There is more to content marketing than what meets (Google’s) eyes. It has turned the Web into a huge database of information, connected companies and brands to their customers in a way that’s never done before, and has made things easier for all of us. When we want to know about something, we just key in the search engine box and in a nutshell, problem is solved.

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A study by Aol & Nielsen revealed that more that 27 million pieces of content are shared on the Web every single day. In fact, 23% of social media messages contain links to content such as published articles, photos, and videos. Sharing content is not age or gender specific and people share practically on all social media platforms. In short, everyone shares everywhere. This is the reason why everything revolves around content and companies are going crazy over their content marketing strategies — they all want to be the one that people share everywhere.

Everyone has their two cents on content marketing trends: what’s hot and what’s not, what’s fact or fake. You might have heard them all before but didn’t believe them. Content marketing is not about luck, people consume your content for a reason. Scroll down for the 12 shocking facts about content marketing.

Plan to succeed

Just like anything else in life, you need a plan. It’s true: if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. You can’t just proceed blindly with your content marketing strategies. A research by the Content Marketing Institute shows that 56% of marketers do not have a documented strategy. It is no wonder that only 10% of marketers feel that their efforts are “very effective.”

For an effective marketing strategy, you have to know what you want and what your customers want. Know what your brand stands for.

Not all content is good

With more than half of content marketers proceeding without plan, you can expect that millions of content on the web are also misguided. In fact, two-thirds of these very “spur-of-the-moment” marketers are creating more content now than ever. You can just imagine the content they come up with so do not be pressured with the quantity of content produced by your competitors. Focus on the relevance and significance of your content to your consumers and your industry.

Mind the cost

An important aspect of strategy is knowing how much it will cost. Content marketing is not all about skills and creativity. You do need a budget. In fact, it usually takes up 33% of a company’s marketing budget. Systems and software come with a price.

Log in to social media

If your company still refuses to have a social media account, you are in trouble. You can’t just rely on your company website to do you wonders, you have to find easier ways to reach your target and interact with people.

The infographic by Inside View shows why social media should be part of your strategy. For one, 61% of US marketers already have accounts and second, most of them are reporting more leads.

Facebook is not everything

When your content didn’t trend on FB or Twitter, relax; it is not the end of the world. Maybe it’s just a case of using the wrong platform. A 2013 report of the Content Marketing Institute showed that 87% of marketers are using social media to distribute content, however, you may be shocked to know that LinkedIn now has the highest adoption rate, receiving a 62% approval rating. This content marketing news should encourage you to re-evaluate your social media efforts.

One strategy doesn’t fit all

Strategy depends on your content and your brand. In the report of Content Marketing Institute, marketers are known to use around 12 tactics, with social media being the most popular. Other tactics with the highest adoption rate are research reports, videos, mobile content, and video conferences. So stop limiting yourself with just one strategy but rather explore other options that might work.

Share other’s content

In content marketing, it can’t be just all about you. Discover the art of content curation. Curated content as a marketing strategy means finding, gathering, and sharing content of others to beef up your own. The creation of content creation needs focus, a commitment to quality, and consistency. You can’t just share anything, you have to know which ones are relevant and useful to your customers.

Blogging is still “in”

Another data shared by Inside View are people’s persistent love for blogs. It reveals that companies with an active blog generate 67% more leads per month. Blogging is a simple, down-to-earth way of presenting a business or product. Relevant and well-researched blogs are also a good source of information for the industry, making your company or brand look more credible and trustworthy.

Be in the inbox

The same Nielsen research shows that marketers must continue placing value in their email marketing campaigns as 66% of web users still use e-mail to share content. E-mail is anything but old-fashioned as it beats out every social media platform.

Create shareable content

This is one of the most important facts about content marketing — content gets shared when it is worth sharing. The research by Nielsen reveals that users share content if it is shared by people they trust, if the content will help others and if they are current, relevant, and interesting.

Don’t ignore videos

In the website of author and strategist Jeff Bullas, he said that videos on landing pages are of optimal value. Posting videos is a content marketing trend that is not likely to go away as it results in an increase in conversions by 86%. This is because 65% of your customers are visual learners and visual data is processed 60,000 times faster by the brain than regular text.

Testimonials mean success

There are a lot of metrics to measure success in content marketing. However, marketers consider customer testimonials as the most truthful gauge. They account for 89% of effectiveness.

This final fact about content marketing leads to the most important fact of all: nothing beats creating content for your customers. There will be more trends in the future but putting your customers on top of your priorities and strategies will never grow old.

 

This article was written by Anna Rodriguez from Business2Community and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.