Comments on: 7 Stages of the Content Hourglass

By: TangyWords

TangyWords — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 15:36:00 +0000

What a great, thoughtful article. We run many workshops on content marketing and the number one idea we try to impress is: create a content plan!
Our workshop formula for (adult) learning is: Learn, Think, Try. We break all of our workshops into this formula so that we can teach ideas which include a little theory (learn) but mostly get people thinking about their business and trying to create something they can implement in their business today.
So, it’s interesting to see you categorize the content marketing process similarly.

By: Teasastips

Teasastips — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 02:29:00 +0000

I liked the concept of hourglass marketing, it reduced the sales cycle concept to a ridiculously simplistic knowledge nugget that even a “caveman” could understand. Thank you John!

By: Matt Saunders

Matt Saunders — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 04:58:00 +0000

Nice post! In regards to the last paragraph, I’ve found that one way to ease the burden of content creation can be to mix up the medium as much as possible. Visual, audio, and video content can be very compelling and have a high tendency to be shared… These mediums can be just as effective for how-to’s too… Of course sitting down and banging out a ton of great written content will never be a bad thing either.

By: Neicole Crepeau

Neicole Crepeau — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:22:00 +0000

Hi, John. Good article. I like the general hourglass approach. Part of my process with clients is always to walk through their sales funnel, which informs me–and often the client as well, who hasn’t viewed the process that way before. It almost always shows opportunities where content can play a role, as you’ve outlined above. Although, the “Try” phase is a new one for me. I think that is a really great idea for products/services where it’s applicable.

The one thing I might change is the emphasis on case studies and testimonials. Yes, they are a necessary component in order to establish credibility. But too often case studies are thinly veiled sales copy, without real depth or value. Whether it’s case studies or other content, I think it’s important to focus on problem-solving content. If the case studies really do focus on that, preferably in a broader way addressing how the customer’s problem was solved beyond just use of your product, then that’s great. But, in general, as the competition heats up on the content marketing front, content is going to have to be really valuable and not overly-salesy to warrant reading.

By: Dave Wellman

Dave Wellman — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:10:00 +0000

Thanks John – never thought of content development in these terms!

By: Bill Simmel

Bill Simmel — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:51:00 +0000

John,
GREAT analysis of content in the age of social media.