2017 Interactive content marketing strategy – Specialist notes to help

It's easy for us to come up with grand ideas for our digital content and daydream about keeping up with the best content marketers out there. But where can your company take these ideas and make them a reality? What form of content is really worth your investment this year and better yet, how can you make sure that once you've invested in it, you have fully optimized your content? ArcStone's interactive marketing specialist, Nick Longtin, answered these questions to help guide your 2017 content marketing strategy. 

1. Where should people be sure to invest when it comes to interactive content marketing?

"The number one thing that people should invest in but are continually missing, is actually studying and building a profile of who their ideal customers are. All marketing should be informed by that. If your marketing is really really good, but is not attracting the right person, then it's not worth it. It has to attract the right prospects.

I'm amazed how many companies – even the pretty established ones who you'd think were doing the right things marketing-wise – don't have a solid documentation of who their marketing prospect actually is. You have to know that, otherwise your marketing will never get where it needs to be."

Develop your audience persona profiles with this infographic »

2. How do you develop these audience personas for better interactive content?

"One thing really good companies do is they actually survey their customers. You should actually ask customers, "what do you like about working with us? What could we do more of to be serving you better?" You should do this at least once a year and everyone can with tools like MailChimp Survey Monkey, or even a Google form. Let your customers tell you what they want.

That's the lowest hanging fruit. The next step would be to work with an agency that can help you form good profiles of your customers. The other advantage of working with a third party is that customers will be more honest, especially if it's over the phone. If you can't hire an agency, make sure these respondents know the survey is anonymous."

5 things to consider when finding the right agency for you »

3. What 2017 trend most excites you in digital marketing?

"Live video. Live video has been around for a really long time. But other forms of video in the past actually required more setup and complications. There have been other forms of video that work really well, but Facebook has really brought [live video] into the mainstream. I see a lot of opportunity for people to use Facebook as a platform to do live content and engage directly with their target markets."

Get started with Facebook Live »

4. Do you think people will actually jump on the Live Video bandwagon?

"They already are. Even business' with a smaller budget. Once they see other people doing it, like the companies they follow on Facebook, and see how easy it is to do, it's only a matter of people figuring out how to leverage it.

I think of it like a webinar. A webinar is a really good way to engage with your prospects, show off what makes your product or business a good fit for people, to answer questions, and to create really good solid leads. Webinars might be more than some organizations want to take on, so Facebook Live as a "webinar-light." You literally just need someone to hit record and speak for your company."

5. What are some videos that will stay and continue to be worth a co.'s marketing budget?

"Two types of video that will always provide value are testimonials and demonstrations. Showing how something works is always better than just talking about it. There's no substitute for real customers talking about their experience working with an organization. Those two will always pay off."

8 different types of video we recommend » 

6. How could someone with a tighter budget get a strong testimonial series?

"It depends. I've seen a moving company on YouTube that had 100's of customer videos. What they did is they went in on-site after a move and got their testimonial right away with a simple consumer-grade camera. Whoever filmed these clips knew how to get close enough and get good audio, but that was all they needed to know. The important key for this series is they asked for it at the right time.

Nonprofits should really be investing in video. They have the innate benefit of getting some services for free. Google gives nonprofits a lot of help with YouTube and there are a lot of large production videos that give nonprofits free videos. CBS studios worked with Big Brothers Big Sisters for free. When you're trying to make an emotional ask for donations, there's no substitute for video."

Big Brothers Big Sisters' video & redesign » 

7. How can people best optimize their videos?

"One thing that makes the price of a video easier to swallow is that you can use it in so many ways. The very minimum is placing it on YouTube and your own website. Next would be video ads in the Google network and Facebook – these are also incredibly inexpensive. LinkedIn allows you to post your video in your profile; any time I post a video in my LinkedIn account, I get a huge, nearly 70%, bump in interaction. These clips can even go right in your email footer.

If you keep in mind the need for shorter clips of a longer video, you can produce your video more effectively to be recycled in many forms. You can also use your longer videos at events, conventions or even in their lobby of their video." 

In the end, if you produce the video wisely, you can easily make it work for any platform."

8. What can companies do to optimize their visual content & images?

"High quality imagery is performing a lot better. Google and other search engines are getting better at analyzing these photos. If your infographic or photos are of low resolution and low quality, they will fall to the bottom. Making sure you invest in good photography will pay off SEO-wise.

Image search is also becoming a major form of search. You'll want to look good if prospects find you via your videos or photos. You can even now search with a photo by dropping it into Google. If you have strong alt tags and titles on your high quality photos, you'll show up more often on these searches."

Optimize your photos with these tips »

10. There are sources that say people will soon be more willing to pay for this higher-quality content, is this true?

"We went from stones to scrolls, from scrolls to paper and now from paper to screens. Eventually we won't use printed material. The novelty of the screen has now faded and because of that, it's the primary way people will consume their information, so yes, people will be more willing to pay for content or at least give contact information to receive your gated content."

Neil Patel's predictions on gated content »

11. What are some best practices with gated content?

"You have to be realistic about your value proposition. You really have to make sure it's something people want. You have to present your content in a professional and clear way so people know that they're going to get something of value at the other end of that gate. Chances are, what you have isn't so rare that they can't get anywhere else. But if you have this type of unique content, it will likely perform better than any other form.

Be respectful with people's information, be honest. Don't try to hide what you'll do with their private info. People will respond better to honesty.

Then, every time you get in front of them, give them something of value. It doesn't do any good to get their email if they unsubscribe from your email marketing content." 

Improve your email marketing with this advice »

9. What are some trends that are on the way out in 2017?

"Some things I think are on the way out are things like sliders or basic simple background videos. Things that aren't adding that much value. Where a typical slider would be, it takes up a lot of space, and unless it's showing something very compelling or really important, it's kind of a waste. That space should be used for stronger more interactive messaging, that has more to offer than just a picture. Things for people to do. More interactive and more useful calls to action."

Was Nick right about his predictions from last year on interactive content marketing? »

Final takeaway Nick wanted to leave us with:

"Online audiences have become smart about marketing and are only becoming smarter. If they feel like they are being marketing to, your content is not going to perform. If your content isn't high quality, they won't buy it.

Our client's whose marketing content performed the best in 2016 actually provided value. It gave their audience information they didn't know about, it provided them with unique methods to actually solve their problems, and it did a great job of explaining what these problems are. Next, our client's content explained how these problems could negatively impact the prospects' business and finally, how their product or service will help solve these problems.

If you have a good business and strong products, you already have this content. You just have to extract and and show it to the right audience."

Learn about working with Nick through ArcStone's video production process. Or request a quote for your content marketing ideas.