6 Ways to Get Buy-In For Your SEO & Content Marketing with Mark Traphagen

Even with all the information on the web about SEO, it’s still one of those mysterious disciplines that leaves many marketing professionals scratching their heads. I hear lot’s of folks say SEO is dead or that all you need to do is create exceptional content and people will show up at your door.

The truth is, all those are sort of true. Marketing is nuanced, complicated and an ever changing endeavor.

Everyone who has a business wants to get their message found online – the trick is getting yourself and your company discovered by the right people during their online journey.

I’ve talked quite a bit on this blog about the importance of SEO, content strategy and personal branding. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done and even more difficult when you work in an organization where you need BUY-IN to execute effectively, which is why you’ve got to take some time to formulate a strategy to market your marketing.

Grow your influencer network long before you need them. The day to develop an army of influential advocates isn’t the first day of the war. Find common interests and develop rapport.

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Lee Odden

Marketing your marketing and helping others execute: A pretty meta job, but one that Stone Temple Consulting Senior Director of Online Marketing Mark Traphagen seems to enjoy thoroughly. Helping other brands both mid-size and large start, develop, and hone online marketing strategies is Traphagen’s bread and butter. The trick, he notes, is getting buy-in at the top of the companies he assists. There’s a ton of content on the web that outlines the value of having a digital strategy and that certainly makes it a little bit easier to justify the resources for digital marketing, but for many it’s still an uphill battle. Not enough resources in the right places in time to make a difference.

Marketers looking to convince their bosses likely know the struggle that can sometimes (or often) ensue when they bring up the value inbound marketing can bring to the bottom line. The best ways to go about getting founders, executives, and organizations at large to “buy-in” is relatively straightforward:

Find plenty of examples of brands knocking it out of the park with their online marketing strategies

Pack plenty of figures and data points in your presentation to higher-ups that show the ROI digital marketing can generate

Be as specific as possible with your plans for your brand’s inbound scheme: from the content you want to create, to how you’ll promote it, and how it will be discovered in search.

Set realistic expectations as to how long it can take to see measurable results. (Remember, this is about creating long term destinations that are assets, not short lived campaigns)

Make sure you include sales leadership in the process so that the assets you create, align with the long term growth goals of the business.

One thing we often forget is the importance of making friends and being nice. You need real collaborators and allies to do great work.

A major selling point in persuading execs and managers to give the thumbs up for the development of an online marketing strategy needs to be how much time, energy, resources, and money can be saved by shifting a brand’s promotional efforts not only to being predominately online but from an mindset of broadcast marketing (we’re frickin awesome, buy from us) to consumer centric marketing (let me help you by paying it forward) which is all about providing value above and beyond your products and services.

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