Another week is down for the count, which means the Friday Fix is here for the win. Sorry, I think I was just carried away by March Madness, which started this week (we also celebrated St. Patrick’s Day). Did any of this make its way into your content or were you too busy conducting quarterly evaluations? If you haven’t gotten around to measuring your 2015 content strategy yet, no worries…we’ve got some good reads this week on how you should go about that along with other tips and tactics for making every point your content marketing plan shoots for a three-pointer.
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What John Wooden Can Teach You About Content Marketing
In honor of March Madness and legendary sport-quotes legends in general, Chris Bibey brings the wise words of John Wooden, 620-game winner of the UCLA basketball team from 1964 to 1975. Wooden’s wisdom transcend time and have broad applicability in the world of content marketing, something that wasn’t even so much as an itch in the mid-1970s.
How Does Your Marketing Content Measure Up?
Hana Abaza gets awesomely honest in this article regarding evaluating your content marketing performance because before she even gets into the technicalities of how to measure, she first explores what must happen before measuring is even an option, which is a terrifying reality for anyone who is taking shortcuts. Think you’ve got what it takes to measure up? Check out Hana’s article and see how you fare.
Seven Easy Ways to Measure Content Marketing in 2015
Tomas H. Lucero delves into the minds of some highly astute content marketing gurus (some of whom have been featured in the Fix before like Armando Roggio, to name one) and compiles this bright list of the seven easy ways to measure content marketing. If you’ve ever tried to measure your approach, then the keyword ‘easy’ will appeal to you. Spoiler alert as you launch into this read, having articulated goals before you go to measure is essential.
Why Listicles Are the New Face of Content Marketing
Okay, AgnipravoSengupta, you had me at listicles. I tried out “blarticles” the other day with the producer of a major magazine, and it didn’t go so well (this is part blog, part article, part wine, obviously). I digress. For those who aren’t familiar with the term, a listicle is list-article hybrid. Curious? Check out this article for a million reasons why you absolutely should be.
Should You Skip These 5 Types of Content Marketing?
Sarah Greesonbach and I understand how a lot of content marketing advice can make you feel like you should be 'shoulding' all of the time. Are you producing videos? Listicles? Blarticles? Sweet should Lord, Batman, can enough ever be enough? The answer is yes, thankfully, yes! The thing is, not every type of content works for every publication or organization. How do you know what’s what and what works for you? Read Sarah’s article and find out (hint: audience is a key factor here).
Content Marketing Gains Traction
Sometimes it’s easy to get into a bubble when we look at content marketing –how am I doing, what am I doing, what’s my story, etc. So, it’s always appreciated when a gem like this from someone who has an international presence like Sarah Mitchell comes along to give a little perspective. What’s everyone else doing, and how can I be inspired? These are questions to ask as you read on what’s happening on the other side of the world.
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11 Big Content Marketing Challenges (and How to Overcome Them)
One of the best things about Dan Shewan’s article is that he looks at several different real challenges that a content marketing effort can face. Rather than exploring pseudo-issues that some articles tend to confront just so they can espouse clever words for wisdom (inspired by someone else versus real experience, no doubt), Dan jabs at the heart of things and talks about stuff people really struggle with like lack of resources or continuously producing quality content.
5 Content Marketing Tips for 2015 and Beyond
Michael Georgious reiterates several key concepts that have been noted in several articles by content pundits (quality and visuals, to name two). His MVP mention in this piece pertains to the lesson we all should have learned from the Tortoise and the Hare, which is that slow and steady wins the race. So, as much as some reads might make you feel like you should be blasting to greatness, don’t worry if those leaps and bounds are covering more height than distance. You’ll cross the finish line a winner if you take your time.
89 Percent of Companies Using Content Marketing Say It Works [Survey]
Matt McGee’s article should be something you bookmark and keep in your back pocket for those times when you encounter people who look confused when you mention content marketing in general or who simply do no believe its capabilities. I fully intend to e-mail this piece to someone who has a colleague who “doesn’t believe” in content marketing, like it’s the Easter Bunny or more recently, a leprechaun. Not only does this article prove that content marketing is real, it also proves that it’s both powerful and essential.
A Sobering View of Content Marketing Effectiveness
At first glance, David Dodd’s piece looks like it’s contradicting other pundits on the relevance of content marketing; however, what he’s really positing here is that though many have started implementing a content marketing strategy, they’re mediocre at best (which can skew results); thus, what’s really missing is the quality aspect, something that David addresses in this piece.
Amy Delcambre is a freelance content and travel writer from Mobile, Alabama with a Master's in Creative Writing. When she's not painting the page with nouns, verbs, and adverbs, she's slaying grammar beasts as a freelance editor and saving the world one sentence fragment at a time teaching university writing classes. In her free time, Amy enjoys cooking, traveling, and testing which plant species best survive prolonged neglect.
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