Content Marketing: why is it so important?

The experts say it: Content Marketing is a prodigious element of modern marketing. So much so that many try their hand at it having fully understood what it is and do not obtain the desired results. If this craze results in the support of most companies around the world, do you know why Content Marketing is so popular?

I offer you a brief overview, around 11 statistics that demonstrate without a shadow of a doubt that content marketing is today one of the components of marketing… but that it has no value if it is not integrated into a relevant overall strategy.

1. 200 million people now use an ad blocker

There’s panic on the online advertising front! Ad blockers are wreaking havoc, and agencies are looking for new ways to get their advertisers’ messages in front of Internet users’ eyes. It must be admitted that advertising on the internet has proven to be particularly invasive: banners, inserts, pop-ups, videos, etc.

Considered as a new El Dorado, a media on which everything was possible, agencies overexploited the opportunities of the web, to the point of creating tangible saturation. A message with no value to the public, disruptive, annoying,… the damage was done. So much so that bored Internet users have turned en masse to solutions that allow them to no longer see advertising. As of August 2015, approximately 200 million people worldwide have installed an Adblock plugin on their browsers. Ad blocking cost ad agencies approximately $22 billion in 2015.

While consumers are happy to be able to block advertising on their computer or mobile device, it’s a disaster for advertisers who pay to spread their brand’s message. Fortunately, marketers everywhere can continue to make their company’s voice heard to a more targeted audience through content.

When a consumer comes to quality content, following their request on search engines, they interact with it more easily, which makes content marketing much more effective.

On the same topic: let’s reinvent advertising.

2. Content marketers get 7.8x more traffic to their site

Creating high-quality content isn’t easy. But it’s worth it! People, or companies, who manage to reach the rank of leader thanks to Content Marketing – which means creating specific, adapted content, tailor-made for their audience – benefit from much higher traffic than their competitors.

Annual traffic growth is 7.8 times higher for companies that engage in content marketing! But your content creation efforts must be sustainable and regular; it must last over time for your efforts to bear fruit.

On the same topic: 6 tips to increase your traffic and your content marketing et 11 techniques to make your site known and gain traffic

3. Content produces brand recall, which increases engagement

According to a study by IBM Digital Experience, 56% of marketers believe that personalized content produces a better engagement rate. This type of quality content helps consumers remember your brand, while also encouraging them to interact in a more personal way with the company in question.

Always try to produce content suited to your target. When content marketing fails, it’s often because the company has been too focused on itself, rather than its core objective. Always put yourself in the consumer’s shoes. Furthermore, what is our common reflex when we encounter content that satisfies one of our needs? We share it, delighted with our discovery!

4. The average time spent on articles is 37 seconds

If you truly write for your readers and provide quality content perfectly tailored to your audience, they will spend more time reading you. The best way to retain your readers is to retain them anyway. Don’t forget the video’s ability to attract attention; a video in your articles can help you retain your visitors.

Over time, this effort produces better brand recognition, which has the effect of increasing sales.

We often hear that content marketing is very expensive. Yet it costs 62% less than traditional marketing. Furthermore, because it is effective, easier to start and popular with consumers, it can significantly reduce the amount invested in advertising.

Less expensive, more effective, content marketing thrives when it is well implemented, within a well-researched marketing strategy. Plus, it generates three times more leads than marketing departments typically do.

Most marketers across the Atlantic consider content marketing to be the foundation of their marketing strategy. In addition to facilitating communication with consumers, content marketing also produces more value and accelerates the connection between potential customers and the brand.

7. Content marketing leads to higher conversion rates

When we compare companies that have adopted content marketing to those that haven’t yet taken the plunge, we see that adopters’ conversion rates are nearly six times higher than those of their competitors. While content marketing requires an investment of time, money, and expertise, it generates much higher conversion rates than its traditional counterparts.

8. Email marketing is one of the most effective forms of content marketing

When analyzing the impact of different content distribution channels side by side, it becomes clear that email offers the greatest overall reach: for every dollar spent, email delivers a huge ROI benefit and offers the broadest reach (CampaignMonitor). Because the email is personalized, targeted and sent directly to the inbox, it is a relevant and cost-effective way for businesses to reach their customers.

9. Most B2B marketers use at least 13 content marketing tactics

While it’s not uncommon to use various marketing tactics in any business segment, B2B marketers have been known to use dozens of content strategies.

The reason is simple: While content marketing is effective, it is much more effective when distribution channels are varied and diverse, allowing marketers to create a variety of content formats and use different marketing platforms to present them to consumers.

10. 73% of large companies hire someone to manage their content marketing strategy

Content marketing has become such a cost-effective marketing method that large companies around the world are hiring staff to manage the content creation and distribution process, allowing them to ensure they are properly allocating resources and communicating with their customers in the most targeted and effective way possible.

It also ensures that marketers use content formats, various distribution platforms and new technologies as effectively as possible.

Of course, it is also possible to outsource all or part of your content marketing strategy. Some companies entrust the writing of content to service providers, others choose support on the strategic aspect, etc.

On the same topic: should you outsource your content marketing?

11. 32% of digital marketing managers at CAC 40 companies do not distinguish between Content Marketing and Brand Content (source: Etude Content Marketing Activis BVA/Limelight)

I’m often surprised by the difficulty most marketers I meet have in differentiating Brand Content and Content Marketing.

Still, the challenges of these two disciplines are totally differentpoles apart from marketing in terms of design and values. This is not to say that one is better than the other, simply to support the distinction between them. Until this confusion is resolved, it will be difficult for Content Marketing to establish itself in France, as has happened for example in the United States.

Brand content is focused on the brand. It is often compared to advertising, as it enhances the qualities, history and values ​​of the brand. This content production brings value to the brand and helps achieve objectives related to corporate culture (brand culture). This content can inform and entertain, just like content marketing, but it is brand-focused.

On the same topic: Brand Content and Content Marketing: what are the differences?

The advantages of Content Marketing

Less expensive, more effective, compelling, and highly customizable, content marketing appeals to virtually all businesses and industries, not just digital ones.

Whether it’s blog posts, infographics, videos, or any original idea you come up with, creating unique, cohesive, and truly useful content is the best way to communicate with your audience in the most effective way.