includes surveys, promotional offers, and posting event highlight content.

How can you expect your followers to remember your brand within a sea of competition if you do not remind them of what they experienced? Send out thank you emails, publish post-event photo albums, ask questions and keep the conversation going well after the event.

To avoid pitfalls when creating event marketing strategies, avoid these common mistakes. For information on digital marketing for the MICE industry, get in touch with me today.

Content Performance Marketing: Making the Right Choices at the Right Times

by | Digital Marketing

Marketing is apparently not what it used to be. Online retailers are now vying for the attention of an increasingly demanding public; mainly about what can only be called a fickle millennial generation. Thus, it is very much “out with the old and in with the new” when looking at successful marketing strategies. This is arguably the main reason why content performance marketing is now being embraced across the boards. How can this approach be employed to measure critical data accurately and more importantly, how will this data-driven method continue to change the marketing community? 

Content Performance Marketing: The Critical Role of ROI 

From a broad aspect, the ultimate goal of content performance marketing is to understand the demand for specific content. The ability of the advertiser to leverage past and present analytics will provide a much more seamless approach. Of course, this strategy can also help to predict the ROI associated with an ongoing sales campaign accurately. To be quite clear, this is a different methodology when compared to more traditional forms of content marketing. 

Related: Formulating an effective approach to Content Marketing

Past approaches would gauge marketing performance by merely churning out material and observing which approaches worked the best. Unfortunately, this would often fail to target the appropriate customer base, and without a firm connection with the consumer, substantial amounts of revenue would be squandered. Performance-oriented marketing stresses quality over quantity. The on-demand material will also help to evaluate present and future ROI; essential for any business.  

Predictive Analyses and Performance Marketing 

Another tenet embraced by this type of marketing involves data analyses and performance optimisation. To put this another way, the marketer will leverage all available information (through existing analytics) to better understand how to segment and distribute the content itself. For instance, some campaigns would be much more efficient as email advertisements while others are intended for a social media audience. Understanding how a brand will perform in the eyes of its audience will also help to increase ROI and to maintain a stable connection with the buyer. The enterprise can better understand what is working and what is not. 

Segmenting the Buyer Community 

Past companies would essentially disseminate information to the masses. If they threw enough jam onto a wall, perhaps some would stick. Doing so is once again incredibly wasteful concerning ROI, and in some cases, the audience itself could become alienated. 

Analysing the performance of content enables a company to make timely decisions and to deliver the correct material at the right time to the precise audience. This granular and segmented approach can also help to increase brand loyalty; a benefit not to be overlooked in such a competitive atmosphere. 

Related: Mobile App Marketing for your Business or Organisation

Content Performance Marketing: Lean and Versatile 

Another reason why so many firms are shifting their focus towards this strategy is that in-house expenditures can be dramatically reduced without sacrificing quality. Correct performance analyses will enable management to build leaner teams and enhance interdepartmental accountability. Establishing strong data-driven connections associated with any sales campaign can provide the insight and clarity to make the best choices at the best moments. 

Tying Together Performance and the Customer Experience 

18 billion dollars was spent on content creation during 2016 within the United States alone. It is therefore easy to appreciate why understanding how this content is performing using real-time methods is so important. Content marketing is here to stay. Regarding sheer efficiency, take advantage by measuring your performance.

The article Content Performance Marketing: Making the Right Choices at the Right Times was first published on fmwaechter.com. Author Frank M. Waechter.