Ad blockers are crippling ad-based marketing, and content marketing is the new way forward. The traditional form of advertising has been used for centuries, which might be why we are universally sick of seeing ads. Especially with the internet’s audio and visual capabilities, we have been overwhelmed by intrusive ads, which we are forced to actively dismiss or sit through before we can reach the content we want.
Social Media Today’s report shows that the vast majority of ad block users are motivated to by having too many ads thrust at them.
Digiday estimated back in 2016 that if ad block users maintained their numbers at the time, publishers would lose 35 billion dollars in wasted investments, and a Global Web Index report shows that the number of users has nearly doubled since then. So how can modern marketing firms address this problem?
The answer is to create the content internet users are seeking.
The Many Faces of Content Marketing
Content marketing comes in as many forms as there are ways to consume media.
You may already be familiar with the concept of company blogs providing product reviews, recipes, or how-to guides, but anything that provides value to consumers can be considered content marketing.
Makeup tutorial videos are a great way of not only helping consumers learn how to use a product but also demonstrating its effectiveness and finished appearance. Launch Metrics discusses how you can leverage an existing audience by providing free samples, discounts, and more to people known as “influencers.” These are people who already have followers on YouTube or similar private sites, and a small investment of freely given products can net a considerable return on investment (ROI), all while growing your customer base.
An older example of this kind of content marketing would be Bob Vila. He was on public broadcast television for 30 years, demonstrating techniques for completing common repairs and restorations around the house using specific brands of tools and sourced material. Both Bob Vila and the Craftsman brand tools are still household names.
Utilizing influencers is even more affordable than this example, as you don’t pay for their production or broadcasting. Sometimes, you do arrange for a one-time payment to the influencer in return for their time and review of your product. Nearly always, you provide a free product that the influencer tries out. They share their opinions with their followers. If you have confidence that people will love your product, this is a great strategy.
Producing a free brand name-associated phone app, running a podcast, or offering webinars are all completely viable forms of content creation. The essential quality all content marketing must have is that it helps the consumer and builds trust in your brand.
Impact of Content Marketing
Content marketing has proven to be an effective and affordable supplement to traditional ads for many major companies.
The Content Marketing Institute claims that content marketing creates three times as many leads as traditional ads, and the Marketing Insider Group says 91 percent of B2B and 86 percent of B2C marketers use it.
Lyfe Marketing’s studies show that more than 3 out of every 4 consumers prefer getting to know a company through content over ads, and 70 percent believe that companies that produce high-quality and useful content are interested in building good relationships with them.
Showing good faith and appearing to be invested in your consumer base’s success and usage of your product or service creates a sense of goodwill and support towards your company, as opposed to the brute force method of flooding them with ads.
But is content marketing worth making the switch in marketing strategy?
Content Marketing ROI
Content Marketing can be a high ROI strategy, when well implemented.
WebFX cautions that you will have to wait multiple months before you start to see the results from content marketing. It takes time for your content to gain awareness via social shares or in SERPs, as well as for the value to be proven. However, as it gains trust and is backlinked by outside sites and users, you will start to see results.
On that note, The Digital Marketing Institute explains that measuring your ROI can be tricky with content marketing, due to its indirect approach. The returns you see will be mostly in the form of higher website traffic and better SEO results at first. As your brand becomes more associated with good content and thought leadership, you will see rising sales, as well as better client retention.
Lauro Media has gathered a variety of compelling statistics indicating that even in 2018, email content marketing had a return of 42 dollars for every dollar spent in implementation. Lauro also has a more detailed breakdown of the ROI gains from different strategies and types of content included in those emails, such as live content, animated gifs, and double opt-ins.
Having a clearly defined strategy is key with any marketing campaign, and you will be better able to measure the success of your content marketing if you set measurable goals. Doing thorough research before starting will only benefit you, and it’s important to understand the tipping point when hiring an experienced professional that will net better results than doing it yourself.
When you're ready to bring in that experienced professional, we are here to assist you. Contact Wordsmyth Creative Content Marketing today for help with your marketing needs.