How to Get Started with Product-Led Content Marketing

I received an email recently from someone who had just launched a tech startup. It seemed like his approach to content marketing was seriously bothering him.

The author was frustrated because he wasn’t getting the results he needed and wasn’t sure where to start.  

I read with rapt attention as he outlined and discussed his strategies and how long he had implemented them. He wanted to know what I thought about them and if there were any tips I could offer him on how to improve his results.

This made me feel like I was in an auditorium with a hundred people waiting for my every word on what to do to help companies like his reach their goal. 

Well, a major problem I noticed with the author’s strategy was that his content was rather too salesy. People want to build trust before they buy from you.  A better approach? Offer content that addresses your audiences’ challenges, tying the solution closely to your product! This is referred to as product-led content marketing, and I’ve seen some brands pull it off successfully. 

I’ll be discussing product-led content extensively in the next section, as well as showing you how to make it pay off big time. 

Related: Why Content Marketing For Startups Is Totally Worth It

What is product-led content marketing?

Product-led content marketing uses informative and helpful posts to draw readers to the product.  It’s not just about creating content that simply describes features, benefits, or pricing—it’s about creating content that solves the problems of your audience and how those solutions are directly tied to your products.

A great example of this type of content is Tiiny Host’s blog post on “Smallpdf vs Yimpu: which is a better PDF host for you?” 

Tiiny Host recognized that most of their audience had issues selecting a good host for their PDFs given the myriad of hosting platforms available today. Notice how they comparatively analyzed the two industry giants and cleverly brought in their tool, how it solves the same problem, and what they do better than their competition. 

Amazing right?

Another good example worth discussing is the “Airplane Activities for Toddlers” story on Hera’s blog. 

The story covered a basic checklist when traveling with a toddler, toddler activities to keep them busy during the journey, and suggestions for when things get out of hand. 

Hera Marketing demonstrated her writing dexterity—utilizing storytelling to market brands, and also showed how they can help you create winning content strategies and connect your brands with skilled writers.

Now you see how much of a marketing tool this type of content can be. If someone reads this blog post, they may become interested in trying out the products discussed or even book a demo with Hera marketing!

Thus, this type of posts should be well written and easy to understand. You want to make sure it’s clear what you do and why people should care. 

What part of the sales funnel does product-led content marketing exist?

It’s simple! Product-led content marketing exists at every stage of the sales funnel.

In the past, most marketers focused on the demand side of their sales funnel. They would create content for people who were already interested in buying from them, but they didn’t focus on creating content for people who weren’t ready to buy yet. These marketers would also spend all their time on social media instead of focusing on other important parts of their business, like email campaigns or offline marketing efforts like events or trade shows.

Today, there’s a new way to think about building an effective sales process that incorporates product-led content marketing: you need to create content that appeals to prospects at different stages of the sales cycle, so they can make informed decisions when they move into your next stage of interest.

Here’s how it works: As prospects start considering your products, they will want to know more about them. You need to provide them with valuable information that helps them make a decision as quickly as possible, but also gives them plenty of time to research and compare options before making any commitment.

In addition to providing information about your products or services, this type of content should include helpful tips and tricks so they can take advantage of all the benefits they offer—not just what matters most at this particular stage of their buying process.

The perks of product-led content 

There are a lot of positive reasons why you should add product-led content to your growth strategy. I’ll love to highlight some of them: 

1. It supports customer retention

One of the biggest challenges faced in marketing is customer retention. If you fail to give a customer the same value you provided when they came on board, they are likely to switch their options. Product-led content prevents this by showing customers new ways to use your products. 

For instance, you could have a weekly update on new features and how to use them. This kind of help and support strategy will obviously increase the chances of new discoveries by existing customers. It can be a triggered email that recommends help based on the customer’s activity or a pop-up on your blog that appears when the customer views a certain content. These are times when they will most likely need help with your product. 

This marketing strategy doesn’t only help you get customers; it will also help keep the existing ones satisfied and impressed. 

2. It’s an affordable way to acquire users

Unlike ads using paid media, product-led content strategies are less expensive. 

By creating product-led content, you are already building brand awareness, establishing trust and also doing word-of-mouth marketing. When your audience sees what it’s like to use your product, it will generate more interest and also drive traffic to your website. Using a product-led strategy is equivalent to killing two birds with one stone, if done the right way of course. 

3. It targets potential customers at all stages of the sales funnel

Earlier in the article, we talked about this. Creating value for a customer, whether they’ve acquired your product or are still contemplating it, helps to enhance their experience. You can create product-led content that satisfies the curiosity of customers at all levels, so they can make informed decisions when they move into any stage of interest.

4. It creates a lasting impression on your audience’s mind

If the product content you created was really good and interesting, it’s likely that your product will leave a lasting impression on your audience for a long time. 

By incorporating educational and engaging content, users are reminded of what they learnt and they will relate it to the illustrations shown. This may even encourage them to try your product out. 

Why product-led content marketing may not be effective

Most of the time, people get product content strategy wrong. They think creating content about your product means direct sales, which is direct marketing. It really isn’t. Here are some reasons why your product-led content may not be effective. 

1. You talk about what you do instead of talking about how it can solve a problem

The most important thing when creating product-led content is to put your product in the right context. Users actually care more about solutions than what kind of product it is. They are more interested in how it can help them, and that’s what you should focus on. 

2. Pushing your product in their faces

If your content is all about selling your product, then your target audience will trust you less. You shouldn’t do this because your audience doesn’t even know what your brand is about yet. 

Once again, use your content to solve users’ problems and show how your product can do that. 

3. Too many pop-ups

Yes, we recommend using pop-ups to attract users’ attention, but when it gets too much, it can be annoying, to say the least. Interrupting your audience after every single scroll can make them get tired of your website/blog. To avoid chasing your users away, add more useful content and fewer pop-ups. 

How to create product-led content 

1. Identify the customer’s pain point 

The first thing to do when creating product-led content is to note the problems that users might have. Acknowledge the problem and use a language that will resonate with the user. 

For example, if a user is struggling with organizing their tasks, they might need a product that helps organize their tasks according to their level of importance and reminds them of what to do when it’s time. You can also create blog posts based on these pain points.

2. Blow up the problem (agitate users/readers)

Using a Pain-Agitate-Solution framework works a lot because most people don’t even know that something is a problem until they are shown the challenges they might face with it. 

3. Offer a solution

Show all the possible solutions to these problems and let customers know how your product can help. Show proof that your product works. You can use images, GIFs, or screenshots. Mention the best solutions and use your product as a bridge that will help solve their problem. 

4. Plug in your product as part of the solution 

This is the final step where you demonstrate how your product works. This can be shown as the benefits of the product and its relevance to the conversation. You can also add Call-to-Actions (CTAs) in a smart manner. A good way of doing this is by offering free demos or trials. This way, you will grab users’ attention. 

Read also: The Role of Content Design in Content Marketing

Conclusion

With these tips, you should be well on your way to getting started with product-led content marketing. It’s a great way to show people why they need your product without being too salesy. 

However, we’ve all experienced that sinking feeling when you try to get started with something new and don’t know where to begin. Not to worry, we’ve got you! 

At Hera, we provide you with the best content ideas for your product, and a team of experts to execute them beautifully. One thing is for sure, you can’t go wrong with us. Book a demo with us today!

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We have worked with over 24 startups to drive conversions through increased community presence and relevant blog posts that we help distribute. To understand our process, book a 15 - 30 minutes meeting with us.