I came across a post at Skelliewag (a wonderful site, incidentally if you want to build a better blog or website) that is a nice springboard for thinking about web content from the viewpoint of a marketer. She constructs a model based loosely on the thoughts of pop marketing guru, Seth Godin.

Skellie sets it up like so:

Blog or website = product.
You = marketer.
Customers = readers.

Talking points:

“The true, current value of any one reader is a function of the reader’s future engagement, contributions, links, votes and recommendations across all the content you offer.”

“Word of mouth marketing happens at the individual level. An individual experiences something and tells others about it. Viral marketing is collective: an individual experiences something, tells five others. Those five others tell five friends… and on it goes.”

“If you’re providing the same things that those bigger than you provide, readers will always choose the authority over the unproven imitator.”

“If there’s no pre-existing relationship of trust and good faith before you try to get the visitor to do something, it’s an interruption, not an interaction.”

Read the full post here.

– Tony Rossetti