Do you have an ebook or some kinda professional guide or whitepaper you’d like to promote? Here are some great ideas on how to promote it!
Writing advanced content like an eBook, white paper or guide is hard enough without having to worry about promotion. However, much of the effort put into creating a significant piece of downloadable content is often wasted because the release and promotion aren’t thought through or executed effectively and creatively. Here are seven ways to promote your advanced content with the goal of generating a massive amount of traffic and downloads.
1. Identify and Involve Influencers
When finalizing your advanced content, put a draft in the hands of a few key industry influencers. Give them an opportunity to review the content and solicit their feedback. Then, include their one-line reviews in your promotional materials. This will add credibility to the content. You can even go so far as soliciting a longer foreword from one of your influencers and inserting it into the content itself. By involving influencers and giving them the opportunity to shape or contribute content, they will be more likely to share the finished product.
2. Create a Video Promo
A promo video is an excellent way of previewing the content of your eBook or white paper and introduce viewers to the authors. You can place these videos on your landing pages and promotional blog posts to incite downloads, as well as including them in any PR pitches.
3. Release the Content on a Widely-Read Industry Blog or Media Outlet
A killer earned-media placement is a great way to kick off the promotional campaign for a significant piece of advanced content like an eBook. Craft a guest blog post that introduces the content and links to your landing page, and offer it as an exclusive feature. Be sure to set up a tracking URL so that you can segment and measure traffic from the placement.
4. Create a Kindle Version
A Kindle or other eReader version provides an alternate method of consuming your content. The added credibility of having a Kindle version may increase conversion rates, and a Kindle Direct Publishing account can put your content in front of millions of Amazon users.
5. Repurpose the Content for a Webinar
Holding a webinar early on in the lifecycle of the promotional campaign is a great idea because it gives you the opportunity to take your message out into the world in an interactive and personal way. Even if you can’t secure a guest spot on an external webinar, holding your own webinar is still a good idea. You can invite those who have downloaded the content to attend and discuss the content, or simply repurpose the content itself into a new presentation. The webinar replay video can be used as a promotional tool, or further repurposed into blog posts.
6. Coordinate With Live Events
Similarly to producing a webinar, synchronizing your content release date with a major conference, trade show or speaking gig can be extremely effective. Going into a live event with newly release content will give you something to showcase in a presentation and will generate a lot of buzz among attendees. Don’t be afraid to bring printed versions of your eBook or guide to hand out.
7. Include the Content in Lead Nurturing and Automated Email Workflows
If you’re using marketing automation software, add the advanced content to any automated email workflows as part of your lead nurturing campaign. A lead who has downloaded similar pieces of advanced content in the past may be more likely to download the new offer, especially if they received a personalized email versus a plain email blast to your entire list.
Remember: you don’t have to do it alone! Industry influencers, media outlets and live event/webinar attendees can be powerful allies in promoting your advanced content. Be sure to keep an eye on your analytics to see which sources are generating the most traffic and downloads, then stick with what works and discard what doesn’t.
Authored by:
Steven Shattuck
Steven Shattuck is Senior Marketing Associate / Community Manager at Slingshot SEO.
Recipient of the David Letterman Scholarship, he graduated with honors from Ball State University in 2006 with a degree in Telecommunications and Creative Writing.