It comes like clockwork at the worst possible time: the rush job on a topic you know nothing about.
Earnest content marketing writers give ourselves a day or two to dive deep into a topic and get a feel for the subtleties of product benefits and customer pain points. But sometimes we don’t have that option, so we have to know how to learn a new subject fast in order to produce great content on it.
Here’s what I do when I need to learn a new subject fast:
Lay a Foundation of Research
I create an Excel spreadsheet to accumulate all the links for my project. When I find interesting articles online, I drag live links from the URL bar of my browser right into the cells of my Excel document. They become live, clickable links I can refer back to.
If I see that I’ll be revisiting this information after this project, I make time to bookmark my links and organize them into folders with dividers for easy reference in the future.
If you forget to do this, you might be able to go into your browser’s history and use the “search” function to track down articles you’ve read. This can be hit-or-miss, so I don’t rely on it
Start with Existing Content
With any luck, your client already has published content on the topic you can consult. Look for company-produced videos, which are optimized to squeeze lots of information into a small space. Often they can cover a lot of ground in few minutes and help you envision the product/service in action — this is fundamental to writing descriptive, engaging copy.
Read the “about the company” page first, then work your way through the navigation bars and links and click on the products/services that strike you as the most interesting. It’ll all look like a foreign language at first, but pay attention to unfamiliar words that show up often in headlines and copy. You don’t have to grasp what they mean right away, just file them in your brain for reference.
Also, check out any press releases the company has put out in the past few months. You have to know what the company considers newsworthy.
Focus on Solutions
Companies exist to solve problems. As you’re combing through the company website, pay attention to how the company helps it customers and jot down the high points in your Excel document. Remember, you’re in a hurry so keep it to a half-dozen points or so.
Then envision the product or service in action and try to draw a parallel from your own experience. Say your client sells Wi-Fi hotspots to hotels and needs you to produce articles about its product line. Think about everything that ever went wrong with your hotel Wi-Fi and make notes of the worst aggravations. Most likely your client’s product addresses those points of consumer misery.
Check Out the Competition
You have to know what the competitors are up to, because in your haste to pull content together you might end up saying exactly what your client’s rivals are saying. That’s a huge no-no.
Also, spending some time at the competition’s website will help you master the niche that your own client is serving. Of course this might expose your client’s shortcomings but even that has value: You know what to avoid dwelling upon in your copy.
Dig Deep on Google
Google, Bing and any other search engines aren’t what they used to be. They’ve become so commercialized and the content so optimized that it can become extremely challenging to find highly specific information. Depending on the key words and phrases you’re covering, you might have to scan pages and pages of “hits” before you find what you need.
One thing I’ve noticed: If you’re working in B2B, much of your marketing homework has been done for you in the form of white papers and case studies. So, instead of just searching on “hotel Wi-Fi hotspots,” search on “hotel Wi-Fi hot spot white papers” and see what comes up. I’ve found tons of good information this way.
Search for Industry Associations
Associations representing industries often have massive troves of research that can prove useful as you get to know your new client. To avoid getting bogged down, look for a press or media area and read the latest press releases.
Get an Expert on the Phone
I’m too vain to admit I’m an idiot on a topic, so I make sure I’m somewhat familiar with a company before I talk to any of its employees.
But once I’ve done my initial homework, it can be a huge help to talk to somebody at the company about what makes it tick and what pleases its customers. Often you can learn more in 15 minutes on the phone than you could in an hour of Web surfing.
Whatever You Do, Don’t Fake It
Depending on the topic — say biotechnology or semiconductors — you might get in over your head. I’d say give yourself 60 minutes to develop a picture in your mind of what the company does and what its customers expect. If that picture is still hazy after an hour, you probably need more help than you can get by poking around on the Internet.
Because time is of the essence, you need to call in the cavalry as soon as possible. Draw up a short list of the things you’re foggy about and get in touch with somebody at the company who can help clear them up for you.
Reputation Capital Media Services is a Baton Rouge marketing agency that helps B2B companies and their marketing agencies produce high-quality digital content, including blog posts, e-mail newsletters, white papers and multimedia. Our editors and writers are experts in their fields, which include HR technology, employee benefits, and financial services and accounting. Contact us for a free 30-minute consultation to find out how great content can help you attract and retain your customers.
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