The Three Myths of Content

‘Content’ is such a buzzword these days, and it’s a concept surrounded by myths and anecdotes.

Every small business owner has been told at some point that, “You need good content.”

Yet, when you dig a bit deeper, you find that ‘you need good content’ creates a lot of confusion and anxiety and, as a result, no one really understands why they need good content or, even, what is really meant by ‘content.’

So, over the next few blogs, I’ll unpack this for you and show you how to Make Content Work For You.

Let’s start with the absolute basics.

What is Content?

Google the word ‘content’ and you get a range of definitions (depending on how you pronounce it). The two that are closest for our purposes are:

• The material dealt with in a speech, literary work, etc., as distinct from its form or style
• Information made available by a website or other electronic medium

Frankly, I’m not mad keen on either of these, and they don’t really help you work out what you need to do. So, I’ve found a better one – content is…

Anything which adds value to an audience

Okay, we’ve got a definition – and we’ll be coming back to that in a moment to make it more meaningful for you. But let’s pause for a moment and consider another important question…

Why does content matter?

Broadly speaking there are four reasons that content can help you if you’re in business, running a charity, or wanting to make a statement for any other reason:

• Visibility: By producing a regular supply of content, you’re showing up to prove that you have something to say in your market
• Attracting new customers: People may not know that your product exists, so you have an opportunity to explain what you do and how you do it in a way that appeals to them
• Differentiation: This is important in markets that are overcrowded. Why should someone choose you over all the rest? Answer – because of the value you offer, and your content explains that.
• Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): If someone searches online, the more new content you have, the higher up the list you appear

So, we have the what and the why. Now, let me debunk the three biggest myths about content so you can start thinking about how it can work for you.

Myth 1: My content must appeal to everyone

Your audience is unique to you, so tailor your content to them – don’t try to make it universal. By doing that, you risk alienating the very audience you sought to cultivate. For example, if you’re writing a computer guide aimed at IT experts but waste time explaining basic terminology, you risk the expert audience getting bored and switching off, even though they should be your primary concern. They want the nitty-gritty technical stuff. And yes, your average home IT user will be baffled – but that doesn’t matter.

What matters is knowing who your audience is, and it won’t just be your customers.

Let’s take another example. Let’s say you produce printed football shirts for youth teams. In this case, the audience is diverse.

We have:

• Customer – the team manager who’s buying shirts for their team
• Prospect – the manager of a team that needs new shirts
• Supplier – who provides shirts in all colours and sizes
• Community – the people of the town in which the team plays
• End user – the children who wear the shirts
• ‘Connected users’ – the parents who need to wash the shirts
• Staff – your team who take orders, and make and pack the shirts
• Regulators – the Football Association, who have rules about football strips

Your situation will have just as many potential audiences and many more. So, think it through and identify them.

Myth 2: Value is about money

If content is anything that adds value to your audience, you might be forgiven for thinking it’s all about financial value. In this context, however, value is anything your audience might find useful. Let’s take the previous example of football shirt printing and consider what value you can add to your audience.

• Entertain: Feature videos of football being played, football memes, the latest scores, etc.
• Give ideas for other users: Maybe some users don’t play football, but the shirts look good off the pitch as well
• Inform: Show the ‘connected users’ how to wash the shirts so the colours don’t run
• Educate: Demonstrate the manufacturing process for the shirts
• Support: Post images of the local teams to help them find sponsorship
• Align: Show what your values are as a business, so others with similar values feel a connection

It’s always worth working out what different values you can bring to your own specific audiences. Knowing what they want will really pay off.

Myth 3: Content is written

Content is anything which adds value to the audience.

It can, of course, be written in blogs, social media posts or articles, and it can also be:

• Audio: Podcasts, radio, songs
• Video: Facebook Live videos, YouTube clips, DVDs
• Visual: Photos, infographics, memes
• Personal: You in person at a networking event, training course or presentation

It can be anything… really anything

Going for a cup of coffee and a chat is content!!!

What you should be getting from this is that your skills form the basis of the content.

If you…

Own a restaurant, your recipes and techniques are the content.

Install kitchens, advice on adjusting doors is content.

Or if you’re a Content Alchemist, advice on developing content is content.

Now that we’ve gone through these myths, I hope you feel more confident to go out and create your own content. You might even have picked up some new ideas for your next content project. If so, post them below – I’d love to hear them.

And if you’d like more help with your own content, check out our short course Demystifying Content.