One thing that the content marketing industry keeps banging on about is the idea of brands become publishers. But if a business can barely get around the idea of copy writing, how will it manage to handle the wider approach required for a full-on content marketing strategy? |
As Econsultancy points out in informative blog post, content marketing as a discipline is still in its infancy.
"While marketers are generally agreed that ‘putting useful and interesting things on the internet’ seems to be a good thing, we’re still tying a lot of our efforts to campaign-style engagement," it says.
Addressing the problems associated with a lack of resources or expertise is vital for businesses.
Econsultancy is a publisher – not just in the content marketing lingo, but an actual bona fide publisher. So its experiences tell us a lot about what works and what doesn't.
The problems it has seen is that when it publishes a report about a topic, for example, SEO copy writing, it will generate interest on social media – new Twitter followers etc, from people wanting to know more about that area.
But its reports could be on a range of topics – from paid search and blog writing to infographics and Pinterest.
So those new followers who were keen on SEO copy writing ebbed away – increasing the company's social churn.
That is, in essence, the problem. It's one that businesses in many other sectors face. And without unlimited resources it's impossible to keep producing all the content around all the topics you want to.
The answer, according to the Econsultancy blog, is evergreen and specialist content:
"While it’s almost impossible to consistently produce content on a single subject (for those of us with more than a single-product offering at any rate), it’s easy to invest in content that has legs.
"While the brand content they cover may evolve, the strategic insight remains consistently useful. We’ve also found that posts about tools and services that help readers accomplish specific tasks may not provide a huge initial traffic rush, but do have a long tail and appeal to broad and specialist audiences.
"Meanwhile our higher-end technical SEO posts attract specialists and advertise the depth of our content."
Our earlier post on evergreen content explains a little more about this area, which is proving increasingly important for brands to pay close attention to.
It's time for businesses to stop being afraid of content marketing. It's a simple formula – produce engaging content that people want.
"Content should be good, but it doesn't have to be incredibly time-consuming to produce: articles, images, hangout videos - all of these are inexpensive and can be produced regularly," says Econsultancy.
"While marketers are generally agreed that ‘putting useful and interesting things on the internet’ seems to be a good thing, we’re still tying a lot of our efforts to campaign-style engagement," it says.
Addressing the problems associated with a lack of resources or expertise is vital for businesses.
Econsultancy is a publisher – not just in the content marketing lingo, but an actual bona fide publisher. So its experiences tell us a lot about what works and what doesn't.
The problems it has seen is that when it publishes a report about a topic, for example, SEO copy writing, it will generate interest on social media – new Twitter followers etc, from people wanting to know more about that area.
But its reports could be on a range of topics – from paid search and blog writing to infographics and Pinterest.
So those new followers who were keen on SEO copy writing ebbed away – increasing the company's social churn.
That is, in essence, the problem. It's one that businesses in many other sectors face. And without unlimited resources it's impossible to keep producing all the content around all the topics you want to.
The answer, according to the Econsultancy blog, is evergreen and specialist content:
"While it’s almost impossible to consistently produce content on a single subject (for those of us with more than a single-product offering at any rate), it’s easy to invest in content that has legs.
"While the brand content they cover may evolve, the strategic insight remains consistently useful. We’ve also found that posts about tools and services that help readers accomplish specific tasks may not provide a huge initial traffic rush, but do have a long tail and appeal to broad and specialist audiences.
"Meanwhile our higher-end technical SEO posts attract specialists and advertise the depth of our content."
Our earlier post on evergreen content explains a little more about this area, which is proving increasingly important for brands to pay close attention to.
It's time for businesses to stop being afraid of content marketing. It's a simple formula – produce engaging content that people want.
"Content should be good, but it doesn't have to be incredibly time-consuming to produce: articles, images, hangout videos - all of these are inexpensive and can be produced regularly," says Econsultancy.