Wayne Lockwood: Content and the Knowledge Economy

The term ‘knowledge economy’ was coined and used sneeringly as a term to denote the monetization of education. In reality, the knowledge economy is so much more, and it is something many marketers can capitalize upon to drive growth for their business and better serve their customers.

The modern knowledge economy is an economic state in which growth depends on information and data as much as physical products. With the huge surge in content and data available to us, knowledge has become more valuable than ever. Leading to the question: How can you harness this (information and data) for your business and use it to achieve your growth goals?

A world oriented towards a knowledge economy gives brands the chance to embrace content creation. Content is, after all, an effective form of knowledge if it is properly produced, and all brands should be looking for ways to position themselves as experts in their field. The evidence proves it, organizations that share valuable knowledge via content marketing experience nearly 8x the site traffic of organizations that do not.

The modern customer wants information, and they want it quickly. They are constantly consuming information and looking for more relevant and reliable content sources. As such, a provider of quality information soon develops a reputation for being trustworthy and then becomes a source that people can rely on and trust. Sounds easy, right? But maybe, like me, you are becoming increasingly frustrated with the sheer volume or poor content being churned out and distributed. “Thought leadership” and “influence” are vanity monikers claimed by many, but delivered by the few.

Nevertheless, maximizing the value of your most powerful assets should be a focus for your business. And if knowledge is key to your success then why not make the most of it?

The Content Cash Cow: Can Knowledge Be Monetized?

Many people have argued that knowledge cannot and should not be monetized, but if it leads to growth and success, and lends a certain viral quality because of its value, then why not? Think about it—we’re in business, right? You sell “stuff”—whether it’s physical products or virtual cloud-based services, which means you need to prove your worth and expertise. Knowledge in itself is an abstract concept, which is why it needs to be transformed into meaningful content that consumers can benefit from.

Taking a concept or idea that sits at the heart of your business and expertise, and transforming it into valuable content allows you to physically ‘sell’ your knowledge. eCommerce isn’t just about what objects can be bought or sold anymore; there is absolutely no reason you can’t sell your ideas. The tools are out there to turn your content into products—you simply have to be ready to monetize and choose an effective platform designed to host, promote and deliver your knowledge-based content.

There’s No Success without Sharing your Knowledge

Knowing stuff is great, it allows you to get your business out there, set up, and perhaps even start making sales but let’s get real—if you want to succeed in business, knowing stuff is not enough on its own. You’ve got to want to share your learning, educate others and create experiences. Your knowledge needs to be transformed into actionable, effective, advice that can drive the business forward and deliver growth. Sharing your knowledge and positioning yourself as an expert is one of the best ways to grow your business.

Sharing Knowledge through Content

There are many ways of sharing your knowledge—specifically if it’s packaged as an effective and targeted piece of content. To successfully share your knowledge and grow your audience with content you should ensure these core functions are part of your organization:

Content Marketing

Content marketing is many things to many people but for most content marketing remains one of the most effective, personalized, and direct methods of getting your knowledge out there. With the right, plan your wisdom can be transformed into actionable content that drives sales. As it has evolved, content formats have become more personalized, relevant and interactive. In fact, 75% of marketers already using an interactive content plan are looking to increase their use of this medium.

List Building and Email Marketing

There’s no use shouting about your skills and experience if no one is listening. Actively building your lists and reaching out to your audience is essential. Email marketing is a key way of doing this because it allows for an extremely targeted and segmented approach. This approach enables you to share the same information in different, specialized ways to suit different audiences and achieve better results.

Marketing Automation

Marketing automation helps your organization more effectively share their knowledge–adding analytics and scale where you may have manual processes today. Research has found that marketing automation drives a 14.5% increase in sales productivity and this alone is a reason to get it in place and find the right solution for your business. It is also a great way to reduce your marketing costs and allows the talent in your business to focus on generating leads and sales, rather than carrying out tedious processes that are easily automated.

Landing Pages

For effective conversions and to deliver exactly what your audience expects, landing pages are a tried and tested method. Directing your visitors to targeted landing pages through email marketing, social media or other methods allows for very targeted content messages, calls to action and high conversion rates.

Website Conversions

Some content conversion will come straight from your website. This is yet another tool where you can transform the stuff you know into the stuff you do and therefore, the stuff you sell. Your website should be the clearest and most concise example of knowledge as content.

Web Data and Analytics

Do you know whether your campaigns are working? How many people are visiting your website or your newly designed landing pages? A good handle on the data and analytics around any campaign is key to making it work, driving growth and being able to iterate on your content. Almost all marketing tools and platforms are complete with analytic features, allowing you to track what is good and what is bad about everything you do. With this data, you can further target future campaigns and continue to impart your knowledge in a way that makes good business sense.

Your Knowledge Sharing Arsenal

To create the wealth of content needed to make a serious impression and generate growth can take some time but it’s more efficient if you have the right arsenal of productivity tools. The point where knowledge and creativity meets technology is an opportunity to streamline your content creation and make the most of automation tools to facilitate better, more measurable results.

Knowing stuff is great, it’s probably what got you started in business in the first place, but it is not enough on its own. To embrace the digital knowledge economy, you have to be ready to convert and repurpose your knowledge into content that’s valuable enough to turn heads and get people to buy into.

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