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The secret to building a content strategy?
You need to look inward first
Tanaaz Khan
September 20, 2024
Hey, folks!
Whenever I speak to a founder or marketing leader, they always have one question on their mind: “How can I start generating leads with SEO content?”
But they’re not sure what resources/budget they have in place or what strategies are right for their business model or product.
That’s the crux of the issue.
They’re not thinking about the constraints of their own business before jumping into marketing.
Every time you think about how to market your product, there are three things that come into play:
Your audience
Your product
Your business model
Unless you truly understand these three aspects, it’s hard to create a strategy that actually serves your business.
Take Databox, for example.
Last year, I interviewed Peter Caputa, Databox’s CEO, for an article on Moz.
I was curious about why his team chose a survey-led content strategy to build awareness and generate leads.
Yes, the strategy helped them attract more links, build their domain authority, and increase traffic—but that’s not why they did it.
It was because of the product.
When Peter joined Databox, they barely did any marketing. And because the product was an analytics and reporting tool, they couldn’t possibly be an expert on all the integrations they support.
“Our product is really useless without pulling in data from one of those integrations. And so I realized that we couldn’t be an expert at all those integrations. We couldn’t be an expert at HubSpot, plus Google Analytics, plus Search Console, plus a bunch of ad platforms, plus ActiveCampaign, plus Mixpanel, et cetera.”
The best way forward? Source contributions from the true experts in the space.
That’s how their contributor program was born.
That said, it wasn’t the easiest program to spin up. Some of his team members weren’t entirely convinced by this strategy. Their main concerns were that:
The content would only attract a top-of-funnel audience (low conversions)
They didn’t want to link to other websites/experts (need to be seen as the authority)
Their users might leave the page due to external links (need to control the journey)
This approach broke the traditional SEO mold of keywords and generic content—which explains the resistance.
But they didn’t see the bigger picture.
This allowed Databox to start a conversation with its ideal audience (marketers and agency owners) by offering some in return first.
For example, every expert who’s featured gets a backlink, brand mention, and peer recognition. This brings them into Databox’s world—either through outreach or inbound form fills.
We started using Google Forms. Initially, we would just ask two or three open-ended questions, and by asking 15 to 20 people the same three questions, we got a really well-rounded perspective on that topic. So we would take that, organize it, look for common themes and perspectives from the contributors, and then structure the content with suggestions.
The benefit was that we were going to quote them. People appreciate that because not many people are receiving outreach that says, “Hey, I want to feature your expertise in my content,” right?
Most people are receiving outreaches like, “Hey, buy my product” or “Check out my content.” Reversing the approach helps because it's a compliment.
When Peter’s team paired that with high-intent offers like dashboard templates, it brought in more trials and sign-ups.
Readers can easily read a blog post, click on a template and activate a new account. Within minutes, they can connect their data sources and visualize the data—decreasing time to value, a.k.a. the “aha” moment. (Thanks to the PLG motion.)
Fast forward six years, the team has an entire partner network and research program to support this initiative. And they crossed $8 million in ARR in 2023 while competing with enterprises on the SERPS.
Today, when everybody is struggling to produce original and insightful content, their team has already cracked the code.
Final thoughts
I’m not saying it’s time for you to kickstart your survey program. BUT it is time to take a good hard look at your product, business model, and existing resources.
There’s no point in publishing content on 15 different channels and spending $$$ on random tactics if it doesn’t align with your business goals.
What you need is a solid understanding of your business, audience, and product. Only then do the marketing tactics come into play. SEO can work, but how you do it will differ based on what you’re selling.
Ultimately, if you’re realistic about your current constraints and what’s achievable, you’ll have better luck reaching your short and long-term goals.
P.S. Liked the issue? Share it with someone who could benefit from it.
Fascinating read of the week: The Evidence Gap (by UserEvidence)
Last week, my LinkedIn feed was packed with posts about UserEvidence’s first research report. Honestly, the report validated so many things I’ve seen on the outside as a consultant and software buyer.
There’s just not enough customer evidence out there—and many companies still think traditional case studies with cherry-picked stats and narratives work well.
Spoiler alert: they don’t.
IMO, UserEvidence did an excellent job of articulating the “customer evidence” problem from three perspectives: software buyers, sellers, and marketers.
My main takeaway was that marketers need to do better when creating and publishing social proof—especially at the account and use case levels.
Spare 10 minutes and give this report a read :)
Before you go…
Here are three ways I can help you:
Build/run your content strategy: If you’re struggling to create content that stands out, resonates, and converts, let’s chat.
Execute your content strategy: If you need help creating long-form content like blog posts, research reports, or case studies, let’s chat.
Solve one burning issue with 1:1 help: If a specific issue is currently bogging down your content marketing efforts, schedule a paid 1:1 session with me.
Reply to this email and let me know!
That’s all for today! As always, if you have any questions or feedback, vote below or reply to this email:
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