Help, not Hype: How does this content marketing approach enable you to make a customer for life?

Monday: MicroBusiness and Marketing Marvels FROM THE DESK OF MILES EVERSON: Hello, everyone! How are you? We hope you’re all doing well. Let’s start the day with motivation from our “Marketing Marvels”—outstanding people in the business and marketing industries. Every Monday, we feature these professionals because it’s good to start the week with encouragement from their insights, experiences, and contributions. Today, we’ll talk about a marketer, CX (customer experience) expert, author, and keynote speaker. Keep reading to know more about this “Marvel’s” lessons on a brand’s usefulness and true customer value. CEO, MBO Partners Chairman of the Advisory Board, The I Institute

Help, not Hype: How does this content marketing approach enable you to make a customer for life? Jay Baer: Marketer, CX expert, author and keynote speaker The year 2020 has caused unprecedented shifts in how businesses market their products and services. With the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns, and physical distancing protocols enforced across the globe, various brands are thinking of more creative ways to attract more customers through digital content. However, with consumer expectations at an all-time high, the challenge for businesses nowadays is how to create experiences that stand out from the crowd. … and for this author, creating unique and lasting experiences has so much to do with HELP and not simply the HYPE. Jay Baer is a marketing and CX (customer experience) expert, author, and keynote speaker with almost 3 decades of experience. He has written New York Times bestsellers such as “Talk Triggers” and “Hug Your Haters,” hosted and spoken in hundreds of events, and founded Convince & Convert, a digital strategy consulting company. As an all-around guy in the world of marketing, his knowledge about robust and effective content marketing and social media strategies are well-loved by brands and businesses worldwide. He has advised over 700 companies in various industries, and many marketers come to him to seek advice regarding search marketing, email marketing, and online advertising solutions. On Usefulness and True Customer Value Over the years, Baer has seen how some companies neglect their existing customers in exchange for closing newer deals and fueling the sales cycle. As a result, customer satisfaction and engagement have become nothing but a footnote in those firms’ processes. However, the rising expectations of consumers and the pandemic changed everything, particularly how business and marketing works. According to Baer, some factors in the purchase decision process that used to matter a lot before now matter less… and those that used to matter less before now matter a lot. This is why he believes creating business value equals creating customer value. In his words: “Helping is the new ‘selling.’” This means to continually build on customers’ happiness and achieve success, businesses must focus not only on providing quality offerings but also on creating useful marketing content. Let’s take a look at some of Baer’s tips and advice for business owners and marketers: Creating Customer Loyalty through Content Marketing Baer observes many companies are incorrectly spending a tremendous amount of time on getting new customers and less time on keeping customers. He notes many of these businesses are saying: “We should spend more time on customer retention.” “We should create more content for existing customers.” “We should make sure that we’re not trying to fill a bucket with holes in the bottom.” … yet they don’t actually do anything to achieve these goals. According to Baer, it’s easy to just get new customers when times are good. However, with today’s changing business landscape, he says it’s important for brands to focus on customer experience and education through content marketing. That’s why as a business owner, marketer, or copywriter, one of the things you need to do with your ads or any other promotional content is to close the uncertainty gap. You have to address your target market’s pain points as quickly as possible, on as many platforms as possible (website, social media, etc.), and in as many modes as possible (FAQ page, videos, podcasts, articles, etc.) Baer says useful content aids in positive customer experiences… and for him, customer experience is marketing. A consumer won’t tell a good story about your brand to other consumers unless he or she has good experience. This is why Baer believes creating customer loyalty through effective content marketing is one of the keys to business success. Utility—Usefulness and True Customer Value—is Not Just an Idea But Also an Imperative Baer says many companies are on the content bandwagon nowadays, yet they lack the rationale for creating content and understanding how it fits into the larger marketing scheme. Based on his observation, one of the problems in the marketing industry is that “everyone wants to be a hunter, and nobody wants to be a farmer.” That’s why he wrote his book, “Youtility” as a how-to guide for farming as a marketer. According to him, businesses must focus on the help-not-hype approach to effectively reach their target audience. Baer also explains in his book that usefulness and customer centrism require playing the long game and attempting to achieve unprecedented relevancy. … and with larger shifts in customer behavior in the area of mobility and information access, maximizing your brand’s utility and providing true customer value are more important than ever! Remember: Help, NOT hype. Help goes a long way; hype only lasts for a moment. As Baer said: “If you sell something, you make a customer today. If you help someone, you make a customer for life.” So, you have to go beyond simply exciting your target market. You also have to show that you genuinely care for them because this will help you and your brand thrive in the long run. — In today’s technological world, people are inundated with millions of resources online. Thought leaders and digital marketing brands are also vying for attention. Because of this, content that’s educational, useful, and helpful will serve businesses extremely well in the long term. Baer says in a world where consumers are always on the lookout for information that’s different from the rest, brands should always aim to create excellent customer experiences. With a high satisfaction rate and excellent customer service, companies can positively impact their target market’s purchasing decisions and compel them to choose their brand over others. We hope you had lots of key takeaways from Baer’s content marketing insights! Stop publishing content that doesn’t offer value and only get buried underneath thousands of similar articles online. Instead, provide your customers with content that engages, addresses pain points, and increases conversions. You’ll see—applying these tips will enable you and your brand to establish genuine connections with your target market and earn their trust and loyalty. Have a great start to the week! Hope you’ve found this week’s insights interesting and helpful. Follow us on LinkedIn. Stay tuned for next Monday’s Marketing Marvels! “Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.” - William Penn, an English writer and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania in the U.S. Learn more about Tim Ferriss on next week’s Marketing Marvels!