If content marketing for private equity is a new concept for you, you may wonder, “What topics would we even cover?”
Strategically, the goal of content marketing is to educate prospects and build trust. So any topic that accomplishes that goal is a good topic.
To be more specific, content topics tend to fall into one of three categories:
- Educational content
- Expertise-focused content
- Testimonial content
Educational content
If your prospects are founders who have never taken on investment before, then the idea of partnering with a private equity firm can be an intimidating one. Therefore, creating content to educate your prospects about the pre-close process and the post-close relationship can answer their most important questions, some of which may be keeping them from agreeing to a call.
A good example of educational content can be found on the Q&A page of Century Park Capital Partners’s website (though this firm could certainly go a step further and dedicate an entire article to each question).
Expertise-focused content
If you can’t sufficiently differentiate your firm from others, then the only way to compete is based on price, which is not a great position to be in. Expertise-focused content helps you demonstrate your competencies in specific areas to position your firm as the best fit. While price will always be an important factor, having a prospect perceive you as the right fit gives you better leverage.
Some examples of topics for expertise-focused content include:
- Executing a roll-up strategy
- Applying strategies for margin expansion
- Scaling a sales & marketing program
- Maintaining or strengthening company culture
- Carrying on a legacy
- Addressing needs in a target industry
You don’t necessarily need to be better than an opposing firm in a given area—simply being the firm that best articulates your expertise can position you as the expert most worth trusting.
A good example of expertise-focused content is Boyne Capital’s article about how they can help their portfolio companies understand their sales tax obligations. Here’s the intro to that article:
Testimonial content
Testimonial content is when you have your current or past portfolio companies share in their own words what their experience was like working with you. Doing so lends social proof to the brand you’re working to portray to your audience.
A great example of testimonial content is on Arbor Investments' “Our Approach” page where they have portfolio partners talk about their experience working with the firm.
Which Topics Should You Cover First?
Most firms tend to start and end with testimonial content. While testimonial content is always good, it’s even better when it serves to reinforce educational/expertise-focused messages that your readers have already engaged with. I would recommend having three education/expertise-focused pieces of content for every one testimonial piece.
Be the Expert, Not the Writer
As the subject matter expert, you certainly should be involved in the content creation process. But just because you’re the expert doesn’t mean you have to be the writer. A top-tier content writer focused on private equity can help you create, publish, and promote content to your audience.
