Here at MarketingAdviser, we have great respect for experts and thought leaders.
Joe Pulizzi, founder of the Content Marketing Institute (CMI) in the USA, is widely considered one of the pioneers of using content to win new customers. His work has big implications for financial marketing, which we’re going to look at in a moment.
Here is how the CMI describe content marketing:
“Content marketing is the strategic marketing approach of creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action.”
The idea is quite simple, yet it is difficult to execute. For financial firms, it means taking a different approach to financial marketing than would perhaps be comfortable. Yet if you can become the trusted thought leader in your niche – the “go-to guy” for financial advice in your particular area – the payoff for the effort can be immense.
So what are the steps to applying this kind of content strategy successfully to financial marketing? To get started, there are two initial steps you need to take: Identify Your “Sweet Spot” and “Tilt Your Content.”
Your “Sweet Spot” is the vital first step. It refers to a powerful intersection between your passion and your particular set of skills.
For instance, a freelance food blogger may have a keen interest in Thai food, and also great competence in recreating scenes from famous movies through her dishes. Putting the two together, he can find a “Sweet Spot” intersecting his skills with his passions.
For a financial adviser, they may be very specialised in a particular area of financial services (pension plans for expats), whilst having a big passion for the Marvel superhero films and comics. Why could the two areas not be fused together to create a “Sweet Spot”?
This might seem like a crazy way to do financial marketing, but go with us. Who else do you know in your industry who takes this kind of approach?
Don’t you tend to see just the same kinds of blogs, articles and news over and over again?
If you were a client looking for a financial adviser, would any of your choices stand out to you and stick in your memory based on the kind of content they all put out to the world?
The reason the Marvel superhero idea holds some potential is because it not only finds a “Sweet Spot”, it also provides a “Content Tilt.” In other words, it occupies a space which no one else currently occupies. It offers a unique way of looking at things, distinguishing you from all the noise and clutter around you.
However, the Marvel idea also needs to satisfy one other question: “Does this particular Tilt and Sweet Spot enable us to become the thought leader in our niche?” If the answer is no, then you need to try again and find another combination or angle which does.
This is the hardest step in applying content successfully to your financial marketing. Once achieved, however, the rest is fairly easy.
