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....

Nearly every company, especially in B2B, now practices some form of content marketing. Most of it's garbage, junk—crap. How can you possibly succeed amidst today's deluge of crappy content?

... So what’s with the crappy attitude?

Hang with me. The future’s bright. But here and now, I want to impress something important on you…

Content marketing is not your secret weapon anymore. You might be podcasting, publishing newsletters, offering eBooks, posting videos, etc. Surely, you’re blogging and sharing your stuff with social media.Good for you. These are smart strategies to get discovered online and build relationships. You get that.

But do you get this? Everyone else is doing it too. Seriously, in the recently published research report by Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs, it says 93% of B2B companies are active in some way, shape or form in content marketing....