Successful content marketing assets are 90% planning and 10% execution. In this talk we discuss process, tips, details and tactics to help you pitch like an ad agency, brief like the military and win like a boss. This talk was delivered at Webmarketing Conference Italia, June 2015 #wmf15

1. Content Marketing
IT TAKES A LOT OF PLANNING
to be this spontaneous…
@NicholaStott

5. Planning
Successful Content
Brief
Pitch
Define Measures
Creative Brief
Execute
Concept

6. PITCH LIKE AN AD AGENCY

7. Brief Like The Military

8. WIN Like A BOSS

9. A GOOD BRIEF

10. MAKE YOU MORE AMAZING

11. Six “Sticky” TRAITS
1.Simple
2.Unexpected
3.Concrete
4.Credible
5.Emotional
6.Stories

12. No plan
survives
contact with
the enemy…
Colonel Tom Kolditz:
Head of Behavioural Science, West Point

13. Durex Poll…
which city is most in need of protection?

15. Commanders Intent
• Plain talk
• top of order
• Specifies goal
• end-state

16. JoePulizzi, Content Marketing Institute
Author: Epic Content Marketing
Seems obvious, but most
marketers have no mission
statement or core strategy
behind the content they
develop.

17. Commanders Intent
Grow audience and reputation
by sharing knowledge and
tools.

18. What
We make… we sell… we do…
we service… we structure… we
design…
How
USPs, specialisation, design-at-
centre, invest in people,
outsource production…
Traditional Marketing

19. People don’t buy what you
do; people buy why you do it.
Start with why
Simon Sinek, Leadership Expert https://www.startwithwhy.com/

20. A Good Brief?
• A consultative process
• Budget
• Main campaign intent
• Who/Why
• Documented
• Signed/accepted

21. Winning the pitch
1.Organised
2.Audience
3.Solve Problem
4.Price Properly
5.Practise
6.Great Presentations
7.Follow-Up
8.Feedback

22. WIN Like A BOSS

23. MEASURE

24. What Does Success Look Like?

25. Social
Communities

26. Social Communities
• Connections
• Shares
• Interactions
• Applause(like, favourite, list)
• Content insight

27. Rival IQ

28. Rival IQ

29. Visibility

30. “Either write
something worth
reading or do
something worth
writing about” –
Benjamin Franklin

31. SearchMetrics

32. Links

33. Links
Number and quality
• Referral traffic
• Contributes to
improved rankings
• Content insight

34. Majestic

36. Traffic

37. Traffic
• Absolute numbers
• % YoY growth
• Content page landings
• Social media channels
• Other referrals

38. Traffic
Behaviour Flow

39. FULL Creative Brief

40. “the creative brief isn’t easy.
It’s not meant to be easy and
it shouldn’t be easy” –
Howard Ibach:
How to Write an Inspired Creative Brief

41. Intangibles

42. Brand Guidelines
• Use of marks
• Position and proximity
• Reference to brand
• Differences per publishing platform?

43. Brand Guidelines

44. Tone of Voice
Personality, Pitch,
Age-Appropriate,
Slang, Abbreviations

45. Tone of Voice: Resources
Distilled Tone of Voice Guide:
https://www.distilled.net/tone-of-voice/

46. Tone of Voice: Resources
Guardian & Observer Editorial Style Guide:
http://www.theguardian.com/guardian-observer-style-guide-a

47. Editorial Calendar
Ready deadline,
publish deadline,
publish platform
Share Team/client

49. STORY SO FAR…

50. Covered…
•GOOD SALES BRIEF
•Pitch To WIN
•Define & Agree SUCCESS CRITERIA
• Creative Brief, ToV, Brand & Editorial

51. Now for the real work

52. Execute

53. MAKE HUMAN CONNECTIONS

54. resonate emotionally,
passionately or
intellectually…

55. To date, Facebook have
raised more money for
Nepal than the
governments of the United
States and United Kingdom
put together.

56. 30 Million USD…

57. Resources
@NicholaStott
Chip Heath & Dan Heath: Made to Stick
Joe Pulizzi: Epic Content Marketing
Simon Sinek: https://www.startwithwhy.com/
David Kean: Pitching to Win. The Art of Winning New Business
Howard Ibach: How to Write an Inspired CreativeBrief