Since transitioning from a simple content aggregation publication into a content marketing service, I’ve had dozens of meetings with entrepreneurs and marketers about “telling their story.” A consistent pattern has emerged out of those meetings that has become predictable in all my initial consultations with potential clients:
It’s easier for me to tell your story than it is for you to tell your story.
Here’s why, and, while these reasons don’t apply to absolutely everyone, they are very consistent.
- You’re too close to your product. You know it so well that you lose sight of what your audience doesn’t know. I liken this scenario to when I tried to teach my mom how to use Microsoft Excel a few years back. I’m going on and on about formulas and dragging cells and charts and stuff, and she stops me and asks, “what’s a ‘cell’?”
- You don’t like to talk about yourself. Most people, despite the requirement of a solid amount of confidence and ego to start, run, and own a business, don’t really like to write or talk about themselves. However, in order to position you or the company you run as an industry authority, thought leader, or expert, you have to talk about you. It’s much easier for me to compliment you than for you to humble-brag about you. Sounds better, too.
- A third party lends credibility. At the TAG Business Launch Competition finals in May, Gimme Vending reached the final round. Instead of taking the entire 10 minutes to present themselves, they put a customer on stage to talk about them. It was so much more powerful to hear someone outside the company talking about the company than to hear the longer version of their 3-minute pitch. The same thing applies to your marketing content.
- From your audience’s point of view. This last point is actually the most important, and is related to point #1 above. The words we use inside our own teams are different than the words we use when speaking to our customers and prospects. We just use different language, and we see things from our side of the table, not theirs. Bringing in a 3rd party to voice your message enables that third party to see – and speak or write – from an outsider’s point of view, namely, your prospect’s point of view.
Again, these 4 reasons for third party content creation are not hard and fast, nor do they apply to absolutely everyone. However, the more potential clients I meet, the more I see this pattern. It helps to hear and tell your story from a fresh, different perspective.
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