The “Content Entanglement Factor”: Inform, Engage, Entertain

heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 22nd, 2009 at 4:03 pm

Hey, Christa! Thanks for “reading my junk” and sharing your thoughts with others.

I think that at minimum, thinking through a content strategy is important for just about every company these days. In my opinion, content strategy is at it’s base, the intentional creation of content (messaging, imagery, widgets, video, etc.) designed to represent your brand in the eyes of your prospects and customers. Sharing and distributing valuable content indicates that the brand wants to enhance the customer’s lives (inform, educate, entertain). In the process of delivering that value, the customer’s perception of the brand can shift and take on new meaning. If that experience is consistent in other brand touchpoints, well then things really start to rock…:-)

While Ovation got it’s start with theater’s, we’re now moving into retail, banks, physician waiting rooms, college lounge areas. The level of ‘inform, educate,entertain’ or the mix will change based on a number of circumstances for sure, but in the end we’ll measure the quality of our content output by the degree in which the content (spots) provide value to the consumer.

I’ll also endeavor to develop a content strategy for Ovation itself. We’ll develop a Web site (what we have now is a very rudimentary placeholder page that does nothing for us) and client communications that share ideas about how to market more effectively, build their brand, and gain share. It will take time and energy, but I firmly believe that content strategy should be considered for B2B channels as well as B2C.

What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Different idea? Take care! H

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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 22nd, 2009 at 1:14 pm

Hi, Mark! So glad you stopped by! I visited your blog, too, and found some good stuff there–looking forward to reading and learning more.

I agree with your sentiment “Creating funny content is all well and good…” and truth be told, some brands do in fact achieve a measure of success (if viral buzz is goal) by going the entertainment route–the key is in their objectives, and defining a content strategy that will incrementally lead the brand to those objectives.

Our clients will range from financial institutions to wireless carriers to hospitals and physician groups, so clearly one single approach won’t be effective for all. But we can work with them to develop different content segments that can collectively fulfill the “inform, educate, entertain” bills specific to the types of tasks or activities their individual customers (or prospects) would want to achieve.

In effect, we’d create content libraries with segments designed to inform (“St. John’s will have a new parent workshop…”), educate (“St. John’s wants to help you understand your cholesterol. Come to our free screening…”) and entertain (“Here’s a sample of the kids allergy quiz you’ll find online at St. John’s website…”). The net effect will reinforce the brand position in the mind of the consumer by sharing message with them that provide value to their lives.

At least, that’s my plan!

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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 22nd, 2009 at 3:50 pm

Hey, Mr. I’ll-build-a-plane-in-my-garage-if-I-want-to, thanks for the support! I’ll keep you in the loop. And if I can ever help you at all, well, just reach out. H

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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 23rd, 2009 at 9:03 pm

Todd, thank you so very much for the encouragement, both here and on Twitter. I really appreciate it. And you can bank on learning more about the content marketing work we’ll be doing in OOH space, both here and on the corporate blog I plan to start after other things are in place.

Yes, there are a number of barriers and challenges to the point of entry or first discussion between ‘sellers’ and ‘buyers.’ I heard quite a bit of feedback today from the sales team trying to gain a foothold with some prospects. But I believe it *can* be done. It’s a matter of deconstructing what’s being done today, identifying what elements are successful (because they’re meaningful, providing value), and driving down to the root issue rather than attempting to address the topical or surface-level problem.

I believe an effective part of our message strategy will be to illustrate the low risk, high return of our product when compared to other media channels. And how our product is stationed to be well-received by consumers b/c of it’s ‘pull’ nature.

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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 24th, 2009 at 9:50 pm

(Blushing) It’s a totally way cool gig, my friend! I’m charged up with the opportunity before me…so much work to be done to maximize the potential I know the company has. But it’ll be a team effort, and I’m determined to fire people up and get them committed and connected to the greater good–for the success of us all. (stepping off of podium now)

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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 24th, 2009 at 9:52 pm

It’s a treat to have you stop by, Ken! Thank you for the support. I’ll succeed because I’ll work hard to motivate and inspire the group to succeed…we’ll each have an oar in this canoe and will collectively gain speed and central focus on direction. My thoughts are with you as you tackle your opportunities, too!

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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 26th, 2009 at 2:30 pm

Aww, shucks…:-) Thanks, Kathy. You always make me feel good. There’s lots of potential here. I’m just going to be one of the wranglers pulling it all together.

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