I was an early content marketing practitioner and champion of the form. The idea was content would offer a richer advertising experience than the ads of old. I pursued the idea with gusto and I am glad I did. Not everything turned out as planned, but I learned a lot.
I may as well come out and say what I’ve been thinking for some time: content marketing is more about promise than performance. There is still a solid reason to produce top-notch content as part of your marketing mix — high-value content helps your website rank high and it helps create awareness for your brand. But it doesn’t convert.
Content fails to convert because most brand-made or brand-sponsored content is simply ignored. It’s invisible. Did you know that just 5% of branded content garners 90% of total consumer engagements? In other words, 19 out of 20 content pieces get little to no engagement.
“The current wisdom that brands need to be content machines is simply not supported by the data,” says Jennifer Zeszut, CEO of Beckon. “Brands might be shocked to hear that while branded content creation is up 300 percent year over year, consumer engagement with that content is totally flat. They’re investing a…
