Building Your First Content Marketing Playbook

This chapter will outline the steps required to create your first playbook. Like all new things, it can seem challenging to draft your first playbook. If you follow these steps, you will be on your way to creating an effective first playbook that will help you reach your marketing goals. Let’s begin.

Start by selecting a topic that resonates with your target audience while aligning with your business goals.

• Audience-Centric Focus: Choose a topic that addresses a pressing challenge or knowledge gap within your audience. Analyze common questions, pain points, or recurring themes from customer feedback, surveys, or social media interactions. There’s no point compiling information that has no relevance. 

• Business Relevance: The playbook’s topic should align with your product or service. For example, a SaaS company might create a playbook on optimizing processes or improving team collaboration.

• Depth of Topic: Make sure the topic has enough complexity to warrant a long-form exploration. A playbook should dive deeper than a typical blog series, offering comprehensive, actionable insights.

As with any relevant piece of content, research is essential. Verifying information in at least two different sources and referencing at least one of them is important for credibility. Although research methodologies vary, there are a few general

• Primary Research: Conduct interviews, surveys, or case studies to gather fresh insights. Including original research enhances the credibility and uniqueness of your playbook.

• Secondary Research: Review existing articles, whitepapers, or reports on your chosen topic to identify trends, supporting data, and gaps your playbook can fill. Back everything up with facts and figures as often as possible. Use industry-standard resources like Statista, Gartner or Forester.

• Competitor Analysis: Examine competitors’ content strategies to understand what’s already available, what's missing in their communication and how your playbook can stand out.

A strong structure ensures your playbook is easy to navigate and logically organized.

• Start with the Problem: Introduce the pain point or opportunity your playbook addresses. Why is this topic relevant now?

• Divide into Chapters: Break down the topic into logical sections or sequences. Each chapter should build on the last, creating a clear progression.

• Include Real-World Examples: Whenever possible add case studies, testimonials, or success stories to illustrate your points and make the content relatable.

• Summarize Key Takeaways: End each chapter with a brief summary or actionable insights to reinforce learning.

Writing a playbook differs from shorter content forms like blogs or social media posts. It requires consistency, clarity, and depth. Here are key strategies to guide the process:

• Maintain a Consistent Voice: Whether formal or conversational, choose a tone that matches your audience and brand identity and stick with it from start to finish.

• Break It into Smaller Goals: Writing 50,000 words can feel overwhelming. Divide the content into digestible sections and focus on completing one at a time. This also helps readability and understanding.

• Collaborate: Lean on team members or external experts for feedback and to contribute specialized knowledge.

• Edit Ruthlessly: Focus on clarity and relevance. Read every section out loud and cut any sections that don’t add value to the reader.

A visually appealing playbook enhances engagement and readability and this is where your design department will play a big part.

• Typography and Layout: Use headings, subheadings, and bullet points to break up text. Ensure your font choices are clean and legible.

• Incorporate Visuals: Charts, infographics, and images make complex information easier to digest and more engaging. Make sure it's all aligned with your branding.

• Interactive Features: If hosting online (e.g., in Archbee), consider adding clickable links, embedded videos, or interactive tables to enhance the experience.

A playbook’s value lies in its ability to drive action. Ensure readers can implement the strategies you provide.

• Clear Instructions: Break down processes into step-by-step guides. Avoid overloading readers with jargon or unnecessary complexity.

• Checklists and Templates: Provide tools readers can use to apply the insights. This could include downloadable templates, worksheets, or frameworks.

• Realistic Goals: Keep things real. Avoid overly optimistic scenarios and raise awareness about potential challenges.