Will you pass your mid term marketing test?
Are you ready and willing to take the Squaredot mid-term marketing test? It also doubles as a B2B content marketing checklist that you can use to gauge your knowledge of the content marketing world.
Depending on whether or not you get 100% you might want to give Squaredot a call for some extracurricular tutoring - there’s still time to get the results you want in 2017. Pencils and erasers at the ready - if your answers match the ones we’ve given, where prompted, give yourself a point.
How many times should you post a new blog on your company website or post social channels? (2 points)
Give yourself 1 point here if your answer mentioned anything about consistency. Nothing says ‘God, I can’t be bothered’ or ‘I don’t really know what I’m doing’ quite like a lot of white space where your well-written insightful blogs should be.
Give yourself another point if you mentioned quality. Posting regularly is great, but posting great quality content on a regular basis is best of all. Content marketing is all about putting your best face forward and showing potential customers that you’re the most knowledgeable and trustworthy partner in a given field - someone who has a voice and isn’t afraid to use it.
What are the benefits of writing for a niche market? (2 points)
It may be tempting to write for a wide audience - those broad, sweeping, general ideas are often easier that writing niche material. However, if your answer included anything about the opportunity to answer complex problems and further your reputation as a thought leader, you deserve to pick up two points.
Your clients want answers that tackle specific pain points. They want to feel that you’re speaking directly to them and that you understand their industry. They need a vote of confidence - and your content has the ability to give them that.
Why is it important to develop a strong voice or continue your brand alongside your content marketing? (2 points)
If you would have mentioned anything about developing thought leadership status or increasing customer confidence, feel free to add two points to your overall tally.
Potential clients are that looking for strong, confident views to guide them. They’re looking for thought leaders and influencers that exude a sense of seriously knowing what they’re talking about – people they can trust with their business. Be bold and brave - and give yourself a bonus point if you paid lipservice to the importance of data in your answer.
Finish the sentence: (2 points)
Make sure you build review and analysis into your core content marketing ________, regularly assessing what works, what doesn’t, and where you can ________.
The words you need are ‘strategy’ and ‘improve’. How confident are you that you can improve your content marketing strategy without help in the second half of 2017?
RESULTS: How many points did you pick up out of a possible 8?
If you got 7 or more, you're speaking our language! Feel free to link us to your favourite piece of self-produced content in the comments.
If you picked up 5-6 points, you’re doing OK, but could probably give greater attention to devising a better strategy.
4 or less? Uh-oh. Content marketing probably isn’t working for you anywhere near as well as it should be. Isn’t it time to call in the professionals?
The content marketing world is evolving all the time - you need to be open to good ideas and willing to try out new directions if you want to go to the top.