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I have always been a self-proclaimed daddy’s girl. Growing up, my dad could do no wrong in my eyes, and to a certain extent, he still can’t. The fact that he happens to be a charming middle aged Brit who opts for exclamations like “rats” and “bother” in favor of more incendiary terms doesn’t help the matter either. But my dad wasn’t just a hero to me at home. As a 9 year old, I had a distinct image of him as a veritable David, struggling against the reams of bureaucracy within a certain Goliath-sized corporation. While I didn’t understand his frustration at the time, I can still remember his mutterings, often ending with a plaintive, exasperated cry: “but what about the CUSTOMER?”
(Little did I know that years later this would become content for blogs.)
That’s who you had in mind when you started your business, isn’t it? But it’s amazing how that simple but essential concept—doing what’s best for the customer—can be lost, especially as a company grows. Are your business practices actually hampering your ability to serve your clients/customers/readers? Are you so focused on impressing the board, your colleagues, or even yourself that you’ve lost sight of the end recipient? Seth Godin tackled this subject in a great and typically succinct blog post last month:
Every campaign that I’ve ever seen fail has failed for precisely the same reason: it pleases the wrong person. Think about it… it wouldn’t have launched if it hadn’t pleased the boss or the client, right? Pleasing the wrong person meant failure.
If you’re in marketing, will your marketing content dazzle your customers as much as your colleagues? Think about the customer and how they will respond. If you’re designing a product, don’t get so caught up in ground-breaking innovation that doesn’t actually benefit the consumer in the slightest. Joe Pulizzi also addressed this issue in June, asking “Whose Business Are You Developing?” Your services should be developing your customer’s business. That is your endpoint. Your own business will grow as a result of concentrated efforts to really help your client.
In theory, content marketing is all about serving the customer. It means giving your consumers something of value, particularly information, in order to pique interest and gain trust. But when drawing up ideas for your content, whether you’re hiring freelance writers or a marketing agency, make sure your ideas are based on what your customers will want to see.
It may sound idealistic and oversimplified, but the root of all commerce really is the consumer. Paying attention to the little guy and making sure that he is satisfied is what will ensure your success. Especially now, with so many tools available for each individual to broadcast their opinions to the world, it is even more important to make sure you keep your consumers in mind. What do they need? How will they respond to whatever changes you have implemented?
Nicola Fairhead is a freelance writer available on WriterAccess, a marketplace where clients and expert writers connect for assignments. WriterAccess is powered by ideaLaunch, a full service content marketing agency serving hundreds of clients and thousands of writers since 2000.
Image courtesy of http://www.branchesoflancaster.co.uk/images/newimages/red%20%20tape.gif
Tags: content marketing
