Documentaries & Content Marketing: A #CMWorld Chat with Denise Roberts McKee

Content marketing isn’t just blog posts, social media, white papers and ebooks. There’s a whole world of long-form opportunities out there, and customers are yearning for substance and differentiation. Documentary production is at an all-time high, in part due to the ease of entry and distribution options (albeit not for the ease of creating one). Denise Roberts McKee, COO of About Face Media, joined us on a recent #CMWorld Twitter chat and the conversation was enlightening and inspiring.

The following is a recap of our discussion. Want to learn more from our community on the topic? Check out our Storify page.

What’s your story?

“It’s your story, tell it well,” is the way Robert Rose, CMI’s chief strategy advisor, closes each and every PNR: This Old Marketing podcast. And we couldn’t agree more. Part of this “telling it well” includes knowing how long to make your content, and in this case your documentary. Thankfully our chat attendees and special guest all believe that the right length was simply “as long as it needs to be to be effective.”

No need for an hour if you can tell the story in 15 minutes #CMWorld

— Site-Seeker, Inc. (@SiteSeekerInc) August 15, 2017

Agreed. Our Story of Content doc was roughly 43 minutes- but we did not start with a set length for it. #CMWorld https://t.co/K03gay2jSZ

— Amanda Subler (@AmandaSubler) August 15, 2017

Agreed. Our Story of Content doc was roughly 43 minutes- but we did not start with a set length for it. #CMWorld https://t.co/K03gay2jSZ

— Amanda Subler (@AmandaSubler) August 15, 2017

Spread the word!

So you’ve created this amazing documentary, but then what? If you’ve waited until now to decide how to distribute and promote it, it’s probably too late. Starting early and having a plan will set you up for success.

A3: Multiple distribution channels-phased or in parallel-help make it easily accessible: website, social, streaming, film festivals #cmworld https://t.co/hwxBkObKG2

— drmckee (@drmckee) August 15, 2017

A3: I’m amazed at how many documentaries that Netflix and Amazon are buying up…excellent for distribution. #cmworld

— Joe Pulizzi (@JoePulizzi) August 15, 2017

Subject matter experts ? Influential voices in the field with vast and loyal following #CMWorld

— Traackr (@traackr) August 15, 2017

I was really pleased at the use of our screening kit – for classrooms, meetings, lunch & learns. That helped groups/discussions. #CMWorld

— Cathy McPhillips (@cmcphillips) August 15, 2017

Thanks, Denise, for a great chat! It made the wheels start spinning for many of us.

Have you been thinking about creating a documentary for your company? Or after the chat, are you intrigued and wondering if it is something possible for your brand? You’re in luck! Denise is speaking at Content Marketing World on just this topic – explaining how documentaries can help brands tell powerful and influential stories. Register now with code SM100 to save $100 at checkout.