The Content Marketing Explosion

THE CONTENT MARKETING EXPLOSION CONTENT MARKETING > ON THE RISE According to a 2011 study by the Content Marketing Institute, content marketing is one of the top growing fields with an increasing number of marketers relying on content strategy for overall success. 181 → THE BASICS 90% 60% of B2B marketers do of B2B marketers plan to some form of content spend more on content marketing, whether they realize it or not, 2 marketing in the next 12 months, 11) The most popular CONTENT MARKETING TACTICS employed by B2B marketers are: 79% 74% 65% 63% 58% 56% Web traffic is the most widely used success metric (58%) to measure the success of content initiatives [1) → GOALS OF CONTENT MARKETING content marketing include The top goals of marketers utilizing logo brand awareness 69% customer acquisition 68% lead generation 67% customer retention/loyalty OK 62% INVESTING IN CONTENT Creating content isn't enough. It's EXCEPTIONAL and UNIQUE content that stands out. Great content is rewarded by users and search engines alike. 062% B2B marketers invest around 9 26% of their total budgets on content marketing. Small of companies today outsource their content marketing, up from 55% last year, 11 businesses allocate an even larger share. 11 00 EVERYBODY'S DOING IT I Big brands are changing the way they market their companies, with a few big brands focusing primarily on content for the first time. 7 wants to create more interactive COCA COLA » storytelling opportunities through content creation, 12) owes much of its success to a focus on MINT.COM » content strategy and is often seen as a pioneer in successful blog content marketing 131 » Mint capitalized on a variety of content types, including: NEMS News Tips Videos Infographics Slideshows AMERICAN EXPRESS gets that content marketing is all about adding AMEX » value and creating awesome resources. Content covers Offers a running a small business. 31 community feel, 13) OpenForum.com manages to provide great information, but also gives AMEX an opportunity to tie in relevant services. UU → QUALITY CONTENT IS THE KEYSTONE TO SEARCH & SOCIAL MEDIA SUCCESS Major players like GOOGLE are basing their futures on technologies that facilitate content sharing. SEARCH PLUS YOUR WORLD Content is recommended and shared by others. 4) SHARE Uses Google+ to g+ help find your search results. 4) More options for 1 personalizing search results by editing Circles. 41 Also boosted by your Search results are previous search behavior IS1 becoming increasingly customized Boosted in importance by social connections I5) GOOGLE has bet the farm on personalizing search results. Expect to see your search results include more and more types of content from a variety of relevant sources Public posts, photos, etc. from Google+ S1 Private posts, photos, etc. that have been shared with you on Google+ 15) → NEW TECHNOLOGIES HELP SEPARATE GOOD CONTENT FROM BAD GOOGLE STRIVES FOR BETTER CONTENT In 2011 Google's Panda update penalized 'thin' content sites in the SERPS Google wants to Google wants to » reward high quality sites with improved ) remove poor quality content from the search results. rankings. CONTENT MARKETERS HAVE A HUGE VARIETY OF TACTICS THAT CAN BE UTILIZED Tactics used by B2B Content Marketers " 179% Articles >> 74% 65% 63% Social Media >> Blogs » eNewsletters » 58% 56% Case Studies >> In-Person Events » 52% 51% 46% 31% 31% Videos >» White Papers » Webinars/Webcasts >> Microsites » DATA VISUALIZATION TECHNIQUES (like this Print Magazines » Traditional Media » 30% | 25% 22% 20% 16% 16% 15% infographic) are an emerging trend that can offer innovation to a variety of tactics" Research Reports >> Branded Content Tools > Print Newsletters >> eBooks » Podcasts » Mobile Content » 14% 10% Digital Magazines » Virtual Conferences )» → STARTUPS ARE BETTING ON THE FUTURE OF CONTENT MARKETING TOO As content marketing continues to be an integral tool for marketers, we're seeing more startups with a content-specific focus. VISUAL CONTENT GENERATION Visual.ly: An online community for sharing infographics and data visualizations. (71 SHARING UNIQUE CONTENT & MEDIA Pinterest: Big brands are beginning to look at Pinterest as a new marketing channel CONNECTING JOURNALISTS AND with tons of potential. PUBLISHERS Instagram:A hugely popular app offering picture modification and sharing. Contently: Brings writers and publishers together from around the world. 91 Percolate.com: Percolate AUTOMATING INBOUND AND CONTENT helps brands create content at social scale through a system of onboarding, technology MARKETING INITIATIVES and content curation. 161 Hubspot: Leverages Internet distractions to increase clients, (101 Scribe Plugin: The Scribe plugin from Copyblogger Media makes writing great content that is SEO friendly WRITTEN CONTENT PRODUCTION easier and more efficient. → INSURING A SOLID AND EFFECTIVE STRATEGY "Only 44% of marketers are truly happy with their primary agency." and there are two main reasons why 131. » The agency is not strategic Google's Panda update (or algorithm change) was a big wake up call to businesses who now see anemic, >> enough, or the agency doesn't demonstrate enough creativity. Often agencies lack both unoriginal content and boilerplate qualities. 171 design for what it is – ineffective and in many cases, harmful. Forward thinking agencies have already heard the WAKE-UP-CALL AND ARE RESPONDING. Examples: VOLTIER DIGITAL BlueGlass acquires LL Companies are now caring about putting out content that people want to read, rather than just creating things TC like 'brochureware,' and things like that," Chris Winfield of BlueGlass Interactive explains. "Instead of just investing in their blog and blogging strategies, they're investing in content people will actually want to share. Even if it's not directly related to selling something, it's still branding. of B2B marketers say they plan on spending more on content marketing over the next 12 months. 60% EVERYONE IS WAKING UP TO THE POWER OF GREAT CONTENT. THE FUTURE LOOKS ESPECIALLY BRIGHT FOR THOSE WHO EMBRACE AND INTEGRATE EMERGING STRATEGIES SOURCES: [1] http://www.contentmarketinginstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/B2B_Content Marketing 2012 pdf [2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LerdMmWjU_E 13) http://mashable.com/2011/05/01/content-marketing-tips/ 14) http://www.pcworld.com/article/248135/5_ways_to_use_googles_search_plus_your_world.html (S) http://searchengineland.com/googles-results-get-more-personal-with-search-plus-your-world-107285 [6] http://www.wordtracker.com/academy/google-panda-farmer 17) http://visual.ly/about [8] http://pinterest.com/about/ 19) http://contently.com/manifesto [10] http://www.hubspot.com/intemet-marketing-company/ [11) http://www.copypress.com/content-agency/ [12] http://www.crunchbase.com [13] http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/150533/ (14) http://www.business2community.com/marketing/businesses-boldly-invest-in-digital-marketing-0112751 [15] http://techcrunch.com/2012/01/30/blueglass-interactive-acquires-digital-agency-voltier-digital/ [16] http://www.crunchbase.com [17] http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/150533/ [18] http://www.marketingprofs.com/ article posting social media (excluding blogs) eNewsletters case studies in-person events