In Content Marketing, Aim for Signal, Not Noise

With 2.5 quintillion bytes of data created every day, the true test of leadership isn’t managing it all – it’s mining what matters, Jess Carter writes in the Indianapolis Business Journal.  The “noise” tends to derive, she explains, from three sources:

• Internal (bottlenecks within your company or practice)
• External (industry hype, competitor activities)
• Data noise (metrics and un-validated insights)

True leaders do not chase each new trend, instead filtering the noise in search of signals, which tell those leaders either to remain on track to realize their own goals or that a “course correction” might be needed.

This IBJ article reminds me of the importance of including, in content marketing, owners’ opinions along with news and information. Whether it’s business-to-business or business-to-consumer content creation, the content needs to clarify what differentiates that business, that professional practice, or that organization from its peers. When online readers find have found their way to a post, article, or blog, one question they need answered is “Who lives here?” Providing information about products and services is important, but in terms of conveying meaning and offering perspective – that takes sharing opinion. 

At Say It For you, we know that, when we’re telling the story of a business or a practice to consumers, we choose, in each case, to “frame” that story a certain way. Chris Anderson, head of TED Talks, reminds speakers to do a jargon check based on audience research, eliminating technical terms and acronyms that will be unfamiliar to listeners. Beyond that, though, it is the “worldview” of the entrepreneurs themselves that must be “framed” in the content.

Carter refers to the “noise” that is created in any field, with a constant barrage of data and un-validated insights in the form of “news”. When it comes to content marketing, we’ve found at Say It For you, the word “news” can mean several different things:

1. Your own news: You’re introducing a new employee or partner, a new product line or service. That news needs to be presented in such a way that readers will consider it relevant to their needs.
2. Community news: You’re giving an update on “what’s-going-on-and-how-do-we-fit-in”.
3. Industry or professional news that can affect your audience.

While content marketing provides the framework for sharing news, it’s the business owner’s or the professional practitioner’s opinion and perspective that helps readers “hear” the signals and ignore the “noise”.