What is CONTENT MARKETING
When you create content with the intention of attracting and engaging prospective customers, you’re engaged in content marketing! The content you create can be articles, blog posts, case studies, custom magazines, email newsletters, microsites, webinars, videos, and much, much more. Content marketing has become incredibly popular – some marketing gurus claim it’s the only effective form of marketing left.
Three things are driving the content marketing revolution:
- A fractured media market has made it much more difficult for advertisers and marketers to cost-effectively reach large groups of people (like they once did).
- Technological filters like caller ID, DVR, email filters, etc. have improved making it harder to “interrupt” people with mass messages.
- Everyone has a library of information at their fingertips (the Internet). Consumers educate themselves by searching for information.
MASS MEDIA HAS BECOME MICROMEDIA
In the 1950s, there were three TV networks. Today, there are too many to count! At the same time, advertising prices have not necessarily fallen (in many cases, they’ve gone up considerably). The end result is that it’s far more difficult to cost-effectively put a message in front of a large audience. Savvy marketers have responded by hyper-targeting their messages to a larger number of micromedia outlets – placing viral videos on YouTube and Vimeo channels; creating podcasts and recorded webinars, etc.
TECHNOLOGICAL FILTERS MAKE AVOIDING ADS EASY
Even when marketers find a large audience, it can be difficult to get a message through to them. Technologies like DVR and TiVo, make it easy for consumers to skip over commercials. Email SPAM filters can make it virtually impossible for anyone you don’t know to reach you. The solution is to create content that consumers and prospects not only want to view, but also end up sharing. Viral videos are a great example of this.
THE INTERNET: A WORLD OF INFORMATION AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
In the past, if you needed a plumber, you might have had to sift through your mail to find a post card with the name of a local plumber on it. Today, you can pick up your phone and search, “marryland plumbers” and presto, you’ve found the right plumber for you! The Internet has fundamentally changed the way people shop. If you’re in the market for a new car, you no longer have to rely on your local car dealer to educate you on all the new models. You can go to Google and get more (and better) information in 15 minutes.
WHY CONTENT MARKETING IS SO IMPORTANT
Recall the last point made above. Today’s consumers are far more likely to research a product or service BEFORE they make a buying decision. When they do an informational search on Google, are they going to find you or your competition? This is a critical question and the driving force behind the content marketing revolution.
Content marketers know that the game is won by being visible when someone is starting to research the product/service you offer. You need to have a seat at the table and take an active role in educating them about how to buy whatever it is you’re selling. Content marketers focus on creating highly-valuable content for each different aspect of the buying cycle – from the research phase down to comparing prices and preventing buyer’s remorse post purchase.
If you invest in content marketing, you must educate prospective clients, establish authority, and build trust. The idea is that when they are ready to make a buying decision, your company is more likely to win the business.
Why do you think we’ve taken the time to write all these FAQs! Our theory is that the more you know about Vorvox Digital and our perspective on online marketing, the more likely you are to hire us to help you with your business.