Give Your Readers Goodies And Become BFFs
There’s something inherently endearing about meaningful gift-giving.
You can probably think of some specific instances where someone gifted you something and it evoked a sense of closeness. (Thanks, Grandma.)
Here are some considerations about this principle in the world of content marketing, that you can use in your own digital strategy.
First of all, be genuinely helpful.
We’re all busy people, and we’re looking for content that doesn’t waste our time. And think about your own life: you really appreciate when someone helps to make your day a bit brighter, right?
The content that you’re creating should be awesome already: helpful, insightful, or entertaining. Your gift should be, too!
Here are some cool approaches to offering a gift in your content.
The term for this is a “content upgrade”. It’s a little bonus that a reader can grab as a takeaway. A content upgrade may include something like a reference sheet, a handy checklist, a spreadsheet template, or an inspiring infographic. The sky is the limit!
One nice bit of good news is that you don’t always need to create such a gift from scratch. Often, when you take a look at what you’re already doing in your online life, you’ll notice little things that you’re using that the rest of the world might appreciate having, too. Just polish them up and provide them with a helpful explanation and some how-to tips. It comes pretty naturally!
We’ve got a nice example from CoSchedule, since we admire their tasteful approach.
In this example, the author offers a handy infographic to help them share some key points with others.
Provide your helpful gift as a natural part of the content.
Right inline with your content, present your little bonus in a way that makes sense. What is this? Why do I want it? Explain how it is relevant and present it in the natural flow of conversation.
Here’s an example. Right in the middle of the post, the bonus is presented, related to the content, and genuinely appealing.
If you offer your gift in other ways, and keep it tasteful.
As you may notice, the bonus is provided in the corner of the post. It’s ever-present, but not intrusive. If you collapse the box, it gets out of the way and yet lets you know that it’s there if you’re ready for it later. Pretty tasteful, and helpful.
Here’s what the modal window looks like in the corner of the screen.
When you collapse the modal, it gets out of the way like this.
Revel in the spirit of sharing.
Helping others feels great. As you provide handy resources and make the day easier for your readers, you’ll feel great for the rest of the day. They may want to hook you up with their email to hear more from you, and that’s your chance to offer more help along the same lines.
We’ve all turned to the Internet to solve problems and make new discoveries. By offering helpful resources, you become more of an authority in your field, you grow your following, and you generally just feel awesome for making the world easier. Have fun!
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