Content Rules - How You can create killer blogs, internet videos, webinars and more
27.06.2013 16:22
Content Rules• Find an authentic "voice" and craft bold content that will resonate with prospects and buyers and encourage them to share it with others • Leverage social media and social tools to get your content and ideas distributed as widely as possible • Understand why you are generating content—getting to the meat of your message in practical, commonsense language, and defining the goals of your content strategy • Write in a way that powerfully communicates your service, product, or message across various Web mediums Boost your online presence and engage with customers and prospects like never before with Content Rules. |
Blogs, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and other platforms are giving everyone a voice, including organizations and their customers, yet a survey of more than 1,000 businesses in late 2011 found that “producing engaging content” is the top challenge in content marketing programs. With so many opportunities available for businesses to reach their customers, and potential customers, getting the right message out to an audience is not only important, but expected in order for an organization to succeed in today’s connected world.
To provide organizations and entrepreneurs with the most up-to-date examples and ideas, Ann Handley and C.C. Chapman have updated their book Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business, Revised and Updated (Wiley; Paperback and ebook; May 2012; $19.95 ISBN: 978-1-118-23260-6). The new edition equips organizations, entrepreneurs, nonprofits – anyone with an audience - with a guide to the art and science of developing content that people care about.
“The book discusses how to create and share remarkable content: the elements, necessary inspiration, and some handy tools. In other words, we’re not going to focus on why content rules but on how to create the stuff that truly does,” says Handley. “By applying a few general rules, anyone can begin producing great stuff. What’s more, it’s a tremendous opportunity. It’s awesome to have the ability to connect to customers and would-be customers directly in a language they understand. It’s surprisingly satisfying to spark a direct dialogue with them. It allows you to look at things from your customers’ points of view and inspires you to create content that will resonate with them.”
This revised and updated edition shares how to:
- Find an authentic "voice" and craft bold content that will resonate with prospects and buyers and encourage them to share it with others
- Use social media to get your content and ideas distributed as widely as possible
- Get to the meat of your message in practical, commonsense language, and define the goals of your content strategy
- Powerfully communicate your service, product, or message across various web media and mobile platforms
- Create bold stories, videos, and blog posts that cultivate fans, arouse passion for products or services, and cultivate a business.
- Utilize mobile focusing on both phones and tablets in addition to location based content
- Learning how to “find your story," the number one follow-up questions that the authors receive from readers
Content Rules is a how-to book for businesses of all sizes, interwoven with case studies of companies that are successfully spreading their ideas online, and using them to establish credibility and build a loyal customer base. Handley and Chapman have based these rules on the keys of good storytelling and journalism and on the fundamentals of marketing for writers and non-writers alike, making the rules accessible and memorable.
“Today every company has become a de facto publisher, creating content that’s valued by those they want to reach by delivering relevant information to people that will drive new business to them,” adds Chapman. “Our goal is for Content Rules to be a beacon to the hapless and anxious, lighting the path toward content that will help organizations connect deeply with their customers and cultivate their businesses. More than ever before, content is king! Content rules!”
Table Of Contents
Foreword xi
Acknowledgments xv
Big Fat Overview (Sometimes Called an Introduction) xvii
PART ONE THE CONTENT RULES 1
Chapter 1 The Case for Content 3
Chapter 2 The Content Rules 13
Chapter 3 Insight Inspires Originality: Who Do You Want to Attract? 21
Chapter 4 Who Are You? 31
Chapter 5 Reimagine; Don’t Recycle: Anatomy of a Content Circle of Life 55
Chapter 6 Share or Solve; Don’t Shill 69
Chapter 7 Stoke the Campfire 95
Chapter 8 Create Wings and Roots 101
Chapter 9 The Care and Feeding of Fans 115
Chapter 10 Attention B2B Companies: This Is the Chapter You Are Looking For 121
PART TWO THE HOW-TO SECTION 141
Chapter 11 A Blog as a Hub of Your Online Content 143
Chapter 12 If Webinars Are Awesome Marketing Tools, Why Do Most of Them Suck? 155
Chapter 13 What’s the Difference between an E-book and a White Paper? (And When Should You Use Them?) 171
Chapter 14 The Single Biggest Secret to Creating a Compelling Customer Success Story (Formerly Known as a Case Study) 183
Chapter 15 From Dumpy to Sexy: An FAQs Makeover 189
Chapter 16 Video: Show Me a Story 197
Chapter 17 Podcasting: Is This Thing On? 207
Chapter 18 Photographs: The Power of Pictures 211
PART THREE CONTENT THAT CONVERTS: SUCCESS STORIES (WITH IDEAS YOU CAN STEAL!) 219
Chapter 19 Reynolds Golf Academy: 221
Greensboro, Georgia
Chapter 20 The Cool Beans Group: 227
Greensboro, North Carolina
Chapter 21 U.S. Army: Fort Knox, Kentucky; 231
Fort Monroe, Virginia
Chapter 22 AskPatty.com, Inc.: Thousand 235
Oaks, California
Chapter 23 Qvidian: Lowell, Massachusetts 239
Chapter 24 HubSpot: Cambridge, Massachusetts 243
Chapter 25 Kodak: Rochester, New York 251
Chapter 26 Boeing Company: Chicago, Illinois 257
Chapter 27 Indium Corporation: Clinton, New York 263
Chapter 28 PinkStinks: London, England 267
PART FOUR THIS ISN’T GOODBYE 271
Chapter 29 This Isn’t Goodbye, and a Gift for You 273
About the Illustrator: Sean Tubridy 275
Index 277
