Submitted for your approval:
I’m at the gym plugging away on the elliptical, 25 minutes into a 45-minute stint.
I grab my water bottle, and there’s just one swig left. To save or to chug? I say “eff it” and chug … with nearly half my workout still ahead of me.
A few sweaty minutes pass, and I really, really start regretting that decision.
Moments later, my gaze glued to the “Strides per Minute” number (have y’all noticed that I can be the teensiest bit obsessive?), I’m surprised by a smiling young woman approaching my elliptical machine.
She’s wearing a Red Bull polo shirt and carrying a cooler on her shoulder. She asks pleasantly, “Hello, ma’am, would you like a Red Bull?” as she pulls a frosty silver-and-blue cylinder out of the cooler and holds it up to my sweaty visage.
I say, “Oh, yes, thank you very much.”
Or that’s what I meant to say. What came out probably sounded like “Hyuh … yeff … fangu … begee mush.”
She hands me the ice-cold beverage. I pop it and drink.
And all of a sudden, I really, really like Red Bull.
After my workout, I looked around the gym, but my beverage-toting angel was nowhere to be found. She wasn’t there to sell anything. She was just there to give free samples of her product to thirsty people who really needed something wet.
And then it struck me: Isn’t that what a successful content marketer does?
Sometimes when I first broach the idea of content marketing, clients push back with “What, I’m supposed to just give away good content after putting all that thought and effort into it? Forget that!”
What they’re missing is something the content marketer inherently understands: the inestimable value of the well-placed helping hand:
- The blog post on “How to Get More Likes on Your Facebook Page” you see just after your boss reamed you for not driving enough leads through social media.
- The YouTube video on deducting charitable contributions that appears in your feed just a few hours before your taxes are due (yes, even the IRS is doing it).
- Or just a smile-inducing thought for the day that pops up the moment you need a little inspiration.
That said, here’s my question for you:
Your biggest prospective client is slogging away on the elliptical and his water just ran out. Who would you rather see offering him a frosty can of Red Bull—you or your competitor?
Think about it.
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Content Curator Rachel Parker
Rachel Parker, Owner and Chief Content Strategist of Resonance Content Marketing, brings a track record of success in brand messaging to her work with forward-thinking businesses of all sizes. With over 15 years experience as a brand strategist and marketing writer, Rachel has worked with some of the most prominent companies in Houston, including Hewlett-Packard, SYSCO Foodservice, AIG American General, Methodist Hospital, Reliant Energy, Honeywell, and many others.
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