With all the content that we technology marketers generate, it’s important to consider how social media is changing our relationship to content.

Of course, you need to start with content that doesn’t suck.

You are probably already using social media to expand how far and how long your content can touch your audiences.

It’s easy to think of content as having value in itself. “I put the white paper on our web site; we are influencing industry thought.” Companies focused on lead generation think of content as an incentive. “Tell us a little about yourself and get this white paper.” These remain viable aspects of content marketing.

Here’s the next wrinkle. Think of your content not as an end in itself, or as a reward, but as an opening to a conversation. It’s easier to take this approach in light of the social media channels becoming viable for deep-tech audiences. Your white paper can inspire a conversation on your LinkedIn page. Your video can gather comments on your YouTube channel. You can post notes from a presentation on Twitter and ask for feedback. Put that reference design into an engineer’s forum and request suggestions for improvement.

Consultant and author Brian Solis alludes to this idea in his Mashable article, “Why Brands Are Becoming Media.” Brands become media, Solis explains, by using the self-publishing technologies of social media to engage audiences in conversations. In this context, he refers to various forms of content as “social objects” which serve as “catalysts for conversations.”

For high-tech marketers, a valuable take-away from the article is the concept of a strategic calendar for developing content, a calendar that “should blend video, audio, imagery, text, updates, and other social objects and networks.”

We use such an approach in our content syndication strategy, which distributes high-value assets that can serve as social objects across as many channels as possible. Then, serving as our client’s community manager, we encourage open and lively conversation around the asset – discussion that builds understanding and interest in our client’s technology.