This document outlines Gene Begin's presentation on content strategy at Babson College. It discusses defining content strategy and tying it to institutional objectives. Content strategy determines the types of content produced, target audiences, and stories to focus on. It also covers developing a content pipeline, calendar, and process to prioritize, create, curate, and measure content. The presentation emphasizes using advocacy marketing and storytelling focused on people rather than the institution to increase brand awareness and engagement through owned, earned, and paid media channels.
9. WHERE DOES CONTENT STRATEGY FIT IN?
Institutional Strategy
Content Strategy
Digital Marketing
Marketing
Communications
Technology
Infrastructure
10. INSTITUTIONAL STRATEGY = CONTENT STRATEGY
Content strategy must be hardwired to your institutional strategy
11. HOW DOES CONTENT STRATEGY HELP
• What type of content should we produce?
• Who is our target audience?
• What stories should we focus on telling?
• Where should we host our content?
• On which platforms should we share our stories?
• How do we prioritize requests when everyone wants
a video?
12. CONTENT GOALS & MEASUREMENT
• Build trust, conversation and deepen loyalty with our
existing audiences (alumni/student feedback & engagement)
• Attract new prospect students, clients and partners
(inquiries, applicants, deposits, clients, recruiters)
• Generate engagement and/or explore audience pain
points and overcome myths and objections (comments/shares)
• Illustrate benefits through stories and experiences (views)
• Develop new ideas (feedback generated)
• Build reputation with search engines(search engine ranks)
14. 9 MAJOR TYPES OF MULTIMEDIA CONTENT
1. Photography — all social has gone visual
2. Video — YouTube, Vimeo, or Wistia embedded right into a post or shared directly to
social media
3. Screenshots — helpful images of your product or workflow
4. Infographics — visual information, either super long and meaty or bite-sized and
informative
5. Data visualization — standalone charts and graphs
6. Comics — relevant comic strips or cartoons
7. Memes — popular memes customized to fit the context of your post or update
8. Visual note-taking — casually-designed layout of ideas, typically text-heavy
9. HTML5 Animation — interactive media
BufferSocial, May 2014
15. DEVELOP A CONTENT / ASSET SOURCES LIST
SOURCE ASSET TYPE
Multimedia HTML5 interactive Animation
Magazine Web version Video exclusives Slideshows
PR Announcements Research Rankings Alumni businesses Student/programs
Athletics News Results Features/Stories Awards
Blogs College-created Student-owned Faculty-owned
Photography Staged User-generated Stock
Videos Event/speaker capture Scripted User-generated
Alumni Research Job Promotions Business launches
Social Media Conversation Testimonials Customer Service Questions
Newsletters Thought Leadership Alumni Students Parents
19. HOW DO WE GENERATE AND/OR
CURATE IDEAS FOR CONTENT
20. BUILDING A CONTENT PIPELINE
• Mine the events calendar for campus speakers
• Collaborate with campus centers and organizations
• Partner with the written word content creators (i.e. Magazine)
21. • Regular Departmental Meetings
– e.g. Social Innovation Institute, Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial
Leadership, Center for Investments and Finance, Executive Education
• Marketing Strategy Meetings
– Marketing Council, Social Media Council/Steering Committee, Agency
Meeting, Lifecycle Marketing Meeting, Editorial Meeting
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS
24. DEVELOP A CYCLICAL CONTENT PROCESS
1. Audit
- Be that politician across campus
2. Assess
- Quality, type and channel
3. Prioritize
- Institutional strategy and goals
4. Build
- 6 month plan
5. Develop
– Creative production, curation and re-imagination
After 3 or 6 months, check in and start audit cycle again
25. CONTINUE TO BUILD & DEVELOP PROCESS
• Content Calendar
– Interests/categories
– Regular topics/columns
– Gap identification (new content)
– Publishing schedule
• Curate
• Re-imagine
• Create
• Socialize
• Measure
26. Content Calendar
Institutional
Priorities
March April May June July August
Redefining
Eship
“Pursuing a
Passion”
World Stage
Social
Innovation
Andrew
Zimmern
Education/
Curriculum
New Entre.
Leader
CLTP 15th
Anniversary
Babson
Insight
GLDE
Living E-ship
(Student-
focused)
Shark Tank
MCFE
Founder’s
Day
Lemon.
Day
Boston
Defining Entrepreneurship
Defining Entrepreneurship
27. LEVERAGING CONVERGED MEDIA
OWNED MEDIA = website(s),
multimedia, newsletters, SEO, social
media accounts, campus environment
EARNED MEDIA = PR,
word of mouth, social sharing
PAID MEDIA = traditional
advertising, display advertising,
paid search, event sponsorship,
content advertising
Assets created are pushed through the paid channels but also owned channels
in ways that drive the earned media and thus extending reach
29. THE IMPORTANCE OF ADVOCACY MARKETING
https://gaggleamp.com/blog/employee-advocacy-infographic
Assets created are pushed through the paid
channels but also owned channels in ways that
drive the earned media fueling this reach
30. NEARLY HALF OF ALL INTERNET USERS HAVE REPOSTED A
PHOTO OR VIDEO THEY HAVE FOUND ONLINE
http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Photos-and-videos.aspx
32. WORD OF MOUTH IS YOUR
MOST POWERFUL FORM OF MARKETING
• Social media = word of mouth reinvented
• Use Your Advocates – Passionate About the Brand
• Use Your Network and Their Networks
• Share with 10 people, they’ll share with 10 people, who will share with 10
people, etc.
36. FOCUS ON
THE FARMER
“Even the most technical subject has to have a human story
behind it. We’ve been able to convince the management that
the content shouldn’t be about John Deere equipment.”
David Jones
Publication Manager
John Deere
NOT THE
EQUIPMENT
39. Small, private business college 14 miles west of Boston
#1 in entrepreneurship for 22 and 18 consecutive years
Approximately 2000 undergraduate and 1300 graduate students, representing more than 74 countries
Undergraduate program (top 25 in business)
Graduate program - MBA and MS degrees (top 50 in business)
Executive education program (top 10 U.S. and top 20 in the world for custom programs
Increase brand awareness, engagement, and adoption for Babson, the educator for
Entrepreneurship of All Kinds®.
BABSON COLLEGE
43. MAKE THEM THINK DIFFERENTLY
ABOUT MULTIMEDIA
Objective Before Tactic
Process Never Hurt Anyone
Advocacy Marketing
The Cause Not the College
44. BE A CHANGE MANAGER
“To do disruptive innovation, you have to be willing
to be misunderstood for a very long time.”
- Jeff Bezos, Chairman and CEO of Amazon.com