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9 Comments

Ask IH: Content marketing or advertisement?

Hello everyone,

I'm in the debate between both, which one is best for a new product?

Would help your business?

Thank you.

  1. 2

    I think the most important question here is how long is the buyer's journey?

    If it's a product that requires some education or nurturing due to a higher price point, then content marketing is the way to go as it helps you develop trust and move potential buyers down the funnel, in addition to all the juice SEO benefits down the line. I wouldn't overlook the importance of this (though I'm a content marketer, so there is probably a bit of bias on my end 😉).

    THAT SAID, I fall victim to more Facebook ads than I'd care to admit, especially when they're products that have a lower price point and are easy to understand from a 10-second video or a slideshow. Solve my problem? Good reviews? $20? Take my money.

    It's all in the complexity of the product and in the potential for areas of friction that makes the difference, IMO.

    1. 1

      So, for a product related to banking, would you prefer content marketing or ads.

      1. 1

        Again, lots of things to consider here: Is your customer B2B or B2C? How much knowledge does your ideal buyer have about the problem? Is your product easy to explain or does it require some time and effort? These are questions that you probably need to answer based on your idea validation and user feedback.

        1. 1

          For me, it's B2C specifically those who need a helping hand saving money. The process is pretty simple (add/withdraw).

  2. 1

    I think you need both. Content is the long game and ads drive hype/spend in the short term. In both cases, you want to build systems that you can replicate and iterate on

  3. 1

    There are lots of things to factor into this debate.

    If your product is done, that's great. If you did customer research before building, then you should have an idea of who your customer is and how to reach them.

    That's one determinant.

    If you know your customer and how to reach them, then you should know where they hang out online. If so, then create some content in the format they're already consuming. Guest blog post on the blog(s) they read. Post in the same Facebook group(s) they're in. If you have a blog on your own site, post there.

    If you know your customer, create some Facebook ads targeting people with their interests. Create ads to advertise on the blog(s) they read. Add a Facebook pixel to your site and re-target anybody who has visited it.

    I would determine if you have more time or money at this point. Can you grow slowly? Is growth time sensitive? Do you know your customer well enough to make highly targeted ads or do you have a budget to play around and figure out what ads will work?

    With all that being said, there's no reason not to do both. There's no one method that works best for all products. Like @volkandkaya said, you can also simply cold call/email people.

    The best thing for new products is simply knowing your customer well enough to know where to engage with them.

  4. 1

    How about sales? You get to talk with your customer a lot faster.

    Content marketing can take a while, and by then you might have killed the product.

    Ads are good if you have money and you want to learn fast. To get ads profitable are hard.

    1. 1

      Can you explain to me more about sales? What do you mean by that?

      1. 2

        Cold email/call potential customers.

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