by Berrak Sarikaya | Aug 30, 2018 | B2B, Conferences, Content Marketing
It’s my favorite time of year–in just a few days, I’ll be getting on a plane to Cleveland for Content Marketing World. This will be my fourth year attending and honestly, it’ll be my busiest year yet. I’m proud to be speaking (and leading my own session!) this year, as well as co-hosting the Creator Breakfast with Jay Acunzo. Since last year, I’ve also joined an agency as a full-time employee, and I will be representing them as well as my own company at the conference this year.
My focus has shifted a lot as my experience has evolved over the past few years. Every year, I try to get out of my comfort zone with the sessions I attend instead of going to ones on topics that I’m familiar with. I would also love to spend more time networking as my schedule allows, so if you’re going to be at any of the following sessions or the events, let’s be sure to connect!
Of course, if you’re going to be staying through Friday, I would love to see your faces in my session Friday morning!
Here’s my tentative schedule and the sessions I’m looking forward to the most at this year’s Content Marketing World. The best way to reach me is on Twitter or in the CMWorld Community Slack (which you should join if you haven’t already).
Tuesday, September 4
I arrive in Cleveland around 9:30 am on Tuesday morning. After getting settled at the hotel and grabbing lunch with a friend, I’ll be around all day for coffee meetings until about 4:30 PM. So if you’re in Cleveland and want to meet up, let me know! Of course, I will also be at the Kickoff Party at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Wednesday, September 5
- 10:15 AM: Content Strategy & SEO for B2B Lead Generation
- 11:20 AM: Building a “Media Company” inside a Marketing Department
- 2 PM: LinkedIn Content Marketing Strategies
- 2:50 PM: 5 Creative Ways Marketers Can Enable Their Sales Teams
- 8:30—> House of Blues and evening shenanigans
Thursday, September 6
Start your day with me, Jay Acunzo, and fellow creators at the CMWorld Creators Breakfast! Details here.
- 10:15 AM – Content Promotion Framework with Actionable Tips
- 11:05 AM – The Agency Edge 2018
- 12:05 PM – Influencer Marketing is Only for B2C Brands
- 2:35 PM – How to Avoid Vanilla: Using Data & Storytelling
- 6 PM —-> Orange Night Out!
Friday, September 7
THIS IS MY BIG DAY! I’ll be leading my first solo session on Lean Content Marketing for Startups at 9 AM before hitting the road to Detroit. I will be bringing the cat GIFs and there are rumors of some strawberry jam floating around.
Are you going to Content Marketing World? What sessions are you looking forward to the most this year? Be sure to:
by Berrak Sarikaya | Jan 3, 2018 | Content Marketing, Running Your Business
When it comes to content marketing, you don’t need a full newsroom or a large budget to be effective. Whether you’re an enterprise-level organization or a startup, a lean content marketing strategy can take you a long way.
I had the pleasure of speaking at Content Marketing World 2018 about building a content team, creating a content marketing strategy that goes the distance, and getting to know your audience – on a budget.
When it comes to statistics around content marketing, my go-to resource is The State of Content Marketing from CMI and they didn’t disappoint. Here are the numbers I focused on at the beginning of my presentation.
- 68% of consumers feel more positive about a brand after consuming content from it.
- 70% of people would rather learn more about a company through articles rather than an ad.
- 75% of marketers are increasing investment in content marketing
These numbers alone prove that content marketing is here to stay. The methods and the platforms may be evolving, but at the heart of it, great content marketing builds trust, loyalty, and engagement.
So, if you’re a startup or a small business, or a small team within a large organization, where do you begin? (more…)
by Berrak Sarikaya | Sep 5, 2017 | Conferences, Content Marketing
(I wrote this post right before heading to Content Marketing World in 2017. Lucky for us, the community and the conference are consistent in their amazingness , making these tips evergreen.)
It’s that time of year again – the orange takes over, excitement fills the air, and we all descend on to Cleveland to attend Content Marketing World.
It’s no secret that Content Marketing World has a special place in my heart, along with the entire CMI team, and the incredible people I’ve met over the past three years.
But it can also be overwhelming. I’m an ambivert and conferences where I am “on” all the time for 4 days straight can take a lot out of me. My energy gets zapped once the adrenaline wears off, especially if I’m not practicing self-care throughout the conference. Over the past few years, I’ve gotten a lot better at preserving my energy in order to survive the week as an introvert.
I want to share a few of those tricks with you. I also reached out to the #CMWorld Slack Community to get their input.
So, here are a few ways you can survive Content Marketing World as an introvert. (more…)
by Berrak Sarikaya | Aug 4, 2017 | Content Marketing, Twitter
On July 31, I got a news alert. Scaramucci was out as the White House Communications Director after 10 days. I don’t know why but the first thing I thought of was avocados. So, my very first tweet that had the link to the news article had that reference.
I even thought it was funny enough to post as my Facebook status that morning, which received a lot of engagement. I was going to go on with my day. I needed to get ready for my flight.
Then, I got hit with a couple more ideas to post on Twitter. After all, the entire internet was on board. This was the creative relief we needed from the onslaught of, well, reality. So, I tweeted out a few different references. I used different hashtags. I sometimes referred to him as The Mooch and other times, used #Scaramucci.
A couple got likes. Some retweets here and there, but nothing major.
Until.
This was actually a throwaway tweet. I just kind of posted it as I thought about it and then posted my favorite, which had a Game of Thrones reference. I thought if any of my tweets that day got any traction, it would obviously be the Game of Thrones one.
To my surprise, it wasn’t. It was my ‘throwaway’ tweet that resonated the most with people for some reason. It was even included in a Buzzfeed News roundup.
I said RIP to my notifications and got ready for my flight.
My one “viral” tweet reinforced what I’ve been telling my clients about content marketing and social media all along. So, here are my learnings from my 24 hours of internet fame.
You have to be flexible with your content
Once you have a content strategy and editorial plan in place (and for the love of coffee, please have these in place), what you put out into the world cannot be repetitive. You won’t know what resonates with your audience until you’re putting out content that actually resonates with your audience. This means that you have to be flexible enough to play around with the wording and types of content you’re releasing into the world.
While it’s important to have a consistent voice, that doesn’t mean your voice has to be rigid.
Hashtags don’t guarantee exposure
I really thought that this tweet would be the one that got the most engagement. I was using multiple references, and #GameofThrones is still relatively active on Monday mornings.
As you can see, I was wrong.
Numbers don’t tell the whole story
My viral tweet received over 153K impressions, but what does that mean? Not much, to be honest. It means that with over 900 retweets, it made its way in front of a lot of eyeballs on Twitter, but I only got a single follower from it. 87 people cared enough to click over to my profile to learn more about me.
When you’re asking your social media manager or content manager to create viral posts, are you thinking about the implications? Just because something strikes a chord with your audience doesn’t mean it’ll lead to money in the bank for you.
Want to break down the actual ROI of content marketing? Jay Baer has a great formula. Spoiler: It involves actual math.
Don’t squander the first impression opportunity
My tweet had nothing to do with the content marketing and strategy services I offer. The audience it would drive to my profile were most likely not my target customers. But what if one set of eyeballs belonged to a small business owner scrolling through Twitter between phone calls or while eating lunch? My pinned tweet when I woke up that morning was a general post about the services I offer, linking to my website.
After the tweet picked up traction, I quickly drafted another tweet that I pinned to the top of my profile:
Cheesy? Yes. But potentially effective.
It was an unexpected experiment that was fun while it lasted. That’s the thing about content marketing and social media. Not everything will be a home run.
Amplifying your voice through the noise requires planning, tenacity, and a whole lot of flexibility.
Have you ever had a tweet go unexpectedly viral? What was your experience like?
Oh, by the way, are you going to Content Marketing World this September? I’m speaking about leveraging content to elevate your community with an amazing group of professionals. We’d love to see you in our session! If you haven’t registered yet, you can use BERRAKBIZ100 to save an additional $100!
by Berrak Sarikaya | Mar 21, 2017 | Content Marketing, Hiring, Tips and Tricks
I’ve always considered writing to be my passion.
My mom taught me how to read and write when I was four, and the running joke of my life has been that no one has been able to stop me since.
However, it was never supposed to be a career path, especially ghostwriting.
When I went into law, writing would be a crucial part of my career, but to get paid to be a writer? That seemed utterly ridiculous. So ridiculous, in fact, I wrote under a pen name for the first part of my freelance career.
I wrote for content mills, for local real estate companies, and for agencies that paid me next to nothing for my work.
I was essentially a glorified ghostwriter, and ironically, there’s really no glory in being a ghostwriter. (more…)
by Berrak Sarikaya | Dec 5, 2016 | Content Marketing, Freelance Life, Small Business
It’s December, which means we’re all planning for 2017 in our businesses.
According to the latest research from the Content Marketing Institute, only 37% of B2B marketers and 40% of B2C marketers have a written content marketing plan.
This is baffling to me.
I know content marketing can feel overwhelming, especially as a small business owner or a solopreneur trying to grow your business, which is why it’s crucial to have a written plan you can follow throughout the year.
The first question I ask my clients when doing planning for the following year isn’t about their marketing strategy. The first question is “what are your business goals for 2017?” Once you have your business plan and your benchmarks set for the year, then you can create a content marketing strategy that will ladder up to those business goals.
Confession: I’m really good at executing this for my clients, but I let my own marketing fall through the cracks. I know this is a challenge a lot of solopreneurs and freelancers have. Which is why my business strategy for 2017 is to treat myself like a client.
For small business owners, one of the biggest challenges is not being sure where to begin with documenting a content strategy. How do you create an editorial calendar? What should be included on there? How do you measure success? Which dates should you be focusing on?
I’ve got the answer to the first two questions for you. While I’ll be releasing a full content marketing guide for solopreneurs and small businesses in the beginning of 2017, I’ve got a special treat for you today.
I’ve created a customizable content marketing plan template for you to get a head start on getting your content plan down in writing. It’s the same exact template I’ll be using for my own plan, and it’s the same one I’ve customized for my clients in the past.
And I’m giving it to my newsletter subscribers – for free. You’ll also be the first one to get a copy of the guide when it’s completed!
Want to be the first one to get a copy of the full content marketing guide when it’s ready? Sign up for my newsletter!
What’s your biggest struggle with content marketing?
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