Aaron Hoos

Jonathan Kahn an excellent article about content strategy from the perspective of the web professional, showing how website development and content strategy go hand-in-hand.

Content Strategy for the Web Professional.

Long versus short articles: This is a common question I’m asked. Jakob Nielsen gives some great thoughts on whether web content should be long or short and he wisely mentions that it’s not just about benefits; rather, it’s the cost/benefit ratio that matters.

Long vs. Short Articles as Content Strategy.

In the most recent issue of Jeffrey Gitomer’s Sales Caffeine newsletter, Gitomer talked about the use of stories in selling and how they are at the core of many aspects of the sale, from building rapport to overcoming objections and justifying your price. He’s right: Stories sell.

Here’s why I think stories are effective sales tools
Stories humanize the sales process, which can feel cold and inexorable. They make you as a salesperson easier to relate to. They put a distant concept into a believable, conceivable, “ownable”, real-life setting. They even compel people to buy from a sense of keeping up with the Joneses.

What should you do?
Add a story to your content and watch as your audience becomes more engaged. Start your articles with a story to draw people in. Embed testimonials into your sales letters. Write a personal story for one of your blogs. Add stories to your ebooks (not as padding but as a key contribution to the content). Drop the heavy-handed marketing in favor of a couple of compelling stories. Observe how good commercials — the ones you remember — tell a story in 30 seconds and can be related easily to others around the watercooler. Collect stories about your products and about the ideas and benefits that your products offer.

Check out some of the other story-in-marketing blogs I’ve written:

• “The power of story in marketing“
• “Aaron’s answers: Marketing jewelry“