Content Rules may be the most significant contribution to the emerging disciple of content marketing since Get Content Get Customers. I would highly recommend you purchase and read this book.

Here is what I highlighted:

  • “ ‘Markets consist of human beings, not demographic sectors,’ said Rick Levine and his colleagues, authors of The Cluetrain Manifesto (Basic Books, 2000), a decade ago.”
  • “ ‘You may be marketing to all of your customers, but remember that you are always speaking to a single person in particular,’ says Jellyvision founder Harry Gottlieb.”
  • “Worry more about creating remarkable content; worry less about being professional.”
  • “How do you figure out what words and phrases your personas use and relate to? Broadly, by listening before you talk. Ideally, you can interview those people you are trying to reach in your marketing. But you can also gain insight by listening online: by reading the same publications or blogs that they do; by listening in on conversations in social outposts like Facebook and Twitter; and by using online keyword research tools like Google Adwords, Wordtracker, and Keyword Discovery to see what keywords related to your business people are searching for.”
  • “…speak the language of your customers…”
  • “ ‘The writer’s voice (or director’s, choreographer’s, photographer’s, entrepreneur’s) arises from the material itself and acts in service to that material,’ Pressfield writes on his blog. ‘It can, and often does, change from book to book, dance to dance, album to album, business venture to business venture.’ ”
  • “Voice isn’t just about how you write, but the perspective you bring.”
  • “Guy Kawasaki says, ‘Don’t be afraid to polarize people.’ “
  • “View all of the pieces of content you plan to create as expressions of a single bigger idea.”

Have you read Content Rules? What did you learn?

Ben Stroup is a content activist in a post-paragraph world. He is chief broker of opportunity at Ben Stroup Enterprises. Connect with Ben via email, Twitter, and Google+. Subscribe via email to learn how to use content to move people to action.

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