In this day and age, it’s difficult to keep up with all the latest technology. As broadcasters, we’re expected to be proficient with tools that didn’t exist 15 years ago, from Facebook and Twitter to blogs and podcasts. At a time when every radio and television station is pressed for money and manpower, it can be overwhelming.
How do all of these different tools fit together? And how do they affect the bottom line?
To answer that question, it’s helpful to look outside the broadcasting industry. Increasingly, non-broadcasting businesses have come to rely on a method known as “content marketing” to grow their fanbases. That same strategy can be adapted to broadcasting.
Not only does content marketing pull all of a station’s different digital elements together in a single overarching strategy, but it relies on principles that broadcasters are familiar with. When you launch a new station, you first find content to put on it: Local newscasts, music, or morning shows.
Once the content is in place, you need to let the audience know about it, so you promote the station’s programming with billboards, newspaper ads, or email campaigns. Then you measure your station’s efforts using a variety of tools, from Nielsen ratings to perceptual research studies.
As a digital strategy, content marketing works in much the same way – though it employs a different set of tools. Instead of programming a station, you start by putting content on your website: Articles, videos, photos, podcasts, etc.
Once you have your content on the site, you need to get word out to the audience. Instead of billboards and newspaper ads, you use social media campaigns and search engine optimization. Finally, you measure your efforts; but instead of using Nielsen and focus groups, you use Google Analytics and A/B tests.
Over the next few months, I am producing a series of short videos for the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association that will dive into different digital topics, from email marketing to social media usage. All of these topics are linked together as part of an overarching content marketing strategy, which is the subject of the first of these videos. You can watch that video here.
The rest of the videos will be available in the WBA website’s Members Only Section.
If you’d like additional help figuring out how your station can successfully implement and improve its digital strategy, I will be at the WBA Summer Conference in Milwaukee on June 20-21. I will be holding one-on-one meetings with broadcasters to talk to them about their station’s digital initiatives. To get the most out of these meetings, we’ve built a Digital Assessment to help you get a handle on what areas your station is excelling in and where there is room for improvement.
Once you’ve completed the assessment, I’ll reach out to you to set up a time at the WBA Summer Conference to review the results together. There are a limited number of time slots available. Together, we’ll find a way to take your station’s digital strategy to the next level.
I look forward to seeing you in Milwaukee!
The WBA Digital Hotline is a free service of the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association. For free advice on anything relating to digital broadcasting ranging from mobile, social media, content marketing or more, contact Paul Jacobs at Paul@jacobsmedia.com
