Edible foam and toxic rubber

You may not be very full after eating at one of the most expensive restaurants. Instead, it’s all about the experience.

Tiny, beautiful bites placed in the middle of big, white plates.

For a while, there was a trend of making foam that could be eaten. You’re paying $300+ per person and the most common ingredient is air?!

The most premier restaurants in the world have been awarded Michelin stars. Unlike Yelp and other review sites, it’s not a five-point scale.

In fact, a single Michelin star is a huge honor.

And the most Michelin stars a place can receive is three!

The original Michelin Guide was published in 1900. While it listed dining establishments, its audience was a new persona: the leisure driver.

The motor car was a new invention, slowly growing in popularity.

It’s much easier to endure a long trip on bumpy roads if there’s a destination in mind.

In fact, the guide’s ratings reflect this use case:

• One star: worth a stop
• Two stars: worth a detour
• Three stars: worth a special journey
  ​

The Michelin Guide helped sell a lot of special meals.

Do you know what else it sold?

A lot of tires.

Michelin tires.

The Michelin Guide, at least in its early years, was pure content marketing.

Become a trusted source for your audience and they’ll buy your product when they need it.

Not too hard to see the technical content parallel here, right?

Your technical product can benefit from a strategy that serves up engaging and trust-building content.

You may know I wrote a book about that.

It shows how you can define concepts that complement your product:

Somebody who drives a lot needs more tires.

(That was especially true in the early 1900s)

What does your technical audience do that would lead to more of your product?

That becomes your content strategy.

P.S. There’s even more of a developer connection to Michelin: Did you know they have an API? It’s not for tires (or tire centers or restaurants)… it’s for maps!

P.P.S. If you or your team could use a guide through the bumpy roads of technical content, we have a few openings in our Accelerator. Let’s chat!