Publications and digital downloads are an important part of any content strategy. The best are saved and shared, helping you generate sales leads, increase reach, and land new customers for the long-haul. Thing is, digital downloads are a lot of work to get right. Here's five reasons why the effort is worth it:
Downloads are visual workhorses that
go where your website can't.
1. Establish Brand Credibility & Position Yourself as a Thought Leader
Teach your audience something new with a white paper or an e-book. “Something” and “audience” are broad terms with lots of room for creativity, and identifying both sets your objective. Ask yourself who you want to reach, and pinpoint what they’d find most useful. Cater to beginners with a definitive “101” guide that covers all the basic essentials on a topic, or get technical with an insight piece that examines and demystifies current issues within your industry. Those are just two possibilities from the endless wellspring that the “teach something” to "an audience” formula provides. Many companies end up creating a collection of e-books and white papers so there’s something relevant for everyone. They’re great choices for start-ups and entrepreneurs who want to demonstrate qualifications and expertise when entering an industry, and they’re extremely popular with big businesses who are well-established, with tons of competition.
2. Showcase products in-depth and sell compliments.
Let’s face it. Online product descriptions can only do so much —a major reason why customer-generated ratings and reviews are so popular (as they should be.)
If you have a big story to tell about a product, and want to share beyond basic specifications like price, size, color, and a short blurb that’s no longer than 180 characters, consider offering a product guide or brochure. They’re a dedicated place to appeal to the emotions, share features and benefits comprehensively, showcase success stories, provide instructions for optimal use, and up-sell complimentary products. Get more mileage out of them by designing guides for everyone — customers and employees. They do double-duty as product training guides for your sales and customer service teams.
3. Generate Sales Leads and Spark the Sales Process
It takes time, expertise, research and resources to put a polished publication together, and during the process, it’s helpful to keep in mind that you’re creating premium, high-quality content. Quality gets results. One way to ensure good results is to include a lead-capture feature in the process. For example, your audience provides their contact info (an email address) in order to download your free e-book. Everybody wins, and you’re building your database of high-quality customer leads. They get the comprehensive guide that they’re interested in; they discover more about your company; and now you can keep in touch with them and initiate your sales process.
4. Show different sides of your brand's personality.
Think of digital downloads as an alternate stage for your brand, where you can experiment with and show different aspects of personality. Get creative, push some limits, and see what resonates with your audience.
For example, ‘Zines (short for magazine) are playful, illustrated, artsy publications that ignore the standard conventions of more traditional publications like catalogues, circulars, or product guides. Go right ahead and include quirky, memorable content. Try out an original comic strip, gather a seasonal play list, or show off a mood board. It’s fun for everyone, an awesome, collectable, “in-store only” or “with purchase” perk, and you’re differentiating in a big way.
5. Educate customers during and after purchases.
Product guides, e-books and brochures help customers make informed decisions about a purchase they’re considering, and they’re just as useful after a purchase has been made. Identify the questions customers ask most frequently after they’ve made a purchase and address them in a product guide to save everyone time. You’ll proactively dispel confusion, increase customer satisfaction, and decrease the amount of service inquiries, email, and phone calls that you receive. Consider sending newsletters to customers after a purchase or service is complete to maintain a great relationship, recommend complimentary purchases, and encourage and inspire their feedback.
Let's make something you love.
Nine Planet Design specializes in all kinds of digital downloads and publications. I'll help you select a style that fits perfectly - and then handcraft messages that delight and enlighten your audience. Contact me for a free design consultation.
