When content marketing was not in the picture (imagine! there was such a time), brands reached their audience through traditional techniques like word-of-mouth and advertising. As a teenager, visits to the neighborhood beauty parlour, would often lead to Seema Aunty requesting me and my mom to share positive reviews with friends and family, so that she would get more customers at her parlour. Did it work? Hell, yes. Would it work at scale? Yes, maybe, if some virality was brought into the communication. 

So do traditional techniques work today? Old wine, new bottle? Not really. 

With the advancements in technology and most people spending the maximum time on their computers, laptops, and mobile phones, content marketing has replaced a fair amount of marketing budget spends directed towards traditional marketing techniques.

Marketing Mix 2023

While the pandemic saw proportions understandably skewed towards digital marketing, with the world returning to normalcy, the marketing mix has also stabilized. In a study of 400 global CMOs by Gartner, it was found that 56% of the marketing budget was allocated to digital channels and 44% to offline channels.

So, Where are the firms spending their Digital Budgets?

As per the Gartner CMO Survey 2022, 

• More than half of digital spending is being allocated to paid channels like social, search, display, and video advertising.
• SEO, content marketing, and email marketing drive the earned digital channels.
• Mobile marketing has grown to a point that it’s no longer tracked separately and it’s presumed to be considered across all channels.

What Mediums Rule The Roost, You May Ask

As per the Statistical Survey,

• 93% of Marketers Currently Invest in Facebook:

The platform’s extensive user base and sophisticated advertising capabilities continue to make it a definite part of the marketing budget and an attractive choice for businesses seeking to reach a wide audience and engage with potential customers. Marketers leverage Facebook not only for its broad reach but also for its ability to track ad performance, gather insights, and refine their strategies based on data-driven results.

• Increase in Instagram Usage from 69% in 2019 to 78% in 2021:

The platform’s visual nature, rise of influencer marketing, introduction of new features such as Stories and Reels, and its ability to cater to younger demographics, make it a winner. For marketers, the increase in Instagram usage presents an opportunity to connect with audiences through visually appealing and engaging content, tapping into the platform’s aesthetic and interactive nature.

• LinkedIn’s Growth from 45% to 61% in usage in the B2B Space:

B2B marketers leverage LinkedIn for activities such as lead generation, content sharing, recruitment, and industry networking. The platform’s focus on professional connections and content-sharing opportunities makes it a powerful tool for companies looking to target other businesses and professionals.

In A Nutshell – Where Does Content Marketing Fit In?

In today’s digital age, where consumers have access to abundant information, content marketing allows your brand to stand out, connect with your audience, and deliver value beyond your products or services. It is a strategic approach that can yield both short-term and long-term benefits for your brand’s growth and success; a method to distribute your content through various channels to reach a larger target audience that boosts brand reputation, triggers sales, and brings in an influx of readers.

Content Marketing Trends, And What Works

• Increased Emphasis on Personalization: With advancements in data analytics and AI, brands now have the opportunity to create hyper-targeted content that resonates with specific segments of their audience, leading to higher engagement and conversion rates.
• Video Dominance: Brands that effectively incorporate video into their content marketing strategy will be better positioned to capture the attention of their audience. Short-form videos, live streaming, and interactive video experiences are being increasingly used by brands.
• Authenticity: Consumers are increasingly valuing authenticity and transparency from brands. Content marketing has been all about reflecting real situations and practical values, with a focus on genuine storytelling, ethical practices, and open communication.
• User-Generated Content: B2C brands typically focus on triggering user-generated content to get conversations going, and a sense of community developing among its customers.
• Sustainability and Social Responsibility: Brands that integrate sustainability and social responsibility into their content marketing resonate well with environmentally and socially conscious consumers. Content could highlight eco-friendly practices, charitable initiatives, and ethical sourcing.

Great Content Wins – The 360 degree Approach

Content marketing should not be limited to just a single channel. Distributing content through diverse channels opens up new possibilities. That said, channeling your content doesn’t mean putting the same content on various platforms. Take Subway, for example.

Starting with the traditional way, SUBWAY ads on big and small hoardings with quirky texts and images are all over the place. This often drives hungry pedestrians to their nearest stores. 

The brand actively engages in all of its social media channels. The most important thing to be noticed:

• Includes quirky texts and images
• Content varies from country to country. For example, in India, it is more inclined towards Bollywood.
• Picks out trending memes.

Subway ensures its existence across channels, and alters campaigns relevant to audience and channel. Attractive visuals with a large focus on content appeal, allow for all its communication to become engaging and viral. 

To Put It Together…

Content Marketing can be in various forms including Blogs, Videos, Images, Ebooks, Podcasts, Case Studies, Magazines, Newsletters, White Papers and Presentations. The next decade will likely see content marketing becoming even more personalized, technologically advanced, and focused on meaningful interactions. Brands that adapt to these trends and create value-driven, user-centric content are likely to have a positive impact on their brand’s reputation, customer engagement, and overall success.

Content marketing with proper content strategy is like oxygen for your brand. Quello can help you identify the right strategy to take your content marketing efforts in the right direction, so that your brand reaches and appeals to the intended target audience. Start a conversation with us at Hello@Quello.com today!