I have just returned from mentoring my latest client, a fast food shop with a wonderful local clientelle. And they have decided to join the 21st Century, looking to set up a website.

The reason is clear enough. Everybody is doing it; searching for ways to ramp up their unique virtual content or message in order to increase profits.

I recently tweeted the article by Sonia Simone: The Simple 5-Step Formula for Effective Online Content. The author asks a basic question – “What makes some content marketing succeed, while other writers work and work and never seem to get anywhere?”

And the answer is short and self-explanatory.

All of the “rules” of great content marketing come from one rule: put your audience first. It’s not about how much money you need to make with this launch, where you want to rank on Google, or what your cat had for breakfast this morning.

It’s about them — the readers, prospects, and customers — not you. (original emphasis)

Earlier this week I attended the latest event of the Jerusalem Business Networking Forum. Around a 100 people gathered to learn about the intricacies of social media from 5 experts in the field.

• Rabbi Issamar Ginzberg – Using Testimonials to make your Website Visitors Buy.
• Mike Mintz – Facebook Advertising That Gets Attention for Your Business.
• Hillel Porath – Generating Business Leads Using LinkedIn
• Debi Zylbermann – Bringing Traffic to your Website with Link Building.
• Charlie Kalech – Defining a Keyword Search Strategy for Your Site

Read their blogs. Check them up on google. All really whiz people with many credits to their names. If they had one message, which they could echo together, it concerned the customer, the client, the one who is being searched for and targeted.

In other words, it is not just a case of plugging info that you find thrilling, If you want to find this person – a.k.a. a new source of revenue – via a web presence or Facebook or whatever, you have to understand what makes them tick and then write something on their terms.

The customer determines the size and colour of the crown jewels for the monarch.