How to Get More Creative With Your Content, with Jay Acunzo

October 16, 2014

Are you struggling to come up with quality content for your content marketing plan? Are you looking to get more creative with your content that you create for your blog, website and social media updates?

If you answered yes to either one of those questions, then I have an awesome podcast for you.

This week on the Social Media Social Hour podcast I am joined by Jay Acunzo, the director of platform and community at NextView Ventures. Jay and I discuss what creative content is and his tips for generating it and standing out among the noise.

About the show:

The Social Media Social Hour is a podcast for marketers and entrepreneurs looking to get on the social media fast track. The podcast is an interview format, where each week I get up close and personal with top brands and influencers to talk social media, tech and online marketing. Each week I also share tools that I personally use to help me with social media management, sales, marketing, accounts management, and productivity. The Social Media Social Hour is presented by Scoreboard Social.

In this episode, here is what you’ll discover:

About Jay Acunzo:

  • Career and life background:
    • Wanted to be a sports journalist
      • Interned at ESPN
      • Named a Murray Scholar in 2006
    • First job: Digital media strategist for Google
    • Decided wanted to build from scratch
      • Co-founded Boston Content – a local community of content marketers and producers
        • Produces regular meetups and hands-on workshops
    • Built the editorial team at Dailybreak Media from zero
    • Head of content at HubSpot
      • Oversaw the library of educational resources and the award-winning blog covering the content marketing industry
    • Director of platform and community at Next View Ventures
      • Leads the development of strategic initiatives that provide educational and business development opportunities for NextView’s portfolio companies, as well as the broader startup community.
      • Investments include: Book Bub & Insight Squared
    • Personal Blog at sorryformarketing.com

About Creative Content:

  • B to B does not have to be built on “best practices”:
    • When creating things, and when you need to be unique among the noise, best practices is a terrible way to stand out because it means doing what everyone else is doing.
  • “Different” things done at HubSpot:
    • Came up with solutions to problems their audience faced:
      • Hired a photographer to give away stock photography packages
      • Gave away collections of design assets, workbooks, templates, etc.
  • When generating creative ideas, you have to do it on a predictable, regimented, consistent basis.
  • Types of creative content:
    • Design, templates, etc.
    • Over-the-top, frolicking in the field creativity
    • Simple things: how to solve a problem for my buyer in a way that they haven’t seen from other companies
  • Tips to get started:
    • Figure out who you are serving – who is your buyer, your user, who are you trying to help with your content
    • Articulate the problem you will solve and why they should care
    • Build an e-mail list
  • Best way to measure ROI – what’s next?

Notable Quotes:

  • “We find something that works and then we beat it to death…that’s the marketing way.”
  • “It’s about figuring out a human desire and using modern technology to take out steps it takes to fulfill that desire.” -Ed Williams, founder of Twitter
  • “If someone’s actually getting work done and solving a problem thanks to you, that’s really powerful stuff.”
  • “As a content marketer, you’re in the business of asking, ‘What’s next?'”

Items/people mentioned in the show:

Jays’ Social Media Six Pack:

  1. On a scale of 1-10, rate your dancing skills? In my head, I’d say an 8 but if my wife were listening she’d say a 3.
  2. Have you ever solved a Rubiks cube? Nope, and probably never will.
  3. Do you know how to check the oil in your car? I don’t think I actually do.
  4. What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas, hands down.
  5. How many pillows do you sleep with? Probably 2.
  6. Can you do a handstand? No I cannot.

Enjoy the podcast? Give us a rating or a review on iTunes!

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