How one table is helping make content marketing a bit simpler to all.

I always have a special place in my heart for people who are able to make things simpler. To boil things down to a more digestible form.

This is what Chris Lake from eConsultancy recently did. For content marketing.

Based on the classic periodic table of elements, he defined the building blocks of content marketing.

The result is a very interesting infographic that visually shows what makes content work and what defines a good overall strategy.

The table is split into 8 extremely relevant areas:

  1. Strategy: Planning is essential. You need a strategy.
  2. Format: A single piece of content can take many different forms. Will it be an article? An image? Both?
  3. Content type: Interview? White paper? Case Study? Something else?
  4. Platform: An area that evolves every other week. You need to know what platforms exist and which are the best for your content.
  5. Metrics: What will you be measuring? Downloads? Pageviews?
  6. Goals: Are you looking for more sales? Members? Shares?
  7. Sharing triggers: What is your tone? Controvertial? Cool? Funny? Sexy?
  8. Checklist: Make sure you’ve looked over each of these elements when publishing content.

By going over this table and picking elements from each area when evaluating your content strategy, you definitely have a good starting point.

This table shows something we believe in deeply at Toast. There is no magic recipe in content marketing. This table is not a recipe book, but rather an excellent starting point in making sure your approach to content is built on a strong foundation.

I invite you to bookmark this week’s article, published over at eConsultancy, and pull it out whenever you are revisiting your content marketing strategy.

The Periodic Table of Content Marketing
(via eConsultancy)