Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

If you're a marketer, copywriter, or business owner, then you might be sick and tired of hearing the words "content marketing" by now. Without a doubt, this term has been one of the most frequently used buzzwords of 2014 and it doesn't look like there's any end in sight.

And, it's not only the undeniable overuse of the words "content marketing" that has grown tired to some people; certain aspects of the practice are starting to wear. We often see the same old blog posts, clickbait headlines, and unintelligible Vine videos popping up in our feeds and it can make us wonder if this is what the future of advertising looks like.

Despite the growing exhaustion with the buzz word, there are still creative, entertaining, and ultimately profitable ways to go about using content for the sake of advertising or marketing. However, in order to do so, you have to make sure that you're avoiding these four things....

Across the twenty or thirty I’ve scoured in the past day or so, the usual suspects appear. In 2014, we are going to see brands “do more native ads”, “Editorial homepages” and curiously uninformative infographics.

To be blunt: the future of content marketing in 2014 looks exactly like content marketing did in 2013. And 2012. And 2011.

Boring. Bloated. Samey. Uninspiring. Lumpen....

Price still rules as an online purchase influencer, but basic brand assets should not be ignored in online product presentations.

Clear, concise, and pertinent product descriptions make online shoppers press the “Buy” button more often than do favorable reviews. In fact, only price topped persuasive product copy as a purchase influencer, according to a survey of 500 consumers conducted by Markettree for HookLogic.

Price remains king, with 84% of consumers designating it as one of the top three factors that cause them to buy. Sixty-three percent named product descriptions, and 49% listed reviews. Bringing up the rear were videos, named by only 12%. Fundamental brand assets like product names, images, and features, maintains HookLogic's survey report, are the bottom-of-the-funnel items most likely to turn browsers into buyers....