Most marketers are well aware of the 57 percent statistic: A CEB study of more than 1,400 B2B customers revealed that 57 percent of a typical purchasing decision is made prior to the customer speaking with a sales representative. The 57 percent statistic refers to the self-service phase of the buying journey. And in this self-service phase, content is king. Content is the connective tissue between your customers and your brand.
The self-service stage of the buying journey has put increasing pressure on marketers to provide more original content to share across all social channels. With more than 92,000 new articles posted to the Web each day, the need to engage your target audience and attract new followers is more important than ever before. There is a myriad content competing for your customers’ attention.
To be successful companies need more than a social presence; they need to engage in continuous social storytelling — stories that tell a clear, compelling and consistent message at every customer touchpoint. Original stories that are founded in your Corporate Messaging Platform and communicate your core positioning and value proposition should be the framework of your social communication strategy. Infusing your Corporate Messaging Platform into the content you develop and deliver socially ensures your customers experience a consistent and cohesive story each time they engage with your brand online.
Because social storytelling requires the participation of subject matter experts from all areas of your organization, marketers must ensure they have a content team in place that understands the company’s vision, the value you deliver to your customers and your key points of difference. The team may be an internal team or a content center of excellence that consists of third-party partners, but the goal is to lift the ideas out of the silos that exist within the organization and map them to your corporate messaging and your customers’ content consumption needs and preferences. This strategic approach to content development and social storytelling prevents one-off social media efforts and keeps the needle moving in an intentional and strategic direction for your business.
When social storytelling is infused with your corporate message and is inclusive of the expertise of your entire organization, it can be your most strategic marketing deliverable.
