Investment in content marketing – in particular outsourcing to content marketing agencies – is on the up.
According to new research from the Custom Content Council, investment in content marketing has risen 13 per cent in the past two years, as more brands award it a significant slice of their marketing budget.
The Spending Study: A Look at How Corporate America Invests in Branded Content for 2012 found 79 per cent of companies are now choosing to shift towards the use of branded content either moderately or aggressively.
Many brands were found to be investing in external expertise, with 56 per cent of those polled saying they outsource work to a content marketing agency.
The research also revealed the integrated, multi-channel approach brands are now taking to content marketing, which is of particular value for smaller businesses operating with restricted resources and budgets.
It found around three-quarters of brands initially create content for print and then repurpose it for use on their website and on social media.
Using the content your business already owns
All businesses already create content in some form or another, whether they are aware of it or not. By repurposing this content, they can take advantage of the expertise that already exists in their company.
For example, the basics of a sales pitch can be turned into static web content to demonstrate the benefits of your company or logs from the customer service team can be utilised to create online FAQs that answer customer queries and drive traffic to your site.
If your CEO gives a speech at a conference, turn it into a blog demonstrating thought leadership, or use customer reports as the basis of online case studies.
Regularly publishing authoritative, relevant and interesting content, backed by a sound content strategy, will increase a business's visibility in search and social media, and increase brand awareness and engagement.
Learn more about the benefits in our infographic the Anatomy of Content Marketing
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