It’s a simple concept, but one that is often ignored during the thought process to navigate toward an overarching goal. Yet for all the proverbs and clichés that push us toward the bigger picture at the cost of the small stuff, it’s the details that are so important when generating content and building an audience.
So let’s turn the table on these turn-of-phrases and explore why the advice of a cliché may be the worst way to look at your content.
If you’re confident in your services and certain that those who are creating content can find the right audiences to consume it, that’s a great foundation for delivering big in the marketplace. However, convincing prospects that your company – and therefore its content – is better than the competitors cannot be done with big ideas alone. Just because a company is new, part of a marketing trend, or offering an innovative service that people will love, both consumers and organizations are more comfortable working with a known entity, even as brand loyalty slowly dissolves.
That’s where focused, detail-oriented content makes all the difference. It goes beyond advertising and brand identity. How you position your company as thought leaders and service pioneers can make or break the public’s perception of the content you are creating. You need to ensure that your content producers understand the nuances that separate your company from the competitors. How is it superior? Why is it an improvement over what people have used or known for decades? What is so revolutionary and different about it?
By “sweating” the small stuff and answering these hard questions early on, you’ll be an emerging brand and a potential thought leader. You can’t have the big idea without the ability to explain and demonstrate it via intelligent, inventive, and exciting content. Sweating the small stuff early saves heavy flop sweats and big fixes later.
Maybe it’s time to rely on a different quip from coaching legend John Wooden: “It's the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.”
You’ve likely heard an outraged or upset consumer rumble, “The devil is in the details.” It’s an ideal that has long outlived its purpose; the notion that the details of an offer are the hook by which a business reels you into a world of false promises is a hurdle hard for many content producers to overcome.
Content is not fine print; it is not the means by which to pull the wool over customer’s eyes. Though it’s useful to understand the growing skepticism felt by many consumers, there is also an opportunity to be had by focusing content on such suspicions. Presenting detailed - and honest - content is a chance to build trust and establish brand loyalty. It’s the opportunity to present why your company is not like the others who have created a consumer base that is mistrustful.
Marketing is more than the hard sell. Connecting with potential customers on a personal basis by showcasing the identity and mores of your company is vital to building trust. Soon your detail-oriented emails, white papers, and social media messages become down home messages that separate you from bigger companies with (perceived) vanilla personalities.
But be careful not to make sweeping generalizations or use the wrongdoings of competitors. It’s best to stay positive, focus on what you do best, and make sure content is a reflection of those attitudes. As it turns out, content becomes a big part of your business’s character.
It’s time to adopt a more positive outlook courtesy of architect and furniture designer, Charles Eames: “The details are not the details. They make the design.”
And that’s the key to content. It’s the design by which best practices are created and instilled. Without first concentrating on how the content you are producing will put your best foot forward, you aren’t building a sturdy frame for your business.
Turning a blind eye to imaginative content on multiple channels cheats your company from creating a colorful and engaging palette that builds an engaged audience. Unappealing or slap-dashed content will be viewed with leeriness – or worse, apathy.
Content is a key detail, whether you’re a well-established brand or a twinkling new start-up. It should be part of the company fabric from day one, never left out of the big picture to be revisited later.
Details are crucial to making contact with your desired audience. The fast-paced, interconnected world in which we live provides ample outlets and opportunity to put your best foot forward from the get-go. Don’t neglect investing early and often in content that best reflects just how detail-centric and exciting you are.
