The Value of Digital Content Marketing Assets for Small Businesses

Twenty years ago the media of choice for most local, small businesses was the Yellow Pages.  If you were really sophisticated, you worked the local newspapers to get press coverage.  Since the Yellow Pages were overpriced due to excessive demand, that was the route I chose, and it worked very nicely for my residential landscape businesses.

Little did I realize at the time but I was learning the ways of content marketing.  I would write useful articles and deliver them to the local media, who were typically looking for fresh content to fill their pages.  I just had to be careful about being too self-promoting, which is a lesson that applies just as much in this digital world as it did back then.

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Building a Content Marketing Asset

Over time, the press got to know me well and when there was a need for a story, I got a phone call.  I managed to snag more than one front page story in our local paper, and more than once I was on the first of the Business Section of major papers such as the Chicago Tribune.

All of these articles were marketing assets (as reprints) that established our expertise and credibility with new prospects.

We always kept a ready supply of pocket folders that contained a one-page sheet on the capabilities and service offerings of our company, and it was packed with dozens of dozens of articles on our community stewardship, recent awards, and human interest stories that were published in the local papers.

Content Never Sleeps    

Notwithstanding our successes, there were many problems for small businesses like ours back when print was the predominant content marketing channel.  Here are just a few.

No Ownership  - The print media outlets owned and managed everything, and usually made it clear they didn't want our input – just our content, which they then owned.

No Control – Our messages were often botched because it had to be filtered by a "professional journalist" who didn't know a thing about our businesses, and often didn't take the time to learn.

A Slow Process – You had to space out your press releases by weeks so as not to bother the editors, otherwise they would just cut you off completely.

Limited Shelf Life – If a prospect had common sense, they would expect to see press reprints that from the current year. Imagine that?  The same year was considered relevant!  So, we had to work our magic to make sure we achieved two or three good article reprints each year.

While all of this was going on, there was a lot happening in my business, and I was helpless to get easily get the word. Weather conditions, labor shortages, water restrictions, state and federal regulations that threatened our livelihood, and more, were all ripe for publication from the perspective of an industry expert. 

Digital Content Marketing Assets

Times have changed.  Now you have just as much control over the media as anyone else if you take the time to learn how it works. Most important is to not place all of your content on sites like Facebook. As powerful as it may be for growing your business, it is nevertheless one that you do not own or control.

Your blog is a digital asset that you not only own and control, but one whose future value is immeasurable. Many top bloggers have turned down lucrative offers to sell their blogs because we have yet to scratch the surface of what the true value of these digital assets can be.  

It wasn't too long ago when jaws dropped at the thought that Facebook could be valued at a billion dollars.  It is now valued at 50 billion, and is likely to go higher as we discover more upside potential.

If you are actively blogging, you too are building a digital asset that creates significant value for you and your company. For one thing, it opens doors.  Your earned credibility makes you a player in your industry, and that also means the best projects and resources will seek you out.

I'll be honest, this process does take time, but think about this. If less than 10% of all small businesses are actively blogging, you are presently looking at a wide-open opportunity. Over time it is going to get more crowded.

It stands to reason that the Chicago Tribune was a heavyweight back when newspapers mattered because it was one of the first in line.  They built their assets up to the point that it just wasn't worth it for new players to get into the game.

I don't believe that is going to happen in this digital world. What I do think will happen is every small business will have to become its own media company to control its destiny – and most of that will be on the social Web.

It's not too late to aspire to be the next Chicago Tribune of your industry.

You've got the content, you just have to start publishing your content on a blog – a digital asset you own and control for life if you do it right.

Here's how to start a blog.

And here's an extensive article on how to make your blog posts outstanding.

Remember, you cannot have a social media strategy without a content strategy.  So, you may as well go the extra distance and build a digital asset puts you in a leadership position of your earned industry content.

Feel free to share this with your friends by clicking on the Facebook Like button below, leave a comment, or consider subscribing to the feed. 

Until tomorrow,  Jeff

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