Monday, June 11, 2012

The Battle for the Crown: Is Content or Conversation King?



Good content sparks great conversations and great conversations serve as the inspiration for new content. They are dependent upon one another and rarely mutually exclusive. To say one or the other reigns supreme is like comparing an expert marketer to the high-level analytics tools she is using. Her success depends on the data she gleans from the analytics tools, but that same data would be useless in the hands of an inexperienced marketer. 

Of course, you can make an argument on the importance of each – and in the spirit of this week’s blog assignment, I believe that is necessary. Let’s explore.

In Defense of Conversation:
  • Conversation places “human interaction at the center of the picture.”
  • The success of social media can be attributed to conversation.
  • Without conversation, content is “just broadcasting, or just advertising.” (SocialMedia Today, 2012).
In Defense of Content:
  • “Without  content, there is not a whole lot to talk about.” (Greenberg, 2009).
  • When searching for information online, queries are generally text-based, and the wording of content makes a difference. “Using the language of your customer will help you engage better as well.” (Fox, 2010).
  • “The three most important things for SEO are content, content, and content.” (Brockmeier, 2011).
The following infographic offers a great visual on the important role content plays in driving SEO.

 

In closing, I would like to share a video of my favorite content provider/conversation starter, YouTube superstar, Michael Buckley. Michael’s online video show, What the Buck? has over one million subscribers and over 350 million views. I’m 30-something years old and can honestly attest to the fact that Miley Cyrus rarely makes it onto my radar. With that said, I found this video so amusing, I shared it on Facebook (and emailed it to all of my friends), which in turn sparked some
pretty spirited conversations.


  
Although I defend the fact that content and conversation are equally important, if I had to pick a winner, content would get the crown.
Greenberg, M. (2009, October 20). Content is king of social marketing. MultichannelMerchant.com. Retrieved June 10, 2012 from http://multichannelmerchant.com/social-media/1020-content-social-marketing/

Why conversation, not content, is king. SocialMediaToday.com. Retrieved June 10, 2012 from http://socialmediatoday.com/wordspring/152636/why-conversation-not-content-king

Fox, V. (2010). Marketing in the age of Google your online strategy is your business strategy. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons.

Brockmeier, J. (2011, October 19). Infographic: Why Content is King for SEO. ReadWriteWeb. Retrieved June 10, 2012, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/enterprise/2011/10/infographic-why-content-is-kin.php

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