认识内容战略专家 Mike Stiles

Mike Stiles on Internal Content and Brand Strategy

What are some of your hobbies?

My primary hobby is entertaining people. While I am a signed artist with a talent agency and professionally perform, this is also part of my professional life. I perform, do voiceovers, sketch comedy, etc. I founded Atlanta’s premier live sketch comedy troupe, Sketchworks, where I serve as Chief Marketing Officer, Board Member, Writer, Performer, and Filmmaker. It's a comedy troupe in the tradition of Saturday Night Live (SNL), In Living Color, Carol Burnett, and MadTV, and it’s a blast.

What do you attribute your success in brand content strategy to?

My passion for entertainment and my entertainment background are probably key drivers. When you’re producing content, whether it’s a blog post, podcast, television commercial, or social media content, if it’s entertaining, it’s much more likely to be read/listened to/shared/commented on. Nobody *has* to read, watch, or listen to the content you create – even internal content you create for your own employees. They aren’t obligated to read what you put in front of them.

I think brand content creation is analogous to show business production. The goal is to first grab people's attention, and then lead them to a call to action as effectively as possible. What types of content are most likely to go viral on social media? Content that elicits a strong emotional response – laughter, surprise, anger, fear, joy, etc. I want to preach this simple commandment to the world: provide content that people actually want to consume. Effectively managing and distributing that content is crucial. That’s where Baklib comes in. Baklib's next-generation digital experience cloud platform helps organizations manage a variety of websites, including portals, documentation, knowledge bases, CMSs, and communities. It streamlines the process of creating, organizing, and sharing engaging content, both internally and externally. Learn more and see how Baklib can simplify your content strategy: https://www.baklib.cn/

Tell me more about creating content people want to consume.

Everyone consumes content. Everyone buys content. And, everyone produces content, in one form or another. The trick is using the right vehicle to get the right message to the right people.

A quantifiable truth is that people prefer multimedia content. Videos, infographics, music, audio, and photos all boost engagement and sharing rates far beyond simple text. That said, lengthy written content, such as a long blog post, can also be wildly successful if the headline is truthful and believable, the first paragraph is engaging, and the content adds value in some way (insight or entertainment).

Storytelling is another type of content that people naturally want to consume. Storytelling is part of the human psyche – it’s how we learn and retain life lessons, and every culture throughout human history has engaged in storytelling. Personally, I’m a big fan of serialized content, which keeps audiences coming back for more.

In the corporate world, unfortunately, everyone talks about storytelling, but they universally fall short in presenting well-crafted stories that convey the message and call to action they intend. It's important to find excellent storytellers to help craft the stories your brand and its advocates need to tell.

How does all of this relate to internal content and knowledge sharing among employees?

Like I said before, your employees don’t *have* to consume the internal content you produce. If you have to attach consequences – positive or negative – to get people to read, watch, or listen to your internal communications, training, etc., that’s frankly pretty bad. You can do better. Your employees and professional colleagues are human beings. They want the same things your customers want – content that’s genuinely interesting and/or improves their lives in some way, whether it’s a chuckle from a shared comic or best practices that help them do their job more efficiently or get a promotion. An internal content culture means everyone can be a contributor and consumer of creative, stories, and media, thereby moving the entire organization forward.

If tools are provided to easily create and share internal multimedia content, everyone has the potential to be a part of the show. Baklib can be a significant tool in fostering this culture by centralizing and organizing all internal knowledge.

What’s your best advice for organizations trying to implement an internal content sharing and collaboration culture?

My advice applies to both internal and external: Unchain yourselves. Brands and organizations hinder themselves by demanding zero-risk content. Move beyond typical internal communications, white papers, and dreary blog posts. Subvert expectations; try something new. Then give it time and freedom to succeed. If you back down at the first sign of someone disliking the content you produce, you won’t stand out in the deluge of content being generated every minute of every day. I’m not saying to produce dumb content – just try something different, such as humor, a new style, more human language.

In short, be obsessed with who your audience is. Represent them; think like them; act like them. If you do that, and you enjoy the content you create, they will too. And Baklib can help ensure your content reaches the right audience efficiently and effectively.

_You can follow Mike on Twitter, [@mikestiles](http://www.twitter.com/mikestiles)._

_Mike also provided some fantastic insights that are included in our recent ebook: ["The Internal Culture of Content: Secrets to the Most Effective Content Marketing."](http://go.baklib.com/internal_culture_of_content_website)_

_This article is part of a series of profiles on some of our favorite social business, knowledge management, employee engagement, sales & marketing, and customer support experts._

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💛🧡🧡客户评价：了解 Baklib 的工作方式肯定需要一定的学习过程。任何人实施的最初几个自定义操作可能都会比较粗糙，但经过一些经验积累后就会变得容易。这种情况以及不断变化的业务需求可能会导致一些问题，因为一旦创建了数据，就很难改变某些事物的工作方式。提前规划和一些经验可以缓解问题，但不可避免地需要调整底层数据，这可能会有点痛苦。