How I Built an Automated Content Marketing Machine (video)
Right now, I’m snowboarding at Big Snow Tiny Conf with a few fellow web business owners. But it’s not all about the slopes… Each of us prepared a short session to share with the group. I didn’t want my session to be limited to just those of us sharing the house, so I recorded a version of it to share with you here. Enjoy!
A case study in building an (automated) content marketing machine
In this session, I walk through the content marketing system I built for my bootstrapped startup (Restaurant Engine) over the past 2 years.
But more importantly, I show you how I have automated the entire process, so that I, as the business owner, am not bogged down in all of the time-consuming tasks of creating content and building an audience.
Covered in this video:
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Goals and objectives (why commit to a content marketing effort?)
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How we operate the blog, brainstorm topics, manage an editorial calendar
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How we operate our Email Newsletter, grow the list, and increase engagement.
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How we promote new content, using social media and other channels.
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Our guest blogging strategy, and how we gain exposure to new audiences.
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How all of this is AUTOMATED, systemized, and outsourced (so I can focus on high-level strategy).
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Ways I’m working to improve, tweak, and expand my content marketing machine in the future…
An important distinction
The content marketing machine that I’ve built for Restaurant Engine is very different from my content marketing blogging efforts I do here on productizeandscale.com and on my email newsletter.
With Restaurant Engine, a key goal is to build everything into a system that can be executed by people on my team. I need to focus on higher level strategies for building and growing that business, rather than get wrapped up in content creation / promotion routines.
But here on my blog, and in my newsletter, it’s all me, all the time. And I like it that way (because writing and personally preparing my weekly email newsletters if perhaps the most enjoyable thing that I do). My newsletter looks very different from the one sent through Restaurant Engine. It’s much more personal, with virtually no design/template elements.
These are examples two complete different approaches, each works well given their unique goals and purpose.
Feedback?
I’m always looking for ways to improve. What’s working for you in your content marketing efforts?