Guide to Content Marketing for UK Professional Services

The Guide to Content Marketing for UK Professional Services

+44 (0)1344 667 410 [email protected]

3seven9.com twitter.com/3seven9


Whitepaper

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Whitepaper

To make your marketing stand out in 2013/14. You have a website, a social media presence and run several campaigns a year. But so do your competitors. What makes you stand out from them? Why should a potential client pick you over them?

Why this guide 3

Chapter 1: An Introduction What is Content Marketing? 4 Why is it useful for Professional Services? 5 Howitaffectsyourkeygrowthfactors 5

Chapter 2: Strategy Determine your goals 8 Definetargetmarket 10 Buying cycle 12

Chapter 3: Types of Content Content types 13 Topics/themes 15 Tone/voice & USPs + Creative Elements 17

Chapter 4: Implementation Content audit, channels and roadmap 18 Creation and distribution 19

Chapter 5: Infrastructure Resources 20 Results 21

Chapter 6: Summary Checklist 22 Pitfalls to avoid 23

Case Study: Kingston Smith 24

Content Marketing at work Last word 25

3seven9 and Professional Services 26

Contents Why should you read this guide?

You will have a better idea of: • What content marketing is and why you need it in the

Professional Services industry

• How content supports and enhances each stage of your

client’s buying cycle

• Your goals, tone of voice and which relevant topics you

should cover

• Getting started: What you need to do

• Opportunities for you and your business

• Pitfalls to avoid

Someprofessionalservicefirmsareproducingexcellent

content to market themselves, Kingston Smith being an

example.ButalotoftheProfessionalServicesindustryis

lagging behind more pro-active B2B markets, such as IT

service providers The Professional Services industry has

only just begun to embrace content marketing and social

media as a form of communication. There lies a huge

opportunityforinnovativefirmstoleadtheway,ownthe

space and be a step ahead of their competitors.

The following guide will help professional firms overcome these challenges. It will describe how to produce a compelling content strategy that will result in creating more meaningful connections with clients and have a positive impact on your lead generation.

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Chapter 1:

An IntroductionAccording to a recent News Reach UK survey on content marketing, 78% of UK businesses are investing in content marketing. The professional service business model is founded on

thedevelopmentandsellingofexpertiseandproficiency,

whetherinfinancialorlegalservices,management

consulting or other B2B support services.

Expertiseandreputationarethekeyfactorsfor

Professional Services to win clients, build and

develop relationships and encourage referrals

for further growth.

B2B Content Marketing Objectives90% of B2B marketers say content marketing will be more important in 2013

Increasing engagement

Generating leads

Increasing traffic to site

58% 44% 34%

“Content marketing has become an essential tool to help companies reach their goals as relevant content is fundamental to make brands stand out from others.”

Valeria Mendes

Marketing Co-ordinator

Vanet Property Asset

Management

What is content marketing?Content marketing is providing relevant and valuable

information – or ‘content’- that resonates with

prospectiveandexistingclients.Businessescreateand

distribute content to educate clients of their services,

provetheirexpertiseandpositionthemselvesas

thought leaders.

Content marketing uses a variety of content types,

and businesses distribute it on particular channels to

influencetheclient’sjourney.Thisenablesthemto

persuade prospects to move from initial awareness

stages through to making a purchase.

Why is it particularly important for Professional Services?

“A strong content marketing program – particularly in niche areas where subject matter is of utmost importance – can position and differentiate these firms as experienced players with depth of knowledge to share with their customers.”

B2B Content Marketing

Professional Services

Industry Report, 2010

Content Marketing

Institute

Youcouldarguethatprofessionalfirmshaveusedthis

traditional model as a type of content marketing for many

years, though access to that content has been limited to the

physical time spent with the client and the collateral they

bring to the meeting.

Although this model has not changed dramatically, the

increased availability of information in digital marketing

and social media has meant that the way clients connect

withprofessionalservicefirmshas.

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Acquisition of new clientsThe way prospective client decision makers are being

referredtoprofessionalfirmshaschanged.Established

firmsarenowfindingthatsolidrelationshipsarebeing

weakened as social media savvy decision makers are being

targeted and engaged with by competitors. Buying cycles

havebeenaffectedbytheavailabilityofinformation,and

the industry has seen the rise of the informed client.

Trends show that 47.4% of CEOs participate on social

media, with 79% of ‘In 500’ CEOs and 30% of ‘Fortune 500’

CEOs having a presence on at least one social network.

Instead of making contact early on, research shows that

decision makers are moving even closer to the purchase

stageinthebuyingcyclebeforeevenspeakingwiththefirm

they are considering. Because 61% of consumers say they

feel better about a company that delivers custom content,

they are also more likely to buy from that company.

(Custom Content Council)

They will be evaluating all options through referrals and

anecdotes from their network, reports and league tables.

Theirdecisionwillalsobeaffectedbywhat content you provide for them to review that encourages initiating contact– the website, company reviews, data sheets,

the company blog and social channels. The fresher

the content, the better.

Inacompetitiveonlinelandscape,professionalfirmsneed

to utilise all channels available to support the conversion

of prospects to clients.

Retention of current clientsYour relationship with your current clients is one based

ontrust,historicalexcellenceandcontinuedexpertisein

an ever changing market.

Mostfirms’onlinepresenceprovidesthecustomerwith

information on their services and solutions. Increasingly,

clientsarelookingtotheirfirmstoprovidemore–they

wantvaluable,recentinformationthatjustifiesinvestment

in new services, or clarity on how a new piece of legislation

affectstheirbusiness.

Thewayfirmsproactivelyconnectwithcurrentclient

bases has also changed. Events, brochures, referrals are

no longer the only channels. The frequency and constant

churn of information on social channels, eNewsletters and

websites provide constant reminders that are incredibly

importantintheretentionofclients.Professionalfirms

need to be constantly relevant to their client base and in

their minds when they need to initiate contact.

What does it give Professional Services? • Building and maintaining relationships with

prospects on relevant channels about the topics

that matter to them

• Meeting existing clients’ pursuit of information

withexcellent,relevantcontentsothatwhenaneed

arises,yourfirmisthefirstpointofreference

• Measurable results to maximise the ongoing effectiveness of your actions with goals, targets,

KPIs and benchmarks

Butwheredoyoustart?Readthenextchaptertolearn

how to create your strategy and discover the framework

youneedtomakeyourcontentmarketingasuccess.

How it affects your key growth factors:

“Content marketing is the art of understanding exactly what your customers need to know and delivering it to them in a relevant and compelling way.”

Joe Pullizi,

Content Marketing

Institute (CMI)

Junta42

Current clients and prospective clients Their

problem or situation

Your expertise

Your products or services

Content marketing

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Chapter 2:

Strategy

1 Determine the business goals of your content marketing

Thefirstthingtoconsiderwhendeterminingthe

goals of your content marketing is to keep referring

back to the company mission statement. This should be

used as a constant check of what your content marketing

is achieving, before breaking down aims further.

Questions to ask • What are your overall marketing goals?

• How can content marketing be used to support

or achieve any of these goals?

Being clear about the answers to these 2 questions

will later help determine the type of content that will

be created and shared; as well as the metrics used

to measure their success.

Examples of goals for content marketing: • Building brand awareness

• Drivingtraffictothewebsite

• Establishingyourpositionandexpertise

in the market vs your competitors

• Engagingwithexistingclients

• Servingexistingclientsbetter

• Acquiring new business/clients

Whilst thinking of the goals, bear in mind you

want all content to be engaging and if possible

useful and shareable.

2Target Market

1Goals

3Buying Cycle

Key Takeaway:Content marketing needs to satisfy business goals.

“The first thing to consider when determining business goals is to keep referring back to the company mission statement”

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Case StudyWehelpedourclientCompTIA,anITcertifications

company,raisetheirprofileintheUKandquickly

familiarise the audience with understanding who they

areandtheservicestheyofferthroughcontentcreation

andmarketing.Bydefiningwhattheywantedtoachieve,

we created a whitepaper that addressed their goals and

benefittedtheaudience,resultinginover700qualified

leads (email submissions) in three months from the

whitepaper download alone, and over 3,000 targeted

visits to the micro-site we created for the campaign.

Only

37%of brands have defined a content marketing strategy

Econsultancy

and Outbrain

Soundbite:

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2 Define target market

Before creating content, it’s important to consider the

personasthatyourfirmwillbetargeting.Bymonitoringand

modellingyourcustomer’sbehaviourandexaminingyour

currentclientactivity,abusinesscanfindoutalotabout

their target market.

Questions to ask• Dotheyreadblogs,watchvideos,viewpress

releases etc?

• Arecustomersmoreaccessibleandactiveduring

an event?

Handy tip: What are personas? Personas are based on demographics and roles of customers

in relationship to the company. There are usually several

businesses that can identify within their target market, often

based on gender and job position. This can help a company

determine their needs and pain points.

Indoingthis,yourfirmcanidentifythetypeofcontent

that your customers are most likely to trust and what

information they actually want. You may also get an

insight into what channels or social media customers use,

including key information such as how often and at what

times in the day they are active online.

Ifit’sbothpotentialclientsandexistingclients,whatisthe

differenceincontent?HaveadifferentContentMarketing

Strategy for each. Businesses that are lucky enough to have

a strong customer base and are not primarily concerned

with chasing new clients can start by using content

marketing for retention.

Key takeaway: Researching customers and their engagement habits can inform businesses of the type of content they are most likely to respond to.

“Content marketing will become more complex in 2013 as marketers look to increase engagement with their audiences”

Jenny Barret

Head of Marketing

Mortgages for Business

Case StudyAir conditioning supplier Air Con Environmental

wantedtotargetthreedifferentmarketswithcontent

but did not know how to go about supporting all their

audience’sneeds.Webrokedownthemarketsbydifferent

stagesofthebuyingcycleandidentifiedinformationthat

mattered to each market at each stage. We then used this

to inform the type of content that needed to be produced

before creating it and mapping out a content marketing

strategy of how to implement it.

3. Design and installation drawingsWe recognise the need to impress at the bid and presentation stage; we can support your bid with our in-house design and drawing production service.

We produce schematic drawings to demonstrate proof of concept to your client. Our design team calculate heat loads and air movement to ensure our design and technical drawings form an important part of your detailed proposal.

During project delivery and project completion, we provide you with detailed working drawings. Our as-installed drawings are delivered with comprehensive O&M information for inclusion in the Health & Safety �le.

4. Timing and short-notice supportAir Con Environmental understand the importance of returning quote and design information within a short timescale. We will work to your timescale – however demanding.

5. Quality and reliabilityWe are a quality equipment supplier and accredited with the leading manufacturers. We are a Daikin D1 accredited installer and a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries approved installer providing a peace of mind, 5 year warranty. Air Con Environmental are also proud members of the Association of Interior Specialists (AIS).

If you want to see how our services could support your bid process, contact us on [email protected] or ring 01189 213 151

Air Con Environmental Ltd. City Limits, Lower Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 4UP

www.acenv.co.uk 01189 213 151

3. Design and installation drawingsWe recognise the need to impress at the bid and presentation stage; we can support your bid with our in-house design and drawing production service.

5. Quality and reliability

2012 IBM CEO SURVEY

of CEOs are gearing their organisations to gain meaningful insights from customer data. 73%consider main reason to understand individual customer needs. 72%

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3 Buying Cycle (assign content to stages of buying cycle)

But what content should you be creating? Read Chapter 3 to discover the content you need, themes to focus on and the creative aspects you should consider.

Market Stage

Find General market

education

WebinarsWhitepapers

How to guidesNewsletter

Target prospects

Engage Recognise

opportunity

BlogHow to guides – mid-level

Servicesleaflets–upper-midVideo demos

Qualify prospects

Evaluate Problem defined

BlogGeneral brochure

Social engagementWhitepapers

Explainsolution

Trial Evaluate options

BlogSupport docsCase studiesNewsletter

Submit proposal

Adopt Select

best options & purchase

TutorialsLatest NewsCase studiesTestimonials

Close

Advocate Explore up-sells

BlogSocial community

Newsletter

Fulfil

Examples of content for consultancy services

Consider when content is delivered and to

whom before creating it. There is no “one size

fitsall”sotherewillprobablybeseveraltypes

of content for each stage of the buying cycle.

Chapter 3:

Types of content

Content typesWithsomanydifferent

content types available, you

need to ensure you’re marketing

the content in the best format

to meet your desired goals.

When selecting content types,

ask yourself:

• Which can be used within

the assigned cost/resources

to content marketing?

• Which types are most likely

to satisfy business goals?

“2013 will not be about content platforms but about content diversity on the platforms we currently have. There’s been a clear trend this year of companies moving away from just having blogs or just having videos to using a wide variety of different content in their marketing strategies. Google likes it. Consumers like it. It’ll become the norm over the next 12 months as positive results make your directors like it.”

Chris Trimble

Head of Content

NewsReach

• Which pieces of content suits which

type of media? (Consider ease of

sharing, the amount of information

to take in and what format will

serve it best)

• Which types suit the target market?

(You more than anyone else

understand your target market.

Research which platforms your

audience are on and their content

habits - that is, where and how

they consume content)

• Remember: A mixture of content

may be used for different personas

or at different phases of the buying

life cycle.

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Content topics and themesThe topics and themes are the backbone to a successful

content marketing strategy. They need to be related to the

servicesyourbusinessoffers,beonsubjectsthatyourfirm

holdsexpertiseinbutalsoresponddirectlytotheissues

and challenges that matter to your clients.

Themes, or campaigns, can be relatively wide in scope

andrepresentwholeareasofexpertisethatyoucanthen

lay claim to ‘own’. This is likely to be quite apparent as it

will relate to certain services.

Forexample,afinancialconsultancyfirmdealing

with commercial solutions, from risk management and

regulatoryadvisoryservicestoassuranceortax,willbeable

to generate content on a wide variety of specialist themes.

Theme examples: • Financial advice and discussion

• Corporate reporting

• Business review, insights, growth and strategy

• Entrepreneur support

• The economy

• Policy making

• Sustainable business

Topics, on the other hand, need to be considerably more

specificandrepresentstrandsthatdemonstrateexpertise

within a chosen theme.

A way to do this is to look at the related services

and the target market for those services. By focusing

on critical issues for clients, you can centre your attention

onspecificissuesandtakeintoconsiderationtheinsight

and data that would be of interest to the client in relation

to the goals of what you want to achieve.

“Consumers expect the best and if you aren’t writing about developments in your industry with authority, you won’t be taken seriously”

Elizabeth Malone-Johnston

Digital Marketing Manager

TRACKER

Different types of B2B digital content (especially for Professional Services)

Static

Visual

InteractiveCompetitions

Games

Quizzes

Microsite

Video interviews

Infographics

Images

Audio

Files

Podcasts

Presentations

Graphs

Blogs

Articles

PDFs

Newsletters

Whitepapers

Case studies

Testimonials

How to guides

Press releases

Data sheets 78%of CMOs think custom content is the future of marketing

Hanley Wood (2013)

http://ow.ly/ovCBK

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Key Takeaway: Consider the themes you base your content marketing on that will illustrate your business as thought-leaders.

Case StudyAccordOfficeSuppliesrequired3seven9’sservicesto

improve their marketing strategy and inform their content

creation. We provided Accord with a complete collateral

audit and competitor analysis to identify the success

and failures of their current strategy, pain points for

their customers and opportunities within themes and

topicstogeneratecontentabout.Thethemesidentified

were relevant and useful to Accord’s clients, shaping and

directing the topics for content creation.

78% believe that organisations providing custom content are interested in building good relationships with them.78%

90% of consumers find custom content useful 90%

Custom Content Council (2011) http://ow.ly/ovHuH

Tone of voice, USPs and Creative ElementsReiteration of the mission statement within, and alongside, the objectives of the content

marketing campaign should be considered throughout, allowing businesses to give their strategy

a clear direction. The messages and creative elements of the brand should be consistent across

allcontentsoitdoesnotconfusecustomersorgivemixedmessagesaboutthebrand.

Questions businesses should ask:1. How will content emerge through the tone and

voice of the content? You should make sure this aligns with your brand

whilst also connecting with your clients. It needs to use

the same language and tone clients use to ensure you

are on the same level as them, allowing prospective

clients to more easily identify with the brand.

2. What is your ethos and company history? Acompany’scontentisanextensionoftheir

historical journey, so it needs to be one your audience

will want to hear. It’s a great way for audiences to

engage with the brand so should not be overlooked. It

allowsyoutoexpresspersonalityandtruthintocontent

rather than treat it like a sales pitch. In addition, it can

take readers on a journey of discovering problems,

which then helps to identify solutions in a way that

is dynamic, interactive and memorable.

You now have a strategy, an understanding of what content you can use, the themes you should begin with and guidelines to ensure it stays in line with your brand. ExploreChapter4andwalkthroughthestepsneeded when creating your content.

3. At each stage of the buying cycle, what is the answer and message that your organisation wants to be heard? You should align all your messaging to help further

theclient’sexperiencewithyourbusiness,directing

themthroughthefunneltofulfilyourbusinessgoals.

The content is your key to meet their pain points at every

step so they want to continue engaging.

4. What are your firm’s USPs? You’re operating in a crowded market place.

Yourdifferentialsarethekeymessagethatyouneed

to portray – content allows you to best demonstrate

these. By then marketing these in the right channels

and in the right communities, you allow your USPs

to gain better credence.

5. How will the content being implemented match the brand? The creative element of a business is another way to tell

a story or portray business messages visually. Keeping

your content branded consistently gives your audience

that reassurance of a capable, credible machine.

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Chapter 4:

Implementation

Step 1:

Content AuditThe great thing about a content

audit is that it provides reassurance

you’re not starting from scratch!

By auditing your website,

all current marketing collateral

(including case studies, whitepapers,

blogs and any other content), they

can then be reformatted to align

with your client’s buying cycle.

There is a balance to be had -

whilstcontentthatdoesnotfityour

goals should be discounted, all content

can be used in some format. Some

content may be better re-purposed

to suit your strategy - this will prevent

you giving yourself too much work or

extracostandmaximisethecontent

youalreadyhave.Youmayfindyou

already have the content, so your

immediateoutlayandtimeexpense

could be minimal!

Step 2:

Channel identificationYou need to consider which

channels that you are already active

in that can be used to distribute

content. This can be categorised on

a basic level between Owned Media

(your own blog, newsletter, email

marketing, website), Social Media

(Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+,

externalforums,socialbookmarking)

and Paid Media (PPC).

Identifying all the channels that are

currently used can inform what other

channels should be used, for what

purpose and which type of content.

Conducting a form of online listening

gives you the knowledge of where

yourcustomersareexpecting

to hear from you.

Step 3:

Roadmap and editorial calendarA roadmap and editorial calendar

can be created once you know where

you need to be, what your audience

areexpectingtohearandwhenthey

want to hear it.

Having a content marketing

roadmap ensures your ongoing activity

can be traced back to the overall goals

of the campaign, whilst an editorial

calendar streamlines your day-to-day

activity. As with all steps of a content

marketing campaign, tying it in to your

usersbuyingflowiscritical–your

clients’expectationsshouldbeatthe

forefront of your mind when creating

an editorial calendar.

Both these documents ensure that

the time spent on the marketing of

content is kept as minimal as possible,

increasing your long-term ROI and

improving your bottom-line.

Step 4:

Content creationThe key to all content is its worth

to the user – you need to be adding

value! Everything from its key

messaging to its design needs to be

something that attracts the client

and aids their quest for information.

Anything that relies too much on the

hard-sell won’t be promoted.

Yes, your unique selling points

need to be at the forefront of your

messaging, no matter the content

type used. But to give them enough

exposure,youneedtoconsiderthe

knowledge you share and how hard

you sell through it.

Step 5:

Content distribution and marketingTime is short. Often one of the

hardest steps if not focused on –

distribution of your content is what

sets out the content marketing

successes from the failures. Draw

up a list of channels to market on

(uncovered during the content audit

andchannelidentification).Monitor

your distribution progress over the

following weeks/months to establish

what content works best within

individual communities.

We would also recommend

ensuring you distribute your content

toengagebothindustryinfluencers

and prospects alike. If done correctly,

you will become a respected voice

withinyourfieldofexpertise,

increasing both your brand perception

and lead generation opportunities.

By this stage you will now have content aligned to your marketing objectives and considered its distribution. But how do you ensure that it’s a success?

Chapter 5 will help you by covering vital infrastructure areas yourfirmneedstoconsider: resource and results.

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Chapter 5:

InfrastructureResourcesOrganise and assign resources Thestrategyisthefirststepofacontentmarketing

campaign, but the logistics of how you will actually manage

its creation, implementation and performance lies in the

internalresourcesandstructureofyourfirm.

Content marketing is about developing relationships with

clients and transitioning them through the buying journey.

It’s about business growth and business development and

ultimately the strategy needs to be collectively owned, and

strands divided up amongst teams.

There needs to be participation and support from business

developers and marketers, as well as the professionals in

eachteamwiththerelevantexpertisethatthefirmhas

chosen to own.

You need to decide:

• Who in your team will own the strategy?

• Who will create the content?

• How much internal time will be assigned to the project?

• Who will be responsible for marketing the content?

• Whatexternalcostswilltheprojectincur?

Tools Attheheartofyourresourcemanagementwillbeexternal

aggregation, seeding and distribution tools, enabling you

to both streamline the time you spend on the project and

increase its reach.

Enterprise-level listening tools such as Radian6,

BrandWatch and Symosys allow you to view what your

market is discussing, enabling you to write targeted

content. But beyond the content creation, these tools

provide you with the capacity to benchmark your current

online landscape, brand mentions and social engagement

so that you can track success on an ongoing basis.

If you are looking to eat into your market share,

you can set up your current brand positioning with that

of your competitors. Monitoring how many times your

brand is then mentioned as the project progresses

will allow for KPI measurement.

They do have a cost however, and more basic tools

are available for free to achieve less segmented analysis.

Site analysis tools such as Google Analytics and Clicky

can work in conjunction with these tools to measure

theincreaseintrafficyouractivityhascreated.

Finally social aggregation tools such as Hootsuite or

Tweetdeck (both available as mobile applications too)

allow you to both schedule posts and also distribute across

your various owned media outlets. This reduction in time

asserted to the marketing of your content will increase

your end result – ROI.

Results Measuring the impact of your contentThegoalsofyourcampaignshouldbethefirstthing

established at the outset of a content marketing strategy.

Anoff-shootofthecampaigngoalswillbetheirKPIs

and metrics.

Using the tools outlined, you can set a baseline of

your current market standing. Then, dependent on your

business objectives, you can track on a weekly, monthly

or quarterly basis your content marketing performance:

• If you are looking to create lead opportunities,

then measuring the amount of contact submissions

is a suitable performance metric

• For brand awareness or thought leadership,

the amount of brand mentions or engagement ratio

are suitable metrics

• Ifyouwanttoengagewithexistingclients,measuring

the open and click through rates of emails distributing

content is a suitable metric

• Whendrivingtraffictothewebsite,comparingtraffic

sources as well as other analytics (e.g. number of visitors,

average time spent on site etc) are suitable metrics

• When comparing your position in the market

to your competitors, share of ‘voice’ within the market

is a suitable metric

Be sure to map outexactlywhatitis you will measure, and ensure you have the resources and tools to be able to monitor and analyse them.

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Chapter 6:

SummaryBe proactive

Shifts in client take-up of service and commitment patterns have led businesses to reconsider how they create and distribute content.

Strategy

• Does your strategy take into consideration

your business goals?

• Haveyouidentifiedandresearchedyourtargetmarket

tomaximisetheeffectivenessofyourstrategy?

• Have you considered how the buying cycle

fitsintoyourstrategy?

Content Creation

• Is your choice of content going to have an impact

on your audience?

• What are the themes and topics you will be basing

your content on?

• Is your tone and creative elements consistent and

match business goals?

Implementation

• Have you conducted a content audit, selecting which

elements can be used for your content marketing?

• What channels (social media, PR engines, email

marketing etc) are you going to use to distribute

the content?

Roadmap and editorial calendar

• How is content marketing going to integrate with

your other marketing activity?

• When will the content be created and marketed?

Measurement

• What metrics and KPIs are you going to measure

to gauge success?

• How often are you going to review performance?

ChecklistWe think all businesses can benefit from content marketing, and would encourage businesses to consider the following questions to get the most from it:

Pitfalls to avoidBarriers to adoption

Inhouse Agency

Lack of resources

Lack of budget

Lack of ROI

Lack of understanding

42% 35% 24% 23%30% 33% 35% 45%

In a recent survey by PWC, 82% of CEOs are looking for new ways to stimulate customer demand and loyalty.

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KingstonSmith,atop20accountancyfirm,isoneof

3seven9’s clients. Chris Lane has been a partner there

for over 20 years and heads up Entrepreneurial Business.

As with most partners, creating new opportunities and

leadsisexpectedaspartofhisdayjob.

Leadgenerationcanbedifficultatthebestoftimes,let

aloneinthemiddleoftheUK’srecentfinancialcrisis,and

yet Chris has had significant success in the past year.

Bydoingonethingdifferently.

He shared content. Smartly.

Over the past year Chris made the most use of his social

networks, building up his connections and potential leads.

He then started to share relevant Kingston Smith generated

content throughout the week, including blog articles, news

articles and seminar information etc.

By constantly being in his networks’ news and social stream

Kingston Smith was the logical choice for when the time

cameforthemtoapproachaProfessionalServicesfirm.

Case Study

Kingston Smith

“I only changed one thing in my sales tactics and it made a dramatic difference in the amount of new business I won this year. It’s helped me stand out from the crowd and made sure I’ve kept in my client’s mind for when it matters!”

Successful, Partner led, content marketing

Chris Lane

Partner

Kingston Smith

Last wordFew within Professional Services

have latched on as of yet, but those

that have are at the forefront of their

market position and brand reputation.

Your company is presented with an

excellentopportunitytopushaheadof

your competitors by packaging what

you will have been doing for years into

a focused content marketing strategy.

In 2013, clients need to know

moreabouttheirfirmbeforethey

even contact them. Social media plays

apart,offlinePRplaysapartandso

does networking. But the tool that

aids all of these techniques of client

acquisition and retention is through

the creation and marketing of thought

leadership content.

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3seven9 and Professional ServicesWe deliver multichannel marketing solutions using Content Marketing, Social Media,

PPC, SEO and Email Marketing, delivering the right content to the right buyers on the

right platforms.

We’veworkedwithmanyprofessionalservicefirms–includingriskconsultancy

DerivativesRiskSolutions,theCharityLawAssociationandglobalaccountancyfirm

Kingston Smith.

Asamarketingandtechnologyagency,wecombinethebestcreativeexpertisewith

marketingexperience.Thecontentwecancreateforyouwillsupportyoursalesprocess

and seamlessly slot into the rest of your marketing activity – on-brand and delivering

effectiveresults.

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Guide to Content Marketing for UK Professional Services