We've heard it before..."content is king!" However, I never knew that was a Bill Gates quote from 1996?! How things have changed since those 'dark ages.'
Today, engaging content is quickly becoming one of the most important parts of an effective marketing strategy. But with the plethora of content being pushed out to try to gain customers, how do you ensure that your content stands out and comes to life. The Content Marketing Institute took a survey during the pandemic and 92% of respondents said they "value creativity and craft in their content creation and production"
Unfortunately, creating engaging content is a challenging endeavor. In fact, it is the top B2B marketing challenge, with 60% of marketers struggling to produce it, according to Content Marketing Institute & MarketingProfs. Mobile sales tools can alleviate some of this struggle because they are naturally more interactive than information-loaded binders and word-heavy papers. Additionally, these mobile tools are much more visually gripping than their paper document counterparts.
First Impressions
How many times have you heard, “don’t judge a book by its cover?” The majority of the time, our first basis of judgment comes from looking at the cover. Sadly, good books are put back on the shelf because their cover wasn’t enough to spark an interest in the reader.
This goes for first impressions of your mobile sales enablement tool too. First impressions are 94% design-related. A positive first impression can affect the way that a user perceives your company or brand in future interactions. So, you can see it's pretty damn important to make the right first impression!
Our take on creating a positive first impression:
- Upon opening that app, a powerful, hard-hitting image will grasp the prospect's attention from the get-go. If your opening page isn’t visually intriguing -- you’ve already run the risk of losing their interest.
- Prospects need to know that what they are looking at is relevant and useful. Branding your mobile and making it look professional can help you achieve that validity. Be sure your logo is up-to-date and precise and that the color scheme fits the company and the presentation.
- Ensure the content you are sharing actually adds value and delivers something your prospect needs but can't get on their own. This will immediately establish you as someone who knows and understands their unique business problems and is in the game to solve...for them!
What Content is Effective and What Isn’t
So, how is it that you make what you deliver efficient and useful? Effective mobile marketing strategies provide the customer with a positive experience that leaves them feeling like you truly care about helping their business thrive. This positive experience is brought forth by the content that you present—your mobile sales enablement platform is only as strong as your weakest piece of content.
As we mentioned earlier, word-heavy documents may be full of information, but the prospect only wants to know the most important takeaways. Two-thirds of B2B buyers (66%) strongly agree that B2B vendors should stop overloading informational materials with copy/small print to improve the SEO value of their content.
Since every prospect is different, it's critical that the content is targeted to the audience to which you are presenting. For example, some customers will be more analytical and intrigued by holistic statistics and charts. Others might be more creative-minded and better digest videos and fragments of information. You want your content to reflect that in these ways:
- Make sure your content is emotionally connected to the audience. Know where your audience comes from and how to tailor the pathos of your message to sell your product. Providing personal examples deepens their connection with your product and further establishes it as something that they not only want but something that they need.
- Demonstrate industry knowledge using examples and statistics. Keep in mind that not everyone is familiar with what you do, and using heavy industry-specific lingo can be overwhelming. Simplify where it is necessary.
- Uphold an aspect of interest. If you do the two previous things, this will follow.
Include Visual Content
When people hear information, they're likely to remember only 10% of that information three days later. However, if a relevant image is paired with that same information, people retained 65% of the information three days later. Regardless of the audience you are presenting to, you want the prospect to remember your product and your brand.
The hype around interactive content is real, and it's here! In today's environment, your pdf's, spec sheets and linear sales presentations aren't going to be enough to keep your prospects engaged. Technology has changed the game for content creators, allowing anyone to create rich, interactive content experiences without needing outside agencies, software installation, or coding skills. But it's also critical that you have a digital sales platform in place with something like a digital sales room to effectively share this information and truly engage your buyers.
Using interactive elements like pictures, videos, and virtual product tours may be the key to keeping your brand and solution at the top of your prospect’s mind.
Becoming Better Storytellers
Just because people don’t like information-heavy documents doesn’t mean that people don’t like to read. The difference between the words people don’t want to read and the words that people enjoy reading is in the way it is presented.
Turning your content into a story and presenting it in an interactive way can inspire and compel the consumer that a regular sales pitch never could. According to Kuno Creative, there are four simple components of creating a story:
1. Setting - Highlight how your content is relevant to your consumer.
2. Conflict - This is the time to show how the product or service you are trying to sell is going to directly help the consumer.
3. Resolution - Use specific examples of how your product or service helped a company with a similar problem to your consumer. Pull information from success stories that highlight how your product has helped solved business challenges for other customers.
Call to Action
The conclusion to your story is the call to action. After a compelling presentation, prospects may be ready to make the next move forward. This is your chance to show the prospect what their next steps are. Much like the content, the CTA needs to be strategically tailored to the audience it is presented to and in a way that is relevant to theirs and your business objectives.
The Daily Egg explains three things that effective CTAs include:
1. An opportunity for the prospect to try your product without being forced to commit to it right away. This often comes in the form of a free trial or even an interactive demo.
2. A next step. In other words, tell them what they need to do when they are done digesting your content, i.e. “Click here.”
3. A clear direction that you want them to respond to right away. They might forget or never return if they take more time to think about it.
Every piece of content can be engaging. Knowing who you are talking to and what motivates them can help you to craft a story and present relevant information.
