What is Read Marketing?
Put simply, it’s a form of marketing that focuses on creating value for consumers through the act of reading.
In other words, you’re not just marketing a product or service — you’re marketing an experience. And that’s what makes it so powerful.
Forbes covers this topic in-depth, providing tips on how to implement this valuable form of marketing.
Why Are We Embracing Read Marketing?
The answer is as simple as it is profound: today’s consumers are overwhelmed with information, and they seek out ways to filter it well.
In a world full of distractions, few activities are as appealing as curling up with a good book. It’s portable, and you can take it with you on the go. If you’re stuck in traffic, you can read a book without worrying about your smartphone battery dying. Plus, you’re busy pressing buttons and swiping cards — not exactly the ideal activity for driving sales.
So how can you tap into this popular pastime and turn it into a viable marketing strategy? We’ve compiled 4 tips on how to begin your Read Marketing journey successfully.
1. Build Reader Curiosity
The first step to establishing Read Marketing as a valuable strategy is to intrigue, engage, and entertain your readers with content that they find valuable. To do this, you need to consider what makes your ideal reader tick. What is he or she seeking out? What is important to him or her? What is he or she reading, and why?
The answers to these questions will guide you in your content creation process. Consider using content that is:
- Engaging
- Interesting
- Valuable
- Creative
- Compelling
- Entertaining
- Upworthy
- Actionable
This type of content will encourage your readers to not just consume your product or service — it will make them want to engage with you, subscribe to your newsletter, and even buy your product or service.
2. Consider The Medium
You need to match the medium of your content to the age and stage of your target audience. This is especially important when establishing an e-commerce store because you don’t want to confuse your audience with irrelevant content. The key is to find a way to engage with your readers that feels organic and honest. That means you don’t want to just re-post popular blog articles because they’re easy to get. Instead, look for original content that you find valuable and useful. This will help establish your website as a source of trustworthy information, and it will make your readers feel like they’re benefitting from a real conversation.
3. Include Calls To Action
You’ve got a blog article, newsletter, or social media post. It’s been a while since you wrote the last one, and now you’ve got a chance to engage with your audience again. Consider using this opportunity to direct your readers to take action. Some options include:
- Shopping
- Subscribing
- Liking
- Joining
- Following
- Voting
- Reviewing
- Interacting
- Chatting
- Calling
- Going To
- More
The key is to find the right call to action for your content. If you want to encourage your readers to buy your product, maybe you should be directing them to a special deals page or offering an exclusive discount. Or if you’re writing about a service, you might want to suggest they try out the product or service by using your contact details (more on this in a bit).
4. Use Case Studies & Real-Life Examples
Businesses can benefit greatly from including case studies and real-life examples. These types of examples give your readers a better understanding of the challenges you’ve overcome and the value your product or service provides. Not only will this make them feel like you’re more of a person they can trust, but it will also make them more inclined to purchase what you’re offering.
When including case studies and examples, make sure that the content is easily accessible for your target audience. If you’re pitching a business-to-business (B2B) product or a service to a more traditional audience, the language might be too tech-y for them. To solve this problem, find a way to make the content more accessible to a wider audience. For example, you can use virtual reality (VR) to allow anyone to read and enjoy a case study or example.
When it comes to marketing, especially digital marketing, case studies and real-life examples are incredibly valuable tools. In the past, businesses would write case studies on expensive stationary and put them in marketing folders to share with clients. Now, with online case studies and real-life examples, the information is just a click away.
How Can We Use This In Our Marketing?
Based on the tips provided above, you can begin to establish yourself as an industry expert and gain credibility with your audience. But this doesn’t mean the task is done. Establishing a connection with your audience is an ongoing process, and you’ll want to use multiple platforms to maintain and grow this connection.
Consider using:
- Blogs
- YouTube
- Calendars
- RSS
- YouNow
- Live Chat
As a business owner, product marketer, or market researcher, you can use these platforms to stay in touch with your audience, engage with them on a personal level, and provide them with value.
The key takeaway from this article is that you shouldn’t underestimate the power of reading — as an industry, we’ve largely ignored this channel, but the people reading our content love it. They seek out reliable content and enjoy getting the most out of what you’ve created, so give it to them!