The Other Side of Content

Why do people love content so much? I’m not going to be as trite as telling you that it’s ‘storytelling’, that we’ve been using narrative to communicate since we were writing on walls or even that ‘messaging is king’.

In fact, I’m not going to talk about why people love content at all. And I’m not going to talk about how I believe your business can get it right. I’m going to talk about why you need to.

I believe that content brings returns for brands (whether it’s because consumers love it or not) because it turns a logo — a brick and mortar industry — into something that breathes. Something that people can engage with. It adds fat and muscle to something that doesn’t have a face. And, when it comes to building a business, it kicks the shit outta (traditional) advertising.

What is a ‘brand’? To (mis)quote Naomi Klein, a brand is a node that occupies a space in the mind of an individual. Like a memory, and it can be either positive or negative. It’s not your logo, it’s what people feel when they see it. What’s more important (trust me) than the positivity or negativity of that location is the size of that location. If you consider that every day we’re being exposed to a million new messages — everything from TV shows to cleaning products, and Facebook friend requests to whatever the heck the Kardashians are up to now — there are a LOT of little locations rattling around in our heads like marbles in a bucket, all fighting for attention. Your job is to make sure that your marble outranks and outweighs the rest, and the best way to do that is to fatten it up. Add layers on. Like a gobstopper. And the most effective way to do that is with content. Sticky, sticky, layer-creating content.

That’s why content (and, yes, ‘storytelling’) is such a big deal at Eventerprise. We’re still an early stage enterprise, and our dreams far surpass our reach (right now). Why would people give us the time of day, unless we can share something unique and relevant, building our marble to the size of ‘credible’? We know what we do will change the world, but that means little if we can’t fight the clutter and convince the rest of you.

Another question: why (apart from the fact that it’s awesome) do you think Star Wars became as big as it did? It’s not just because it’s amazing (which it is, putting aside I, II and III ‘bad choices’ made along the way), but because the movie itself was only a small part of the project. Thanks to George Lucas’ original contract, he only made money off the merchandise, so he pushed merch as hard, and as far as he could. This means that the trials and tribulations of young Luke became literally household, with lunchboxes, toys, mugs, T-shirts and even, more recently, sex toys (here’s the link: my pleasure). I have a Death Star (Mk 1) tattoo, for goodness sakes.

End result: Star Wars is far outweighed by the concept of Star Wars. It’s so big that even if you haven’t seen the movies (for shame!) you get the idea, you know the characters, and probably even a few of the quotes. The concept feeds back into the core (the movies), creating critical mass, and an enterprise which won’t be forgotten while our race still lives. Now, that’s a sci-fi epic set in space, with light sabres and gold bikini-clad Leias — your business isn’t. What are you doing about it?

What about advertising? Advertising is the creepy guy at the bar in the expensive shirt and pedophile glasses, who hits on every one, and never succeeds. We’re untrusting at the best of times, so would you use that guy as a rep and intentionally send him out to get you new customers?

There’s another thing about good content: it’s a sneaky way to engage with people more often that they’d normally allow you to, given the choice. There are more platforms (social, email, etc.) on which to do it, and you’re discussing more than just your next pricing special, you’re sharing truths. And, by adding value to their lives (which good content does), they’re less quick to close the door on your foot, like we do every time an advert comes on during The Big Bang Theory *click*. If you’ve done your job right, they’ll spread your content on your behalf, which is like your sister introducing you to the aforementioned creepy-bar-guy (who turns out to be really nice, if misunderstood, and you end up dating for a year before you get married, in Spain and then start a pottery business so you can spend more time together with the twins). Your marble just keeps getting bigger and bigger, crushing some of the smaller ones in the brain-bucket.

Next — it’s generally more measurable. John Wanamaker once said, “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; I just don’t know which half.” Digital content (the preferable way of engaging these days) is trackable. You can check what works, tweak and try again, without blowing a hole the size of Pakistan in your budget. Barry and Grant at HQ are kings of this — I’ve seen them punch out three versions of the same story in a day, just to get the data and push out a hugely successful fourth iteration a few minutes later.

The biggest interaction and traction we get at Eventerprise is through our blogs. By far. The stories we share about the inner workings of the company, which humanize the business and what we do, fatten the marble in the minds of our market. The engagement we create, in turn, creates new customers, who have been introduced by people they trust, because those people trust us.

Content marketing is totally the newest business/marketing buzzword, but that doesn’t mean it’s no longer relevant. It always has been — even before we had a name for it — and it will continue to be. Just because people mess it up (advertising agencies, I’m pointing at you) doesn’t mean you will. There’s a whole new galaxy out there, but make sure it’s not a ‘long, long’ time before you find it.