How Content Marketing is Like Dating

I get strange looks when I tell people I run a content marketing agency.

Sadly, they aren’t the cool kinda’ strange looks like, “Whoa, that’s awesome. You seem so interesting!”

Instead, it’s more of an “Oh, um, yeah...content marketing, huh? Cool. I guess” kinda’ thing. They also kinda’ tilt their heads and squint as if to tell me they have no idea what I’m talking about but don’t want to admit it.

I understand why. Most people have heard of digital marketing, Internet marketing, or SEO, but content marketing isn’t a term that gets used often.

Although we have an explanation on our website to answer the question, “What is content marketing?” I like to offer an analogy to help people understand: Content marketing is like dating.

The Attraction Phase

Before you begin dating someone, you have to attract them. As humans, we do all kinds of things to attract potential dating partners, including wearing nice clothes to look our best (first impressions and all), hitting spots where matches might be found, and showing off our best features.

Well, content marketing uses the same approach. To draw a parallel, you don’t just walk up to someone you’re interested in and say, “Hey, let’s be a thing.” Instead, you might make eyes at them from across the room, or you make sure you sit close to them in a crowded club. You want to capture their attention to see if they reciprocate. If they do, you move on to the next step. In a sense, you need to see if there’s a spark and where that spark leads.

With content marketing, we use the same approach. We use content to attract potential buyers but do so to court, not sell. During this phase, we are calling attention to brands to see if there’s any interest. We position our clients in such a way as to call out their best features, and we also place content where potential buyers can be found. Consider this our dressing-up-and-hitting-the-club phase.

SEO is one way to do this since people who are already looking for our clients’ products and services are out there searching. We position these products and services in front of buyers by getting websites found higher in search results.

Advertising is the flipside of this equation. Ads are the guy at the bar who approaches a woman and says, “Hey! I make a huge salary and drive a flashy car, and I’d make an excellent dad to our kids one day. Let’s get married.” This approach works for some situations, but as you can guess, it doesn’t in most.

Even though this approach is really forward and in-your-face, now imagine the bar is full of guys doing the same thing. Ads are like that. They’re all competing for your attention, telling you they’re the best, and pressuring you to decide on the spot. It’s easy to forget them, no matter how flashy they are. They’re necessary, don’t get us wrong, but in the age of the Internet, where you can’t go anywhere without seeing ads, they tend to blend into the background.

Content marketing is much more methodical and calculated. It takes time because it wants to build real bonds with buyers instead of a one-and-done interaction. Content marketing is about establishing relationships and then nurturing them.

Building Trust Builds Relationships

Both content marketing and dating require you to establish and maintain trust as well. In dating, trust is developed through open communication, honesty, and consistency. You demonstrate through your words and actions over time that you can be trusted, both with your partner’s emotions and safety.

In content marketing, you aim to build credibility and authority by doing the same. We communicate often, provide honest information, and deliver consistent messaging to establish and maintain trust. Our clients follow through on the promises made in the content we produce. We also nurture trust by showcasing case studies, customer testimonials, and social proof on sites like Facebook.

Understanding the Other Person

When you’re dating someone, you have to learn to understand the other person’s interests, desires, and values. These are the things that create a meaningful connection, and understanding the reasoning behind why your partner is the way he or she is helps to keep that connection healthy. Understanding is also essential when disagreements come up or when you need clarification.

Likewise, successful content marketing campaigns involve understanding your target audience’s needs, preferences, and pain points to address these factors often. As digital marketing professionals, we dig into the “why” behind buyer behavior. Understanding the customer is possibly the most critical component of any successful content marketing effort. Content needs to answer questions that haven’t even come up yet because it understands what the buyer is thinking and feeling.

The Quest to Form an Emotional Connection

Creating an emotional connection is vital in dating to foster a deeper relationship. Emotions, in fact, are at the heart of any close relationship, and the love connection formed during a serious dating relationship is possibly more profound than anything else in this world outside of a parent’s love for their child.

Content marketing often tries to evoke emotions in the audience, whether it’s through storytelling, humor, or empathy. Establishing an emotional connection is crucial in content marketing because you need to evoke passion and desire for products, services, and brands. We foster an emotional connection by once again understanding where buyers are coming from and what they want to get from a relationship with our clients.

We Want a Long-Term Commitment

Dating often involves seeking a long-term commitment and developing a solid partnership. Sure, some dating relationships are casual, but most at least aim to become something more. After all, you don’t invest time, money, and emotional capital into a relationship you plan to end. You want things to blossom into something more substantial and long-lasting.

Content marketing aims to turn prospects into loyal customers, encouraging long-term commitment and repeat engagement. Every step taken during a campaign is planned out with a goal in mind.

Take this blog post, for instance. Yes, the one you’re reading right now. Our goal here is to woo you into contacting us for a chat to tell us about your business (You can do that HERE, by the way), and so we’re relating to you in a way that makes sense.

Virtually everyone knows what it’s like to date someone at some point, so we’re relating to you on a personal level to get you to see the value of content marketing. To accomplish this goal, we write our own blog posts in an informal, friendly manner to show you what our brand is all about. We’re approachable, not stuffy. We’re accessible, not exclusive. We know how to have fun and be cjill, but we also take our commitments to clients very seriously.

We write like this because we want to build long-term trust and a real relationship with you. Maybe right now isn’t the right time to get involved with a content marketing agency like ours. We understand that, but we’re also getting that seed in your head now so that when things change in the future, you’ll get in touch with our content marketing agency in Charlotte to have a discussion.

The Focus on Personalization and Personality

Personalization and personality play crucial roles in dating as you and your partner try to understand each other’s likes, dislikes, quirks, and individuality. You also likely try to cater to your partner’s specific interests (if you don’t, you’ll probably find yourself single before long.) You do this because you care about the feelings and experiences of your partner.

Effective content marketing involves tailoring content to specific audience segments by understanding their unique needs and preferences. Our clients care deeply about their customers, and we develop content based on each client’s goals for making them happy. We showcase our clients’ brand personalities and personalize every piece of content to match customer needs.

Adaptability is the Key to Surviving Dating and Content Marketing

The ability to adjust strategies based on feedback and changing circumstances is central to content marketing, but these are also vital elements in dating. For example, if you think your partner will be ok with a “my-way-or-the-highway” mentality, you probably don’t have much experience with dating. You respect your partner and try to adapt to change with their needs. The ability to pivot, experiment, and refine approaches can also keep partners invested in one another while helping to get couples through periods of routine.

In content marketing, the same rules apply. We adapt to changing needs. These changes may be due to a new strategy or direction, but they can also be because of changes in the economy or consumer sentiment. For instance, when the economy is down, certain luxury items may not be as accessible to specific customer segments.

Instead of continuing with the same marketing strategy or giving up entirely, we reposition things. We look for ways to highlight new benefits or position benefits in a different light to change the value proposition of a product or service.

Leveraging Feedback and Actively Listening

Have you ever been in a relationship and done something stupid? I know I have, and the reactions I’ve received have ranged from mild irritation to outright getting dumped. In those situations, I tried to learn from my mistakes. Yeah, I’ve done the whole post-mortem “Where did it all go so wrong?” thing, but more importantly, I’ve tried to learn lessons to improve myself. I’ve looked at feedback on what happened after I did something stupid to see what I can do to improve.

In content marketing, we hope nothing egregious ever happens to cause a customer to dump a client, and to prevent this, we leverage feedback. Like in dating, feedback tells us what’s working and what’s not. We use feedback to figure out our next moves to help our clients capitalize on the hard relationship-building that’s already been done.

By analyzing metrics such as engagement, conversion rates, and customer feedback, we gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of our efforts. Suppose a particular blog post, website copy, or social media campaign doesn’t resonate with our audience. In that case, we take that feedback into account and make the necessary changes to better meet the needs of our clients’ customers.

Furthermore, feedback helps us identify any potential issues or gaps in our content strategy. Like addressing concerns in a relationship, we address concerns raised by our audience or clients and work to find solutions that align with their goals and expectations. By actively listening to their feedback, we can make informed decisions and ensure that our content continues to add value and resonate with our target audience.

The goal here, as always, is to forge stronger and deeper connections with buyers. Every bit of content that is produced for a brand is a message. What does that message say, and how does it say it? When you speak to someone you’re dating, you use care with your words. We use care with our words as well because your business is your baby, it’s your sweetheart, and it deserves to be nurtured and cared for.

Are You Treating Your Content Strategy With Care?

So, just as in dating, content marketing is a process of attraction, trust-building, understanding, emotional connection, long-term commitment, personalization, adaptability, and leveraging feedback. It’s about cultivating meaningful relationships with our audience and creating content that resonates on a personal level.

Contact Charlotte Content Marketing to Learn How We Can Be Your Brand’s Wingman

Let us be the wingman that helps you keep your customers engaged with your brand. When you’re ready to take your content marketing to the next level, we invite you to chat with us (you can do that HERE, by the way, or use the form below.)

Let’s start a conversation about your business goals, your target audience, and how we can help you create compelling content that attracts, engages, and converts.