Question: As a B2B marketer I feel like I’m constantly defending my content marketing efforts. What are the most important things for our business to focus on to get the greatest Return on Content Marketing?
Perhaps the greatest challenge for B2B’s especially small and mid sized where marketing teams are limited is how to stretch your content marketing efforts.
If a lot of time is spent on content creation then often time the strategy and content marketing lose focus and if you spend all of your time promoting, it isn’t uncommon for the quality of the content to take a hit.
So what is the best way to get a great return on your content marketing?
Here is my answer summed up in 1 word.
Focus!
Does this sound too simple to be the answer?
Perhaps I am slightly oversimplifying, but here is why I think this one word is the key…When it comes to content marketing most companies lack focus, so if you take the time to develop the right quantity of content and tailor it perfectly for the audience that you are targeting as prospective and continued clients then you are already ahead of the game.
Putting Focus on Your Content Marketing Efforts
Maybe it feels like you do focus on your content marketing efforts and yet you still aren’t seeing the fruits of your labor.
If this is you, I want you to try an exercise…
Ask yourself this question, “Is the content that we are creating answering the most important questions that our clients and prospective clients are asking about our products and/or services?
If the answer is no, then re-direct your energy toward this result. If your answer is sometimes, then work toward making this your answer all of the time. And if your answer is yes, then keep doing what you are doing because you are on the right track.
Focus on Return on your Content Marketing Will Work In Due Time
The biggest problems I have seen with executives overseeing content marketing efforts is the desire to see almost instantaneous returns.
It doesn’t work like that. Content Marketing works in phases which start with awareness and information gathering. If your content is a key provider to this then the next steps include trust and relationship building. It is only after you have informed your clients and built trust with them that your business can convert.
Often this takes content and great people behind it.
So remember, focus on what you can control. Create great content that is targeted at your ideal prospects and current clients and don’t get distracted by big traffic numbers and social shares unless they are coming from those you most want to see your content.
With the right focus you will see the right results.
Happy Content Marketing!
What does your organization do in order to get the greatest return on your content marketing efforts? Share below…We’d love to hear from you!
Check out this short video for more on how to get the most from your content marketing efforts.
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Daniel Newman is the co-founder of V3*Broadsuite and is an experienced C-level executive, serving as a strategy consultant for small and mid-sized businesses. He’s also an insight/analyst partner to four Fortune 50 enterprises and previously served as the co-founder and CEO of EC3, a hosted IT and communications services provider. Prior to that, he served as the CEO of United Visual, Inc. in Chicago Illinois.
He is a widely published writer who contributes weekly to Forbes, Entrepreneur, Huffington Post and industry publications such as Commercial Integrator, Sound & Communication and Corporate Tech Decisions. He’s also author of three best-selling business books including The New Rules of Customer Engagement, The Millennial CEO, and just recently Evolve: Marketing (^as we know it) is Doomed.
Daniel has established a reputation as a leading thinker in topics such as Social, Big Data, Cloud and Mobile. He has been named to many top influencer lists in all of these areas, including recognition by the Huffington Post as one of the 100 business and leadership accounts to follow on Twitter. He is also an adjunct professor of management at North Central College.
