When you look in the mirror do you see a content creator? Is your company a powerhouse of ideas and solutions leading consumers to your brand? If not, take action NOW. Visit ThinkLikeAJournalist.com. Brand journalism, the creation of quality content, helps inform, engage, and influence consumers. I’ll show you how.
Content marketing and brand journalism are often used synonymously to describe content that’s created to help the end-user make decisions on a product, service, or company. While there are, in my opinion, some key differentiators between the two that usually hinge on the latter using a more journalistic style to produce the content, the importance of both is absolutely essential to a business.
I love the quote on this mirror because the analogy is on point. Want healthy teeth? Keep brushing them, day in and day out. Want a healthy company? Keep creating content. Tell your story across many platforms.
The more you share quality content, the more you will engage with others. Click To Tweet.
Ever been to a party and not said a word? How’d that work out for you?
In the real world, meeting people (consumers) takes effort. Online is no exception. Talk to your consumers with the stories, quotes, information, and resources that you share.
They may not respond right away but if you stay consistent and invest in some marketing distribution efforts, the ones that are interested in your industry will eventually take note and become more responsive. Growing a community is like growing healthy habits in your life.
You don’t wake up one morning and say, “Today is the day that I will be 20 pounds lighter.” You do wake up and start the program that will eventually shed those 20 pounds but it doesn’t happen in one day.
Build your followers not so you can “look popular” but so that you can help more people. Make every step of your content creation about being that expert resource and you will find there is an audience to help, share, and engage with online.
Engagement translates to building trust, which translates into exploring more of what you’re offering, which translates to sales.
The question asked most of me is where do you find the stories?
Start by exploring the topic from a high level. What I mean by that is step back and look at everything about the industry. What are advertisers marketing? What are popular trends on social platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest, or industry trade networks? How can you tell a similar story with a different twist?
When I was a TV reporter, I would have to tell the same story in many different ways. There was the Morning news report for the 6 am newscast, the Midday show, then another couple of versions for the major newscasts at 5 p.m. and a live-shot for the 6:30 p.m. newscast. Finally, I’d cut down the story for a quick version on the nightly news at 11 p.m., before getting back into the television station the next day and starting the whole process over with a brand new topic and story. Or I might be looking for ways to advance the story the next day.
Think Like A Journalist and the stories will come. Listen to The Brand Journalism Advantage Podcast.
Here’s a trick of the trade. In the old days, I carried a notepad. Today you can grab your iPhone and jot down notes or use it to record a short message when you’re out of the office. When you’re back at your desk, start a Dropbox folder or an Evernote and place all your ideas into it. Invite, at first, a small team of staff members to do the same. Each can have their own folder. Place all ideas into it.
Each week, plan a short editorial meeting. Review the goodies in the folders. Talk about the hot topics in the news. Are any of the stories that are being covered in the news in any way related to your industry? If so, find a news hook and explore how your company can offer some information to enhance the story.
Don’t sit back and watch your competition share their expertise with the news media. Get busy creating and sharing valuable content with your audience.
Get your talking points together. Review your past posts and video stories that you’ve been releasing regularly. See which ones might help add a different point of view and then craft a News Release and send a link to the post you’ve written and a video link to the media inviting them to have a look at your information.
Remember—content creation is critical to keep a company healthy but so, too, is the distribution of that content. Ignore either one and you’re likely to have an audience of one.
