{"id":6767,"date":"2022-01-26T11:44:07","date_gmt":"2022-01-26T11:44:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/01\/26\/make-sure-you-are-on-stable-ground-new-research\/"},"modified":"2022-01-26T11:44:07","modified_gmt":"2022-01-26T11:44:07","slug":"make-sure-you-are-on-stable-ground-new-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/01\/26\/make-sure-you-are-on-stable-ground-new-research\/","title":{"rendered":"Make Sure You Are on Stable Ground [New Research]"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"\"<\/a>There\u2019s a wonderful scene in the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade when the rich investor, Walter Donovan, tries to convince Indy to go after the Holy Grail. He says, \u201cWe\u2019re on the verge of completing a quest that began almost 2,000 years ago. We\u2019re just one step away.\u201d Indy responds, \u201cThat\u2019s usually when the ground falls out from underneath your feet.\u201d<\/p>\n

When we released our 2021 B2C content marketing research<\/a>, I noted the data showed the \u201cimperative to develop direct, digital relationships with customers\u201d became more important. But the pandemic making us all feel a little like Indiana Jones: \u201cWe\u2019re making this up as we go.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pandemic and other events of 2020 had given marketers confidence in increasing the importance of content marketing. But, I noted, the responsibility coming from that power was important. If content marketers wanted to succeed, scale, and grow, they needed to help their businesses understand how to realize their \u201cgut feeling\u201d that better content was necessary through an intelligent and functional strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Well, CMI\u2019s B2C Content Marketing: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends \u2013 Insights for 2022<\/a> indicates that B2C marketers still struggle with some classic content marketing challenges.<\/p>\n

What challenges lie in wait for 2022?<\/p>\n

Well, let\u2019s explore.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019re just one step away<\/h2>\n

According to this latest Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs research, one in four (26%) of B2C marketers rate their content marketing as extremely or very successful. That is a big drop from the previous year when one in three (34%) reported the same.<\/p>\n

About one-fourth of B2C marketers (26%) say their #ContentMarketing is extremely or very successful. That’s fewer than one year ago (34%), according to @CMIContent #B2C #research via @Robert_Rose. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Yes, the pandemic continues to have a lot to do with this struggle. Talent acquisition has been more difficult. Priorities in digital transformation for sales enablement, e-commerce, and other customer experiences have deprioritized some content marketing initiatives.<\/p>\n

Content marketing strategies for 79% of B2C marketers have changed at least slightly since the pandemic, while 20% of marketers say they\u2019re implementing strategies that are extremely or very different.<\/p>\n

Things are, indeed, both the same and very different.<\/p>\n

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: You Could Build a Content Strategy While \u2018Flying\u2019 It \u2013 But Here\u2019s a Better Way [Rose-Colored Glasses]<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n

Make sure the ground doesn\u2019t fall away<\/h2>\n

Indiana Jones always survives the ground falling out beneath him because he\u2019s always aware that it might. He prepares.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why what I said in last year\u2019s research bears repeating: \u201c(I)t\u2019s no longer good enough for content marketers to simply understand how to create blogs, infographics, or other media assets.\u00a0 We need to understand how solid planning of content operations<\/a> (across ALL of marketing and communications) fits into our ongoing approach.\u00a0That means understanding technology, governance<\/a>, and how to structure content so that it can be reused, repackaged, and leveraged across silos.\u201d<\/p>\n

We see content marketers wearing more hats, and this is only going to continue in 2022. \u00a0As content marketing grows as a multi-discipline practice and becomes an important part of our business strategy, detailing the \u201cplanning\u201d and \u201cpreparation\u201d part of that strategy is how we stay on solid ground.<\/p>\n

Data from this year\u2019s research points the way into some of that preparation.<\/p>\n

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Why You Might Not Need a Unified Content Development Process (Yet) [Rose-Colored Glasses]<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n

Investment in video here to stay<\/h2>\n

As they did last year, short articles\/posts topped the list of content types used by content marketers. Most other content types remained steady compared with the last few years, with the obvious exception of in-person events and one less-expected difference \u2013 long-form articles, which almost doubled in usage (42% vs. 22% the previous year).<\/p>\n

\"Content<\/a><\/p>\n

As far as budget this year, 61% of marketers say their 2022 content marketing budget will be higher<\/a> than their 2021 budget. Where will they be spending money? Seventy-two percent expect to invest in video, followed by paid media (51%).<\/p>\n

\"Areas<\/a><\/p>\n

Certainly the rise of TikTok as the most popular site on the internet<\/a> and the ongoing trend of live video replacing in-person events largely drive this trend. This is something we\u2019ve seen across both B2B and B2C \u2013 most notably with companies like Salesforce, which launched a video streaming platform<\/a> as a marketing initiative.<\/p>\n

72% of #B2C marketers plan to invest in #video in 2022, according to new @CMIContent #B2C #research via @Robert_Rose. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Given all companies have gotten this memo, differentiating and piercing the noise has become ever more difficult. So, paid media<\/a> has become to become incredibly important in content marketing.<\/p>\n

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Video Storytelling: Here\u2019s How To Get More From Your Investment<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n

Paid media promotion increases<\/h2>\n

Over three-fourths (78%) of B2C marketers say they used paid methods to promote content<\/a> in the previous year. Forty-three percent reported increasing their spending on paid promotion over the last 12 months.<\/p>\n

Where are they buying? Paid social media advertising\/promoted posts<\/a> top the list (80%) followed by search engine marketing\/pay-per-click (66%). Rounding out the top five involves a precipitous drop to sponsorships<\/a> (39%), native advertising\/sponsored content (36%), and partner email content promotions (24%).<\/p>\n

\"Paid<\/a><\/p>\n

#B2C marketers most often use #SocialMedia advertising\/promoted posts as their top paid content distribution method, according to new @CMIContent #research via @Robert_Rose. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

The results here are not surprising. As we\u2019ve discussed for many years, social media strategies are clearly becoming paid media strategies \u2013 and we\u2019ve seen many companies move much of their paid promotion to social media networks.<\/p>\n

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: PPC and Content Marketing: The Perfect Combo for Immediate ROI<\/a><\/strong><\/div>\n

Time to double down on content operations<\/h2>\n

As I mentioned in the beginning, we\u2019re close to reaching the Holy Grail. Content marketing has been recognized as a functional and active strategy. Even though we aren\u2019t seeing marketing-related media, such as Adweek or Adage, reporting on the practice as much as we\u2019d like, we are seeing the effects of this strategy. If you need the success stories, just ask us.<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s building a media company in your business, or branded content<\/a>, or building your content studio, content marketing is an increasingly important piece of the B2C marketing strategy.<\/p>\n

Although most B2C marketers report success with content marketing, the challenges are the same as they\u2019ve been. The two most frequently cited are creating content that appeals to different segments within the target audience (42%) and internal communication between teams\/silos (41%).<\/p>\n

\"B2C<\/a><\/p>\n

Both of those top two challenges speak to the internal operations of content and the development process. Our research points to continued transformational shifts that make content marketing an ever more important part of the integrated marketing mix.<\/p>\n

In today\u2019s modern business, everyone creates content \u2014 from the web team to the product team, brand team, demand-gen executives, even frontline account representatives. It\u2019s probably easier to count who doesn\u2019t<\/em> create content-driven experiences for customers these days.<\/p>\n

But we must realize that this explosive trend is actually our quest. Our attempts to complete it require us to develop not just great content<\/a>, but an operational strategy that supports all content. Without a strategy, an inconsistent voice and inability to measure success will lead to the ground crumbling underneath us.<\/p>\n

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HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Keep your eye on the real prize<\/h2>\n

My Advice?\u00a0 Preparation.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not the sexiest part, but a scalable, successful, and differentiating content marketing operation will help you more easily create, manage, activate, and measure<\/a> digital content. You will define success by how well the content marketing strategy empowers\u00a0everybody<\/em>\u00a0on the front line (sales, account reps, executives, and even accounting and legal) to tell your stories \u2014 and the best \u201cnext stories\u201d \u2014 to your audience.<\/p>\n

In many ways, we have to learn the same lesson as Indiana Jones at the end of The Last Crusade.\u00a0 He was so close to getting the prize that he became obsessed with it.\u00a0He saves himself from the ground falling from beneath him by letting it all go and realizing the quest wasn\u2019t about his prize.\u00a0The journey was about saving everyone around him.<\/p>\n

A strategic content marketing operation isn\u2019t the storyteller of the business. It\u2019s what enables everyone else to be the storytellers.<\/p>\n