We’ve highlighted each theme and top articles below, along with our 2017 predictions. Given those resource constraints, it’s not surprising that content marketers are looking for ways to work more efficiently and effectively. The top articles were: Why Your Headlines Should Drive Business Results – and Not Just Pageviews 2017 Prediction: 2017 will be the year of working better and smarter. Crew, Intel, JetBlue, Qualcomm, Autodesk, and many others), these were the ones that most interested readers: 2017 Prediction: Many of these brands have found solutions to some of content marketing’s biggest challenges, including: Creating content globally and customizing locally Giving people the right content at the right time Experimenting with new technologies like VR and AR Leveraging user-generated content and data to speak to consumers in meaningful, authentic ways Measuring the ROI on content marketing More brands will follow their leads in 2017, and figure out how to implement some of these practices into their own strategies. Creating Videos Consumers want video content – but most marketers still struggle with creating and scaling their video marketing. Some brands will selectively invest in video creation for their big-rock content strategies. That’s why the articles below performed so well in 2016: 2017 Prediction: All content marketers will be measuring ROI – especially how content marketing impacts the bottom line. And marketers will continue to customize analytics programs to get the data they need. Because all content marketing needs to drive ROI, marketers will become more adept at measuring the effectiveness of their tactics. In addition, improved measurement will also help marketers reach customers in the most relevant ways.
As a content marketing company that lives and breathes content, NewsCred has some good insights into the state of the industry – and where it’s headed.
We analyzed all the articles we published on NewsCred Insights in 2016 and identified the top 20 that had both high pageviews and average engaged times. Collectively, they told us what themes and topics content marketers cared the most about this year.
We’ve highlighted each theme and top articles below, along with our 2017 predictions. Taken together, they’ll provide actionable ideas on how you can optimize your content marketing strategy and make 2017 your most efficient, results-driven year yet.
Working Better + Smarter
Most content marketers are faced with the challenge of having to do more with less.
Fifty-five percent of B2B marketers say they have a small or one-person content marketing team that serves their entire organization, according to a recent Content Marketing Institute survey. And 45% say they don’t expect to see a budget increase next year.
Given those resource constraints, it’s not surprising that content marketers are looking for ways to work more efficiently and effectively. Stories that addressed strategy, content creation, and in-depth content marketing tactics performed well in 2016. The top articles were:
Why Your Headlines Should Drive Business Results – and Not Just Pageviews
2017 Prediction: 2017 will be the year of working better and smarter. We’re in an era of content marketing that has moved beyond surface metrics, such as pageviews and uniques. Rather than churning out mountains of content in an effort to reach the largest audience possible, marketers will become laser-focused on reaching the right people. They’ll revamp their strategies to emphasize:
- Prioritizing quality over quantity.
- Creating content that resonates with their target audiences – and not the whole world.
- Using personalization, strategic distribution, and engagement strategies to build and maintain relationships with consumers.
These tactics will allow marketers to put their valuable time, resources, and dollars towards activities that will have the most impact on their companies’ bottom lines.
Distributing Content
Similarly, marketers are always looking to get their content in front of the right people at the right time – so that when they’re ready to buy, your brand will be top-of-mind.
Our top stories in this category covered all aspects of distribution, ranging from newsletters to social media:
2017 Prediction: Personalization will be key to effective distribution in 2017.
Consumers increasingly expect to receive relevant, informative, and inspirational content whenever they interact with a brand – before, after, or in between purchases. Content marketers need to figure out how to give customers the information they seek at each stage of the journey to build and maintain those consumer relationships.
Look for brands to invest…
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