As a Content Strategist at Ethos3, I am responsible for distributing content about the company through a variety of social platforms and networks. SlideShare is one of the content marketing tools I use regularly. The platform, which lives on LinkedIn, provides a space for individuals and businesses to share projects in the form of presentations and/or infographics. Since we are dedicated to presentation design and training, the purpose of SlideShare aligns almost perfectly to the purpose of Ethos3. It’s the ideal venue for us to share our creative pursuits and engage in productive conversations about our craft.
Here are the 3 major ways we take advantage of SlideShare in our content marketing efforts:
To inform
Since 2006, we have carved out our space on the Internet as a boutique presentation design and training company. This is a somewhat niched industry, therefore elevating the importance of content marketing for our business. Much of our content marketing efforts are geared towards informing audiences about the elements of and best practices for a compelling presentation. For example, we recently created a SlideShare presentations outlining common presentation storytelling mistakes. View below:
In addition to updating followers on current trends in the presentation field and educating them on ways to improve their own presentations, we like to use SlideShare to showcase our creative expertise in fun side projects. This includes everything from a comparison of 2016 presidential campaign candidates’ public speaking track records to a step-by-step guide to making the best grilled cheese.
To delight
We recognize that some of the most valuable content marketing involves providing useful information and tips to others. On the other hand, we know that audiences want to be entertained. They want to be delighted. And that’s why we use SlideShare as a medium for displaying those ultra-creative projects that we cannot necessarily share on our portfolio or social media streams. What do I mean by ultra-creative? During the 2016 Summer Olympics, we created an infographic with an Olympics theme. If you clicked the link to glance at it, you’ll notice that it pushes more creative boundaries than your typical sales pitch or conference presentation would.
To experiment
Because we don’t rely too heavily on SlideShare as a lead generation and collection resource, we engage in some testing of ideas. A few weeks ago, we posted a presentation about the influence of emoticons on slides. After noticing the rise of emoticon-use in advertisements – on billboards and TV commercials – we researched their impact and devised a list of ways presenters can implement them in their decks. To evaluate interest in the subject matter, I wrote copy for a SlideShare presentation and one of our expert designers created the layout. Check it out!
I have also used SlideShare to experiment with my own writing style. In August, I took a blog post I had written previously and rewrote the content for copy for a SlideShare presentation. With a more storytelling-driven narrative, the SlideShare deck attracted 130,280 views as of late October, as well as 622 likes and 1,319 downloads. Now that I am aware of the fact that our SlideShare audience responds to the writing style I approached that project with, I can adopt that style in projects moving forward.
Just because we are a presentation design and training agency and your company might not be, that doesn’t mean that you can’t benefit from adding SlideShare to your content marketing arsenal. Its benefits and features are capable of enhancing a multitude of businesses’ content marketing strategies. For more information about content marketing and how presentations fit into your content marketing plans, read the following resources:
Delete Your Mission Statement Slide. Here’s Why.
A Content Marketing Wild Card: The Story Behind “The Perfect Grilled Cheese”
Breaking Free From Vertical Infographics With “Tom Ka Gai Soup”
The Role of Fiction in Brand Storytelling
