Does content marketing work?
Many marketers new to the game wonder if content marketing is effective and/or worth the time and money.
To that, I say, of course. 💯
Content marketing is INCREDIBLE.
It has the power to bring your ideal customers straight to your doorstep, engage them, build a relationship with them, and inspire them to convert.
Companies that blog earn 67% more leads on average.
71% of marketers say content marketing is more important to their organization than ever.
70% of buyers read at least 3-5 pieces of content before talking to sales.
Finally, let’s not forget that the biggest source of online traffic comes from search engines — more specifically, Google. (How do you bring that traffic to your site? SEO & content marketing.)
In this blog, we’ll examine the potency of content marketing and the impact it can make on your business in terms of:
- Generating leads.
- Building trust with customers.
- Reducing customer acquisition costs.
- Streamlining the sales cycle.
- Driving growth.
- Increasing customer retention and loyalty.
So tag along as we answer the burning question: Does content marketing work? (YES.)
Does Content Marketing Work? Table of Contents:
- Does Content Marketing Work? The Sheer Power of Content
- 4 Major Benefits of Content Marketing for Businesses
- How to Integrate Quality Written Content into Your Digital Strategy
- Conclusion
Does Content Marketing Work? The Sheer Power of Content
Does content marketing work?
Does it really have all the benefits you’ve heard about?
Yes.
Content marketing works.
Content marketing is a crucial aspect of any business’s digital marketing strategy, supporting other channels and playing an essential role in attracting more leads.
How does it work? Here’s a good content marketing definition from Content Marketing Institute:
“Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.”
Companies deploying a content strategy experience roughly 30% higher growth rates than those not using content marketing.
Why does content marketing work so well?
It’s all about value.
This approach focuses on providing truly relevant and useful content that helps prospects and customers solve their issues instead of simply pitching products or services.
Source: Demand Metric
Over time, if your content and its value are consistent, your audience will start relying on you. Trusting you. Looking to you as THE expert authority in your niche.
And all of that eventually inspires them to act, which includes purchasing your products or services.
Let’s look deeper at the sheer power of content.
Content Marketing Attracts Leads by Offering Value
In today’s competitive market, you have to differentiate from the competition by offering valuable information that can help potential customers make informed decisions.
By consistently creating high-quality, informative content related to your industry, you establish yourself as an authority within your niche. Establishing trust with readers is a key component of success, and by providing helpful content you can accomplish this.
Some ideas:
- Create how-to guides: Offer step-by-step instructions on solving common challenges your target audience faces.
- Publish case studies: Share real-life examples of how you have helped clients achieve success with your product or service.
- Curate industry news: Keep readers up-to-date with the latest trends and developments in your industry while adding insightful commentary.
Content Marketing Builds Trust With Your Audience
Did you know your content marketing efforts can go deeper than simply generating traffic for your website?
Content is also one of the best ways to build trust with your audience.
When visitors find helpful resources on your website that address their concerns effectively, they begin seeing you as a reliable source of information. By extension, that increases the likelihood of them becoming loyal followers who will eventually turn into paying customers. 🤝
It also helps if you show your audience that your brand is human in your content:
- Be transparent: Share your company’s story, values, and mission to give readers a better understanding of who you are.
- Show expertise: Demonstrate your industry knowledge by providing well-researched articles backed up with credible sources.
- Engage with the audience: Respond to comments and questions on your blog or social media channels. This interaction helps build rapport and fosters trust between you and potential customers.
Content marketing is the antithesis of pushy sales tactics. By focusing on delivering valuable information that addresses the needs of your prospects rather than urging them to “BUY NOW,” you’ll appeal to the wants and needs of the modern consumer.
What are they looking for? Businesses they can trust.
Source: Edelman Trust Barometer 2023
How do you prove you’re trustworthy? Through consistent content marketing.
Convinced on content marketing, but not sure what to do next? You need a process — and it’s inside my Content Process Blueprint. Learn the exact steps, tools, and process you need to create great content inside. 🙌
4 Major Benefits of Content Marketing for Businesses
If content marketing works, then what are the benefits of implementing it in your business?
Here are four key reasons why entrepreneurs, founders, marketers, and business owners should prioritize content marketing in their digital strategies:
1. It Lowers Customer Acquisition Costs
Incorporating content marketing into your business strategy can significantly reduce customer acquisition costs.
By creating valuable and informative content, you attract potential customers organically without having to spend big money on paid advertising campaigns.
A HubSpot study found that companies focusing on inbound tactics (such as blogging) save over $14 per newly acquired customer compared to those relying solely on outbound methods.
2. It Enables the Sales Cycle
An effective content marketing strategy supports the sales cycle by providing prospects with relevant information at each buyer journey stage.
Source: Aira
From awareness to consideration to decision, well-crafted content helps answer questions and address concerns that potential customers may have about your products or services.
According to Demand Gen Report’s B2B Buyers Survey, 62% of buyers said they rely more on content now than they did last year for making purchase decisions. This just underscores the importance of producing quality content that resonates with your audience.
3. It Fuels Overall Growth
Did we mention that content marketing is incredible?
It has the power to do all this:
- Increase website traffic: Regularly publishing engaging articles drives organic search traffic from Google and other search engines while also encouraging social media shares.
- Elevate brand authority: High-quality long-form pieces position you as an industry expert, which can lead to increased trust and credibility among your target audience.
- Generate leads: By offering valuable content in exchange for contact information (e.g., gated whitepapers, ebooks, or lead magnets), you can build a database of potential customers who are more likely to convert into paying clients.
4. It Makes Your Customers Stick Around
Creating and executing a content plan can not only attract new customers but also help to increase retention rates by up to 10%.
Companies with a documented content plan have been found to experience 5-10% better retention rates than those without one. Consistently providing helpful and relevant information keeps your brand top-of-mind, ensuring that current customers remain engaged and loyal.
Increasing customer retention rates by just 5% could result in a profit increase between 25%-95%, highlighting the importance of investing in long-term relationships through effective content marketing.
How to Integrate Quality Written Content into Your Digital Strategy
Want to start integrating content into your digital marketing strategy?
Newsflash: You need a separate content marketing plan.
Specifically, you’ll need to lay out your goals for content and how you’ll measure them. Then you’ll need to research your audience so you know who you’re writing/creating for. After that, lay out your SEO strategy, including the keywords you’ll target to start bringing in traffic from search engines.
Finally, don’t forget to lay out a plan for how you’ll nurture potential customers from reading your blog posts all the way to purchasing your products or services.
Your content marketing strategies are VITAL if you want to see results. Strategize well, execute well, and then watch the ROI roll in. 🛼
How to Create High-Quality Content
To integrate quality written content into your digital strategy, you must first focus on the creation aspect.
These articles should be well-researched and provide value to your target audience by addressing their pain points, answering their questions, and offering solutions to their problems.
- Research: Start by conducting thorough research on the topics relevant to your industry and audience. Use tools like AnswerThePublic, Google Trends, or BuzzSumo to find popular questions and trending topics in your niche.
- Create engaging content: Write informative, engaging content that keeps readers interested from beginning to end. Make use of subheadings, bullet points, images, videos, infographics, and anything that can help break up large blocks of text while adding visual interest.
- Edit & proofread: Ensure your articles are free from grammatical errors and typos by using editing tools such as Grammarly or Hemingway App.
- Optimize for SEO: Make sure to optimize your articles for search engines by including relevant keywords, crafting compelling meta descriptions, and using proper header tags. Tools like Ahrefs Keywords Explorer or Moz Keyword Explorer can help you identify the best keywords to target in your content.
Incorporating well-written content into your digital plan is critical for bringing in organic website visitors, improving brand recognition, and building trust & credibility with prospective customers.
Need a proven process for creating content? I have a blueprint for that. 📘Get my Content Process Blueprint for the A to Z of how to ideate, create, distribute, and promote content with a touch of AI.
You CAN reach your long-term goals and build trust with potential customers by executing a successful content marketing strategy.
Does Content Marketing Work? (Did You Have to Ask?)
Does content marketing work? For real?
YES.
Content marketing doesn’t just work —
It slays. 💥
I am living proof of that.
I built my first business from the ground up and eventually sold it for $1 million, but I didn’t start seeing mega success until I got my content marketing foundation in place.
Content marketing was the lynchpin that drove my business growth.
And it can be yours, too.
The methodology I discovered, learned, and implemented to great success is what I teach in the Content Transformation System.
This business-building program focuses on honing your skills, systems, and strategies so you can rocket to the moon and beyond. 🚀
And a huge part of that is consistent, high-quality content marketing that pulls in your ideal customer, engages them, nurtures them, and converts them.
Ready to learn, grow, and take off? Apply today to see if you’re a good fit for CTS.
