Marketers know they need to create digital content, but they still struggle to do so effectively. The “Inbound Marketing” report from Ascend2 and Research Underwriters revealed that despite widespread belief in the term, “Content is king,” 59 percent of B2Bs and 45 percent of B2Cs say creating and marketing brand content is a top pain point.
As challenging as it may be, companies will need to put the editorial pieces in place because content is only becoming more important for search marketing success.
As proof that marketers must master the art of content creation, Google’s Search Engineer Matt Cutts recently explained that quality – or the lack thereof – might be root cause of a site’s poor rankings. In a Webmaster Help Channel video, Cutts advised webmasters who are looking to take better positions in SERPs to assess how information can be improved to give visitors better experiences. Specifically, Google’s search crawlers are looking at the value and relevance of web content.
Content creation challenges
This seems simple enough, so what is it about content marketing that companies find difficult? The 2014 B2B and B2Cs Trends reports from the Content Marketing Institute offer some insights:
51% of B2Cs and 47% of B2Bs find it difficult to produce the kind of content that really engages readers.
- There’s not enough time in the day: 57 percent of B2Cs and 69 percent of B2Bs say time limitations get in the way of content marketing goals.
- There’s not enough bandwidth: 45 percent of B2Cs and 55 percent of B2Bs don’t have the resource to produce enough content.
- The content isn’t engaging: 51 percent of B2Cs and 47 percent of B2Bs find it difficult to produce the kind of content that really engages readers.
To overcome these stumbling blocks, many businesses choose to outsource their news and blog content. Professional writers and strategists immersed in the field understand readers’ expectations and have the expertise needed to consistently produce on-target articles.
Content marketing struggles
Creating the text on the page is just half the battle. The other 50 percent is integrating content for UX impact and sharing materials strategically across the web (strategic being the operative word).
Creating the text on the page is just half the battle. The other half is content integration.
In today’s landscape, marketers can’t count on a spray-and-pray method of distribution – this will leave their audiences feeling spammed and make it difficult to accurately measure results.
Content delivery must be planned with the same care as brands’ editorial calendars. That way, the right materials are hitting specific audiences at the best times to elicit engagement and drive results.
