Content marketing is arguably the hottest topic in the world of marketing today. But given the investment it requires to do it well, the question is... is it worth it?
I have long been an advocate of content marketing. Even before it became "the next big thing" in marketing, I was convinced that content marketing was a powerful and effective tool in the marketing mix. However, it must be viewed as a strategy rather than a tactic. The pressure to see immediate and measurable results, especially from the C-level of an organization, is inappropriate and, frankly, a bit shortsighted. In their defense, though, it's easy to see why executives and business owners have these expectations. They are most familiar with marketing campaigns that typically span a short timeframe and whose success is more easily measured by direct sales and clear ROI.
But content marketing is not a tactic or a campaign, it is a long-term strategy, and one that requires a real commitment. Current thinking is that it can take at least six months for a company to begin to bear the fruit of content marketing. In our experience, you may begin to see "signs of life" (better search engine placement, increased website visits, increased leads, etc.) fairly quickly, but six months is a pretty good guideline for when you could expect to experience a meaningful uptick in sales. Remember, content marketing is about creating relationships. It is about building trust. And that doesn't happen overnight.
But is it worth it? Making a real commitment to content marketing can be a challenging investment. Moving from a product-centric company to an information-centric company isn't something to be taken lightly. But here's the deal. While it is critical to never lose track of the purpose of content MARKETING (to increase sales), it is equally critical to not lose track of the reason it is so important.
The days when you could just shout to the world that you have the greatest, highest-quality, best-priced product on the market and expect customers to come running are long gone. Today's customers are sophisticated and empowered consumers, and they are not compelled by the marketing-speak of 50 years ago. They will, however, spend money, and lots of it, on the businesses that they know and trust. And one effective way to build that trust—over time—is by thoughtfully giving consumers the critical information they need to make informed decisions.
It is important to establish your specific goals, and what metrics you will use to track the progress of your content marketing efforts. Think along the lines of:
- Blog subscriptions
- Unique website visits
- Social shares
- Whitepaper downloads
These measurements will help you know whether your strategy is starting to produce traction. Working to establish trust takes time and a commitment to serving the interests of your prospective customers (i.e. buyer personas). And as important as it is to be steadfast in providing high quality content, don't forget to ask for the business!
If you'd like to know if/how content marketing could benefit your organization, please contact us to set up an appointment.
