IMPACT Inbound Marketing Agency]
Services
TAYA

They Ask, You Answer Mastery

A coaching & training program that drives unmatched sales & marketing results.

Sales

Sales Performance Mastery

Improve the competencies and close rates of your sales organization.

Web design

Website Mastery

Web design, development & training for your team.

HubSpot

HubSpot Mastery

Everything you need to get the most from HubSpot.

AI Mastery

AI Enablement Mastery

Unlock the power of AI in all aspects of your revenue operations.

Discover how IMPACT’s services can help take your business to the next level. Book a free 30-minute coaching session Book a free 30-minute coaching session
Learning Center
Learning Center

Learning Center

Free resources to help you improve the way you market, sell and grow your business.

[NEW] The Endless Customers Podcast is now available everywhere. Learn how to earn trust & win more customers in the age of AI. Listen Now Listen Now

Free Assessment: How does your sales & marketing measure up?

Close Bottom Left Popup Offer

Free Assessment:

How does your sales & marketing measure up?
Take this free, 5-minute assessment and learn what you can start doing today to boost traffic, leads, and sales.
Marcus Sheridan

By Marcus Sheridan

May 20, 2014

Topics:

Content Marketing
Subscribe
Join 40,000+ sales and marketing pros who receive our weekly newsletter.

Get the most relevant, actionable digital sales and marketing insights you need to make smarter decisions faster... all in under five minutes.

Thanks, stay tuned for our upcoming edition.
Content Marketing

Why “Learning Centers,” Not Blogs, are the Next Big Thing for Content Marketing

Marcus Sheridan

By Marcus Sheridan

May 20, 2014

Why “Learning Centers,” Not Blogs, are the Next Big Thing for Content Marketing

As many of you know, I’ve never liked the word "blog."

Why? Mainly because the word itself devalues what the action is supposed to be, and the impact it can potentially have for businesses that embrace the practice properly.

I’m not the only one who feels this though, as I've talked with many companies over the past few years that not only dislike the phrase, but hate putting it as a main option on their website's navigation bar.  These feelings make total sense if you think about it, especially for those companies looking for a word that better encapsulates *all* their content, in all its forms.

It is for this reason, more and more businesses are developing “Learning Centers”—a place that not only includes blog articles, but the rest of their content as well. Here is how it works:

The Evolution of Teaching and Communicating (i.e. Marketing) in *Their* Language

Some consumers (you and me) love to read content. Others want to watch videos or listen to podcasts. And then there are folks that utilize all 3 learning methods, depending on the situation.
Great companies and brands understand this reality, and therefore the need to produce content in all of these forms so as to make the greatest connection with their consumer base.

But once a company “gets it,” the different types of content that can produced is profound:

  • Blog articles
  • Videos
  • Webinars
  • Podcasts
  • White Papers
  • eBooks
  • etc.

With so many ways to do these things we call “content marketing" and "sales enablement," a Learning Center on a company’s website becomes a natural means whereby to allow all your content to live in one place so that web visitors can find what they’re looking for quickly while presenting your sales team with a single location to point people to.

How to Create a Powerful Learning Center for your Web Visitors: Health Catalyst

To show you a company that is doing this at a very advanced level we’ll look at the example of Health Catalyst (client), a Healthcare Analytics Company out of Utah.

 

At the top of their Learning Center, Health Catalysts explains to visitors a simple drag and drop method of collecting and sharing the shown content. At the top of their Learning Center, Health Catalysts explains to visitors a simple drag and drop method of collecting and sharing the shown content.

 

Despite the fact that Health Catalyst has only been fully engaged in content marketing for about 1 year, their dedication to this side of their business development has been astounding, led by the visionary leadership Senior Vice President, Paul Horstmeier. The image below shows the Learning Center page for Health Catalyst, clearly demonstrating all of the  unique types of content the company has created for their customers, prospects and web visitors.

 

Content Marketing Learning Center Whether a visitor wants to read, watch, or listen to their content, Health Catalyst has given them an array of options to learn in *their* preferred learning style

 

I could go into a long explanation of how producing such incredible content in all of these different areas has impacted Health Catalyst’s bottom line, but suffice to say they’ve had an astounding return on investment and are already viewed as an industry leader in their space, despite some of the Goliaths that they have to compete with on a daily basis.

Going forward, more and more companies are going to have literal “Learning Centers” on their websites as they embrace the power of content and produce it in as many forms as effectively possible. This is what consumers want, and just like everything else in the digital age, industry leaders will be made by those that can do it well, and do it first.

Free Assessment:

How does your sales & marketing measure up?
Take this free, 5-minute assessment and learn what you can start doing today to boost traffic, leads, and sales.