Content marketing - but well done, please!

Is this content or can it go? A recently published study by the media agency Havas took a close look at the content of the world's 1,500 leading brands. The result: 60 percent of the content is jumbled stuff - without any added value for the company or influence on the consumer. This is a remarkable result, because it casts doubt on the strategy of many marketers who are spending more and more of their time and budgets on content. Is this effort even worth it? And if so, how should companies proceed to achieve the greatest possible added value?

Content marketing, what's the point anyway?

In the B2B world in particular, the customer journey often takes months or even years rather than days. On the way from the first contact of a customer to the purchase intention, good content helps to increase the interest in the product and to keep it and its advantages in the mind of the potential buyer. A Statistics by Forrester Research shows that nearly 90 percent of B2B buying decisions are made before the first contact with a sales person. That's why it's vital for B2B companies to invest in relevant and useful content.

But how can we ensure that the content reaches the target group at all? The biggest problem is the flood of texts and images that inundates all channels. Mediocre content that companies distribute without a plan or strategy quickly gets lost in this mass. Only what stands out has an impact. Content can come up with a provocative thesis or be funny. Particularly instructive content is also in demand: a Study from LinkedIn showed that 42 percent of technology professionals, for example, are interested in content that educates them.

In any case, content must be perfectly tailored. If you proceed arbitrarily and neither offer the audience real added value nor keep an eye on specific corporate goals or KPIs, you can at best celebrate selective success - like the blind chicken that occasionally finds a grain of corn. However, such a haphazard approach does not make economic sense.

With strategy and data knowledge to success

Good content marketing has two prerequisites. First, it requires knowledge and strengths that have been in demand for centuries in content production - such as creativity and craftsmanship in writing. Second, however, it also involves systematic measurement of success and the targeted analysis of data. This is where the strategic dimension of the discipline begins. Only those who use the right technologies to gather all available information, take it into account when creating and distributing content, and continuously align their approach with the relevant KPIs can achieve the best possible impact. It is not the relevance of the brand, the power of the topic, or the genius of the copywriter, but the right strategy that usually determines success or failure in content marketing.

How exactly should companies proceed? Often, the crucial first step is to analyze keywords and content on social networks. In this way, it is possible to find out which topics or debates are currently receiving particularly high attention and who is influencing them significantly. This information forms the basis for a content pool that covers all the decisive facets of a topic. The next step is to distribute the content in a smart way. Messages and formats tailored to target audiences maximize impact - such as blogposts, infographics, Slideshare decks, or webinars. A/B testing helps fine-tune at this stage. In a next step, a large part of the media budget should flow into content that works particularly well. This increases the overall click-through and conversion rates. At LinkedIn, we see for ourselves every day that this strategy works: 73 percent of our qualified leads are generated via content. A third of these come from a large content pool.

Turning content into a sales tool

New marketing technologies make it easier than ever to target potential customers in such a way that they end up contacting the sales team themselves - eliminating the need for "cold calling." However, in order for such leads to become customers, the sales team must always be picture: What content is the company currently playing? How can these be optimally linked to in order to bring about a positive purchase decision? A strong link between content marketing and sales strategy is therefore indispensable.

When content marketing doesn't work, it's often due to a lack of strategic depth. A haphazard approach leads to haphazard content - or "muddled stuff," as the study cited at the beginning puts it. However, this does not change the crucial importance of content marketing. Instead of falling into doubt, marketing managers must ask themselves three questions: Is my content embedded in an overarching strategy? Am I exhausting all the technical possibilities to identify new topics or target audiences and tailor my content in the best possible way? Can I clearly state the objectives and KPIs of my content marketing activities? Only those who can answer "yes" to all these questions with a clear conscience have a chance of lasting success.

The author Alexandra Kolleth is a member of the Executive Board and Head of Marketing Solutions at LinkedIn Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In this role, she manages the German-speaking market. She is responsible for developing marketing opportunities via the LinkedIn business network for national and international customers in the region.