Content marketing is becoming more of a focus with all of us, and for it to be effective like any other tool, you need to have a plan and strategy.
Content can be developed in many forms and this can be an overwhelming task, all the more reason to have a plan.
I recently read a post by Heidi Cohen, 2014 Content Marketing Predictions that I thought was interesting and wanted to share some of the highlights of her 7 points:
Content Marketing should be part of an integrated program – content needs to be created in different formats as people take in information in various ways and we need to make sure we’re touching them several times.
Content Marketing expands to all corporate communications – it’s no longer limited to marketing.
Managing Content Marketing assets – track and maintain assets identifying those that need updating and those that need to be created.
Track Results to sales – start by nudging readers to some call-to-action to start an engagement and then follow it through to a sale.
What kinds of actions are you taking in 2014 to improve your content marketing?
I know for most of us, 2013 was a positive experience. Most of our clients and the folks I talk to in the industry had good growth this past year and are expecting the same this year.
According to a recent article in eMarketer.com, 80% of small business are forecasting a better 2014. Here’s what they are saying they will be concentrating on in 2014.
While the small business owners are optimistic about 2014, economic uncertainty and government policies are still on their mind.
So what is your outlook for the new year and where are your challenges? Do any of them match up with what the survey indicates?
Welcome to another edition of Marketing Insights. Today, we’re talking with Sage Lewis, President of SageRock, a search marketing agency here in the Midwest.
Sage highlights why people who are focused on search engine results should read this book. It’s an easy read even for someone like me, and it costs less than a Starbucks coffee for a digital copy.
Heidi Cohen does a good job highlighting important nuggets from the report. Among them:
Over 90% of B2B marketers are using some sort of content marketing.
42% of marketers think their content is effective and 20% thinks theirs isn’t.
48% of smaller B2B organizations have a documented content strategy compared to 41% of bigger organizations.
78% of smaller companies have someone specific overseeing content marketing as opposed to 58% of larger companies.
More people are planning on spending more of their budget on content marketing. If you’re like the rest of us, budgets aren’t getting any larger next year and we have to do more with less. Heidi suggests looking in other people’s budgets to help the cause.
The biggest challenge still is producing good relevant content no matter what your budget is. That’s why a content marketing strategy is the most important thing you can do to ensure good content on a regular basis.
Are these findings consistent with what’s happening in your world?
Most B-to-B companies don’t take connecting with their customers on an emotional level as a serious tactic in their branding strategy. They contend that customers base decisions on facts, not opinions or not on silly things like emotion.
Yes, it’s important to talk about quality and the features and benefits that set you apart from the competition. But contractors and tradesmen as a whole are also influenced by other outside influences, both in making personal as well as business decisions.
You need to set yourself apart from your competitors and have customers not only remember you, but want to buy from you.
Let’s take an example of buying a motorcycle. If you went on the facts about performance, you’d probably buy a BMW; if it was reliability, you’d buy a Honda, and if you wanted to be cool (emotion), you’d buy a Harley.
Harley’s brand is built on emotion, and those contractors buy that Harley because emotions play an important part in the decision-making process.
Manufacturers who realize this have built a brand that includes using emotion as part of their overall strategy. Emotional branding is a business imperative because emotions are inevitability part of the decision-making process.
So when planning your next marketing effort, what will you be riding?
