Content marketing: Why permission matters

Content marketing works best, when you have permission. That’s because you will be producing content for people who actually want it.

Pursuit marketing & Permission marketing

Now, compare permission marketing, to pursuit marketing.  Pursuit marketers email you because they have your email address on a list they bought.  They make unsolicited calls to you at night when your kids are asleep, because your number is on a list they bought.

Some people still work with pursuit marketing. They will tell you that hassling people works, you just need to hassle LOTS of them.  I once heard a talk, where an email-list broker told a group of local business owners; “If you send out 10,000 emails and get 1 sale, the use of a list still makes sense.”

But what about the 9,999 people you just really pissed off, by spamming them?  What about the damage to your brand, of being seen by 9,999 people as a spammer, each time you make a sale?

Who needs a reputation like that?

Content marketing works best with permission

If you push marketing on people, their natural reaction is to push back!  That reaction also makes them massively less likely to be receptive to you or your offer.

The most successful form of content marketing is permission based – It has longevity built into it and a proven success model behind it.  With permission marketing:

• Your blog posts are read by people, who subscribe to them.  They give you permission to share your information with them.  It’s welcomed with open arms and a very receptive mind.
• Your email marketing is sent to a list of people, who asked to be added to your mailing list.  They are interested in what you have to say and want you to share it with them.  Their mind is in the right place, each time you connect with them.

The attraction of buying a “list” and instantly having 10,000 or 100,000 people to get your message in front of, is still to strong for some to resist.  These lists become devalued with each spamming; remember, the poor bastards on that list are getting spammed by everyone the list is sold to. (Ouch!)

Conversely, building a permission based content marketing strategy, you INCREASE your reach and influence all the time.  Your blog posts gather PageRank and keep attracting more and more search traffic.  The email marketing list you built, is shared by those who look forward to receiving it, allowing you to build a bigger and bigger pool of eager readers / prospective customers.

The bottom line: Think longer term. Get permission and build a base of prospective clients and passionate advocates.

January 25, 2021 - Reading time: 3 minutes