Linkbaiting is digital advertising’s version of sensationalism. Notes mashable.com writer SAM SLAUGHTER, “You’ve clicked them before: ‘5 Things Preventing You From Becoming a Billionaire,’ ‘The Secret Video Obama Doesn’t Want You to See’ and the ever-insidious ‘[Hot Female Celeb’s] Wardrobe Malfunction.’…It seems harmless enough linkbait, but stories like these have the potential to kill content marketing.”

Slaughter goes on to say that the future lies in content marketing. The term is bandied about and defined in a variety of ways. One way to categorize is it to view it in direct contrast to linkbaiting. Where linkbaiting is generally a sensationalized way of getting viewers to click into some advertising-laden messaging that most will find time-wasting, content marketing is high-quality, useful brand content that gives people cogent reasons to buy. So, don’t linkbait if you’re looking to generate long-term brand loyalty. Content create instead.

Promoting personas…let me count the ways

Here are some quick tips from a hubspot.com article about “14 Ways to Get More Use Out of Your Buyer Personas”:

  1. “Use the lingo that your personas use.” Speak their language, buzzwords, slang—whatever meshes with how they communicate.
  2. “Write blog posts with specific personas in mind.”
  3. “Create a video with a specific persona in mind.”
  4. “Audit your existing content for persona alignment.” This addresses what you already have, complementing what you do going forward.
  5. “Use dynamic content to tailor your website to different personas.” Instead of one-size-fits-all content, write to each of your personas, and make it clear who you’re targeting.

In concept, this makes perfect sense. Figuring out what all the dots are and how to connect them in the most cost-effective way is where it can get complicated.

Confounded about what to do next? We’ll help you clarify and connect: 303-607-9424; lynndell@plumbmarketing.com