More than 20 years ago, Bill Gates issued his now-famous “content is king” line in discussing how the then-nascent Internet would become a marketplace to easily distribute and commodify information.

Today, content is currency.

Content drives all forms of media, from blockbuster movie franchises to a single post on social media. Great content has a currency that raises the status of its creators. That’s why many businesses – from your local landscaper to multinational corporations – have embraced and leveraged the power of content to propel marketing programs. Yet, many others haven’t made the leap to adopting a strong content-generation program to further their brand.

Inbound marketing works, and there’s a very simple reason why: As audiences have grown more aware (and weary) of direct advertising and sales pitches, they have developed an appreciation for content that has its own intrinsic value. They connect that recognition to the organizations that create it. Put another way in this collection of good examples of content marketing, “It starts with an understanding that marketing is not about selling, but about the conversation we have with our customers.”

Bill Gates thinks content matters. The numbers back him up. So why isn’t your business doing content marketing?

What’s holding you back

We’ve found that some businesses have false assumptions about content. One is that they don’t have anything to share. This “writer’s block for businesses” is common. This obstacle ends up being far easier to overcome than expected. What’s really happening is not that they don’t have anything to say, but rather they think what they do say won’t be interesting or well-received.

They may also look at other businesses that are “doing it right,” and shy away because they don’t think they can produce something that good. It can be easy to look at a great piece of content – maybe a snappy blog post or an eye-catching video – and think, “I don’t have anything that good to put out,” but that’s like trying to lose weight by staring at photos of fitness models and getting discouraged that you haven’t immediately dropped 40 lbs.

Take a step back, and rather than think of your next piece of content in terms of its finished form, think of an idea. Just one. The simplest starting point is usually the best one.

Another misconception we see in some businesses is about content’s effectiveness. Yet as the infographic we linked above points out, 90% of businesses use it in their marketing, and content marketing generates about three times as many leads as more “traditional” methods. Original content is as much a fundamental part of today’s marketing as a logo and a website. It’s not an innovation. It’s not an experiment. It’s something that should be an everyday part of your marketing strategy.

Audiences don’t want to be sold; they want to learn. When they do, the organization that educated them gets a major boost.

Getting started

Content comes in many shapes and sizes: blogs, bylined articles, press releases, social media posts, whitepapers, case studies, and many more. So which one should you do? Well, our easy answer is, “all of them.” But it’s not as simple as just flipping a switch and creating every piece of content imaginable.

There are some key steps to take before you start your content marketing program, and a few should be repeated every time you create a new piece of content.

• Research – Knowing what you’re writing or talking about is important, and that knowledge should go beyond your own business. Remember, you’re not advertising (in fact, if you never mention your business’s name in the entire piece, all the better), you’re trying to educate, inform, and maybe even entertain. Come prepared.

• Stakeholders – Who is your target audience? What are they interested in? What keeps them up at night? These are the questions you should ask, and if you have really simple answers (“CEOs; making money; losing money”) then you’re probably doing it wrong. Get into the psychology and needs of the people you’re trying to reach, so your information feels tailored to them.

• Producers – Who’s going to do the work? The person or persons creating the content should be knowledgeable, but they also need some other skills: If the content is a written piece, it should be someone comfortable conveying their thoughts in this written format. And remember that not all content is created equal. Just because someone can write a legal brief or engineering manual, it doesn’t mean they’re a gifted writer for all formats. Content also isn’t limited to written work. If it’s a piece of audio or video, it should be created by someone who can command a crowd, not the employee who’s too shy to speak up in team meetings.

• Voice – This is important and difficult, but you have to identify the particular voice of your organization. Is it authoritative? Conservative? Lighthearted and playful? Informative and neutral? Getting this right takes time, and may require some trial and error, but once you can establish what your organization “sounds like,” the content you produce will have its own unique style with which the audience will resonate.

• Purpose – We like to say any content could be good content, but it’s important to embark on any new content project with a strong sense of purpose. Are you trying to dispel common myths? Are you taking a strong stance on something that’s been a hot topic in your industry? Are you simply trying to educate your audience about a difficult topic? Once you’ve identified the content’s purpose, the work of actually producing it becomes a lot smoother.

• Brainstorming – This is a never-ending part of the content process. Bring in smart, creative people and put their minds to work on everything: Opening statements, meaningful anecdotes, jokes, titles and sub-headings. Save as many ideas as you can – you never know when they’ll be handy in the future.

Once you’ve gotten those steps down, it’s time to produce – after all, all the planning and strategizing goes to waste if you don’t start the engine and go to work. Don’t let research get stagnant or brainstorms turn into abstract discussions that never go anywhere – act on them.

Remember: Content works, content matters, and content isn’t as hard as you think. You’ve just got to start doing it.