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Creating Killer Trend Stories
Distributing Your Customer Stories and Data
About Me / Cameron Peron
$28M Funding (Series B) $4M Funding (Acquired 2013)
1,000+ Unique Visitors in 72
Hours
10%All unique visitors for
30 days
1 Trend Story =
Objective: surround the IT organization with content about the problem that you solve
● 67% of IT buying journey is from research alone● You’ll never be Oracle in traditional marketing● Funding and product launches aren’t scalable● Become a news channel● Consistently delivers value over time
Why Trend Stories?
Your Ideal Developer Customer >
2 Approaches: ● Hijacking● Curating
3 Forms● Customer Data● Customer Stories● User Behavior
Why Trend Stories?
Why?● Establishes expertise in a narrow domain● Builds rapport with analysts and writers● Concise and easy to understand
Steps to Get Customer Data
= $ + ?
Case Study
● Topic: AWS Reserved Instances
● Positioning: Expert in reserved instance cost and utilization
● Promotion: Massive social, press, and analyst pickup
Steps to Get Customer Data
Steps to Get Customer DataHow???● Dive deep into user usage
statistics ● Anonymize the statistics● Create report with 3 main
conclusions via 5-10 data points
● Share report with Tier 1 influencers and bloggers
● Blast: social, press, analysts
● Blog post● Repeat (quarterly,
semiannually, annually)
Why?● Your customers tell the best
stories● No one gives a sh** about your
company after funding● Solving a customer’s end
challenge is gold● Your customer’s R&D team is
more than likely poor in PR currency
Steps to Get Customer Stories
Case Study
● Customer: Hotel Tonight● Timeliness: Black Friday
‘14● Story: “High profile travel
brands use cloud technologies to win Black Friday and Holiday demand.”
Steps to Get Customer Stories
Result: Featured placement on “Fast Company”
How?● Find celebrity customers● Find timeliness in the industry● Create a dead simple story ● Pitch to the #1 R&D team challenges● Promote ● Circulate
Steps to Get Customer Stories
Why?● Easy and fun to collect● Builds great rapport with customers● Generates deeper customer understanding
Steps to Get User Behavior
How valuable is their experience to you?
Case Study
● Timing: Holidays ‘14● Wider Topic: Databases● Positioning: Expert in
general database usage on AWS
Result:
● Venturebeat Feature ● Repeat Coverage
Steps to Get User Behavior
Steps to Get User Behavior? Process: Quality + Quantity Survey Data:● Find a wider topic● Create your own data via survey ● 10 questions max● Test questions● Design: Nothing fancy● One page● Irresistible incentive● Tight 72 hour window● “Become” the news● Promote and share results!
Great Placements… Now What?Cascade Your Coverage to:● Sales collateral, scripts, ● Nurturing campaigns, drip email, retarget ● Community newsletter, blog, and external channels● Social profiles and signatures● Recruiting tool
