sej summit 2015: engaging content marketing for 'boring' industries by mindy weinstein

#SEJSummit #Searchmetrics

• Director of Training at Bruce Clay, Inc.

• Published author

• Former business professor


3Takeaways

Develop real-life stories Keep your eyes open for

inspiration

Focus on being practical

and personal


When your Subject Matter isis dull as a doorknob...

What do you do?


Develop Real-Life Stories

When rats invade your car,

what do you do?



“Why are stories so valuable? One reason is

that a story exerts a power beyond the

obvious. The whole is so much greater than

the sum of the parts—the facts, the events,

the context—that a story creates a deep

resonance.”

– Think Like a Freak



• Stories allow us to put ourselves in the character’s shoes

• As the reader, we start to project ourselves onto the character:

• “Yes! That is what I would have done”

• “That’s how I felt too”


• People become interested when they are in need and want to know how

you have helped others like them

• When you all of a sudden have a problem, you start to notice possible

solutions all around you

• A once boring topic is no longer that boring to you



• Develop stories that address:

• How people have used the product or service

• The types of successes your customers or clients have had

• Take testimonials a step further by painting the entire picture for the

reader




Why LED billboards are the right

choice for your organization.



From our families to yours.


Keep Your Eyes Open for Inspiration

• It is often difficult to sit down at your computer and try to determine

what to write.

• Prepare ahead of time by storing a file on your desk that is labeled

“Content Topics”

• Say goodbye to writer’s block


• Behave like a critical thinker

• Reexamine every article or book you read and story you hear—is there

some type of angle or insight you could provide your target audience?

• Reshape concepts and ideas into something new by asking yourself,

“How can I translate this information into something useful for my

audience?



• Harness your inner news reporter

• Always be looking for something new that would relate to your

audience

• Some of the questions you should ask:• What are other companies saying?

• Is there an event or holiday that I can tie to this topic?

• What can I say that is different?



Personal Finance = Often boring

Budgets + Calories = Something interesting



Will it blend?



• Sources of inspiration:

• News publications

• Magazines

• Social networks

• Comments on your existing blog posts or articles

• Junk mail (yes, even junk mail can be inspirational)

• Anything can inspire you



• Even more sources of inspiration:

• Google Trends: http://www.google.com/trends/

• Google Alerts: https://www.google.com/alerts

• BuzzFeed: http://www.buzzfeed.com/

• Buzzsumo: http://buzzsumo.com/

• Addict-o-matic: http://addictomatic.com/



http://www.google.com/trends/

https://www.google.com/alerts

http://www.buzzfeed.com/

http://buzzsumo.com/

http://addictomatic.com/

• Great tool, if you want to store articles and read them later: Pocket:

https://getpocket.com/



https://getpocket.com/

FOCUS ON BEING PRACTICAL & PERSONAL

And once the advice became practical

and personal, it became memorable.

– The Tipping Point



• You have to include points in your content that makes it personal, but

also practical to the reader

• You don’t have to provide an avalanche of new information—you might

only need a change in how you are presenting your message (boring

or not)



No bags or filters to buy. No extra

costs.


• What concerns does the reader have and how can you make it

simple to get help?

• Consider the types of questions your customers or clients ask and

the worries they face—those are potential topics




Embarrassing question?

No problem.



When you are in a car accident, you

will be looking for advice.


3Takeaways

Develop real-life stories Keep your eyes open for

inspiration

Focus on being practical

and personal


@mindydweinstein

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mindydweinstein

plus.google.com/+MindyWeinstein/


sej summit 2015: engaging content marketing for 'boring' industries by mindy weinstein

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