What Content Moves Your Audience to Action?

Earlier this year, I was listening to NPR’s “It’s Been a Minute,” when host Sam Sanders referenced the fast food chain, Wendy’s, and their new hip hop album, which was making its way up the chart.

“There are no rules, just content.”

—Sam Sanders, NPR’s “It’s Been a Minute.”

As a content marketer who partners with creative agencies, PR agencies, and marketers of all kinds, I was reminded of something that we talk about all the time: what is the point of content marketing?

Shouldn’t there be rules? The guidelines of content marketing

Here’s the thing: your audience is looking to fulfill their needs.

Content marketing isn’t for our brands’ sakes; it’s for the audience’s sakes. So whether your audience is looking for security and trust, belonging and reputation, confidence, or just plain information, there is a need that should be fulfilled.

It’s not just about creating content for contents’ sake. It’s about creating content for your audiences’ sake.

The 4 Es of Engagement

I believe that there are 4 types of content that drive your audience to do something.

Explainer: This content focuses on information. It synthesizes information so that your audience can make an informed decision about something where the action is clear. Think about John Oliver’s long-form content on Last Week Tonight. He practically doesn’t have to give you the action step; by the end of the piece, you already know what you need to do in your own life.

Educational: This content imparts skills, such as the rich marketing webinars from MarketingProfs (full disclosure: a Media Volery client) The action isn’t immediate, but it drives customer loyalty, and in certain cases, can support your audience getting more out of your product (e.g. if you’re a software company and you offer tutorials).

Empowering: Content that empowers the audience showcases stories of others like them or that used to be like them, and it shows your audience the possibilities. It says to them, “You too can do this.” This content exists in the space between what Nancy Duarte calls “what is and what could be.”

Entertaining: Creating entertaining content for your audience isn’t just about making them laugh—or in the case of Wendy’s, bop their heads with the music. Entertaining content creates a sense of belonging by showcasing the ethos and personality of the brand. It makes the audience see itself as part of this particular tribe. In doing so, it breeds a desire to exhibit this belonging further through engagement and identification as part of this brand. Think of brands like Supreme, which are known for their cult following. The brand experiences are about entertainment, but they’re also about signalling.

Interested in learning more about the 4 Es? Let’s talk about a workshop for your company. Contact us.