44,000 years.
That’s how long humans have been sharing stories, according to a new study published in the journal Nature.
From ancient Indonesian cave art to cutting-edge infographics – fast forward a few millennia, and people are telling more stories than ever.
We’ve just shifted the medium.
Our digital world is evolving at a breakneck pace.
Content gathers dust like fossils, and today’s trending hashtag is tomorrow’s ironic meme.
Attention is at an all-time premium.
In a recent projection, data giant Seagate estimated that by 2025, over 75% of the global population will interact with data every 18 seconds.
Why are users so distractible?
The modern web is noisy: promotions, clickbait, flashing banners, subscription pop-ups, and plain old spam all clamor for notice.
In the deluge of information, it’s easy to see why savvy consumers are using services like AdBlock to streamline their browsing experience.
Unfortunately for your brand’s carefully calibrated marketing campaign, 2020 marks the start of an annual trend that will send 35 billion global advertising dollars right down the drain.
So how does a modern brand reach discerning customers whose attention is their most valuable resource?
How do you earn the interest of an audience who could just as easily ignore your advertising?
By giving them what they want:
Content that matters.
How Does Content Marketing Work?
However you define content marketing, the main takeaway is this:
It works.
Here’s why:
Awesome content – that is, great content marketing – is legitimately engaging.
Your audience doesn’t need to be convinced to read your content.
They seek it out.
They can’t help but consume it.
They may not even realize the content they love is actually marketing.
Or, if they do, they appreciate the goodwill shown by a brand that helps them make decisions pro bono.
Let’s say you’re a brand with deep pockets.
You could shell out over $5 million for a 30-second Super Bowl spot and reach 100 million prospects at one time.
Or, as Joe Pulizzi suggests, that same budget could instead be put toward building a consistently engaged community of organic, voluntary brand loyalists through long-reaching initiatives.
70 issues of a print magazine? Check.
Large-scale customer events? Check.
Tens of thousands of blog posts, thousands of white papers, and more? Double-check.
Wait, what happened to content marketing?
Believe it or not, these wallet-friendly, easy to actualize, Google-ready methods mentioned above can pump up your SEO and captivate your prospects.
Let’s take a deeper look at what successful content marketing looks like.
Way Beyond Blogging: What Content Marketing Looks Like in the 2020s
Blogging may be a key aspect of content marketing, but it’s not the name of the game anymore.
Instead, it’s all about being dynamic by reaching audiences on all types of platforms.
If your business is only using one avenue, you may be missing out on a huge potential audience.
Consider adding another form (or two!) of content outreach such as:
- Ebooks
- Podcasts
- Webinars
- TedTalks
- Social Media Posts
- Email Campaigns
- Influencer Updates
- Online courses
- Videos
A 2020 analysis from Entrepreneur predicts that this decade’s content marketing will expand to encompass these essentials, too:
- Live-streaming.
- Content that is voice search-optimized.
- Augmented Reality (AR) experiences.
- One-to-one conversations with customers through tools like Facebook Messenger.
- Personalized content that adapts to your audience based on collected data, such as location, online behavior, or demographic.
As you can see, the scope of content marketing is virtually limitless.
What remains the same across all successful channels is the dedication to including audiences in the brand’s story, and through that, laying the foundation for a community based on trust.
90% of all modern businesses use content marketing in some form, from industry leaders like John Deere and Red Bull to the smallest indie brands.
Curious about how it all works?
Now that we’ve laid out what exactly it is, and what forms it covers, let’s take a deeper look at what content marketing can do for you.
The Power of Awesome Content (& Why Your Audience Will Love It)
It’s Anything But Superficial
Whether your brand is big or small, readers have come to expect your content to be in-depth, well-sourced, and unabashedly authentic.
In the era of deepfakes and heavy Instagram filters, your audience is looking for something a little more genuine.
Something worth their valuable time.
Longer content – content that dives in deep, provides more information, and cites more research – has a higher perception of value than shorter content.
It’s Uber-Personalized
Everyone uses the internet a little differently.
Many users have come to expect algorithms to accurately track their interests and guide them to what they’re searching for.
With the same ethic, content marketing caters to individuals.
Take YouTube, for example.
Rather than offering calls to action, or using traditional television’s appeal to the popularity of well-known actors to drive sales, YouTube’s algorithm instead considers a tapestry of data and recommends ultra-individualized content.
And it’s working.
From more than 2 billion logged-in users every month, the Google-owned video giant gathered that it is 3 times more important to viewers to engage with content connected to their passions than content that features Hollywood’s who’s who.
It’s Responsibly Transparent
The modern consumer doesn’t just engage with a brand – they’re part of a brand’s story.
This includes the best of times… and the worst of times.
53% of users expect companies to show corporate responsibility on social media, as well as be transparent about changes in products or services.
It may take a little extra effort, but it’s clear that transparency is well worth it.
In today’s market, high transparency is the key to high public trust.
3 Reasons Why Creating Powerful Content Marketing Is Worth the Effort
Content Marketing Helps You Connect With Your Evolving Consumer Base
Technology is rapidly changing the way your prospects interact with information and make decisions.
In a 2020 study by Statista, it’s projected that by 2023 more than 7 billion people worldwide will own a smartphone.
Let that sink in for a moment.
That’s nearly the entire current population of the world.
Now more than ever before, your content has the potential to reach a truly global audience.
The challenge?
For this, let’s zero in on a population a bit easier to wrap your head around: adults in the U.S.
On average, American adults are engaged with multiple content channels for more than 11 hours every single day.
Yes, you read that right.
More than ever before, the chance to sustain a consistent dialogue with your consumer base is at your brand’s fingertips.
Content Marketing Drives Conversions (Without Being Pushy!)
Nerd out with me for a moment.
Did you know that, on average, content marketing is responsible for 6 times as many conversions for content marketers than for marketers that stick to other strategies? (That’s 2.9% for content marketing, versus 0.5% for traditional marketing.)
Turn your gaze to the B2B slice of the pie, and content marketing accounts for 0.8% to 1.1% of all B2B conversions.
How is this possible?
Take a look at your consumer base.
Whether B2B or B2C, your prospects are craving worthwhile content that stands out from the noise.
Want to catch their attention?
You’ll need to find your content differentiation factor (CDF).
This is your brand’s refreshing new take on content your audience has seen before.
Find your CDF, and you’re well on your way to a huge boost in conversions.
Content Marketing Saves Money (& Drives Sales, Too!)
Every business, no matter the size, is looking for ways to cut costs.
Content marketing is a money-saving powerhouse: it costs 62% less and drums up a whopping 3 times as many leads as traditional marketing.
The past decade has seen astounding growth in the realm of content marketing.
According to Google Trends, worldwide interest in content marketing has skyrocketed to nearly 100%, or peak popularity, over the past 16 years.
Content marketing will not only slash your marketing budget but also drive more sales over time from higher-quality leads.
How?
Through opt-in advertising (a.k.a. subscription-based advertising) you’ll save on lead generation and develop a network of pre-purchase followers who, over time, will think of your brand first when the time comes to make a decision.
Ready for Your Business to Thrive?
With the development of new technology and a steadily growing potential audience, content marketing will only continue becoming more important.
Ready to demonstrate your brand’s value, build a community, and ultimately, convert your audience into devoted action-takers?
It’s time to make marketing human again. It’s time to develop a content marketing strategy for your business.
Featured Image Credit: Paulo Bobita
