From push to pull So content marketing is essentially the social side of marketing. It’s the next big shift away from the hard sell, towards attracting customers with stories about them and the myriad problems they want to solve. Read more
Storytelling People like stories, not sales pitches. Not just the facts. In an information overload world, we’re all looking for the part that means something to us, and will benefit us personally in some way. We’re continuously asking ‘so what?’ Read more
The long game Content is indirect. Unlike traditional marketing, which is prone to using the wrong adjectives and applying hype to describe value and hint at that brand experience, content actually creates that value by building the relationship and nurturing loyalty to the brand’s approach. Read more
Understanding what customers want We must also remember that customers aren’t loyal to products, and haven’t been since markets offered comparable choice. Products are, on the whole, functional. They serve a purpose or meet a need. Read more
Where does content come from? The common misconception is that brands, businesses and organisations have to somehow find this ‘content’, or create it from scratch – when there is content everywhere in every organisation. Read more
We can all create content. Will it be any good, though? Content represents a great opportunity, for brands, businesses and individuals – and for good writers. This is because the brands that stand out, or the brands that break through, recognise how important it is for their content to be ‘not rubbish’, or even better,... Read more
I’ve been working with Writers’ Australia office for a month, and my visit coincided nicely with Content Marketing World 2015. This is the first in a series of short blogs on how it’s confirmed my personal understanding of the phenomenon, and the opportunities it presents to businesses of all shapes and sizes. Oh, and the... Read more
Throw someone three tennis balls at the same time, and you’ll be lucky if they catch one. Throw someone a single tennis ball, and it’s more than likely they’ll catch it. The same principle applies to any marketing and advertising collateral, whether it’s direct mail, a web page or newsletter article. Without one single, compelling... Read more
Sales has always been a social role. No matter what your business sells, it’s the relationship between two people that will make or break a deal. In a digital age, those connections are now created and often continued on social channels – which means that many salespeople are now being challenged to write about themselves,... Read more
This year I moved from a client services role in an advertising agency to a copywriting role with the Australian office of Writers. Making the switch was something I’d always wanted but I did have my doubts about whether I’d pick up the creative role fast enough, and quite frankly, be any good at it! Read more