Multimedia Story Telling: Communicate in Technicolor!

Well, now that we’ve covered your mission critical equipment, gotten into the right mindset and covered the concepts of forming a content strategy, now that you’ve got a basic understanding of the content marketing process, how about we discuss what it means to create better content. Then we’ll talk about HOW to create high value content, and communicate in TECHNICOLOR through multimedia story telling.

The Evolution of Content Creation

Now its time to raise the bar of what quality content means in our global conversation. You are the Modern Content Creator. It's time to act the part.

Actually, I don't mean to say quality, because we aren't actually all that interested with any old "well written" piece of content, as grammatically perfect as it may be.

What we are actually talking about is high VALUE content.

In contrast to quality, high value means that the content is "valuable" to a niche or sub niche of "other" people.

As Modern Content Creators, We’ve got to be an example for the rest of the floundering fluff-feeders and glossy eyed content readers.

We’ve got to step our game up, and we’ve got to create BETTER content.

Tell the story better.

Utilize the tools of the Modern Content Creator and produce better, more engaging, more effective content.

Does it NEED to be a talking head video? Is there a reason for that?

Isn’t powerpoint sometimes sorta... Well. boring...?

We Got The Tools...

Text, video, audio, image, slideshow, pdf, screencast... we got the tools.

They are accessible to all of us.

But it’s time to learn how to use them better.

A little more creativity designed with care and that takes into account A.D.D. (Audience Directed Delivery) is what we're talking about here.

Content created with A.D.D. in mind means that you are shaping all aspects of the experience from the AUDIENCES perspective.

It means that you are taking into account both the message of the content and the presentation of the materials to most effectively tell your story.

Ultimately, that’s all any of us are doing. Storytelling.

Creating better content doesn’t only mean an improvement in the quality, the research, the relevance and therefore the inherent value of free web content... It also means the creative selection of tools used to convey and communicate content through an improved user experience.

Form HAS to follow function, which for many creative people, CAN be a pitfall.

The primary reason for integrating this multi-media method of thought into your content creation, which will require more effort and probably learning how to use some new formats, is the enhanced ability to tell and illustrate more meaningful stories.

Create more value, more opportunity, more unique messages.

Valuable connection and meaningful communication are what EVERYONE is truly looking for these days.

People CRAVE IT.

Your ability to shape the experience and deliver the most valuable CONTENT, in the most valuable format, just the way they like it will skyrocket your ability to cut through the clutter and standout. Period.

End of story.

The benefits of this positioning and credibility is worth its weight in gold, as ATTENTION is the scarce resource.

High Value Content Is Currency

As we've gone over a few times by now, content is currency... Those who tell the stories, who can communicate and touch their audience all over the globe, hold the keys.

The manufacturing costs to share the most valuable commodity (valuable content) with a global audience suddenly dropped to almost nothing, so imagination is our only limiter.

Again we’re all publishers, we all create the media. We are the media. ...but competition increased, as well as the requirements to rise above the noise.

By placing the focus on creating multimedia content and allowing the ideal user experience to shape the design, you'll separate yourself from the crowd.

You need to communicate in TECHNICOLOR. Think of your content and your message as your assets, because they are!

Now, think about the difference between a drab uninspiring banner ad that you tune out, and someone showing up to your house with balloons, their favorite cake, and a personally packaged box of JUST the content they were looking for, already IN the format they prefer.

A box of DVD videos with printout worksheets. A thumb drive with your new album, behind the scenes, bloopers and candid out-takes all on there.

That manipulative junkmail salesletter that tries to to advantage of my grandma each and every single day, is TOAST.

That boring banner that’s trying to attract eyeballs and perhaps even a few clicks-simply cannot compete with the high value content that those EYEBALLS are actually on the page for-in the first place.

Communicate in Technicolor!

Think of the difference between an old black and white silent film on an old 17” screen, compared to a 50” HD Flatscreen.

Communicate to all the learning styles, and in all the formats you can. Figure out what ones are best for your audience and for certain kinds of content.

Choose the topics and skills you love and are interested in, take these considerations into account and really MINE your content, develop it, and you’ll find an engaged audience ready for you to lead them, to find solutions and help them solve their problems, resonate with your stories, all while doing what you love.

Writing/Creating Better Content

The NEXT LEVEL OF Web Content = Give me the chunk that MATTERS

That is how you provide value to people. YOU do the work to creatively and intelligently design the framework and the material of educational or training content that is DESIGNED for the end USER.

The problem is that this requires you to know a little bit about exactly what your audience wants, and then tailor a specific action plan around progressing them to that specific objective.

ENGAGEMENT IS KING.

Whether you are simply entertaining, educating, or both.

If you are training people, give them the ALREADY HAND-PANNED CHUNK of KNOWLEDGE and SPECIFIC action steps to help them do whatever the hell it is they are trying to do!

Repeat yourself in various ways to reinforce the knowledge you are trying to impart on your readers.

If you don’t know how to do that, you’ll want to go and learn about the content marketing process. It’s an active conversation between you and your audience through the content you produce and distribute through your platform.