Author: Andrew Rogerson / Source: Marketing Insider Group It’s no use throwing good money after bad content. These three questions will h
It’s no use throwing good money after bad content. These three questions will help you refocus your B2B content marketing strategy on quality, not quantity.
First the good news. According to the Content Marketing Institute, most firms spend over a quarter of their marketing budget (28%) on words, graphics and moving pictures. It’s a vote of confidence for those who believe in the power of great content.
Now the bad news. Much of the money is wasted on ill-conceived and poorly executed campaigns. Even when some metrics suggest success – increase in output, page impression growth, downloads on the up – it turns out that sales, that ultimate key performance indicator, remain stubbornly unchanged.
And if the sales team is unhappy, the B2B marketer is too. Where 38% of B2B marketers believed they were doing an effective job in 2014, a year later only 30% thought that was the case, their faith in content marketing shaken.
Struggling to identify why the money and effort is making little difference? Then go back to basics and address the following three questions.
1. Why do you produce content?
Questions don’t come more basic than this. When asked, many firms struggle to come up with a coherent answer beyond, ‘It’s what we’ve always done’, ‘It’s part of the marketing mix’, ‘Our competitors do it, so we should too’ or ‘People would notice if we stopped’.
It may come as a shock but the world isn’t waiting for your next piece of content. Words without purpose rarely generate interest.
Content must have a mission, an objective that reflects business goals. That doesn’t mean writing about how wonderful your products or services are but it does mean defining differentiation, or taking the…
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