So, why do we publish all this online content, anyway?
See if this sounds right:
- You need to attract attention and make people aware of who you are and what you do.
- You then need to transform that attention into revenue or some other measurable benefit.
Sounds like what advertising is supposed to do, but doesn’t do so well anymore.
The plain truth is, great content is the most effective way to advertise online, because to be considered great content, it can’t look anything like what we consider advertising. But great content does need to naturally demonstrate that you’re knowledgeable about your field of expertise, and that’s why it works so well.
Think about it… the advertising we actually enjoy is often witty and entertaining, but it doesn’t persuade us to do anything. Even a dry article about tax savings tips has more promotional value than most hip television commercials.
What if that dry article on taxes had an element of theater to it? Maybe a hook that helped it reach more people who needed the information, all while exponentially enhancing the return on a relatively tiny investment?
2008 has kicked off with Gawker Media—the original proponent of the “post til you drop” approach to blogging—claiming to want fewer posts that amount to more. This is the approach I’ve practiced and preached for the last two years, and yet smart people are concerned that this “more bang per post” approach will cheapen the discourse in the blogosphere that much more.
And who can blame them for the worry? When the self-proclaimed poster boy for business blogging admits that he can’t think of ways to attract attention without being an asshat, we’ve got a problem.
What’s needed is a bit more imagination, creativity, and strategic thinking.
So, that’s what we’ll be exploring in this Innovative Content series.
Stay tuned.
