Democratizing Digital Marketing: Motivating and Managing Your Engineers to Create Website Content

Editor's Notes

• #2: Motivating your engineers to contribute to your marketing efforts Specifically, creating content that’s consistent, easy for everyone in your organization to generate, and authentic
• #3: View video: https://www.dmcinfo.com/latest-thinking/videos/id/8919/dmc-boston-engineering-services-commerical Start off with piece of engineer-created content that was written, filmed, produced by our engineers. It’s authentic & fun. This Dollar Shave Club spoof captures fun aspects of our culture, but it’s not the only type of content we generate.
• #4: Intro of me and DMC Why we’re concerned with content marketing and want engineers to participate Specific strategies to promote marketing involvement Hopefully some time for questions at the end
• #5: Manage web content curation, communications, pr, branding, and events Literature degree, so I love writing. Miami University undergrad in OH. Live in Chicago. Joined DMC in 2009. Content creation in my free time- 826CHI creative writing tutoring. Freelance writing & photography, mostly music & arts.
• #6: Est. 1996 in Chicago. 5 office locations. Continuing to grow. We look at our web content as an opportunity to show who we are as a company We’re smart, fun, and interested in technology in and out of work.
• #7: Proud of our culture, Reflected throughout our web content Employees are excited to share a culture if they are encouraged to shape it
• #8: Why do we even want to take engineers away from billable work to write blogs? Why can’t I rely on SEO consultants, paid AdWords, or third-parties to outsource content generation? Those are valid strategies, but for us it comes down to a matter of authenticity.
• #9: We get involved in a lot of different industries, with lots of different technologies so outsourcing content generation for the niche things we do is difficult. Who has tried to explain what you do to a cousin at a family gathering? Not so easy is it. Imagine explaining to an outside party how to troubleshoot an S7 timer then have them write it, then have your team review? Authenticity is lost in translation.DMC’s content is all generated in-house.
• #10: What we’re talking about today is known as content marketing. Organic search refers to results that naturally appear when Google’s algorithms are working at their best vs. SEM where you’re paying for advertising.
• #11: Every brand has a story. Content marketing is a way of getting your message across while educating & entertaining your audience.
• #12: Brands engaging with their audience to tell their story isn’t new. One of the best examples is John Deere, who we all know sells farm tools & equipment. At one time, their primary form of advertising was mailing print ads to their customers. 1895 they decided instead of just sending tractor ads they’d provide articles and useful tips on farming. Launched a magazine called The Furrow that’s still in print today.
• #13: Now that we know what content marketing is let’s talk about the goals of these pieces you’re writing Increasing your brand awareness Google is great at directing your audiences to the right content they’re looking for but you have to create it You already have an audience, give them a reason to stick around on your site. Even if they arrive via a paid ad wont engage without content To a degree, Google prioritizes newer content with more up-to-date info. Steady content will help your search engine ranking.
• #14: Chart of pageviews on DMC’s website, starting in 2009 when we implemented content marketing Didn’t happen overnight, but you can see with a lot of effort traffic can build up over time ROI on marketing efforts can be hard to calculate, but we know get 31% of new business from the web. Continually increasing traffic is important.
• #15: Authenticity is a topic we keep coming back to. It’s Important in any field, but we’re all technical firms here & our audiences are mostly technical. Technical audiences like content that’s logical and specific. I can tell a PLC from an HMI, but I can’t tell you how to program a hardware configuration or commission a drive It makes sense to leverage your talented team to generate content your audience will value.
• #16: I’m going to share stories about what has worked at DMC. I hope you can take away some ideas to apply to your own companies.
• #17: To begin, take a step back and look at your website. What will visitors see? DMC’s site then & now. We’re constantly refining bc it’s the first thing people see. Reflects who you are as a company to prospective clients but also important in recruiting! They make snap judgements. Lots of SEO basics get you in Google’s good graces. A few years ago tricks like keyword jamming & white text but that doesn’t fly anymore. Comes down to having good content. You’re already providing good services. Think of your site as another opportunity to add value to your customer experience. 
• #18: As you review website, most important aspects of democratizing web content is having an easy to use CMS. A CMS is an application allowing you to edit & publish to your site. We use DNN, you might be familiar with Wordpress or Joomla. Whatever you go with it Must Not Be Complicated. Need a blog module at a minimum. Our blog interface doesn’t involve HTML coding. It’s familiar Word-like interface is intuitive. Takes 2 – 10 minutes to publish. Document how it’s done so everyone has access to the process. Our president or a new engineer can do it.
• #19: I’ll mention a few other considerations for your site You don’t need to build everything from the ground up. Look around for inspiration. Take advantage of grab & go foundations. Just because you can develop in-house doesn’t mean you should. Aesthetic – Dress for the job you want, Make it aspirational. What look & feel appeals to you? I like minimal. Looks aren’t everything – content counts. Usability – Google takes into account the ease of navigation and mobile-friendliness to your visitors. Over half web searches now done on mobile, new algorithm released this April. Be intentional with the look & feel of your site but no need to reinvent the wheel
• #20: As you prepare your web content consider packaging it in different ways Blogs: Stories about a recent experience or technical encounter Case studies: Snapshot of a project solution & technologies used Videos: Hosted on YouTube, easy to set up Having a mix of content offers your audience some variety
• #21: We categorize content as technical or cultural Ex: Hw/sw reviews, walking reader through a process, outlining a how-to Notice titles are very specific, keyword rich. We’ve found this to be SEO magic. Tech pieces help draw new clients to our site & establish some credibility.
• #22: Other category of content is cultural Engineers encouraged to show off their personality Fun events & social gatherings, comic series, quote board What does this have to do with SI? After doing business with a client we want to KEEP doing business with them. Showing who we are, helps keep them engaged with us, keep us front of mind until next time.
• #23: We repost content in our monthly newsletter. Here’s the March edition. Notice the balance of cultural and tech. May or may not surprise you, fun stuff wins out over useful. Month after month, audiences don’t only want to connect on tech basis, but be part of our tribe. Tech content provides credibility, but try showing off your personality with cultural content.
• #24: Google likes fresh content. It’s important to establish consistency in your posting. Will you publish a new blog once a day or week? Decide what works for your organization & stick to it. Readers should know what to expect. Set your publication schedule then promote a Culture of Contributing
• #25: One way we keep content fresh is an ideas list Engineers solving problems in the field have great info to share on our site but might be too busy to write for awhile. Store these ideas in a list easily accessible on internal site, everyone can add topics. Even better – having a content reviewer to follow up on items. Jaclyn looks at the list every week, what’s in progress, waiting on more info, doesn’t make sense Engineers can be hard to wrangle. Follow up to remind when they have time & keep list fresh.
• #26: I mentioned I studied literature, allow me to get nerdy for a moment. I like writing, even do it for fun, but it can still be intimidating & time consuming. Woolf said in order for women to produce good writing they need a dedicated time and space. We’ve taken her idea and improved upon it by giving engineers a dedicated time & space AND lunch!
• #27: Hour-long meeting, every other week devoted to writing & sharing ideas. We review ideas list, share what working on, have prompts if needed. Industry trends to geek hobbies at home If we come across new SEO trends, we’ll offer a tip of the week No pressure to finish a piece in one session, ongoing eventually complete it
• #28: Our engineers are great at writing code. They might not be as comfortable editing a blog in English .They’re not lost in the woods on their own, They’ve got an editing guide. You may or may not have a marketing dept. but designate people within your org. to help proofread before content published on site. Second set of eyes is great for proofreading, formatting, & reviewing images Images – Another factor in how Google ranks your content. Rules of thumb: don’t steal them, create custom or use stock resources Knowing they’re not alone gives employees extra confidence and motivation to write.
• #29: Opening up your site to be editable by anyone in your org. it’s important to set standards Talked about documenting CMS access, also processes for writing & formatting Package content in different ways formatting varies. Free-form blog vs. structured case study. Tell employees what’s appropriate Style –Use of fonts, sizes, colors. Maintain consistency SEO – Everyone not able to stay on top of latest updates. Give them access to best practices Tone – Let employees know what’s appropriate. We stay positive even describing tech challenges we’ve encountered Finally – Make engineers aware of online tools for testing popularity of keywords in titles so you can achieve SEO magic If you want your engineers to contribute, lay out the process clearly
• #30: Videos are a type of content that can be very engaging! Tips: Don’t lose sight of your audience as you dive into the process. Shorter is better >90 seconds. Professionals – Regularly scheduled, comfortable, great quality, streamlines production, fresh content DIY – Simple, cheap, quick to jump in and use free editing software Content written by engineers even if professionally filmed - authentic
• #31: View video: https://www.dmcinfo.com/latest-thinking/videos/id/8965/simatic-it-line-monitoring-tool-for-overall-equipment-effectiveness This is a technical video filmed by a professional team, but starring one of our engineers.
• #32: View video: https://www.dmcinfo.com/latest-thinking/videos/id/8687/the-most-interesting-engineer-in-the-world-part-2 This is a non-technical created for a conference. Professionally filmed but written by our engineers and starring a DMC engineer.
• #33: I’ve mentioned importance of keeping your audience in mind. Look for ways to invite them to participate in your culture & content. These gentlemen are wearing DMC branded items we sent in thank-you packages. Didn’t ask for pictures but we were delighted to receive & blog about them. We host regular client/vendor outings. We blog about these & they’re excited to see themselves on our site. Monthly brainteaser is written by our Technical Director. We receive submissions from employees, audience, strangers. The winner gets a shout out in the newsletter and a DMC-branded pocket protector. Look for fun ways to get your audience to look forward to your content.
• #34: You’ve written some content, now how do you share it? Newsletter – Monthly, 6k subscribers, simply reposting content on our site so it’s not a ton of effort Social media – You don’t need to embrace every channel, choose a few that work for you Services help you schedule postings easily
• #35: Once you publish & share, track how it’s doing Analytics is very powerful, provides detailed insight but can be overwhelming Decide what’s important to you. Benchmark yourself and check your progress. Look for trends As I showed earlier graph, results may not come overnight but you can get a picture of progress over time
• #36: Once engineers invested in your marketing, take time to share results & recognize good work. We review these leaderboards weekly. Engineers enjoy friendly competition. If the website is lacking new content, this helps me persuade them. Keeps web content front of mind!
• #37: At monthly meetings we recognize great content with the Webby award. Metrics vary month to month. Winner rewarded with trophy & gift card. It’s an opportunity to review best practices in SEO. Always looking for fun & effective in fostering the desire to create web content in our engineers
• #38: Here’s a review of some strategies we looked at. I hope you can all take something back to your organizations.
• #39: I hope I’ve helped you get excited about creating marketing content that’s consistent, easy to generate by anyone in your organization, and authentic!