How To Drive Your Entire Sales Cycle With CONTENT
How to Drive Your Entire Sales Cycle withCONTENTMARKETING
TABLE OF CONTENTS1.Introduction: Developing a Content Strategy ThroughoutFunnel Stages4. Part One: Content Pre-Sales Contact7. Part Two: Content Post-Sales Contact10. Part Three: Sales-Marketing Alignment13. Part Four: Tracking and Attribution16. ConclusionABOUT THE AUTHORSasha LaferteSasha Laferte is Curata’s Senior ContentMarketing Manager. She’s writtenfor a wide range of digital marketingpublications including Content MarketingInstitute, LinkedIn Marketing Solutions,Salesforce, and HubSpot. Her experiencespans writing for marketing softwarecompanies to creating viral content forWenner Media (the parent company ofRolling Stone and Us Weekly). Sashaenjoys marketing, tech, travel, fitness,sushi, and her cat. Sasha has a BA inWriting, Literature and Publishing fromEmerson College in Boston, MA.
INTRODUCTION:Developing a Content StrategyThroughout Funnel Stages
Why a Content Strategy?Though many marketing teams have boughtinto the idea of content marketing, many arealso dissatisfied with their results. They feeldisjointed or unorganized in their methods.Creating a written strategy is integral to yourcompany’s success.One solution to problems with content marketingstrategy organization, success measurement, andsales-marketing alignment is to use the marketingfunnel and sales funnel to develop a writtencontent marketing strategy and measurementplan. This eBook provides information on howto create a content strategy around these twofunnels. This includes what types of content workbest for each stage, expert advice on executing,and best-practices for measurement.Mapping Your Strategy tothe FunnelAny content marketing strategy is hindered if therest of your marketing team doesn’t see its value.But only eight percent of marketers considerthemselves “very successful” or “extremelysuccessful” at tracking content marketing ROI,according to the LinkedIn Marketing TechnologyCommunity. You can ensure your contentmarketing is helping your company succeed(and that the rest of your organization agrees)by mapping your content strategy to a contentmarketing methodology like the marketing andsales funnel.Using a methodology like a funnel as thefoundation for your content strategy can clarifyyour direction and simplify your team’s goals.Other content marketing methodologies includethe buyer journey, content marketing framework,and content marketing pyramid.While there are other common methodologiesin the content marketing space, the contentmarketing funnel is one of the most popular anddovetails nicely with the sales funnel. This guideprovides more information on what the contentmarketing and sales funnels are, how to createcontent that maps back to its stages, and how tooptimize your content for it to help you achieveyour goals.70%70 percent of marketers lack a consistent orintegrated content strategy. (Altimeter)CMOs at the largest technology companiesreport that building out content marketing as anorganizational competency is the second mostimportant initiative, only behind measuring ROI. (IDC)PAGE 02
What Is the Content Marketing Funnel?According to Single Grain, the content marketing funnel is a system thattakes as many leads as possible through a step-by-step content flow. It thenconverts them into actual customers who pay for your products or services.The four stages of the content marketing funnel are:AWARENESSEVALUATIONPURCHASEWhile most people don’t move through these phases in a linear path, havinga content marketing funnel model can help your content marketing strategyand clarify your production needs. A content marketing strategy helpsanswer the following questions:What type of content should I create?How do I measure success for this piece of content?Should I repurpose this content?Are their holes in my content strategy?This eBook walks you through all stages of the content marketing funnel aswell as the sales funnel and teaches you how to map your content to drivetraffic, leads, and ultimately—revenue.PAGE 03DELIGHT
PART ONE:Pre-Sales Content
The first step in developing your content marketing strategy tothe sales and marketing funnels is creating a plan for contentthat your audience will see before they interact with sales.This section will cover these content types and how to developa succinct creation and measurement plan around them.Awareness Stage ContentThe first stage of the content marketing funnel isawareness. In this phase marketers should aim toattract and educate their audience on the topicrelated to your product.Andy Crestodina of Orbit Media studios explainsthe importance of creating value at this stage:“The most valuable audience, at least forB2B marketers, is your current prospects.So your most valuable content is somethingyou make specifically for these people andsend to them directly.”Successful awareness stage contentaccomplishes the following:Create a piece of content that answers topquestions for your current prospects and you’llget value from it even if no one else ever reads it.Plus, you can share it with the next prospect whoasks that question.Generating a high number of sharesand views.Shared and viewed by your targetaudience.Causing your target audience to convert.Marketing resources across the web suggestawareness stage content is best in the followingformats: ads, social media posts, infographics,and videos.While these content types generally work wellat the awareness stage, not all audiences arethe same. Look at your metrics to determinecontent performs the best at this stage. Metricsyou can use to determine if your content forthe awareness stage is performing are totalshares, views, time on page, scroll depth,and bounce rate.You may have thought that visual content mightbe best for this category. Curata CMP analyticstold us a slightly different story. Our long-formblog content performed the best for shares, views,and time on page. Strategy for your awarenessstage content should include informed decisionson the type of content to create as well as howto distribute and optimize, which new keywordsneeded targeting, and which posts would benefitfrom paid promotion.You can use the following platforms to determineif your content marketing works at theawareness stage:OutbrainCurataScroll DepthPAGE 05SEMRushGoogle Analytics
Evaluation Stage ContentThe evaluation stage is when potential buyersdetermine the legitimacy of your company,develop trust, and decide if they need yourproduct. Andrew Raso of Online Marketing Gurusdescribes the evaluation stage as when:However, there’s a common mistake to be wary ofwhen looking at metrics like these, as Anna Hrachof Convince and Convert explains:“One of the biggest mistakes marketers makewhen measuring content is automaticallyassuming that correlation implies causation.We see two trend lines headed in the samedirection, so we automatically assume theyhave a direct relationship. That unfortunatelytends to lead to misguided conclusions andforced connections that aren’t always there tobegin with.”“People are doing heavy research onwhether or not your product or service isa good fit for them.”A famous example of evaluation stage contentis Nestle’s Toll House chocolate chip recipes.To learn more about lead generation, Curata testedNestle Toll House released recipes to the public,content type, topic, and distribution method to getincluding their own chocolate chips as a primaryingredient. This validated Nestle Toll House as the a clearer idea of what was working and how topromote our content within this stage.go-to-source for all things chocolate chip-related,and also pointed consumers to their product.In addition to content types, your evaluation stagecontent strategy should include information onDetermine the success of your evaluation-stagelead scoring, nurture email streams, and tying yourcontent by answering the following questions:content to success at this stage.Are my contacts converting on this content?Is this content generating leads?Is this content influencing leads?Other platforms you can use to determine if yourcontent marketing works at the evaluation stage:Generally, evaluation-stage content includes whitepapers, case studies, webinars, or blog posts.Curata’s content team looks at leads generatedand leads influenced to determine which contentperforms the best.PAGE 06Marketo BizibleSalesforce PardotBrightFunnelAct-On
PART TWO:Post-Sales Content
The next stage of the content marketing funnel involvesconvincing your audience that purchasing your product is thesmartest step. Post-sales content includes the purchase anddelight stages of the content marketing funnel. In a futurechapter, we’ll break out the purchase stage into more intricatefunnel steps used by sales.Purchase Stage ContentIf you’re looking to drive results in the purchasestage of the funnel, use these tools:The goal of the purchase stage is to createcontent that results in closing business.Curata CMP ContentlyKapost BizibleQuestions you should be answering about yourcontent in this stage include:Is this content influencing revenue?What sort of pipeline is this contentgenerating?Is this content influencing the pipeline?Typically, the best formats for this stage areproduct reviews, questionnaires, self-assessments,product sheets, and calculators.At Curata we use our Curata CMP softwareanalytics to determine the efficacy of content atthis stage of the content marketing funnel. (Only30 percent of leading marketers feel they areeffective at measuring content marketing’s impacton the bottom of the funnel.) We’ve also takensteps such as building out our G2 Crowd pageand updating our product sheets as a result.An example of popular purchase-stage content isProgressive’s side-by-side insurance comparisontool. Users are able to look at quotes andcompare Progressive against competitors.PAGE 08
Delight Stage ContentThe last, frequently overlooked stage in thecontent marketing funnel is delight. This isespecially important for B2B companies witha subscription-based model. This stage of thefunnel has several goals.Content Marketing Institute founder Joe Pulizziexplains why this stage is important:“Marketers don’t realize that the mostimportant part of this process is not thecontent. The asset we are trying to build isthe audience so everything should revolvearound building a loyal audience that willultimately behave in a way that will helpyour business.”There are a variety of content types that workwell for this stage. These include product guidesand educational materials, member-exclusivecontent, forums and chat rooms, special offers,and giveaways.The Curata marketing team often partners with ourcustomer success team when creating this typeof content and tags it accordingly in Curata CMP.One example of a successful content piece is ourCCS use-case guide.Other examples of content that delights caninclude anything from a personalized email tooffering “priceless surprises” to your customers,like MasterCard did.We recommend talking to your customer success Tools to help ensure your content will succeed atteam to help determine exactly what your KPIs are the delight stage of the funnel include:for this stage of content. Consider goals for yourSalesforcedelight stage content such as increased productCurata CMPusage, renewal rates, online interactions, referrals,case studies, and user-generated content.PAGE 09
PART THREE:Sales-Marketing Alignment
Misalignment between sales and marketingtechnologies and processes costs B2B companies10 percent of revenue or more per year. (HubSpot)Aligning with the sales team and creating content that enables them to dotheir jobs better will help your company achieve its goals, improve youroverall content marketing strategy, and ultimately, help you get that raiseyou’ve been wanting.Many sales teams operate using a funnel similar to the content marketingfunnel discussed in previous chapters of this book. The sales funnel existsalmost exclusively within the “purchase” stage of the content marketingfunnel with a little bit of spill over in either direction. Funnel stages for salesare as follows:Top of Funnel SalesMid-FunnelBottom of FunnelClosing the DealIn this chapter, we’ll address what these stages are and how you can createcontent for each of these stages to drive more sales.PAGE 11
Top of Funnel: Awareness and InterestAccording to SpinWeb.com, awareness stage content at the top of the salesfunnel is as follows:“This refers to a prospect to whom you haven’t spoken, but who becomes awareof the solution you’re offering. This person might not be in line with your targetcustomer, but you still might decide they’re worth pursuing.”This stage should be relatively quick and can be completely skipped if your leadqualification process on the marketing side of things is solid. Content that linesup with this stage includes high-level cut sheets and emails for outreach. If theprospect expresses interest, both the sales person and the prospect will agreemutually to move on to the next stage of the buying process: evaluation.Mid Funnel: EvaluationAccording to Ring DNA, the evaluation stage is the stage:“In which prospects or prospect companies examine competitors’ solutions as theyinch toward a final buying decision.”Content at this stage includes more detailed product information, demos or pitchdecks, case studies, competitor comparisons, and video walk throughs.Bottom of Funnel: DecisionAccording to Mailmunch.com, the decision stage is defined as follows:“At this stage, the prospect is making the decision that he wants to take advantageof your solution. He’s paying more attention to what you offer, including differentpackages and options, so he can make the final decision to purchase. This is whensales offers are made by using sales pages, webinars, calls, etc.”Trials, detailed benefits sheets, customer testimonials and direct-communicationreviews from third-party sources are all useful resources for sales professionalstrying to close at this stage.Closing the Deal: PurchaseAs with marketing, the last stage is often the most overlooked in regard tosupplemental content marketing content. This stage should include a finalproposal document and welcome materials.PAGE 12
PART FOUR:Tracking and Attribution
Pre-Sales Touch ContentYou can measure and attribute pre-sales touch content by using your social channels, CRM, andGoogle Analytics. Metrics you should consider in regard to your content marketing are as follows:CONSUMPTION METRICS:PRODUCTION METRICS: (To assess team and/orindividual performance)How many people are consumingyour content?How is your team performing against editorialcalendar deadlines and goals?Which channels are they using?What time does it take your team to turna content idea into a published piece ofcontent?How frequently and how in-depth istheir consumption?How many pieces of content do you regularlypublish in a given period of time?SHARING METRICS:Which of your content pieces arebeing shared?LEAD METRICS:How is content supporting demand generationin terms of lead generation and lead nurturing(middle-of-the-funnel)?Who is sharing them?How/where are they sharing?How often are they being shared?For a site or blog, the most importantconsumption metrics are page views, uniquevisitors, and average time on page:RETENTION (SUBSCRIPTION) METRICS:How effective are you at holding youraudience’s attention beyond the initial pointof contact?ENGAGEMENT METRICS:How does the intersection of consumption andsharing metrics translate into “engagement?”Does your content inspire users to take somekind of action?What kind of action are they taking?How frequently and consistently are theytaking action?Page view analytics tell you howmany and which of your contentpages your visitors are consuming.Unique visitor analytics help youget a sense for the overall size ofyour audience and how much ofyour traffic is repeat visitors.Average time on page analyticsgive you insight into how peopleare consuming your content.Are they reading or viewing thecontent thoroughly or are theyquickly skimming?PAGE 14
Each of these statistics is easily available viaGoogle Analytics or a similar web analytics tool.Post-Sales Touch ContentThough arguably some of the most importantmetrics for content marketers, they are oftenoverlooked. There’s little software available forcontent marketers to measure these.Because you cannot embed analytics trackersin emails, you cannot get a true measureof content consumption. In lieu of actualconsumption data, you can look at open ratesand click-throughs. Marketing automationplatforms such as Eloqua, Marketo, Pardot,Act-On, etc. commonly report both metrics,along with email marketing platforms such asMailChimp, Constant Contact, etc.COST METRICS: (To determine return oninvestment – ROI)What are your overall contentmarketing costs?What are your costs per piece?Per creative resource?Warning! Open rates and click-throughs areonly proxies for consumption. They haveseveral limitations:SALES METRICS:How does your content influence bottom-ofthe-funnel results?Which ways does your content drive revenue?When a hidden image in an email is loaded,Open rates record an open. But many emailclients don’t load images for spam protection.Open rates are consistently underreported forthis reason. They can also make image-heavyemails such as infographics appear to performbetter than others. They entice a recipient toload images, even though the content is notnecessarily more appealing.How does your content fill the pipeline?The easiest do-it-yourself means of associatingcontent with revenue is to set up campaigntracking in Salesforce or your MarketingAutomation platform. It can be an initially complexprocess, but it’s certainly possible and the insightsgained are worth your while.Click-Through rates only reflect the numberof clicks on an embedded link. This data canhelp you understand which calls-to-actionare most appealing. But many recipients gainvalue from email content even without clickinglinks. For example, if your emails include thefull text of articles, your click-through rateswill underreport consumption as a readercan consume your content without leavingthe email.PAGE 15
ConclusionHaving a written content marketing strategy andmeasurement process can be hugely beneficial toyour marketing team’s results.One of the best ways to do this while achievingsales-marketing alignment, improving yoursales team’s time to close, and building yourrelationship with your customer success team isto build your content strategy around the contentmarketing funnel and sales funnel.Heidi Cohen advises not creating content just forthe content-marketing funnel. Maximize its usageby making it available at all relevant touch points.When creating content for the purchase process,think beyond the funnel. To get the maximumvalue for your content investment, make yourcontent available at every touchpoint where it’srelevant. This includes post purchase, somethingmany marketers forget.Aligning your content strategy and editorialcalendar with the content marketing funnel helpsensure your content is used to its maximumpotential. You will gain a clearer idea of yourstrategy, increase your content’s efficacy, improveROI, and align your content with the overall team’smarketing strategy.For more on improving your content marketingstrategy, read Curata’s Content MarketingPyramid eBook, a framework for developing andexecuting your content marketing strategy.PAGE 16
ntent-marketing-software-landscape/ tent-marketing.html -with-content-intelligence/ entrepreneur.com/article/272080 contentmarketinginstitute.com/plan/ to-generate-more-with-less/ t-marketing-funnel-using-different-types-content/ ey-linear/ -cookies-old-school-content-marketing-in-action/ curata.com/blog/content-promotion-distribution/ ltimate-list/ g2crowd.com/products/curata/reviews ce-rates/ -delight/ of-smarketing-slideshare s-funnel mailmunch.co/blog/sales-funnel/ analytics.google.com/analytics/web/
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