When it comes to content marketing, the best strategies go beyond just churning out a lot of blog content. Whitepapers, e-books, infographics, video, podcasts…all are fair game when it comes to reaching your audience.
But today, for simplicity’s sake, let’s just cover e-books. They’re definitely a proven component of a smart marketing strategy, but are they right for your brand? Ask yourself these questions to find the answer.
Do We Have the Content to Support an e-book?
If you have a decent amount of blog content, the answer is probably yes. In fact, the more blog content you have on a single subject, the less work you’ll have to do to create something completely new. It may be possible to simply compile what you’ve already written, with a few tweaks, to create a larger e-book on the subject.
What’s Our Goal?
An e-book is a fantastic marketing tool that can help you boost email subscribers, get more product demo signups, or achieve any other marketing goal you have. But the key is to have a goal.
Maybe you’ve seen quite a lot of traffic to a few blog posts on a similar topic, and you want to leverage that to attract a certain demographic into your sales funnel. By defining exactly what you want to achieve in creating an e-book, you set up metrics to pay attention to as you publish and market the e-book.
Can the e-book Support Other Content?
Ideally, all your marketing efforts would support one another. If the e-book can tie into past blog posts, you could then add a call to action at the end of those posts to encourage people to download the e-book for more in-depth information.
If you’re trying to promote a particular product, the e-book could deal with that subject indirectly. The e-book isn’t designed to blatantly promote a product, but if, for example, you’re trying to get more subscribers to your email marketing platform, the e-book could provide best practices in email marketing. You’re creating value without pushing a sale.
How Would We Market the e-book?
Content created in a bubble is worthless. You need a marketing plan for your e-book before you even create it. You should make an easy-to-find link (with image) on your home page, as well as on your blog. You should heavily promote it on social media over time, and email your subscribers about it. All the marketing you do will help you achieve that goal you set.
If you’re ready to step up your content marketing a notch, consider creating an e-book. You’ll establish your thought leadership on a topic, and boost whatever your marketing goal is.
