Content Strategy for an Asia-based FinTech Startup

Transcription

1 Content Strategy for an Asia-based FinTech Startup A centralized content strategy based on a multi-channel, campaign-centric approach to be applied across multiple ventures

2 Company Overview Our sample company is a FinTech startup with ventures in five Asian countries and growing Supported by a venture capital firm, the FinTech startup rolled out an SEO and Content Team in the Philippines and rapidly expanded to five countries with only a rudimentary content strategy composed of three fronts: Link building pitching articles for consideration to relevant blogs. Aim is to rapidly gain link equity to gain SERP rankings faster. Media partnerships Each country venture targets local publications both offline and online for publishing partnerships from thought leadership posts to financial tips. Internal content silos each country venture s websites have internal static pages and blogs. The business model is financial services comparison: potential customers use the startup s portal to compare their country s credit cards, loans, insurance, etc. 1

3 The Problem The FinTech startup is due to expand rapidly to three other countries across Asia but their content efforts are falling short. The main problem: the content efforts are currently disconnected and scattered. The various efforts do not work together, and yield results that do not benefit each other and the ventures directly. 2

4 Poor Results & Measurable ROI All the content efforts were not aligned with the sales funnel leading to the actual comparison pages (Competitor Evaluation), which then finishes with a referral (Purchase Decision) Need Recognition Information Research Competitor Evaluation Purchase Decision The content efforts help potential leads with Information Research, but sometimes they do not even satisfy Need Recognition, and often they do not actually lead to the comparison pages where Competitor Evaluation and Purchase Decision occur. 3

5 Current Efforts & Goals Content Silo (Blog) Each country venture s websites have internal static pages and blogs. Goals: Organic SEO Building authority Pitching articles for consideration to relevant blogs. Goals: Rapidly gain link equity SERP rankings Link Building Media Partners Each country venture targets local publications both offline and online for publishing partnerships from thought leadership posts to financial tips. Goals: Wide audience reach Branding and authority-building Each effort is driven by its own goals. Worse, sometimes the goals do not promote / are not aligned with the main objective of securing a closed sale (by leading readers from Need Recognition to Purchase Decision). 4

6 Realigning the Strategy Link Building Media Partners Need Recognition Information Research Content Silo (Blog) Comparison Pages Competitor Evaluation & Purchase Decision What is needed is a strategy that funnels users to a closed sale from whatever stage they are in the customer journey by leading them to the next one. Each of the content efforts should have a specific goal as aligned with the customer journey (e.g. instill Need Recognition or provide information that leads to comparison pages). 5

7 The Solution 1. Content Silo (Blog) Campaign goal: create a strong content silo. This bolsters organic SEO with fresh, optimized content, spreads awareness (Need Recognition) & drives user engagement (Information Research). The silos should be the central hub of authoritative content used for link building, online positioning, and branding. It is imperative to implement strategic campaigns on each content effort to align them with their stage of the customer journey. Objectives: Aligned marketing messages Create editorial calendar Diversify content types Leverage on-page SEO Implement CTAs Insight-driven content (e.g.: Promotions) 6

8 The Solution The first key step to creating a strong content silo is marketing message control. These are examples of blog posts that do not push readers into the funnel: Malaysian Venture Article on Facebook Acquiring WhatsApp Topic has no direct relation to Venture Very thin connection to venture s mobile vertical that was not utilized Philippine Venture Listicle on Long Distance Relationships Topic has no direct relation to Venture Topic could have incorporated subject matter that could connect to a live vertical, but was not utilized Normal editing ensures quality on a reading level is the article polished and grammatically sound? Does the article inform or entertain? Add a level of marketing message control QA to ensure every piece of content achieves a goal that pushes readers towards a closed sale. 7

9 The Solution Implementing a final level of QA ensures strategic cohesion Here are examples of blog posts that were decent, but lacked marketing message control: Malaysian Venture Listicleon Smartphones for Holidays Philippine Venture Article on Broadband for NextGenGaming Timely for the holidays Branded content that reaches a wider audience & hitches on brand / holiday trend No CTAs and live links to verticals or posts Could have included which providers offer plans for phones mentioned in article better CTAs Article related subject matter to vertical with CTAs and live links Relevance is slim and inclusion of vertical like an after-thought Could have focused as well on broadband requirements of games mentioned better CTAs 8

10 The Solution Implement an editorial calendar aligned with quality control The editorial calendar can be implemented on a varying weekly schedule; It uses 5 umbrella categories encompassing possible content types to publish. Category Content Types Goals (Aligned to CLOSE SALES) Strategic Benefits Sample Topics Specific Product / Provider Articles Product / provider overviews Product / provider reviews Product / provider news Product / provider tips Product / provider promotions To lead readers to live verticals directly by informing and educating them about specific product / provider information Ranking for branded keywords More targeted readers (already interested in brands) Content types such as reviews, tips, and promotions would be more amenable to hardsell CTAs Standard Chartered New Year Promotion Starts Now HSBC Credit Card Releases New Card with More Air Miles Each category is designed to meet specific goals and provide us with strategic benefits 9

11 The Solution 2. Link Building Campaign goal: Improve link building and media partner strategies. Improved link building improves overall Domain Authority and Pagerank, and it will also be incorporated into the content strategy to push for at least Need Recognition, then deeplinking to authoritative blog posts from venture blogs would continue the funnel. The strong content silos built will be used as a base for the overall strategy. For instance, the authoritative articles will be used for the link building effort. Objectives: Develop content pool Insight-driven link building (from analytics data) Change approach to pitching links Deeplinking to authority posts (from blog) 10

12 The Solution The content pool will be developed to improve the link building process The content pool is a collection of ready-to-use articles to pitch to relevant blogs for link building purposes, to be revised where applicable. The articles in the pool can also be repurposed for different campaigns. Link Building Concerns Solutions Benefits Pitching process is tedious Flawed audience targeting Low-quality content Content specs are not optimized or followed Create ticket template for requests Higher quality content to more relevant websites Better communication & training Deeplinking to blog posts to overcome resistance Faster link creation; faster results Existing pool of ready-to-use content Link building as top-of-funnel strategy Better content ideation and development 11

13 The Solution Redirecting the link building strategy achieves three main objectives: Reap the benefits of link building for overall Domain Authority and Pagerank, while keeping it incorporated into the overall content strategy. Create a pool of high quality, relevant content that changes the current approach to link building and focuses on relevant links and more engaging articles. An existing pool hastens the pitching process and the ability also affords ventures stock articles to revise for other purposes. A strong content silo for deeplinking maximizes whatever referral traffic goes to the venture blogs. The blog posts are linked to the comparison pages and have CTAs leading readers to either blog posts in the next stages of the customer journey or the comparison pages directly. 12

14 The Solution 3. Media Partners Campaign goal: tweak media partner deliverables to become part of the funnel. If possible, suggest different types of content to media partners. Diversify content types to target more readers already in the Information Research stage, tweak media partner deliverables to ensure Need Recognition every time, and deeplink to venture blog posts to continue the funnel. Where media partner articles are online, they need to consistently lead traffic to venture sites. Offline articles should ensure Need Recognition and brand recall. Objectives: Deeplink to authoritative content silo Insight-driven content development (from Analytics data) Experiment with successful articles Diversify content types 13

15 The Solution Media partner articles are crafted for awareness and building authority for the brand, but they need to ensure at least Need Recognition. Deeplink Gain Insight Diversify Content Quality & Relevance Good deeplinking to authoritative blog posts can sufficiently engage a percentage of audiences to click on links, moving them from Need Recognition to Information Research. By gaining insight from the most successful media partner articles, the ventures can follow the most successful trends and maximize audience reach. With diverse content types, the ventures can reach out to more people in both the Need Recognition and Information Research stages of the funnel. With quality, relevant content, the ventures lead more people through the funnel created by the content strategy. 14

16 A Cohesive Strategy As much as possible, target more interested audiences to begin with through all channels. Of course, content in one channel does not need to target audiences strictly in just one stage of the funnel. Need Recognition Information Research Competitor Evaluation Purchase Decision Link Building Media Partners Blogs Comparison Pages / Product Vertical Maximize the chances of helping audiences along the sales funnel through the strategic campaign action steps outlined. 15

17 Based on Analytics Measure everything and adjust based on data gained from analytics The metrics used measure initial reach, engagement, and of course visitor flow to conversion. Ventures need to gain insight on how to reach out to more people and lead more users to a closed sale. Metrics used include: Entry Rates Exit Rates Pageviews Bounce Rates Time Spent Leads to conversion 16

18 Fine-Tuning Strategy Rollout Adjust Based on Data Performance Check Fine-tune the strategy by changing tactics based on data. Closely coordinate with the SEO side of the team for keyword research, analytics, and link building performance so ventures can constantly change based on data and insight. 17

19 That s It, Folks! Thanks! Presentation by Gino R. Diño Gino likes to think about online content: publishing it, the strategy needed to make it work, and the varied ways to use it for marketing. Gino has expansive experience as a content strategist who helped small businesses and startups develop their online content marketing strategies, providing expert advice and implementing plans across search optimization, social media, and content channels such as newsletters and blogs. He assisted in building outsourced teams for clients, handling everything from recruitment to training to performance assessment and management. He has helped businesses and founders from North America, Europe, Israel, Dubai, and the Philippines as an independent project consultant. Gino also has over six years of experience as a freelance writer and editor working for brands like VentureBeat and Slator.com writing about topics in the areas of technology, startups, digital marketing, language technology and services, gaming, and geek culture. [email protected] 18 gprdino ph.linkedin.com/in/gprdino twitter.com/gprdino

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