Writers & marketing writers: there is a difference. Working with as many nonprofits as I do, I often notice clients looking for things that they can do themselves without the help of a marketing consultant. (By the way, this also extends to for-profit clients such as start-ups and small businesses too.) By and large, this is a perfectly fine and fiscally responsible thing to do, however, there are some marketing tactics should at the very least be laid out or organized by a consultant first and then used as a sort of “template” for upkeep and implementation by your in-house team. I’ll give some examples of what I am talking about.
Just Because You Are a Writer, Doesn’t Mean You Can Market Effectively
There are some fundamental marketing tactics that take a certain marketing skill set to craft than perhaps even the most esteemed writer has. Positioning is very different than an essay. Core messaging is probably one of the most important pieces that I am thinking of here.
Here’s five reasons why a marketing consultant should be helping you with this tactic and others I will mention further down in this post:
1.) No agenda pushing. You need the ability to step away from the subject matter and view it as an unbiased third party. Without being able to do that I see clients persuaded to write in a way that pushes their own or others’ agendas.
2.) Branding breaks rules. If you are a writer then you are probably really great at punctuation, tense, grammar…the whole nine. However, when you are writing for ads, slogans, taglines, or just about anything that pertains to your unique brand then from time-to-time you may better served to consider a little slip up. (No, I am not talking about the JCPenney Super Bowl Tweets. I mean, that was great for them… but I think most people are just waiting for them to slip up.)
What I am talking about is composition. Sometimes the most beautiful and compelling writing paints a very vivid picture but isn’t entirely perfect. For example, if an English teacher were to dissect it. It’s lyrical, not technical and sometimes the most amazing and inspiring to read. From time-to-time in order to capture the nuances of a product or service, we have to bend the rules a little.
3.) It’s not about what it is. It’s about what they are not. My third point is probably the most important. It’s the secret sauce. While writing a positioning statement or elevator pitch is topical, it’s not the topic alone that will convince the reader to read or the audience to keep listening. It’s the unique selling proposition. You see, its not enough to be “a thing”, you also need to “have a thing”.
4.) Your people understand the minutia of the day-day. Tidbits about what happened earlier today, last week, or even last month are most likely best left to the people that experience them, as they experience them.
5.) No fake blog content! Either you are thought leader or you aren’t. Paying someone to create fake blog posts is weird. Having a ghostwriter for them is different, but the ideas should be yours.
What is Appropriate for In-house Content Development vs. Outsource
This is a tough question, because it is personal and should really be determined by the manpower that you have available in house. These are based on my own experience and certainly don’t relate to every client.
Examples of (Potentially) Good In-house Content Projects
- Newsletters
- Social Media
- Email Newsletters
- Blog Content
- Content for Web (sometimes)
- Printed Collateral Content (sometimes)
- Annual Reports (sometimes)
Examples of Good Outsourced Content Projects
- Core Messaging
- Content for Printed Collateral
- Content for Web
- Video Scripts
- Taglines
- Annual Reports (sometimes)
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