Content marketing changes from year to year. There are a lot of changes that are going to be happening in 2013, but the most pervasive message is that content marketing is going up (just like in the previous two years):
- 9/10 of marketers are now choosing to do content marketing
- Content marketers that have been doing this for years are choosing to do more
This means that content marketing should not be overlooked in your overall online marketing strategy. Although marketers are dedicating a lot more of their time to content marketing, there is still a lot of uncertainty in this space. Here are some interesting findings from CMI’s 2013 report:
Content Marketers are Using More Tactics
This year, B2B content marketers will use on average about 12 tactics. This is a big jump from the last two years. All types of content marketing tactics have gone up in use, other than one: print magazines, which remained the same.
Content Marketing Tactics Are Hard to Track
Most online marketers have remained fairly uncertain about their effectiveness. In fact, they are so uncertain about them that most marketers believe that in-person events are still the most effective marketing tactic. Who knows, it might be true.
Social Media is King
Social media, excluding blogs, was the most popular content marketing tactic for the first time. The adoption rate was 87% and this shows no signs of slowing down. This is a giant lead from 74% last year. Out of all of the social media channels, LinkedIn has had the most changes. They definitely have been trying hard! Picture-based social media accounts are also growing in interest. Pinterest and Instagram are definitely a couple of platforms to look out for.
Investment in Content Marketing Is Growing
Content marketing is now taking up 1/3 of companies’ marketing budgets and most companies believe that this number will increase again over the coming months.
Fewer Marketers are Outsourcing Content
Less than half of companies are outsourcing their content marketing efforts. Most marketers now choose to do this all themselves. We would suggest the best option would be to outsource however: think about the cost of having your own graphic designer, web designer, content creator, community manager, and translator in house…
There Is Never Enough Content
Content marketers apparently think that their biggest obstacle is to create enough content. Using various social media platforms, blogs, and eBooks can be a challenge to keep up and usually necessitates a team of individuals.
As we said at the beginning, these findings don’t seem to be very surprising. Social media marketing is taking over and content creation is also taking up a lot more of marketers’ time. What’s your strategy? Do you agree with these findings? Comment below to give us your opinion!
