The GIST - Modern Marketing Guide - Edition #1

The GIST: Marketing Guide #1

GUIDANCE FOR THE MODERN MARKETER

IN THIS EDITION (September 2024)

How To Repurpose Your Long-form Content (& Why it’s Important)
Do You Need A CMO? Or Can You Leverage Fractional CMO Services?
Top 3 AI Tools Every Marketer Shouldn’t Be Without
What You’re Doing Wrong With Your Video Shorts

SUPERCHARGE YOUR MARKETING

How To Repurpose Your Content & Turn It Into Gold!

What if you could transform a single blog post into 12 powerful pieces of content?
It’s possible, and the ‘how’ is where most marketers make mistakes.
Before you start carving up your content and going wild with copy pasta, consider these Best Practices;

Tailor Your Content to Specific Platform Needs: X (Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest, and other platforms (think large international brands), all have their separate purposes and Pros & Cons. Ensure that content you create is personalized for specific platform requirements.
Maintain Consistency in Messaging: Always consider these three pillars of messaging on social: a) Consistency in Tone, b) Branding (design & visuals), and c) CTA’s used, e.g., are we using “Get Started,” “Contact Us,” or something else?
Tracking, Analyzing, and Optimizing: What chaps our hides are the different analytics reported for various platforms. Get used to what platform reports on which KPIs.

Bonus Tip: Most of these platforms only report stats up to 12 months prior. Plan your reporting accordingly at the start of campaigns to show Year-Over-Year KPIs (to show growth and ROI).

12 (easy-to-implement) methods for repurposing your content.

Repurposing content can multiply the impact of your marketing efforts (especially for successful evergreen content that needs updating) . By transforming one piece of content into multiple formats, you can reach new audiences, boost engagement, and keep your message consistent across platforms.

TOP FIVE WAYS YOU CAN REPURPOSE YOUR CONTENT:

Turn Long-form Content (e.g., blog articles) Into Video Shorts
Break Up Articles Into Small, Digestible Chunks For Social Media Posts
Create Infographics From Research-Heavy Content
Turn Webinars Into Podcast Episodes or Videos (long or short form)
Create A Downloadable Slide Deck for LinkedIn (& gate it if applicable)
…

VIEW/DOWNLOAD Checklist of All 12 Methods w/ Full Details

FRACTIONAL CMO SERVICES

To CMO Or Not To CMO, That Is The Question

The Pros and Cons of fractional CMO services.

Choosing a fractional CMO provider gives your business access to top-tier marketing leadership at a fraction of the cost, offering flexibility, specialized expertise, and a fresh perspective, while any potential downsides like limited availability or cultural integration are easily outweighed by the strategic value a fractional CMO can deliver against your business goals.

PROS OF FRACTIONAL CMO SERVICES:

Cost-Effectiveness: Hiring a full-time Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) can be expensive, especially for small-to-medium-sized businesses. A fractional CMO provides executive-level expertise at a fraction of the cost, allowing companies to allocate resources elsewhere without sacrificing high-level marketing strategy
Expertise and Flexibility: Fractional CMOs bring diverse experience across industries and can quickly adapt to different company needs. You benefit from the strategic insights of a seasoned marketing leader without long-term commitment, making them ideal for project-based or transitional roles.
Focused, Objective Perspective: A fractional CMO provides an outsider’s perspective, often leading to more objective insights and decisions. They can help identify gaps in your marketing strategy and implement new, focused approaches without the influence of internal company politics.

BONUS TIP: Diving deeper into the bureaucracy aspect, having a fractional CMO aid in planning and sourcing the delivery of marketing tactics is a powerful tool in your toolbox.

OPEN YOUR MOUTH AND SAY, AHHHH

Fresh Take: Latest A.I. Tools Every Marketer Should Use

Above and beyond ChatGPT, Midjourney, or Gemini…

These are non-entry-level apps; the top 3 A.I. Tools we think you shouldn’t be without!

A.I. TOOLS:

A) Crayon – https://crayon.co – Competitor Analysis

No, we’re not talking Crayola, we’re talking Competitor Analysis w/ the power of AI! Crayon monitors your competitors and alerts you to relevant intel, allowing you to focus on high-impact work – like enabling sales – without fear of being blindsided.

B) Descript – https://www.descript.com/ – Editing Video with A.I

Instead of wasting money, time, and/or resources with video editing, you can levergage A.I. to quickly edit your videos. Descript is the AI-powered, fully featured, end-to-end video editor you already know how to use (because you can already type).

C) Brand24 – https://brand24.com/ – Brand Monitoring

A social listening tool that monitors brand mentions across multiple platforms, using AI to provide sentiment analysis and actionable insights. This one is a bit pricey, but hopefully, the costs will come down (especially for marketers at smaller companies).

None of these recommendations were sponsored.
We really think these A.I. tools will make your life easier.

PLAY, PAUSE, PLAY… PAUSE

Marketing Tip: Eliminate These Video Short Mistakes

What you’re doing wrong with your video shorts.

By addressing these common errors, you can better engage your audience and maximize impact.

MUST AVOID:

1) Neglecting Trends & Platform-Specific Engagement Features

Marketers often fail to leverage trends, challenges, or interactive features unique to platforms like TikTok or Instagram. Using trending music, filters, or participating in viral challenges can significantly boost visibility. Ignoring these trends or not optimizing for platform-specific features limits a video’s reach and engagement potential

2) Creating Videos That Are Too Long

Chapters or parting out of shorts are extremely valuable (still). Keeping a video to 60 seconds or less also makes it easier to port content to YouTube. Not to mention everyone’s attention spans. If your “short” is going longer than 60 seconds, it better be incredible!

3) Ignoring Analytics and Performance Data (Apply Lessons Learned)

Many marketers fail to track or analyze the performance of their video shorts, leading to missed opportunities. You’ll overlook valuable insights that inform future video strategies by not monitoring key metrics like watch time, engagement rates, and viewer demographics.

I NEED HELP

More Marketing Resources

FOR THE GREATER GOOD

Looking For Our Next Opportunity To Serve

We’re still accepting submissions for our 2025 pro-bono client.

We’re looking for a charity, struggling small business, NGO, non-profit, or any other company that might be doing the “greater good” and in need of marketing services (pro bono).

❓ What we’re offering: Up to $5k – $7k per month in services for a full year.

HOW DO I SUBMIT AN ORGANIZATION IN NEED?

➡ Simple – send us an email »

What needs to be included in the email:

1. Organization Name

2. Contact Name, Phone, Email (if you don’t know anyone at the charity, but know that if they just had a little more help… just let us know that and we can reach out to them together).

3. Why you picked the organization (what’s their mission, why do they need help, etc. etc.) – MAKE THE CASE!