It’s no secret that content marketing has become one of the most popular marketing trends out there. Unfortunately, it also means that the internet is now flooded with an over-abundance of content — and not necessarily good content. According to the 2015 B2B Content Marketing report released by Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs, only 38% of B2B companies surveyed believe their content marketing efforts were effective last year, dropping 42% from 2013.
So what’s going on with the other 62% who thought their content marketing was ineffective? The problem is, marketers are not writing down their game plan — only 35% of surveyed B2B marketers have a documented content marketing strategy.
Verbal strategies are a great starting point for newcomers to content marketing, but lack of a concrete plan can debilitate your efforts. For effective content marketing, a written content strategy is imperative. Be sure to focus on the following areas:
- Know your goals. Key performance indicators (KPIs) allow you to track progress in your content initiatives. But first, you need to determine the ultimate goal of your efforts. Is it to increase website visitors? Engage your audience? Once these areas of focus are chosen, KPIs can provide tangible results that can indicate the effectiveness of your content marketing.
- Target your personas. What does your ideal customer look like? Identify their goals, challenges, and needs, and ask yourself how your company can solve the problems they face. Defining who you are marketing to will streamline your efforts and make them more effective.
- Plan your distribution. You want to be in the same places your ideal customer is. Decide if that is through desktop computer or smartphone, or through Pintrest or Twitter. Create strategies for optimizing your content for distribution through these platforms.
- Get everyone on board. Writing down your content strategy is important for ensuring that everyone is on the same page. Each piece of content your business produces should align with this strategy and have a positive impact on your content efforts.
When it’s done right, content marketing is an incredibly powerful marketing tool with endless possibilities. Establishing a content strategy can result in highly effective content that can help you reach your goals.
