Marketing Planning OverviewDate

Academic Guidelines for Content Marketing

LCBR European Marketing Conference30 June 2015, Lisbon, Portugal

Charmaine du Plessis

Research Based Recommendations for better Practice

Follow-up study: Framework for the Analysis, Research Questions and Methodology

Conceptual map (based on findings) and Conclusions

Importance of a Content Marketing Strategy

Today’s Presentation

Content Marketing – status, umbrella terms

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4Framework applied to Microsoft’s stories microsite – an example of best practice

Content Marketing

• Recent marketing paradigm - creating, sharing and pulling brand content to the target audience

• Joe Pullizi coined the term “content marketing”• Not new, but only more prominent because of

overcoming barriers• Brands have become publishers• Pull marketing strategies to engage the target

audience in compelling brand stories• Many perspectives - umbrella terms • Impeding consistent practice based on own

perspectives, backgrounds and epistemologies

Post Internet branding

Some Umbrella Terms

Brand journalism

Open Source Branding

Influencer Marketing

Co-creating brands

Some Umbrella Terms

Native advertising

Mostly resembles inbound marketing

Inbound marketing pulls customers to the company's products and services by offering useful information and resources

Digital business to business (B2B) content marketing = inbound marketing technique to sustain brand status by adopting a "publishing approach” (Holliman & Rowley 2014)

Little Academic Input

Content marketing is perceived as a "subset" of inbound marketing as content forms an essential part of it (Chernov 2014)

Position for this PresentationMethodical approach and not merely a new catchphrase – Content Marketing Institute (2015)

"Content marketing is a strategic brand storytelling technique aimed at changing consumers' inactive behaviour through unobtrusive, engaging brand conversations in earned media".

Du Plessis (2015) formulated a definition of content marketing based on an analysis of 55 definitions triangulated with content marketing practitioners' views = framework for the analysis of this study

Content Marketing

• Innovative pull branding technique to create brand awareness, visibility and trustworthiness in especially social media

• Can drive social media engagement, steer blog or website traffic or encourage a call to action

• Brand content takes the form of brand stories strategically linked to the company's brand personality or brand persona

• Catches the interest of consumers based on relevancy to their own lives

Importance of a Content Marketing Strategy

• Guides content marketing efforts for best results

• Actions are documented and strategically aligned with company objectives

Perspectives on its components still differ and depends on the company's objectives, brand positioning and brand concept

Drives strategic brand content to the company website or blog to create brand awareness, loyalty or brand conversion

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Different perceptions on its componentsOften confused with content or social media strategies

• Brand positioning main guiding principle

• Purposefully create content as part of the company's overall brand strategy

• Integrated manner to enhance brand consistency

• Nature of the channel for the brand content

• Determining the right channels and volume

• Each channel + users unique

Strategic

Framework for the Analysis

MediumDu Plessis’ (2015) six generic essential elements that encompass the field of content marketing

TechniquesAppealingShould be noticed

Natural, unobtrusiveFamiliar brand voicePart of daily lives

Brand's values + promise Engaging, relevant brand stories which are evergreen = interactiveHumanises the brand

Intrinsic

Framework for the Analysis

Formation

Communication

Du Plessis’ (2015) six generic essential elements that encompass the field of content marketing

Envisaged outcomeDepends on the company's brand strategy and objectives

Framework for the Analysis

CorollaryDu Plessis’ (2015) six generic essential elements that encompass the field of content marketing

Could be adapted for both B2C and B2B content marketing practices

Research Questions

This study was guided by the following two research questions:

• Research question 1: How are Du Plessis' (2015) proposed generic six essential elements of content marketing reflected in Microsoft's stories' blog?

• Research question 2: How can these six elements be mapped conceptually as a heuristic for a generic content marketing strategy?

Research Methodology

• Pragmatic worldview as research paradigm

• Deeper understanding of the stories on the Microsoft stories microsite

• Interesting alternative to interpretive studies

• Body of knowledge of content marketing mainly consists = practitioners' contributions =socially constructed, namely a result of human thought and interaction

• Six generic essential elements of content marketing + interrelations examined within context of example of content marketing by Microsoft Corporation

• Founded in 1975 world leader in selling computer software, personal computers, services and electronics

• One of the world’s leading brands

• Distinguished for its successful content marketing practices

• Illustration of best practice

• Microsite as part of its bigger website

• Features some of the finest examples of storytelling on the web

• Showcases its talent through employee profiles and it offers a sneak peak into interesting aspects of the company culture

On-going study: theory building for the content marketing discipline

Research Methodology

• Website content constantly changes

• Sample of content only applicable to April and May 2015

• Several techniques to narrow analysis

• a) Content auditing software program to structure the website in terms of its most prevalent topics

• b) Issue Discovery, a heuristic data exploration tool, to confirm + further explore these issues

• After identifying the main issues on the Microsoft stories microsite, a 1000 stories were examined within the context of the six proposed generic elements of content marketing

• A conceptual map was drawn by focusing on the study's research questions = context frame

• Cmap software for analysis

• Connect concepts, using linking words and creating propositions considering the results with regard to Microsoft’s stories blog + six generic elements

• First preliminary map, then revised

• Conceptual map will never be completed

• Usually continuously updated and revised as new knowledge becomes available

Went beyond epistemological and disciplinary boundaries in order to obtain results

Research Methodology

On-going study: theory building for the content marketing discipline

Issues on site - example

Research Methodology

On-going study: theory building for the content marketing discipline

Issues on site - example

Conceptual Map

Conceptual Map of Content Marketing: Example of Best Practice

Explaining the Conceptual Map in relation to Microsoft’s stories blog

Companies that embark on content marketing should have a specific target audience and goal in mind for creating content using a dedicated blog or website to share in most relevant social media

It is important to emotionally connect the consumer to these stories which can also be done via co-creation opportunities and interactivity

The company should have a dedicated focal point for its owned content and adopt an integrated approach to create compelling, long-formed brand stories with real characters sharing their

experiences while living the brand’s values

Content marketing is a strategic process informed by the company's brand positioning and brand concept that reinforces its familiar voice in relevant social media

Several communication techniques with a specific appeal are used according to the objectives of the company to make the content relevant + applicable to the target audience’s daily lives

The brand should not be the focus of the content, but rather inconspicuous, interactive, engaging, relatable yet planned evergreen long form stories illustrated with visuals to make them more shareable.

Explaining the Conceptual Map

Important to deepen relations with consumers. The emotional connection with the consumer humanises the brand

The emotional connection with the consumer humanises the brand through these experiences.

Anticipated outcomes of content marketing efforts depend on marketing objectives, brand strategy and brand promise.

Conclusions• Du Plessis’ (2015) six proposed generic elements of content marketing are reflected in Microsoft’s stories blog and are interrelated.

• The conceptual map linking these six elements with Microsoft’s stories could be used as a heuristic for companies wanting to devise a content marketing strategy.

• The conceptual map represents structural knowledge indicating how preceding knowledge of content marketing is interconnected.

• Provides an overview of a domain of knowledge which requires further interpretation.

• Elements are generic which could be adapted for both B2C and B2B content marketing practices.

• Under researched area, the conceptual map is by no means complete and should be adapted as new discoveries are being made.

• Starting point in a continuous academic study to build theory with regard to content marketing.

Thank You!