Marketers have been advised content will increasingly become the linchpin in their online success as pure SEO approaches don’t win top Google search results anymore. Results from the Content Marketing Institute’s 2014 B2B Trends report shows they have not only heard this message loud and clear, but are using it to advise their practices going into the next year. Around 73 percent plan to produce more content in the next year and 58 expect to increase their budgets to keep up.
In fact, 10 percent of B2Bs said they anticipate significantly increasing the amount of brand content they create and share online. However, 69 percent cite lack of time as a top challenge in online advertising and 55 percent say they struggle to produce enough content.
Around 73 percent of B2B marketers plan to produce more content in 2014, 58 expect to increase their budgets.
To resolve these issues, more enterprises outsource at least a portion of their content marketing efforts, the report detailed. Approximately 72 percent use a combination of in-house and outsourced teams to carry out their strategies. Companies developing better visual content marketing strategies are more likely to hire external professionals because videos and infographics are the formats most frequently outsourced, Brafton recently reported.
As content gains more prominence in the search engine marketing landscape, it’s likely more businesses will tap professionals outside of their organizations to lend the expertise, time and dedication necessary to execute sophisticated campaigns. Indicative of this movement, speakers at the recent SMX East Expo said it’s important for brands to look beyond Google when developing strategies for their brands.
Brafton covered the discussion, in which panelists said Google and organic search aren’t losing value as traffic drivers, but companies must still create sufficient pipelines of marketing collateral to protect their content ROI in an ever-changing industry.
