Those books from NCR and others like it that could be found in the advertisements of magazines were perfect examples of what's become known as content marketing. As far back as 2009, it was a term used in books on web marketing, and even in one notable case at AOL, a job title. Some marketers have balked at the term, while others have defended it, not only as a phrase, but also as a philosophy and approach to marketing.
One of content marketing's biggest champions has been Joe Pulizzi, who founded The Content Marketing Institute, a conference - Content Marketing World, and a publication, the Chief Content Officer magazine. McGraw Hill has just released his latest book on the subject, Epic Content Marketing: How to Tell a Different Story, Break Through the Clutter, and Win More Customers By Marketing Less.
Pulizzi's book is a worthy guide for marketers on both the brand and agency sides of the house. The author hasn't written just another book on content marketing 101 - it states it clearly in the title - he's going for EPIC!
The book is filled to the brim with do's and don'ts. Pulizzi offers 15 causes of why current content marketing may not be benefiting the organization, including: self-centeredness, fear of failure, communicating in silos, lack of C-suite sponsorship, and more. He goes on to provide six principles of epic content marketing:
- Fill a need
- Be consistent
- Be human
- Have a point of view
- Avoid "sales speak"
- Be best-of-breed
The thinking and advice around these principles is interspersed with numerous case studies and interviews that support the principles. Many of the case studies are from larger organizations or brands, like Red Bull, the Coca-Cola Company, and P&G - but he also provides case studies from smaller companies like a pool and spa company with 20 employees.
Some of the highlights of the book include creating a content marketing mission statement, creating an editorial calendar, and marketing your content. That's right - not only do you create content for marketing, but then you have to market that content as well. And as is the case in any marketing endeavors, we need to be able to ascertain the real value of their activities. Pulizzi offers some great approaches to identifying that value so that you can communicate that value to your executives.
My recommendation is that when you buy this book, you buy a blank notebook to go along with it so that you can take notes - maybe a highlighter pen as well. Squeeze this book hard - squeeze all of the good information out of it. If enough marketers do that, the whole world of marketing is going to be that much better.
Disclaimer: I received a review copy of the book from McGraw Hill.