Jaw-Dropping 2017 B2B Content Marketing Controversies (and What Can You Do About Them) [Stats]

I discovered some highly controversial and opposite extremes content marketing trends within their must-read e-book 60+ Content Marketing Predictions for a Successful 2017 I will examine them closely and offer commonsense guidelines to help you determine how YOUR business can leverage them for optimal ROI. To make the best of both worlds, think of your blog as your digital asset that you constantly need to nurture with quality content. Travis Wright, Cofounder, Chief Marketing Technologist at CCP.Digital, advocates adding paid Ads to your content marketing mix: “Last year, according to a report by Beckon, enterprise content creation increased by 300%, yet less than 5% of that content had 10 or more shares! Paid ads, especially social media advertising, have been proven to yield massive ROI when targeted effectively. However, before going for paid content amplification, your number one priority should be creating quality content that’s worth promoting. The following stat provides a helpful guideline for preferred B2B content promotion channels. My Take on the Opposite Content Volume Predictions My personal no-brainer recommendation is that you should NEVER compromise quality. “Content marketing will continue to expand beyond static assets that people passively consume, and will move more towards dynamic content that incorporates interactive participation. The Coolest 2017 Digital Marketing Prediction: Can Google and Facebook Possibly Coexist? In my absolute favorite blog post of all time, Memories of A Content Marketing Guru ,I warned against businesses that narrow their niche market down to one word: Everyone!

Author: Heba Hosny / Source: Search Engine People Blog

b2b-content-marketing — “If utopian fiction became the new trend, I wouldn’t read it.” – Veronica Roth

It’s that time of a year again…The internet is showered with experts claiming that they have nailed 2017 content marketing trends, predictions, benchmarks …you name it.

By the end of 2015, after immersing myself in the next-year-predictions avalanche, I wrote a comprehensive article as a sincere attempt to help B2B content marketers save their ROI sanity in 2016.

This year is no exception. While I highly recommend that you, as an up-to-date B2B marketer, take a close look at a rich variety of content marketing trends and resources, it’s vital that you measure them against your unique business objectives. In some cases, ignoring trends all together is the best way to go. In other cases, the opposite is true. Where does your business fit within the ever-changing

Where does your business fit within the ever-changing hot trends spectrum?

What if you stumbled upon highly controversial (and even contradicting) content marketing predictions? How can you CONFIDENTLY determine your next move?

Part 1: Opposite-extremes Content Marketing Trends For 2017

Before we kick off our exciting journey, I must acknowledge Content Marketing Institute (CMI) for being my number one go-to place for reliable content marketing trends and statistics.

I discovered some highly controversial and opposite extremes content marketing trends within their must-read e-book 60+ Content Marketing Predictions for a Successful 2017

I will examine them closely and offer commonsense guidelines to help you determine how YOUR business can leverage them for optimal ROI.

In addition, I will be referring to some important stats from their invaluable study B2B Content Marketing 2017 Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends – North America.

The Future Of Blogging In 2017: “Blogs Will Shut Down” Vs “Blog Blog Blog!”

Mike Stelzner, CEO and Founder of Social Media Examiner, predicts the death of blogging in 2017.

“…Facebook will decide what consumers see online. Google will serve up only that content that complies with its rules and is housed on its servers. Email solutions like Gmail and Yahoo will tighten their own algorithms, as well; so the content creator’s ability to reach the inbox may be at risk… Traffic to websites will decline, and blogs will shut down. Gone will be the days of unrestricted information flow and true information freedom. The future will only be more controlled, more filtered, and less open.” (Page 21)

On the other end of the spectrum, Heidi Cohen, Chief Content Officer at Actionable Marketing Guide, begs to differ!

“…Place your blog at the core of your owned media to drive email acquisition, leads, and revenues.” (Page 50)

My Take on The “To Blog or Not to Blog” Predictions

While Mike is offering very logical insights, I believe that his bold claim that blogs will “shut down” in 2017 is an exaggeration. Should you take his word for it or go for Heidi’s recommendation?

While these two predictions sound contradicting, many experts in the same CMI e-book unanimously agreed on the importance of crafting a comprehensive content distribution strategy in 2017.

Ideally, your content distribution plan should consist of a balanced mix of owned, earned and paid media, not to mention intelligent influencer marketing tactics.

To make the best of both worlds, think of your blog as your digital asset that you constantly need to nurture with quality content. In the meantime, integrate the big social media players into your overall content distribution strategy.

You may refer to the following stat for a healthy dose of inspiration.

clip_image002 — Content Marketing or Paid Advertising? Can You Possibly Mix Both?

Travis Wright, Cofounder, Chief Marketing Technologist at CCP.Digital, advocates adding paid Ads to your content marketing mix:

“Last year, according to a report by Beckon, enterprise content creation increased by 300%, yet less than 5% of that content had 10 or more shares! Some corporate content is so bad, that the employees won’t even share it.

As a result of poor organic reach of content, we’ve been seeing a rise in content advertising and paid content amplification. Not only with channels like Taboola or Outbrain, but also on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and many others. I’m advising my clients to devote a portion of their ad spend to amplifying content to highly targeted audiences…” (Page 6)

While Travis makes a sound argument, Julie Fleischer, the Managing Director at OMD, referred to the latest U.S. presidential elections to prove him wrong!

“If there is anything we learned in the election of 2016, it’s the ascendancy of marketing over advertising. People want authentic voices in channels they choose, not canned messages in contexts they don’t. Content marketing will become even more important for connecting people to ideas and values…” (Page 16)