5 Content Marketing Tips From Movie Kung Fu Masters

Content marketing, with its combination of tried-and-true tactics and creative philosophies, sometimes feels like a bit of a mystical art. In fact, it occasionally reminds us of those old, campy kung fu movies where enlightenment could be found simply by speaking to a master who lived on top of a mountain pass guarded by a thousand grueling steps.

In those old movies, some of which you can still catch on late-night cable, the heroes were often sage warriors who were centuries old – men and women who spoke in fortune cookie wisdom, dispensing justice with equal parts Zen and snap punches. Sure, they taught you how to kill a man by looking at him and fly across treetops, but they also taught principles of honor and friendship.

While we can’t turn to these kung fu masters for marketing advice today (mostly because they’re fictional, but also because they’re probably unfamiliar with the Internet), we’ve seen enough of their movies to glean a few important tips that we think they would give.

So, we present to you our top five content marketing tips from the old-style movie kung fu masters:

1. Style doesn’t matter, success does.

Do you prefer crane style or monkey style? Content marketing or social media marketing? These questions are fun, but academic – what matters isn’t how you find success on the Internet, but how well you can adapt different techniques to play to your own strengths. In other words, the very best businesses do a little bit of everything well, and it shows.

2. You can dwell on revenge or happiness, but not both.

If you’re always worried about your competitors, it’s hard to pay sufficient attention to your own business, and your own marketing. That’s easy to accept in principle, but harder when you see another company running ahead… particularly if you know they aren’t as good as you are. That can be painful, but focus on what you do best and let the rest work itself out over time.

3. Practice is the art.

The ability to execute a roundhouse kick to an opponent’s head isn’t something you develop in an instant. In the same way, your content plan doesn’t just suddenly start working – it’s the result of lots of smaller, intentional activities designed to produce the right kinds of bottom-line effects. Pay attention to the little things (or work with a digital agency that does), because everything you do, good or bad, adds up.

4. You first defeat an enemy with your mind.

This is another way of saying that preparation is the key to everything. The more detailed your research is, and the better prepared you are to find your perfect clients, the easier the actual execution will be. As tempting as it is to simply jump in and start “doing things” with your website and social profiles, you’ll see better results if you have a smart, detailed plan in place from the very beginning.

5. Weakness can be cured, but not hidden.

If there is a part of your company, or Internet marketing plan, that isn’t working, you have to fix it. It’s no use trying to dance around the subject or make up for it in other areas. The biggest problems eventually become the biggest opportunities, especially online, so learn to see them appropriately and rise to the challenge.

If you’d rather learn how to be a ninja than dominate your market or learn to increase the number of quality leads you get from your website, this adapted wisdom might disappoint you. But, if you’ve ever wondered what someone who can punch through a concrete wall might tell you about finding profits online, then put these ideas to work today.

Or better yet, talk with a pro who can show you how they can help your business to find black belt level success in an online world full of sucker punches from your competitors.

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