Content marketing. While the concept has been around for hundreds of years, it did not gain popularity under its coined term until the 2000’s. You’ve heard about it, read up on it, but still have some questions. We have complied and answered the most commonly asked questions to give you more information about content marketing. Take a look and if you have more questions, reach out to us!
The creation of content is marketing. When organizations listen intently, they are able to gain understanding. And through that understanding they can become part of the conversation with the marketplace and share content that corresponds to multiple levels of the sales funnel. In turn, the content that brands use at those different points helps build trust and moves the client closer to the buy.
For example, take a look at the LEGO Group. They published books, created video games and made movies that raked in millions of dollars. They have a TV show along with social networks. They have literally taken a plastic toy and built an empire based on the fact that they used content. LEGO(r) bricks were fascinating in the Industrial Age, but to thrive in the Connection Age, they needed to reach out to the community and engage them in a fun and entertaining way. They even have an amusement park! The lesson is that all of these different things focuses on what their audience-children-wants, which is imagination and creation. So they connect with the LEGO brand through all of this content and yet ultimately, they’re buying little pieces of plastic so that they can share in that imagination.
You don’t have to take my word for it. Consider the “2020 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends-North America” report by the Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs. In just one year, every marketing goal increased significantly with the use of content marketing.
One of the greatest reasons for content marketing is customer retention. We must be constantly nurturing our current relationships by talking to them and creating well-designed, thoughtful, story-based content that inspires and educates. Content deepens the relationship and it keeps customers feeling warmly about you. B2B marketers also use content marketing to create brand awareness, build credibility and trust, and generate demands, leads and general community. Half of the content that marketers create focuses on the top-of-the-funnel, and 81% of B2B marketers increased their brand awareness in the last year with content marketing, according to the Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs.
The funny thing about marketing is that people believe that they must have an immediate ROI. They want to make sure that they are getting something back. However, it does not work that way. You can’t just go to Vegas, spend some money and expect to win the jackpot. Certainly, you should invest wisely, but the idea of a guaranteed return will never work even in the most calculated plans. That is why, believe it or not, awareness building is probably the number one thing that we should be doing in this business.
It is very hard to stay top of mind these days, even before the pandemic. People are constantly being marketed to-emails, phone calls, pop-up ads, TV ads-and they have learned to tune it out. Cutting through the noise is difficult. People do not have time for in-person meetings and now there is a safety concern keeping people at a distance. However, putting out content and creating touch points is a way to keep connected.
Keeping current customers through all this unrest has been a priority. Businesses simply can’t afford to lose customers. Remember, customer retention always costs less than customer acquisition, and content marketing functions as a way to keep customers happy. Generating leads is also crucial and even as the market improves, buyers still are hesitant. The only way to generate leads is if people find your brand and determine that you are trustworthy. Remember, they are going through the buying process. If they find your content compelling, then there might be a growing interest in finding out more about you.
Custom content is a very cost-effective method and it is very low risk. You can’t get hurt when you canvass the marketplace. You can’t get damaged if you are asking questions. Putting out content-at a minimum-means that you understand your audience and are invested in doing the right thing.
Custom content is not offensive because it is not “pushy.” You are putting out content that is about your prospective market and not about yourself. When you create content, you are already getting a return on it. You are getting invaluable insight and you are building awareness.
Content creation builds trust with internal clients as well as external clients. That is important because one of the biggest issues in business is the alignment of sales and marketing. Historically, B2B companies treat marketing as sales support. On the contrary, the relationship with the market should be mutually owned by sales and marketing. Collectively, the company should have a deep understanding of the community that it serves, and content affords us that opportunity.
If you are worried about your connection to your community, then give us a call. A custom content platform might be the bridge to better understand and deepen relationships with your market. It might just be the path to success in the redefined landscape.
Interested in learning more about how content marketing can help your business? Click here to contact us.
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