If Content Marketing Was A Train ....

Stop, go, pause.  Stop, go, pause.

Traditional marketing and most PR moves from one campaign to the next. You plan, implement, await  results, adjust and then start over again. Traditional approaches are like a milk train chugging from point to point, stopping at all stations along the way.  It is slow and steady and with with a lot of stops and station masters along the way putting themselves  between you and your customers.

On the other hand content marketing is like a hi-speed inter-city locomotive. You hop on and you're there for the journey.  The crew and passengers are together until they safely reach their destination and during their travels get to understand and appreciate each other. 

Related post:  Content marketing: why now?

  

Connect With People Who Connect With Others

Key influencers are one audience with the power to help or hinder your communications efforts particularly if you work in a not for profit organisation.   

They are the individuals others turn to for advice, information or help when it comes to making important decisions. They can boost your communications efforts by helping you to reach individuals or groups of interest and by swaying opinion and encouraging action. In previous times key influencers relied mainly on personal contacts to pass along information. However with today’s explosion in social media and on-line platforms the key influencer is often an e-influencer.

Key influencers draw their authority from their organizational status, personal qualities or any combination of both. They might be experts in their chosen field or enjoy professional respect such as doctors, teachers etc. They could lead professional associations, government agencies, businesses or community groups. Or they might get pleasure from  sharing their specialist knowledge or experience through networking. Sometimes celebrities, movie stars or sportspeople are recruited to support causes. While they might create publicity, the community can smell out paid endorsements and their value can be dubious unless they have a genuine commitment to the cause.   

Common types of key influencers for local not for profits are: 

• Members of Parliament, funding staff in government agencies, civic or city government leaders.
• Business leaders.
• People the media routinely quote as authority figures.
• Leaders of patient groups, school committees, service clubs, sporting bodies and other community groups.
• State and national advocacy organisations.
• Academics with expertise in an issue.
• People recognised through national honours and awards.

 A key influencer can help a not for profit in three ways. If they believe in your cause they can give it credibility by championing it within their networks. They can “translate” information into language others can understand and are well placed to pass on information through their own organization’s online and other communications channels.   

Key influencers can also help by:

• Referring potential clients to your services or information.
• Encouraging people to support your cause and to attend your events.
• Inviting you to speak at their gatherings or by appearing at your events.
• Backing your issue in the media, on-line and in daily conversations.

 Key influencers vary from environment to environment.  For example you may be influential when it comes to advising on not for profit services.  However others would probably not seek out your advice on buying a car – unless they felt you had proven expertise in automobiles.

Are You An Audience Addict?

 Most organisations want to reach as many people with as much information as possible in the shortest possible time. 

This is a natural ambition because they think this will speed up their chances of success.  After all we humans are an impatient lot and demand instant results. 

The cold, hard truth however is most of us have limited budgets, time and energy levels so reaching everybody quickly becomes expensive and exhausting. We simply do not have the dollars or stamina for this so we need to rank or prioritise our audiences.

Start out by asking which individuals and groups matter most to your business?

The answer will lead you to identify your must reach audiences and help to put a laser-like focus to your marketing. The must reaches are people on whom you depend heavily, who are or will be personally affected by your work or who can markedly influence the success of your services. When it comes to giving attention they must be your number one priority.  Most often they are your staff, volunteers, current and potential clients or customers and of course people with the funding.

Another significant group is those who can help you at some point or might benefit from what you offer.  Their support is less critical so you do not need to spend as much time with them. They could be regulators, kindred organizations or even professionals that refer people to your services. Of course they still need to know about you but not as often as the must reach group. 

A lesser priority still are the people who need occasional information.  For example your local community becomes important at fundraising time but probably don't  need to hear from you continually throughout the year.  

It's wise to set achievable audience priorities  yet recognise they need to be regularly reviewed as your circumstances and operational environment change.