How do we ensure that our digital marketing activity really engages our audiences? We start with a deep and empathetic understanding of them! In this presentation, Tracy shares the tactics and the approaches for thinking about digital engagement in a way that demonstrates true empathy for our audiences and thus increases our chances of success.

1. DEVELOPING AN
empathy-led
APPROACH TO YOUR
DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT
STRATEGY

2. Hi there!
I’m Tracy
@tracyplayle
@picklejar
@contentedlive
(she/her)

3. WEBSITE SEO/SEM CRM/LEAD SOCIAL ADVERTISING INFLUENCER
Goals - Audience - Experience - Perception - Content - Insight
Reinforces silos
Disconnected user experience and brand
Difficult to assess impact and ROI

4. Audience-led
Content-led

5. Content
Strategy
The process of supporting
organisational goals by planning,
creating, distributing and
maintaining content in a way
that is useful and usable to your
audience, and understandable
and adaptable to machines and
intelligent systems.

6. Drivers and
trends
Digital marketing
with empathy
Tools and
techniques

7. Drivers and trends

8. Content
competition
Every 1 second...
456,000 tweets
46,740 images on Instagram
527,260 images on Snapchat
90% of data online was
published in the last two years

9. Content
competition

10. Content
competition

11. Intelligence and
algorithms

12. Intelligence and
algorithms

13. Personalisation
and
marketing
automation

14. Personalisation
and
marketing
automation
Website interactions
+ Email (CRM)
+ Social marketing
Behaviours
Relevance
Custom output

15. WEBSITE SEO/SEM CRM/LEAD SOCIAL ADVERTISING INFLUENCER

16. Deep audience insights
Content strategy aligned to audience insights
Integrated cross-channel journey or experience mapping
Channel distribution plans
Continuous testing and feedback loop

17. Digital marketing
with empathy

18. “ Empathy is walking a
mile in somebody
else’s moccasins.
Sympathy is being
sorry their feet hurt.
Rebecca O’Donnell

19. Watch video at: http://bit.ly/empathyLH

20. 1 Be curious about others
Practice active listening
Open up
2
3

21. “ Empathy is feeling
with people.
Brené Brown

22. Access
channels and platforms that they prefer to use to
access information, and how they use them
Information
information needs specific in relation to your college
or further and higher education more broadly
Emotion
personality traits, behaviours, values and
motivations that drive the decisions they make
Influence
influencers and influences on them, barriers and
distractions competing for their time and attention
ORDER
STRUCTURE
CHAOS
CONNECTION

23. we must embrace
chaos
To be truly
curious

24. Ruth & Eve
Oosterman,
used with artist’s
permission:
ruthoosterman.com

25. Ruth & Eve
Oosterman,
used with artist’s
permission:
ruthoosterman.com

30. Open University

31. Open University

33. “Asking an introvert
to speak up is as rude
as asking an extrovert
to shut up”
Nerdy Creator

34. Tools and
techniques

35. See the
whole person
Current student
Child, ward
Volunteer
Team member
Staff
Grandchild
Consumer
Friend
Leader
Fan or supporter
Partner, boyfriend, girlfriend
Brother or sister
Carer
Member or subscriber
Prospective
student

36. Separate what
they want and
need from what
you want them
to want and
need

37. Separate what
they want and
need from what
you want them
to want and
need
Our goals
Our story
Our offer
Our difference
Our purpose
Our impact
Their goals
Their dreams
Their values
Their motivations
Their passions
Their preferences
COLLEGE “WHY” AUDIENCE “WHY”
RELEVANCE

38. Thinking Feeling
Seeing Doing
TOPIC TONE
CHANNEL INSPIRATION

40. As a …………………..…….
I want/need..………..…….
So I can ……………..……..

41. As a college student, I need to earn
some money so that I can afford to
continue with my studies

42. As a student, I need quick
comparisons of different colleges so I
can make my decision without it
getting in the way of my studies

43. As an aspiring lawyer, I need to know
what I should do to make myself
stand out now so I can get into a great
law firm when I start work

47. Make it
about
them
Audience
and
content
before
channel
Use
mapping to
understand
them and
their
journey
Don’t be an
institutional
psychopath

48. Thank you!
tracy@picklejarcommunications.com
@tracyplayle
@picklejar
@contentedlive
See you at the
ContentEd Conference
27-28 June 2019, Edinburgh
www.ContentEdLive.com