How To Uplevel Your Content Marketing Strategy In 3 Steps
The power of 3 or principle of 3 is widely practiced psychologically and can be applied in many areas of life and business. It’s said when topics, concepts, or subjects are presented in 3s they are more memorable and effective, and even help make decision-making much easier. As a consultant and strategist, I educate my clients on strategies that do not rely on platform-specific tactics and hacks but are rooted in principles like the power of 3 to help them simplify their marketing and position their expertise to create impact, in ways that align with their mission.
AIM is my signature 3-step framework that I use on my clients who struggle to figure out how to show up online to market themselves, and their expertise, & create impact in ways that align with their mission. AIM is rooted in the principle of 3, which makes it simple to implement repeatedly. The AIM framework helps you cut through the noise that’s telling you to:
religiously post content to your social media pages
commit to being an influencer or only consider yourself a content creator
use tactics/hacks to get “social media results” but you’re not fulfilling your greater mission
Understanding A.I.M Framework
Each part of the AIM framework is centered around specific outcomes that drive your mission and raise your brand authority to become top-of-mind to the audience you serve. The framework relies on the power of content marketing to communicate a clear and consistent message throughout each phase of your audience journey.
The first outcome of the A.I.M framework is to establish positive brand associations. When you lack a connection to the people you wish to serve or currently serve, your marketing and messaging become difficult to convey. Often we put it on our audience to find what we do valuable, but in reality, you need to resonate with your audience beyond social media engagement. There are various ways to create positive brand associations, for example: emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, etc. And when you identify the ways to connect with your people you’ll be able to communicate your message with ease and produce content & conversations that inspire action.
The second outcome of the AIM framework is to build trust with your ideal audience by aligning yourself with their needs. Building trust requires you to show up and share your story, regularly. Your story includes your wins, losses, revelations, & discoveries. Traditionally, the know, like, & trust formula was the modeled way to market yourself online & IRL. The formula was simple: people who know you, eventually like you, and ultimately trust you. This still holds some weight when building relationships through your content, but due to recent waves and the shifts in digital marketing, surface-level tactics are not enough, people want proven frameworks from someone with the expertise & personal experience.
Your experience & expertise combined create a framework for someone to follow find transformation or achieve a desired result for themselves. Your ability to reference your unique experiences and display them as solutions within your marketing, the more you position yourself as a leading voice in your industry and beyond.
The last outcome of the AIM framework is centered around equity, brand equity, to be exact. When you experience a cut on your skin you immediately think of getting a Band-Aid, but Band-Aid is the name of the company that sells first-aid bandages. This is a perfect example of brand equity when you can perceive the value of something or someone based on a specific situation or desired solution.
Brand equity goes beyond knowing a brand name or having attractive brand designs. It extends to the value of the transformation or results being marketed or promoted. The way to achieve brand equity is to be clear on the transformation you have the experience and expertise to create. Next, create positive brand associations that convey a clear message and establish trust through effective storytelling. This also means that a failure to create such connections with your audience and generate awareness around your value will result in you not growing your authority nor creating a high impact.