This document provides guidance on content marketing strategies on a shoestring budget. It recommends analyzing target audiences and competitors, creating a content framework based on upcoming trends and hooks, generating ideas using brainstorming techniques, producing content by hiring freelancers, and promoting content through outreach to journalists and bloggers. The focus is on curating existing content to create listicles, mindmaps, flowcharts and DIY infographics to earn links from referring domains on a low budget.

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92Infographics
In 12 Months
(That’s 1.8 a week!)

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£250Average
Production Cost

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http://www.coolblades.co.uk/hub/face-shape/
44 Referring Domains

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https://www.twolittlefleas.co.uk/greetings/
28 Referring Domains (So far)

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WHERE WE’VE GOT LINKS IN THE PAST YEAR

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Content Marketing
on a Shoestring Budget

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PETE CAMPBELL
/ KAIZEN
• Founder / Managing Director
• Kaizen is a team Content Marketing
& Technical SEO specialists
• “Rising Star of the Year” (Travolution Awards)
• 6+ Years in Agency & In-House Roles
• Built first website at 11
• Ran several high-traffic video gaming sites
• Proud owner of a Game Boy Colour

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THE CONTENT MARKETING DREAM
Audience & Competitor Analysis
Content Calendar
Pitch Cat-Themed Infographic
Production
Signoff
The ‘BIG’ Launch
Blogger & Journalist Outreach
?????
Earns 1 Million Links

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WHAT REALLY HAPPENS
Audience & Competitor Analysis
Content Framework / Calendar
Pitch Cat-Themed Infographic
Production
Signoff
The ‘BIG’ Launch
Blogger & Journalist Outreach
?????
Earns 1 Million Links
“Why do we need creative content?”
“How is this relevant to us?”
“How will cat pictures help rankings?”
“Make the logo pop more, needs branding”
“Sandra in accounts wants the text bigger”
“How many links will this get us?”
“That’s the PR agency’s job. No Thanks”
“Can you make it go viral. K thx bye”
“Awesome! Let’s try a Zombie Infographic”

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MAIN COMPETITOR
CLIENT
http://www.semrush.com/ - Organic Competitor Report
CLIENT: “WHY DO WE NEED CREATIVE CONTENT?”
YOUR ANSWER: “BECAUSE YOUR MAIN COMPETITOR
IS KICKING YOUR ASS WITH IT”

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CLIENT: “WHY DO WE NEED CREATIVE CONTENT?”
YOUR ANSWER: “BECAUSE YOUR MAIN COMPETITOR
IS KICKING YOUR ASS WITH IT”

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http://www.semrush.com/ - Domain vs Domain Report
CLIENT
CLIENT: “WHY DO WE NEED CREATIVE CONTENT?”
YOUR ANSWER: “BECAUSE YOUR MAIN COMPETITOR
IS KICKING YOUR ASS WITH IT”

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CLIENT: “WE DON’T HAVE
THE BUDGET”

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4 CURATED CONTENT FORMATS
Listicles
AKA “Buzzfeed”
Mindmaps Flowcharts DIY Infographics
http://ww.piktochart.com
1. Curate the most relevant information about a topic into one
single location.
2. Add your own unique spin e.g. design, opinion, interactivity
3. Do it right and you’ll end up creating something of real
added value
YOUR SOLUTION – CONTENT CURATION

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https://www.twolittlefleas.co.uk/amazing-
marriage-proposals/
15 Referring Domains
LISTICLES (OR VIDEO PLAYLISTS)

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https://www.choice-loans.co.uk/bitcoin
15 Referring Domains
MINDMAPS

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http://www.physiocomestoyou.co.uk/massage/
(Brand New!)
FLOWCHARTS

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DIY INFOGRAPHICS
http://www.traveloutthere.com/books/
17 Referring Domains

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OUR CONTENT MARKETING PROCESS
Audience &
Competitor
Analysis
Content
Framework
Idea
Generation
Production
Outreach
INPUTS !
Objectives,
Loves & Hates
Target Sites &
Opportunities
3-6-5
Brainwriting &
Idea Filtering
Static /
Interactive
Content
Journalist
Pitches
OUTPUTS !

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AUDIENCE & COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

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YOUR CONTENT FRAMEWORK
UPCOMING HOOKS (AUTUMN/WINTER)
• Halloween
• Christmas
• Barbie Doll Day
• Chips Day
TARGET PUBLICATIONS (TIER 1)
• Daily Star
• The Express
• Digital Spy
• Gawker
• Sky
• Mashable
• OK! / Hello
TARGET CUSTOMER
• Aged 25-45
• 80% Female
• They also play the lottery, buy scratch cards and enter
social competitions.
• Employed (low end wages), unemployed or stay at home
parents
• Likely to have children
VALUES & EMOTIONS
• Aspirational
• Big dreamers
• Fun & laughter
• Excitement & pure bliss
• Friendship & family
• TOWIE
• Cereal Day
• X Factor
• Made in Chelsea

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FACT-FINDING

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1. Who is a typical customer? (LOL HAI, A/S/L?)
2. What do they love / hate about your product?
3. What stops them from buying your product?
4. What emotions do they associate with your product?
5. What magazines & websites do they read?
6. What else are they interested in?
ASK YOUR CLIENT THESE 6 QUESTIONS

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DECIDING TOPIC & THEMES

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1) USE BUZZSUMO TO FIND MOST SHARED
CONTENT IN YOUR NICHE
http://www.buzzsumo.com/

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2) MAKE A LIST OF UPCOMING ‘TRENDS’
https://www.daysoftheyear.com/

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INSTALL SCRAPER FOR CHROME
CLICK ME
Scraper for Chrome - http://bit.ly/LXBbSI

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EXPORT TO GOOGLE DOCS
CLICK ME
Scraper for Chrome - http://bit.ly/LXBbSI

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3) TRY WORD ASSOCATION FOR TOPICS & THEMES
1. Which 25 sites would you really like a link from?
2. Do your homework on those 25 and cut the list to 10
• Do they actually link to third-party sites?
site:dailymail.co.uk intitle:"Infographic”

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WHO ARE YOU GOING TO GET LINKS FROM?

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5) MAKE A LIST OF YOUR KEY PUBLICATIONS
1. Which 25 sites would you really like a link from?
2. Do your homework on those 25 and cut the list to 10
• Do they actually link to third-party sites?
site:dailymail.co.uk intitle:"Infographic”
• Have they linked to your competitors?
site:dailymail.co.uk intitle:"Infographic” + "Insurance"
• Search your topics
• Make a list of relevant Journalist names

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site:dailymail.co.uk intitle:"Infographic” + "Insurance"

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AND HERE’S YOUR KEY PUBLICATIONS LIST

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CONTENT FRAMEWORK

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YOUR CONTENT FRAMEWORK
UPCOMING HOOKS (FEB/MARCH 2015)
• Brit Awards
• Pancake Day
• Valentines Day
• Barbie Doll Day
• Chips Day
TARGET PUBLICATIONS (TIER 1)
• Daily Star
• The Express
• Digital Spy
• Gawker
• Sky
• Mashable
• OK! / Hello
TARGET CUSTOMER
• Aged 25-45
• 80% Female
• They also play the lottery, buy scratch cards and enter
social competitions.
• Employed (low end wages), unemployed or stay at home
parents
• Likely to have children
VALUES & EMOTIONS
• Aspirational
• Big dreamers
• Fun & laughter
• Excitement & pure bliss
• Friendship & family
• TOWIE
• Cereal Day
• Britain’s Got Talent
• Easter

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CLIENT “HOW IS THIS CONTENT RELEVANT?”
YOUR ANSWER: “BECAUSE WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
RELATED TOPICS THAT YOUR CUSTOMERS LOVE”

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CLIENT “HOW IS THIS CONTENT RELEVANT?”
YOUR ANSWER: “…AND WE’RE MUCH MORE
LIKELY TO EARN BIG LINKS THIS WAY”
Credit Cards
Technology
“25 Reasons The Apple
Watch Sucks”

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HOW WILL THIS HELP OUR RANKINGS?
YOUR ANSWER: “BIG LINKS = DOMAIN AUTHORITY &
COMBINED WITH AWESOME ON-PAGE/TECH SEO, WE WIN”

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TONS OF NON-KEYWORD
RICH ANCHOR TEXT
HOW WILL THIS HELP OUR RANKINGS?
YOUR ANSWER: “BIG LINKS = DOMAIN AUTHORITY &
COMBINED WITH AWESOME ON-PAGE/TECH SEO, WE WIN”

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IDEA GENERATION

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“How Do You Come Up
With a ‘Good’ Idea?”

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You Need
Shit Ideas First
010

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0: 110PRINCIPAL

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6-3-5
Brainwriting
108 Ideas in 30 Minutes

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6People

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3Ideas Each

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5Minutes

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✕No Talking Allowed

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WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE

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YOUR IDEA NEEDS TO HAVE AT LEAST 2 OF THESE
WHICH IDEA IS THE BEST?

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http://www.coolblades.co.uk/hub/face-shape/
44 Referring Domains• Social Currency
• Public
• Practical

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PRODUCTION

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HIRE THE A-TEAM ON A B-TEAM BUDGET

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PICK YOUR RESEARCHER

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PICK YOUR DESIGNER

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SET YOUR RULES OF ENGAGEMENT
1. HTML5, Responsive Design or Go Home
2. Put the Content on a Seperate Micro-Site
3. Unique Look & Feel, No Corporate Brand
Colours/Typography
4. Below The Fold Client Logo
5. Break Content into Digestible Chunks – Lists,
Sub-Headings, Paragraph Breaks
6. Visualise Every Detail (GIFs, Photos, Data Viz)

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USE OPEN GRAPH TAGS TO INCREASE CTR
• Open Graph Tags let you pre-populate text &
rich media on Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn
– OG:Type
– OG:Locale
– OG:Title
– OG:Publisher
– OG:Description
– OG:Image (1200px by 630px ideal for Facebook)
• Twitter Card Tags
– Twitter:card (summary_large_image)
– Twitter:site
– Twitter:domain
– Twitter:creator
– Twitter:title
– Validator: https://dev.twitter.com/docs/cards/validation/validator/
http://ogp.me/

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http://visual.ly/
KEEP THE COST DOWN – USE AN EXISTING STYLE

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http://www.colourlovers.com/
AND GIVE IT A FRESH COAT OF PAINT

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PICK YOUR DESIGNER

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AND ENJOY THE RESULTS
TOTAL COST - £129

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CLIENT: HOLD RIGHT THERE!
• This needs to have our top & bottom navigation
• Our logo needs to be added top-left
• Needs our brand colors
• Our customers don’t use capital letters – get rid

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YOUR ANSWERS:
1. Bloggers & Journalists don’t link to Advertising for
free (unless it’s truly amazing e.g. John Lewis Xmas
ads)
2. We’ll earn more coverage this way, and still make
more people love your brand
3. If it’s about your product & services, we’ll house it in
the main site

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OUTREACH

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GO BACK TO YOUR KEY PUBLICATIONS LIST

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FIGURE OUT THEIR EMAIL ADDRESSES
+ +

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1) MAKE EMAIL ADDRESS VARIATIONS IN EXCEL

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2) COPY & PASTE INTO GMAIL
PASTE
HERE
MATCH J
NOPE

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NOW YOU’VE GOT YOUR LIST OF EMAILS

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NOW YOU’VE GOT YOUR LIST OF EMAILS
YOU DIDN’T
SEE THE
EMAILS. OK?

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3) PITCH THE JOURNALIST WITH THIS TEMPLATE
SUBJECT: Soap Awards Story?
Hey Caroline,
Just wanted to run a idea by you,
We’ve just launched a brilliant list of British Soap Stars When
They Were Young featuring all the classics like Peggy Mitchell
and new favorites like Rosie Webster
Link: http://www.twolittlefleas.co.uk/soap-stars/
I think this would go down a storm on The Metro if you’d like to
share it in some form, especially as it’s the ITV Soap Awards
this Sunday.
It’s had over 300 social media mentions to date!
Two Little Fleas is an online bingo community with a passion for
creating cute and quirky apps, lists and tools.
Our stuff has been recently featured in the Radio
Times, HuffPost Comedy & Lifehacker.
Thanks Caroline let me know what you think,
Pete
CASUAL OPEN
THE SELL
THE HOOK
CREDIBILITY

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WHAT’S THE HOOK?
1. Seasonal Event or Occasion
2. New Trend
3. Statistics
4. It’s Bigger & Better

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NOW,
CALL THEM

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“Where do I get their
number?”

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CALL THIS
NUMBER

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REPEAT X 10

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AGENCY? USE A MEDIA DATABASE
http://www.featuresexec.com/
http://www.cision.com/

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INCREASE YOUR CHANCES
1. Offer as an Exclusive
2. Create a Supporting ‘Media Alert’
3. At Least 3 x Follow Ups

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LIFT OFF!

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https://www.twolittlefleas.co.uk/greetings/
28 Referring Domains (So far)

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ZOMBIE
TIME

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Thank You!!
@petecampbell"
pete@kaizensearch.co.uk"
http://www.kaizensearch.co.uk/
!