018: The Writing (ish) Issue |
Because crafting marketing content often looks like producing words, the job typically falls to a writer. But content marketing has a specific purpose in mind, which means that the approach may need a little adjustment.
Content marketing isn’t essentially about beautiful prose. It isn’t even about knowing the most about a topic.
Rather, it’s about knowing the most about your community and sharing exactly what they need at that precise moment.
Content marketing isn’t essentially about self-expression — it’s about responding to your audience’s needs. It’s about meeting someone on their turf and forming a connection, which makes content marketing a lot more like building a relationship than writing poetry.
Snackable snippets |
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12 tips for writing effective email copy 📖 Are you running into writer’s block when building your emails? A good email always starts with the end in mind. And not every email has the same objective. Once you know who you’re writing the email for and what the desired action is, only then is it time to start typing away. Writer’s block is often a signal that the primary questions haven’t been answered, but once you know why you’re writing that email, we hope the words start spilling out. How to test your marketing and fundraising copy 🎧 John Walsh is the director of annual giving at St Vladimir's Seminary. He manages the organization’s digital marketing, fundraising, and donor relations efforts, which puts him in a unique place to test the organization’s messaging. While talking with Noah Barnett on Nonprofit Marketing Unplugged, he said, “The best way to find out things is to put it out there and let people tell you by their actions, not by their words.” When it’s time to write that heartfelt thank-you note 📖 The days of direct mail aren’t dead — especially if you consider a well-written, heartfelt thank-you note something close to that category. Timeliness is near the top of the list of importance for these notes. Making loud and clear that you value what someone else has done for you can take you and your organization a long way. What’s the best question anyone’s ever asked you? 📖 Since so much of marketing comes down to listening to your audience, it makes asking the right questions more important than having all the right answers. What questions do you lean on during an interview? How do you break through to a person’s true personality? Here are just 15 questions that inspired me to dive deep in my next conversation. |
In the news |
Eroding trust is a key concern for social media platforms in the year ahead. Advertisers who spend on social want greater transparency about the results. But even with trust receding, advertisers aren’t going to entirely ditch the social game.
The US government is trying once again to break up the tech giants — this time specifically Google. The Founder and CEO of The Trade Desk, Jeff Green, shares his thoughts on why this time they might just succeed.
Something for your inspiration folder |
This is going to be a gamechanger for the nonprofit world! And even though the title of the film — Uncharitable — sounds the opposite of inspirational, the insights and changes this documentary could spark give reason for optimism.