Generating relevant and engaging content for your email marketing and online efforts in general, is an ongoing challenge for most. Here are five potential content marketing sources you have close at hand and some tips on how to approach them.

Be very patient with people when you seek out content in your organization. Don’t expect generating content to be a priority for them. Content is gold, so don’t be afraid to ask management to support your efforts by offering incentives for contributors (coupons, random draws or whatever works). With or without that support, always be enthusiastic, encouraging and never take any credit if you can give it away to someone else.

Product Specialists

Obviously no one knows the products you offer better than these folks. Ask what features they currently love, why they love them, how best to use them and what future plans they have (make sure you clear that kind of stuff before you share it).

Account Managers

These folks know the most asked presales and integration questions. They also likely have very good answers to share. Ask them what objections come up most and how they overcome them.

Customer Service

They hear it all – the good and the bad. I’m sure if you approach them right, they likely have some valuable information they’d like to get out there front and center. Help them be proactive by disseminating important information to customers.

Technical Support

Technical support people know the questions and the problems which come up most. They also know where to find the answers. Find out what those questions are and where customers can get the answers – tech support people are very good at knowing where to find answers.

Customers

Use online surveys, your blog, Facebook, newsletter and Twitter to engage your customers and find out what the want to know about. Not just what they want to know about, but what they want to share. More importantly, listen and find out what they are talking about then add value to that conversation as a participant.

In general…

When you approach others for this kind of information, keep it simple. Don’t ask for novels, ask for point form and links – you can do the ‘wordsmithing’ later. Make it easy and painless to contribute and you’ll get a lot more participation.