Asset Based Marketing: Design Improves Traffic by 66%

Posted by Sarah Mitchell on 1 December 2010 | 3 Comments

Tags: asset based marketing, content marketing, design, copywriting

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’ll be familiar with asset based marketing and the importance of content and design in any content marketing project. Both budget and time need to be apportioned to each element to produce a product that will become an asset to your company. I recently came across a great example proving this philosophy and I want to share it with you.

Content Marketing Conundrum
As a writer, I’ve always been focused on words. I’m very happy to pore over a blank page filled with plain black type. Unfortunately for me, most people don’t feel the same way. Let me share two hard truths about content.

• Great content doesn’t guarantee readership. If someone is not enticed to pick up your document, hang around on your website or respond to the call to action on your landing page, even the best writing fails.
  
• If content isn’t being read, it isn’t an asset to your business. You can spend ages researching, employ the best writers, and hire an editor to ensure every word and sentence is perfect. If no one opens your content because it’s unattractive, all that marketing time and effort is wasted.

The Design Advantage
Writers have one weapon to entice readers – the headline. A key element to copywriting success is being able to craft a great title. If you struggle to hook readers with your titles, you’re going to have to come up with another tactic. Design is the way to do that. The better the design, the better response you get to your content.

Let me give you an example. I do a fair amount of public speaking on content marketing and social media. I load my presentations onto SlideShare. Each one is represented by a thumbnail of the title page. Last week when I was reviewing my account, I found a direct correlation between the quality of the design on the title page and the number of people who viewed the presentation.
 

All the presentations have been available on SlideShare for 5-8 months. The content for each presentation is basically the same with variations for specific audiences. All descriptions and keywords for the uploads on SlideShare are similar. The groups I presented to were comparable in size. The major difference in the four presentations is the design of the cover page which serves as a thumbnail for the presentations on Slideshare.

The Take-Away
While my example is not scientific, the results are impressive. Even if I consider the title may influence the appeal of the presentations, it’s obvious SlideShare users are attracted to design and prefer a professional job over my amateur efforts. Faced with this evidence from my own content, it’s unlikely I will ever cobble together another cover page. I saved a little time and money but it cost me dearly – 66% less traffic and no downloads whatsoever. The only two presentations I would consider an asset to my business both had strong elements of professional design. It’s a startling result and a lesson worth remembering.

Where have you seen design improve your content?

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• The Website Conundrum: Design vs. Content
• Asset Based Marketing: Where Content Meets Design
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