The 7A’s of Content Strategy

When creating top-quality content, it is essential to plan your strategy and create quality work in a structured way. 

Thanks to a recent course I am studying in The Strategy of Content Marketing from the University of California (thanks to Coursera’s platform), I´d like to share the following lesson on the 7As of content strategy any content professional should consider before they jump into the creation process. 

The following are the 7A’s that should be covered when managing and publishing outstanding content: 

1. Agile - Think quick and adapt swiftly. Collect data and analyze which of your content works and do more of it. At the same time, study what doesn´t work and if it can be improved or recovered in any manner. If it cannot, don't be sentimental and move on to something with a better ROI. 

A great example is if your website writes about different sports and for some reason, your reviews about curling don’t obtain a single page view. Even if you are a die-hard fan of this sport (let’s face it - it is aimed for a reduced niche), but it does not convert, move on to what does. 

2. Authentic - Write content using your strengths. You should create business communication with a human voice. It should never be bland, mediocre mass-produced advertising. You create authentic and trustworthy content when you try to stand out with your uniqueness and honesty, not by desperately trying to fit in.

3. Attention - Once you nail the editorial quality of your content you should also strive to make it visible. Play the Search Engine game. Use all the SEO good practices to your benefit. Remember always “white-hat SEO”.

Use the following good SEO practices to your advantage: 

• Headline

• Links

• Bolds

• Images

• Infographic

• Video

• Visually aesthetic site design

4. Audience - Study your audience and segment them according to their behavior. This technique is very related to our first point (Agile). See how they reach your site, and how they interact. Check the user journey and how to improve the content to improve important KPIs such as Time-On-site, bounce rate, or conversions. 

It is useful to segment your audience in the following manner: 

• Leads

• Prospects

• Current customers

• Past customers who now advocate your products or services

• Second customer (Do not buy it, but still promote it)

5. Authority - Not to be confused with arrogance. Don´t be afraid to claim your position as an expert on the matter. Even better, be a likable expert. Stay humble but do not hide you know what you are talking about. Authority can be understood in two different manners: 

Claimed Authority	Designated Authority
Authority is bestowed upon you based on your experience and position	You earn your authority by working for it. You prove it with your hard work and obtain results
You fit in into what people expect of you	Your initiative makes you stand out

Claimed Authority usually comes formally with a senior position. On its own, it’s naturally not bad but should always be complemented with the “Designated Authority” that usually comes with meritocracy. 

6. Action  - Unless you write for a non-profit blog, your content should lie in tune with the business objectives of your organization. This means to ensure the tone of your content matches and facilitates conversions and Calls to Action (CTA). 

This could be summed up by facilitating your landing page facilitates sales, affiliations, email sign-ups). This is ensured by having a proficient UX writer who writes simple, efficient copy that calls for quick action. 

Editorially, you should check that you present your product or service attractively and persuasively. Become a student of persuasion to ensure your creativity brings economic success to your organization.

7. Acceleration - The last A is designed to go beyond the mere act of creating copy. It is aimed at creating positive synergy with fellow content professionals. Exchange your ideas, initiatives, and innovations.

Don´t be cocooned at your desk writing (albeit awesome copy). If you do not share what you are doing or how you are achieving it, you will get left behind. Copy creation or edition, like many creative and business-related activities, must exist in a shared open environment. 

Think of a talented chef. If he decides simply to stay within his restaurant and never share his recipes on a YouTube channel or attend trade fairs to exchange ideas or methodologies, chances are eventually he will fall behind other more outgoing cooks. 

Networking is key to obtain inspiration and refreshed knowledge in the industry. Organizing forums on professional networks like Linkedin or attending informal meet-ups or conferences to present your ideas or initiatives are fantastic. 

From personal experience having assisted conferences on content creation and organized informal chats and meet-ups I can only advocate its benefits. 

Keyword Research

SEO is a continuous discipline that requires consistency and an analytical mindset combined with a daring and risk taking atttitude. I will introduce keyword research to get started off with SEO and how you can make the most of your site, attracting more visitors. 

When first engaging in keyword research you will start to discover which are the search terms users are applying on search engines when looking for products or services that you offer. As a case study I will share an example of keywords research for a fictional solar power company in the USA. 

I narrowed it down to the top 50 keywords driving traffic related to solar panels in the USA (source: Ahref). 

What I have done in order to have a clearer picture is to remove any keywords from a generic query ("solar panels" and "solar panels for sale") since these are obvious choices. I have also removed keywords inquiring about competitors (Tesla, Sunpower etc.)These will not be part of our content. However they will be part of our content strategy when analysing...

• What keywords are they using
• What content formats are they creating
• What line of products are they selling
• What prices are they offering. etc etc. 

Removing the superfluous we obtain the following conclusions:

Main queires include cost, technical specifications as well as solar panels for residential use. This points to the must have in your content. They should be clearly visible, relevant and guarantee a Call to Action. It will be the Cash Cow of your content. 

 

Main query	Proposed content format	Channel
Cost	Specific section your site on solar panels with information on cost and financing options Email campaigns with special offers Brochures	Website Email campaign B2C personal interactions
Residential use	Make sure you offer a good selection of panels for residential use. Make this option clearly visible in the above the fold section of your home page Brochures	Website B2C personal interactions
Technical specifications	Visual, Video, Infographics Presentations	Blog Trade Fairs and B2C personal interactions

 

Secondary queries include some surprising interests people have regarding solar panels. Some are even counterproductive to our business model (such as DIY solar panels) but there is a way we can turn this around and address these queries people have with articles on our blog. We do not have to sell this product or service but we can draw users into our website and entice them to navigate throught our products portfolio. 

Secondary queries	Proposed content format	Channel
Quality	Blog Visual, Video, infographics Presentations Testimonials	Blog section of your site Website Trade Fairs
For recreational vehicles	Blog	Blog section of your site
DIY	Blog	Blog section of your site

 

 In conclusion, and as mentioned above, this initial insight into keyword research has provided some baby steps that a content strategist should take when creating content for this site.

Obviously in the real world, this study will be far more complex and elaborate. However I trust these initial findings can be of your interest. 

 

Leadership and Good Content

Creating content itself is easy. Anyone with a WordPress or Blogger account and a keyboard can create content. Many companies and creators with the highest level equipment produce and publish content that is good, adequate or even downright mediocre. Having a solid infrastructure, a productive team and tons of creativity obviously helps to create good content. But that itself is not enough.


To create content that is truly outstanding, to reach your audience, to keep them engaged, loyal and to endorse you, you need to question yourself WHY you are creating this content. True leaders question this constantly. WHY exactly are they applying their creativity, pushing with their efforts and investing parts of their budget in producing the content they publish and offer to their users.


Projects and activities you engage in can be broken down into the WHAT, HOW and WHY.


For my case study in creating exceptional content I will use a case study of an influential TV Show - Peaky Blinders, produced by BBC and distributed in this channel and on Netflix created by Stephen Knight. This show is a huge hit with a global audience worldwide. Its show is not only engaging in terms of a gripping story but has influenced current trends in men's fashion and hairstyles.


WHAT - this is the simplest question to answer. What is Stephen Knight doing? He has created a TV Show which narrates the story of a family of Romani gangsters in Birmingham in the aftermath of World War I in 1918.


HOW - Stephen Knight has selected an ensemble of reputed and talented actors including Cillian Murphy in the lead role alongside Paul Anderson, Joe Cole, Finn Cole, Helen McRory, Sam Neill, Adrien Brody and Tom Hardy. He added contemporary rock music to a period drama with gusto and a keen eye to reflect different emotions from artists such as The Arctic Monkeys, Nick Cave and PJ Harvey. The show has been meticulous in recreating the costumes and iconic haircuts from this time in working class England.


WHY - This is the toughest question to answer. Why is this show (and not others that might be similar) so iconic? Why does this show appeal to its audience and forms a close engagement, adoption and promotion? Obviously the story is well written. For those interested in gangster movies and shows, this is an interesting option. The actors are immensely talented and the music scores fit in very well. Stephen Knight has a generous budget to employ the best designers in costume, special effects, post production and attract some of the most talented actors in our time. Yet WHY is he so vested in this show? And why is it so exceptional?


Please note When questioning WHY… Leave money out. Money is a result of a job well done. In fact, money is a great reward. Anyone who says they are not happy to receive a big fat paycheck for a good job is not being honest with you. However money is a drive, but if you include it within your “WHY” as your motivation for creating content then there is nothing special about it. It’s just a piece of content that anyone could end up creating just as good as you. Do not discard that they could end up doing even better than you.


To create truly great and engaging and everlasting content you need to display true leadership and question the WHY.


Stephen Knight obviously has earned a lot of money creating Peaky Blinders. But this is not the motivation that drives him into creating this show. Few fans know that the story is actually very close to him and his family. His great grand uncle was in fact, part of the real life Peaky Blinders gang. He was a good natured worker at the Shelbys scrapyard with a learning disability and loveable character. In the show fans will recognise him as Curly. This is one of the “WHY’s” this show is so remarkable. Stephen Knight is not just a Brummie telling us the history of his town, he is actually sharing the story of his family. It’s a very personal story for him and this motivates him in communicating with us not just as an artist but also a person who wants to pay a tribute to his roots.


Great leaders always question WHY should they create what they do. To question oneself is a good exercise, keeps you on your toes, makes you evolve and grow as a content professional and will direct you to create content that is truly great,

The Good Content Manager Introduction

Introduction

Hi, my name is Sundeep Sewani. I am a Content Manager at Softonic, a global tech

company in Barcelona. I am an experienced professional in content management,

strategy and marketing, with successful experiences at Softonic and previously

at Mitula Group and SunPower Systems in Madrid. 

This introductory entry for my site will be quite brief and straightforward. I sat

down and questioned the 3 main “W”s behind my motivations for creating this:

WHO (is it aimed for?) This website is aimed at the global community of

content managers, marketeers, content SEO’s and strategists

HOW? I will share good content practices, methodologies, and strategies. I

would especially like to thank authors Adam Clarke and Julia McCoy for

their invaluable insights into Content Strategy and SEO. I will also share

real life case studies of how good content helps to reach financial success.

The third example will be through ideas exchange with reputed professionals

in this field

WHY? The objective I am pursuing is to help business leaders understand

and promote the importance of creating quality content through good practices

and the value it brings to users, companies and institutions.

Content Strategy - Introduction

When defining Content Strategy it's understandable to stumble upon some vague descriptions. If that occurs, Don´t panic, it even happens to Content managers themselves.

Essentially Content Strategy is what drives the content publication, publishing, and marketing in a specific direction. A Good well thought Content Strategy can take your content towards the right direction which is why it is important to take a step back before producing anything new and analyze your message, your audience, your brand, and ultimately your goals (sales, conversions, brand reputation, affiliation, etc).

Once you start to evaluate your strategy up to now, you will also have a clearer picture of how you want to innovate it.