Mark James - experienced content strategist, creator, and writer – has already made the journey from startup to IPO once. Now he is looking forward to doing a similar scale-up journey, with Phyron AI.
Hi Mark. What, in your experience, are the most common mistakes marketers make on Linkedin and other platforms?
"Often, brands create relationships with their followers that are very one sided and focused only on telling their own story. Which is only a small part of a successful social media strategy.
"Look at any brands doing social well and you’ll see them creating content that informs, educates and entertains. Unless you’re creating this balance of content it’s unlikely you’ll get the best out of your social channels.
Some companies and individuals have tens of thousands of followers, with minimal measurable impact on the business results. What’s your general view on the numbers?
" I’m a big believer in quality over quantity. I learnt this the hard way, when working with some influencers back in the day. I got swayed by the numbers, and spent a chunk of cash sponsoring a post with a well-known influencer.
”Up went the post, and excitedly I went straight to the dashboards to track the engagements and sign ups. But there was very little, mainly just spammy comments.
"With the budget I had left, I collaborated with much smaller accounts and in contrast we saw genuine engagement. This taught me that big follower counts aren’t everything. A smaller, more authentic audience can provide greater value."
How do yo create an effective content strategy?
"An old colleague told me ‘If your content is for everybody, it's for nobody’ and it’s a content marketing mantra I’ve worked by to this day.
"You need to get to know your audience and work out what makes them tick. The more you understand your audience, the more targeted you can be, and the more effective you’ll find your content strategy."
What’s the wider scope of ”content” as applied in marketing?
"When I started my career, my day-to-day revolved around blogging, link building and posting on Google+ (yes, I am that old). Twelve years on I’m more likely to be podcasting, Tik-Toking or ChatGPTing.
"Content is constantly evolving and it’s very tricky to put in a box. Its scope is virtually limitless and dependent on technological trends, which is both exciting and challenging. The trick is to experiment with your content as much as possible and see what sticks."
You are joining a relatively young, fast growing business venture … what are your main responsibilities, and first priorities?
"I’ve only ever worked in startups and scale-ups, including one that went to an IPO. I hope to make a similar journey at Phyron, by making us a hub for all things automotive marketing. I’ve got plenty of ideas to get there but I don’t want to share the secret sauce just yet… you never know who might be reading!"
