In my practice we focus on complete conversation marketing which is centers around the Influencers in the client’s particular market space. As you point out here it is critical to understand the influencer’s background, how they communicate with their audience, how they like to receive information and the “conversation locations” in which they participate (social media sites/tools, conferences, business meetings, contributed articles, Twitter, etc.) Once you have a solid understanding of the individuals and organizations who are driving your market conversation, then Katie’s point of it being “all about the content” will be easier to determine. Influencers and the conversation Listeners and Participants (those that respond) are interested in fulfilling their wants and needs, not about products/services. They look to Influencers to get insight and advice for fulfilling their wants and needs and sometimes those Influencers and their Participants recommend specific products, but sometimes it is just about addressing what is best for fulfilling the want/need.

In our approach to Conversation Marketing, we look at 1) defining the market conversation 2) Identifying the Influencers 3) Understanding the locations and tools Influencers and Participants use to engage in the conversation 4) Developing appropriate content for our client to interact with the market conversation ecosystem of Influencers, Participants and Listeners that addresses wants and needs and not just product marketing bullet points.