10 Tips to Align Your Content and Paid Media Strategy

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Justin Simon

Over the past decade, I’ve led content marketing for multiple B2B SaaS companies, and I’ve noticed a common problem: 

Content marketers and performance marketers rarely communicate. 

This leads to inconsistent targeting, positioning, and messaging, which ultimately leads to lackluster results. 

If you want to hit your revenue targets, your content and paid media strategies need to be part of the same equation, not completely separate entities. 

Below are my top 10 tips on how to get aligned with your content team. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS: 

Tip #1: Don’t Create “Ads”

It’s easy to fall into the trap of researching the ads of your competitors and trying to mimic them. Or creating ads with a preconceived idea of what an ad should look like. 

But at this point, we’re all hardwired to scroll past the ads in our feed. 

Ironically, in order to stop the scroll, your ads have to blend in with other organic content. 

If you create great organic posts that are educational, memorable, and enjoyable, they’ll probably also perform well as ads. 

Tip #2: Repurpose the content you already have

Are there carousels, newsletters, or podcasts that have performed well for you in the past? 

Revisit this content. 

Why do you think it performed well? How can you remix it to extend its longevity? 

One caveat here: Just because something has performed well in the past doesn’t mean you should run it as an ad. 

For ads, I recommend repurposing the content that has performed well AND: 

  1. Has a clear POV
  2. Is consistent with your other content themes
  3. Is related in some capacity to what your company does

Otherwise, you may end up confusing your audience. 

Tip #3: Use paid media to guarantee distribution

We need to stop seeing paid media as something separate from content. 

Great ads are just incredible content with guaranteed distribution to the right people. 

If you’re running ads, make sure you’re constantly talking to the content marketers on your team to understand what’s working. 

What pieces of content are getting the most engagement, communicating important messages, or telling valuable stories? 

Is there an opportunity to put money behind this content? 

It’s hard to create winning ads if your team is working in silos. 

Tip #4: Have a clear POV

There are so many ads that feel and sound the same. 

Even if they're creative, they don’t feel different because they lack a unique POV. 

What’s the core idea that you want to communicate to your audience? 

How is your perspective or approach different from that of every other company? 

If you’re not communicating this, your audience will forget about you almost immediately. 

P.S. Don’t be afraid to have a slightly more controversial POV, as long as it makes sense for your brand. Sometimes, taking that risk is necessary in order to be memorable. 

Tip #5: Make sure you have consistent messaging

When it comes to messaging, you shouldn’t be throwing spaghetti at the wall. 

Instead, you should be repeating yourself constantly. Sharing your core message in different ways so that people can easily understand what you do. 

A lot of marketers are afraid of repeating themselves. But in order for you to be known, liked, and trusted at scale, repetition is essential. 

If you think of the brands that you trust, you’ve probably heard their core message millions of times, maybe without even realizing. 

Tip #6: Don’t be afraid to be different

In order to succeed, you need to be interesting, and do things that other companies aren’t doing. 

There’s so much noise these days. 

If you’re running ads, everybody else is. 

If you’re creating content, everybody else is. 

So, ask yourself, what can you do that’s different?

Why should prospects pay attention to you instead of other companies in your space? 

Look at what everybody else is doing. Is there an opportunity for you to do the opposite?

You have to be willing to take calculated risks in order to stand out. 

Tip #7: Leverage user-generated content

User-generated content is a powerful and underutilized tactic to build trust with your prospects. 

Do you have video testimonials or celebratory screenshots from your clients? 

This is great for both organic content and ads. 

Having testimonials from real people comes across as more authentic than the standard G2 reviews that everyone else uses. 

P.S. I know it can be nerve-wracking to ask for testimonials, but I’ve found that clients are usually happy to help – all you have to do is send a simple email or LinkedIn DM. And if you work at a larger org, you can talk to your customer advisory board, or ask your sales or CS team to make the ask.  

Tip #8: Share the right content for the right stage of the customer journey

A lot of companies make the mistake of promoting the same content to every single prospect, without considering what stage of the buyer’s journey they’re in. 

If someone’s already heard of your brand and interacted with your company multiple times, they’ll likely want to learn more about your product features, and may even be interested in a demo. 

But if someone has never heard of you before, they probably won’t be interested. 

If you’re targeting a completely cold audience, your priority should be to educate them about the problems you solve, not to generate conversions right away. 

The reality is – especially in B2B  – the demos you get now are a product of the work you did 6 months ago. 

P.S. There are no shortcuts when it comes to building trust. Sure, you can use an intent provider and target people who are technically in-market, but typically, even those people need to see more content before requesting a demo. 

Tip #9: Leverage retargeting

By retargeting, I don’t mean offering a demo to every single person that has interacted with your brand. 

A lot of people in your retargeting audiences won’t be ready for a demo yet. 

But they might be interested in attending your event or joining your webinar. Or they might want to learn more about your product, hear from your thought leaders, see testimonials from similar companies, etc. 

What interactions have the people in your retargeting audience taken? 

Based on these actions, what type of content do you think they’d be most interested in seeing? 

It’s important to do this exercise to create a positive experience for your prospects. 

If all you do is offer demos they’ll get tired of you pretty quickly.

Pro tip: Think of your retargeting audience as a newsletter that prospects didn’t opt into. Just like a newsletter, you need a mix of different content to grow the trust of your audience over time. 

Tip #10: Be willing to adapt and change as you learn

In both content and advertising, it’s important to create a strategy that’s firm but flexible. 

It’s great to have a general plan in place, but it shouldn’t be an immovable object. 

You have to be willing to adapt based on your audience’s response. 

Are there certain messages that are resonating more? 

Are there certain formats that are performing better? 

Are there certain audience segments that are expressing more interest in your product? 

Based on this feedback, you may have to modify your approach. 

Hope you found this article helpful!

Feel free to reach out on LinkedIn with any questions about content strategy or distribution. 

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People Also Ask

Why is it important to align content marketing with paid media efforts?

Aligning content marketing with paid media ensures consistent messaging, maximizes reach, and enhances engagement by delivering valuable content to the right audience at the right time. This synergy leads to more effective campaigns and better return on investment. 

How can repurposing existing content benefit a paid media strategy?

Repurposing high-performing content, such as carousels, newsletters, or podcasts, extends its longevity and leverages proven engagement. By remixing successful content, you can maintain audience interest and ensure consistency across channels. 

What role does having a clear point of view (POV) play in content and paid media alignment?

A distinct POV differentiates your brand and makes your messaging memorable. Communicating a unique perspective helps your audience understand how your approach stands out from competitors, fostering stronger connections and recall. 

Why is consistent messaging crucial across content and paid media channels?

Consistent messaging reinforces brand identity and ensures that your audience receives a unified narrative, regardless of the platform. Repetition of core messages builds trust and aids in brand recognition, making your campaigns more effective. 

How can leveraging user-generated content enhance a paid media strategy?

Incorporating user-generated content adds authenticity and social proof to your campaigns. It showcases real customer experiences, building trust and encouraging engagement from potential clients who see relatable success stories.

Justin Simon
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