Amanda Natividad VP of Marketing at SparkToro is a force to be reckoned with in the content marketing world.
She believes that content should always start and end with value – whether it’s knowledge a new skill or just plain fun.
Content Doesn’t Need SEO to Be Compelling
In a recent Ungated Marketing episode Amanda shared some insightful strategies that have worked for her and they all have one thing in common: they prioritize value over SEO.
Amanda Natividad’s advice is 🔥. I’m ditching keyword stuffing and focusing on content that actually helps people. Want to learn more about permissionless co-marketing? Check out Amanda’s article It’s a game-changer. 🤯
Putting Value First
Amanda emphasizes that SparkToro doesn’t have a dedicated SEO strategy.
They focus on creating content that they find genuinely interesting and helpful without worrying about keyword rankings.
This approach has proven to be very effective for them.
“We’re just interested in taking this approach of how can we write about and talk about the things related to marketing we find interesting we find novel… that help people think differently that present problems in a different way.
How can we create content that we just genuinely think is good and interesting and then kind of build a trusted brand from that” Amanda explains.
The Case of Permissionless Co-Marketing
One of Amanda’s favorite examples of this approach is permissionless co-marketing.
This strategy involves highlighting brands people or companies that are good examples of the topic you’re discussing.
It’s about building goodwill providing valuable insights and potentially laying the foundation for future collaborations.
“Permissionless co-marketing is essentially the act of shouting out brands people companies that are good examples of what you are talking about; And doing so with the intention of building goodwill providing great examples and potentially maybe setting the foundation for potential future formal collaborations” Amanda says.
While this strategy might not be highly ranked in SEO terms Amanda found that her article on permissionless co-marketing was a huge success attracting a lot of attention due to its valuable content.
It’s a prime example of how valuable content can thrive without relying on SEO.
Making Webinars Fun and Engaging
Webinars have become a staple of online marketing but they can often feel stale and repetitive.
Amanda and her team at SparkToro have found a way to make webinars fun and engaging by prioritizing value for their audience.
SparkToro Office Hours
Amanda and Rand Fishkin the CEO of SparkToro host a popular webinar series called “SparkToro Office Hours.” The key to its success lies in providing value to marketers of all levels.
“Rand and I take turns presenting.
Sometimes we have a guest presenter where we really just present on something related to marketing strategy.
And then along the way if it makes sense we incorporate how somebody would use SparkToro to improve that strategy.
So we really want to make sure that it’s an event series that’s valuable to any marketer of all levels where they can learn something where they don’t have to use SparkToro to learn from it” says Amanda.
The webinar series aims to provide actionable insights that attendees can apply to their own marketing strategies regardless of whether they use SparkToro.
This approach has resulted in a highly engaged audience and has helped to build trust and credibility.
Content Ideas for Every Stage of the Funnel
Amanda emphasizes the importance of tailoring content to the different stages of the marketing funnel.
Amanda Natividad’s advice is 🔥. I’m ditching keyword stuffing and focusing on content that actually helps people. Want to learn more about permissionless co-marketing? Check out Amanda’s article It’s a game-changer. 🤯
By aligning content with the specific needs and goals of each stage you can create a more targeted and effective marketing strategy.
Top of the Funnel: Raising Awareness
For top-of-the-funnel content Amanda suggests focusing on creating content that is shareable and publicly accessible.
“If I’m thinking about a top of funnel content goal some of the things I would think through would be how can I create content that people want to talk about publicly? And that might be in the form of digital PR.
So maybe that comes in the form of original research.
Like that is something that will be novel brand new” Amanda explains.
Original research such as surveys or studies can generate buzz and provide valuable insights that can spark conversations and media coverage.
Middle of the Funnel: Generating Leads
The middle of the funnel is all about nurturing leads and providing them with the information they need to make an informed decision.
This stage requires content that is valuable enough to encourage leads to provide their contact information in exchange for valuable assets.
“Because someone who is completely new to your product like a completely new visitor they’re not going to be very likely to just give you their name and email and phone number.
They’ve never heard of you.
might want to see a couple of your blog posts might want to poke around on your website a little bit and then maybe if they feel like it’s relevant they’ll sign up for your email list . And that kind of feels like the middle of the funnel to me because it’s somebody who has a little bit of familiarity with you and then they want to get your content” Amanda says.
Amanda believes that gated content should provide significant value to justify the exchange of contact information.
This could include templates spreadsheets or other resources that provide practical solutions to real-world problems.
Bottom of the Funnel: Engaging Customers
The bottom of the funnel is about driving conversions and increasing customer engagement.
This stage requires content that provides value to existing customers and inspires them to continue using your products or services.
“I think about things like what would inspire my current users or customers to share this message.
What would inspire them to refer a friend? What would inspire them to further engage with the product? So if it’s in the case of SaaS or software it might be ‘how can I engage somebody with this new feature or this new product to be launched?’ Things that would speak to the improved user experience” Amanda says.
For example Amanda’s “idea generator” for FitBit is a great example of bottom-of-the-funnel content that engages customers and enhances their experience with the product.
Measuring Content Success Across the Funnel
While it’s important to align content with the specific goals of each funnel stage it’s also crucial to remember that a single piece of content can have a significant impact across multiple stages.
The FitBit Idea Generator Example
Amanda shares a compelling example of how the FitBit idea generator originally created for bottom-of-the-funnel engagement generated positive results across all stages of the funnel.
The generator’s virality and media attention helped raise awareness and earn backlinks contributing to top-of-the-funnel success.
Amanda Natividad’s advice is 🔥. I’m ditching keyword stuffing and focusing on content that actually helps people. Want to learn more about permissionless co-marketing? Check out Amanda’s article It’s a game-changer. 🤯
It also generated leads for the middle of the funnel as companies seeking an idea generator for corporate wellness programs were likely in the target audience.
“We got a lot of relevant leads from it because if you are somebody who is looking for an idea generator to help you with corporate wellness then most likely you’re in the target audience for that piece of content.
So it’s a win for everybody you can tie that content KPI to leads generated you can tie it to a number of qualified leads or how they progress or your lead scoring system” Amanda explains.
The generator also contributed to bottom-of-the-funnel success by engaging existing customers and encouraging repeat usage.
While they couldn’t track bookmarks directly they observed thousands of return visitors to the asset indicating its ongoing value to customers.
Conclusion: Embrace the Fun in Content Marketing
Amanda’s insights demonstrate the importance of prioritizing value focusing on creating content that is genuinely interesting and helpful and understanding how content can impact different stages of the marketing funnel.
By embracing these principles you can create compelling content that resonates with your audience and drives results.
So let’s make content marketing fun again! Let’s create content that sparks curiosity ignites conversations and delivers real value to our audience.
And remember don’t be afraid to experiment and think outside the box.