Cats are bastards. But, strangely, they’re pretty easy to understand, keep alive and keep happy. Believe it or not, maintaining a solid content marketing campaign is just like owning a cat. Here are 5 different ways content marketing is like owning a cat.
1. They’re pretty much like a self-cleaning oven.
Cats and content marketing are both super easy to maintain, once you figure out the basic workings. Cats just need food, water, a litter box and a cardboard box to be happy.
Content marketing only requires that you know yourself, know your market and have the resources to keep the food bowl topped off. Because God forbid there ever be a hole in the food bowl. Once you know what you’re doing, it’s pretty easy to maintain forward momentum.
2. They love the simple things in life.
Let’s face it, cats don’t care if you spent $5 on a cat toy or not, they will always love the milk ring or foil ball better.
Your audience is the same. Don’t over-complicate things when the simplest answer is probably the best one. Provide them with what they need and what they want in the easiest way possible. Your audience is busy, and they don’t have the time to sit through a 30-minute explanation of why iOS is better than Android.
Note: there’s a huge difference between enjoying the simple things and being easily amused. Don’t mistake the two. Ever.
3. They will crap where you let them.
No, seriously. Everyone knows that if you don’t keep a litter box clean, your cat will do it’s business wherever it feels like it.
When it comes to content marketing, you should always keep it clean, keep it simple and keep it relevant. The minute you jump off topic, your audience will crap all over whatever medium you’re using. No one wants to go back and clean up a Facebook wall, do they?
4. They will always think they’re smarter than you.
Cats do this. You know it. We know it. The whole freaking world knows it. Cats are smart little bastards, and they think they’re more clever than Einstein.
The truth is, everyone thinks they’re smarter than the person(s) making the point. Sometimes you have to play to it and admit that you’re no infallible. But, remember that while the customer is always right, the customer is not always RIGHT. This lesson applies more so to reputation management than content marketing, but they kind of run in the same vein. Don’t fight with your audience or your cat. They will always think they’ve got the upper hand. Play things smart, and play them cool.
5. They can and will be your best friend…but only when it works for them.
Cats are not like dogs. They will make loving them difficult, except when it suits their fancy. Dogs, on the other hand, are pretty much in love with you from day one. But, they don’t present much of a challenge, other than the training.
Maintaining a solid content marketing strategy relies on the fact that you will not always make everyone happy. Sometimes people will not like what you have to say, but that means that they aren’t your primary demographic. But, if they maintain contact it says that they know that what you’re saying is important, and they just need to reach a point in their lives when it means something to them. At that time, they’ve become your demographic and your best friend.
These are our little fluffy butts – Brody, and Luna.
In essence….
Cats are easy to maintain if you know what you’re doing, just like content marketing. There’s no time like the present to discover and implement a documented content marketing strategy. Email us today for help!