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....

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....

Being recognized as a Creative Thought Leader in your niche takes you from being “just another expert to expert” to being someone who really stands out.

I can deliver marketing formulas (or what I call marketing prescriptions) all day long.  But it’s not enough to just “do marketing” – you want to make it engaging, educational, inspirational and personally compelling.

You can have incredible content but if no one pays attention, if you are lost in the crowd – it won’t help your message, your business or all those people you want to reach. You’ll be a “best kept secret.”  We don’t want that!

Technology is emerging that is not about the channel or ad. Instead, the content is the thing.Innovative content marketing platforms focus on creating better content experiences that the consumer self-discovers through search engines, content alerts and social networks. This flips the focus and optimization from the channel and ad to the content experience underneath and how the value is rewarded by these earned channels.

This paves the way for more resources to be spent on creating more valuable content experiences versus optimized ad creative and paid channel performance.

These technologies make it possible to use analytics to produce better creative that truly engages customers, creates and tracks behavior, permits continuous creative improvement and optimization and opens the door to a new age of storytelling....

You probably already know that your business needs online content marketing. What you want to know is how to create content that actually works....

There’s something about a New Yorker article, isn’t there? It’s the humor, the depth and substance. The staying power. The storytelling....

Content marketing is here to stay. Why? The demand for content never changes. It is never limited. The only things that are limited are attention and distribution.

But, without an audience, content has no value....