Content is king is a common refrain, but not all content is created equal. For your buyer and customer journey, content that personalizes value is all that matters!

Sarah MacKinnon, in a recent article aptly titled a “A Content Tsunami,” shows 91% of companies increasing content investments, but only 30% have a defined buyer journey that motivates this content.  

For many companies, content is not building or deepening engagement. It is just creating noise.  

The good news is that the fix is easier than you think.  

Don’t just create content, create content hierarchies that tell a story about value for a specific buyer goal or buyer role at three specific levels:

• Top of the funnel (TOFU) assets that quickly present value and create engagement
• Middle of the funnel (MOFU) assets that help with solutioning and present unique strengths
• Bottom of the funnel (BOFU) assets with social proof that encourage conversion

Let’s take as an example this value story — “Everyone wins from automation” — developed by a company that provides comprehensive gym management software.     

The positioning cleverly differentiates their comprehensive approach focused on automation of all operations from niche softwares that focus just on members or finance or operations. 

To support the positioning, the marketing team produced a set of TOFU assets delivered by email and digital ads that speak to the cumulative value of automation for gym members, staff, and executives.

TOFU Assets that quickly present value and create engagement include Blogs, Customer Stories, and Infographics.   

Anyone who engages is invited to the next step with MOFU assets that encourage self-solutioning, identifying fit, and considering the strengths of their comprehensive approach.

MOFU Assets on the company’s website include eBook, Diagnostics, and ROI worksheets that focus on the revenue of a better member experience and cost impact of automation.  

Finally, the company developed a series of BOFU Assets that use social proof to support conversion into a sales conversation as well as conversion into a closed won deal and new partnership.

For any buyer considering purchasing from you, their absolute #1 question is this: Has this company helped my peers be more successful?

Key BOFU assets for the company included Customer Stories and Testimonial infographics, Slideware with Stories for sales calls, as well as demo trials to support deeper self-solutioning.

Your specific content strategy will vary based on your customers and markets. However, all of your content should be designed to tell value stories for a specific buyer goal and role at three levels — engagement, self-solutioning, and social proof.