Robert Katai, a Romanian marketing expert, explains how to make the most of your content
Although there is a lot of advice on how to get people's attention, Robert Katai believes there is one aspect of marketing that is not as well-known: keeping their attention. He believes that positioning and content strategy are the best ways to solve this problem.
Katai, a Romanian-based content marketer, is well-known for his speeches and podcasts. He is a product manager at Creatopy online graphic design platform. Katai also works as a freelance content strategist for clients. TechCrunch recommended him through our growth marketer survey. Please fill out this survey if you know of growth marketers to recommend.
Numerous Romanian contacts and clients recommended Katai for their content strategy skills, so we were interested to find out more. Is he real? Is his advice valid beyond the borders of countries?
The short answer to that question is yes. Katai talked about content marketing and how it should be integrated with everyday life. He also discussed how content can easily be reused in multiple formats. Katai also gave some insight into the booming Romanian startup scene.
Editor's Note: This interview has been edited to be more concise and clear.
TC: How can you help clients as a freelancer.
Robert Katai: I help clients create their content strategy, based on their objectives. It is possible to get web traffic but it is also possible to create a message, and build the brand. It doesn't matter if you start from scratch; you can always rebuild your brand later.
I work with a Romanian outsourcing firm that was founded in 1993. They were the first to establish this industry in Cluj-Napoca. However, they realized that they needed to be more appealing from both a sales and employee perspective. I conducted an internal audit with them to find out why employees love the company and why they leave.
Then I realized that the company needed to redesign their brand in order to attract people's attention and keep their attention. Here's the content. I created an ambassador program because it is loved by people outside the company.
I also suggested they create an internal magazine. It is a well-designed magazine that employees of 200 to 300 can take home to read. It's not only about their job, it also covers their hobbies and things to do in the area.
How can you help clients in the second way?
I also work with clients to help them position themselves for their market, audience, and market. Sometimes, this includes employer branding. Because I use a lot content marketing here, and not just on growth or performance marketing hacks, content can help bridge the two. I help them to understand that content marketing is essential to establishing a lasting, memorable brand in the market.
They must say, "Okay, these are the types of content we need to create to achieve our goals," and then explain how they will do it. Who will increase the content's visibility, connect with us, and consume the content. Content creation is easy today. It's the hard part about how to distribute and amplify that content. Here's how I can help startups: Create a large piece of content, repurpose it in smaller pieces and get it in front people so they remember your brand.
Did you ever work with an agency or individual who was skilled in helping you to find and retain more users?
Answer our survey to help other startups identify top growth marketers with whom they can collaborate!
How can brands reach this top-of-mind status
We all know there are four types of content. Text, video and pictures, as well as audio. These four formats never die. While the platform may change, the format will not. An Instagram Reel, documentary, or another type of video could all be considered a video. Same goes for photos. The content strategy I am working with is about how brands can use this content ecosystem.
My clients, as well as Creatopy, where I am a product marketer, ask me to recommend that they use content to build their brand. I also advise them to be visible to their users daily in their feeds. When their customers wake up, they don't open a newspaper. They will open Twitter and Instagram, Facebook, and then maybe, when they go to the bathroom, they will open YouTube and connect to Alexa.
Brands should make content that is easy to remember. No matter what name we give it, snackable content, Reels or TikTok, it doesn't matter.
You also spoke about repurposing content. Could you please explain this?
Let's look at the interview that you did with Peep laja. It could have been recorded as a video. You could also record it as a video. He covered many topics so you could have many short videos, 30 seconds to three minutes long, or whatever length. These videos can be published daily on your website or social media channels. You will need to add a comment saying, Here's the link to full article.
You can also create a longer video and post it on social media.
Audio is the second type you can create. It is already there from the recording. You don't have to publish the entire 45-minute conversation. However, you can post a five-minute audio clip and link to the articles.
We have audio and video, but what if we also had quotes that included his headshot and messaging. You should give it a name if it is part of a series.
It's not only motivational, it's also educational. So take these quotes and make carousels for Instagram or LinkedIn. It can be a question. The first slide should grab people's attention. You can link to the interview on the second slide. This will keep people's attention even if they don't click it. Slides with insight can be created.
The last slide is always a call-to-action: It asks people to comment, share, or save it to their account for later. This is the new currency of Instagram! Once you have created your Instagram carousel you can create a PDF file and publish it to LinkedIn.
Now you have five content formats from the same piece.
Wow! How much are we owed? We actually do some of this for the Equity podcast. What advice would you give startups?
I am a huge advocate for documenting the process. Imagine Mark Zuckerberg doing that, and you would be able to see how he launched Facebook. Noah Kagan is currently doing this. It is important that startup founders do this, not only from a PR and marketing standpoint, but also for the benefit of their audience. Even if they don't pay for your product, your audience is still loyal and will continue to support you.
Salesforce+ is like Netflix for B2B. Think about what they are doing now. Its purpose is to attract professionals' attention and maintain it. This is what I consider the currency of big companies today: People's attention.
Are you familiar with startups in Romania? Do you have any thoughts or impressions about the Romanian startup scene?
Yes, I do help some Romanian startups with content marketing and positioning. Sometimes, other startups email me with their questions. I can help them too but they don't pay for my email advice. I only work with those who are interested in a long-term, project-based collaboration.
Romanian startup founders are open-minded and willing to try new things, even if they don't work out. Romanian startups are extremely smart. Planable, for example, is doing an excellent job with content, positioning, and social media. Social media analytics company Socialinsider launched virtual events this year. TypingDNA was also founded by a former colleague.
I found out that founders in this area work harder than their teams, and don't just let others do the work. There are two startup events: How to Web and Techsylvania in Transylvania.
Although I don't like the name, people claim that Cluj-Napoca is the Silicon Valley in Romania. However, Oradea is where the education bet is paying off.
Fill in TechCrunchs European Cities Survey 2020 if you are a Cluj or Oradea-based investor or founder of a startup.
