Content Soup: Mmm Mmm Good

My favorite recipe has been handed down by generations via rich oral folklore. But some things really deserve to be handed down with greater velocity.

Take this recipe for instance. You can make it with very little preparation time, and the ingredients are sure to be an arm’s length away.

Like many content soup recipes, please be advised that the meal is not very filling.

No Stress Preparation

Make sure your work surface is clean and free of miscellaneous distractions, such as personas, or other artifacts containing deep customer insight.
Clear your mind, and stare blankly into space for about 3 minutes. If helpful, place your fist under your chin, to enter a state of deep, but mindless reflection.

Take Stock to Make Stock

Select at random, one or two product brochures that lack evidence of human interest (your web analytic team should be able to help here). These are known as the “white space” in your marketing plan, and will serve as fine base stock for your Content Soup.

Review your website, and if needed – the sites of up to three close competitors. Choose frequently used terms from high profile products that have the following characteristics – to create an enticingly aromatic mirepoix:

• Claim the Broadest Domain: industry-leading, world-classs, galaxy-wide
• Invoke Super-Powers: liberate, transform, annihilate
• Create Inestimable Benefits: lower cost, more productive, save time

Add the Secret Sauce (Bam!)

We know that people like to snack on Content Soup. You need to apply Alphabits logic here, and concentrate the bulk of your effort mincing your main idea into 120 characters or fewer. Try these iron-clad ideas for titles that will make your prospects taste buds tingle:

1. Little Known Ways to
2. What Everyone Ought to Know About
3. Now You Can Have

Make sure you build these titles around the mirepoix from the “Take Stock” section above.

Bulk, Fillers and Yada, Yada, Yada

Some B2B marketers show a lot of interest in this step. But please be warned, this isn’t a place to be ”long winded”. Take a cue from Metamucil here: give just enough fiber to bind people to your idea – but remember that in excess, people will know you’re full of hot air.

Presentation Matters

People underestimate the power of presentation. Your Content Soup deserves a thoughtful strategy to marry the savory aroma with it’s visual essence.

Take a “fair” die, and roll it 3 times. Use the results of your roll to choose content types from the numbered list below.

1. Podcast
2. Infographic
3. White Paper
4. Blog Post
5. Video
6. Case Study

Don’t worry if you end up with duplicates – sometimes that represents an opportunity to use the same idea over and over again. With the right titles, your Content Soup will be the hottest item on the menu.

Season to Taste

Season well my friends, and take a cue from me. They don’t call me @brainseason for my brains!!

Disclaimer: It’s sometimes difficult to translate the complex instructions of a rich oral history into a simple blog post. The author of course, advocates careful research on buyer behavior, the creation of remarkable content, and an informed influence strategy – also known as the Circle of Trust.

No content was harmed in the creation of this post.