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According to a study by Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs only 38% of B2B companies think their content marketing is effective. The same study also states that only 35% of the companies have a documented content marketing strategy.
My guess is that some of these companies do not even know whether they are effective or not. They cannot say what “effective” really is in regard to content marketing without goals, metrics etc. It would certainly help with effectiveness of content marketing to have a strategy at hand.
Here are 9 essential elements any content marketing strategy should include....
Unlike Microsoft, Samsung, Adobe, cellular carriers, or Wal-Mart-sized corporations, Apple handles its PR and Communications strategies wholly in-house, mirroring its control over its hardware and software strategies. While Apple still works with external agency Media Arts Lab of TBWA on print, digital, and TV marketing efforts, it is actively reducing its reliance on that firm by boosting its in-house marketing resources.
According to sources, Apple is “aggressively” poaching select members of Media Arts Lab for its in-house team, but not undertaking a full-on corporate raid.Though Apple is a gigantic and ever-growing company, its PR and Communications group is surprisingly tiny. There are only around over 30 PR employees in Apple’s Cupertino offices, with another few dozen-some individuals scattered around the world to organize events, translate press releases, and either answer or dodge questions from journalists in every time zone.
The Cupertino-based office is a wing on the third floor of Apple’s Product Marketing building, 3 Infinite Loop. Framed posters of vintage Apple advertisements decorate the area, which otherwise consists of plain white hallways with offices on either side, and two small common areas....
An article Ragan’s PR Daily ran last week titled “Is the Traditional PR Pitch Dead?” flirted with the notion that it’s possible to practice PR without pitching media and bloggers. The author, Rachel Farrell, concluded (and I agree) that social media is a path to news, not a replacement for it, and that pitching thought leaders and who shape opinion is still a good idea.
The art of the pitch still matters. I’ll go a step further and say that the pitch has never been more important to PR than it is today....
As the demand intensifies to feed the hungry online beast, reporters have to work much faster and smarter. The companies and public relations professionals who adapt to the changing media landscape by offering more to journalists are more likely to earn news coverage. So more of what? What do reporters need these days, and how does it differ from a few years ago? Here are five tips for updating your pitch to media outlets. Let’s call it ADCAP...
...The first 90 seconds of the spot were fantastic. As a viewer, I learned some of the steps the nation’s leading beverage company is taking to provide us with healthier drinking options. It has more than 180 low- and no-calorie options, many of which have replaced higher-calorie offerings in school vending machines. It has created smaller, portion-controlled sizes as well as boldly stated the calorie count of each drink on its cans. It supports initiatives like the Boys & Girls Clubs that encourage kids and young adults to get active. These efforts have helped reduce the average calories per serving across the soda industry’s products in the United States by about 22 percent. That’s a fantastic story, if it stopped there. If Coca-Cola had admitted that overconsumption of its higher-calorie beverages has led to greater numbers of obese individuals while emphasizing its efforts to offer healthier beverage options, portion control and transparency in calorie counts, I’d applaud it (though would wonder why its message warranted a 90-second spot). But it didn’t admit the truth, and the ad didn’t stop there. At about the 90-second mark, Coca-Cola’s storytelling machine went off the rails. Instead of coming clean and admitting that it’s a source of the problem, it proclaimed that “all calories count, no matter where they come from.” The line was made intentionally vague because it implies something that is not true. While it’s true that all calories count, it’s untrue that they’re created equal, and that’s indisputable....
90 percent of in-house marketers say that content is important, but only 38 percent have a content marketing strategy. [Great reminder about measuring results for content marketing ~ Jeff]
NEW YORK, Nov. 16, 2012 — In the news release, Chart-Topping Songstress, Rihanna, Takes It All Off With New Scent, issued 16-Nov-2012 by Parlux Ltd. over PR Newswire, we are advised by the company that the first paragraph, first sentence, should read “...Nude by Rihanna, on Black Friday at Macy’s” rather than “...Nude by Rihanna, this November 2012” as originally issued inadvertently.
Good. Glad we cleared that up. Meanwhile, “chart-topping songstress”? I understand her ditties are the bee’s knees, penned by Tin Pan Alley’s finest. But is this 2012 or 1922? Let’s join Beavis and Butthead and read some more of the press release.... [PR sillies... ~ Jeff]
Social media can be used effectively to drive sales. Because it helps you distribute marketing messages further, faster, and cheaper than ever before. But most companies struggle, or don't see any return at all. The reason has nothing to do with how often you update Facebook. And everything to do with execution on one -- or all -- of these three tactics.... [Brad Smith shares excellent advice for socialmarketers ~ Jeff]
The role and value of content marketing has dramatically changed in just the past year. While many business owners are still trying to get their heads around an effective social media strategy; now they have to also think about becoming publishers and content marketers. Why? The digital media convergence of social, search and content. If social and search are peanut butter and jelly - content is the bread that makes the sandwich. The problem is, while most businesses and companies realize the importance of content marketing and are attempting to engage in it (recent studies suggest 80-90%) many don't understand it and are making critical mistakes that could undermine their efforts. Below, I've put together a list of 21 reasons why your content marketing strategy may be headed for trouble.... [Valuable tips to keepyour content strategy on track ~ Jeff]
This post is part of the Content Q&A Series, featuring interviews with top content strategists and bloggers about their work and insights about the industry. [This is a thoughtful interview with a content marketing leader - JD]
An excellent post by Annie Infinite which includes the following: ...There are five qualities, in step with brand personality, that seem to be common to every good social media engagement strategy that I’ve seen or executed:
1. Authenticity
2. Relevancy
3. Respectfulness
4. Integrity
5. Fervor (a lust to spend your life doing what you are doing)....
Chad Kaszer, director of social media at Sony, tells The Content Strategist how the company has used content to expand its social community. ...The one term that has survived the last decade is not “social” (it used to be call “consumer-generated media”), but “community.” Brands love the idea of a protective and loyal community, but the question is: how can a community form in a virtual space where the members may never actually meet? In my experience, the answer boils down to three commitments a brand must make in order to succeed: vision, consistency, and shared responsibility. If a company is unable or unwilling to express its unique perspective on the world, commit time to engage with those who share that perspective, or take responsibility for its part in making its vision a reality, then it is amassing a crowd of followers, not a community of loyalists.... [Valuable social media insight from SONY - JD]
In a recent study of 5,000 B2B and B2C businesses, HubSpot found that LinkedIn was 277% more effective for lead generation than Facebook and Twitter, with a whopping conversion rate of 2.74%. ...The following are five tools within the LinkedIn community that businesses aren’t using to their full advantage....
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Too often - and yet understandably - people outside of the PR profession ask what PR is all about. But explaining what it is does not mean that it answers the sometimes negative thinking behind the question in the first place. So here's a top 10 check list of What PR is Not.
Do you write a great business blog but struggle for readership? Have you heard of Search Engine Optimization but think it’s too complicated or too time-consuming?This article will dive into the SEO world and leave you still breathing on the far side. I’ll break down 6 easy-to-use SEO strategies you can take to drive blog traffic and increase your blog’s search rank...
Content Marketing has changed the way we do business. As CEOs strive to build brands that win; here are five reasons why content should be front and center.... Let’s not kid ourselves. Any marketer worth their weight in nickels know the importance of digital marketing and social media. But the hard reality is, one piece of the digital marketing and social media puzzle that is still left out is the power of content. We talk about how important it is to increase engagement on Twitter or how to go viral on reddit but rarely do we talk about the importance of content in everything we do. Creating content that an audience likes is hard, and it’s not something that can be done in the matter of minutes. It requires commitment and it requires an ongoing effort to deliver unique and compelling content. Executives around the globe still don’t get it. Many are still just trying to get their feet wet in the digital space and are allowing their businesses to be average instead of remarkable. Studies have shown that content needs to be the backbone of every digital strategy. And here are five reasons why...
Art galleries in the air, celebrity chef TV shows filmed in exotic locales, “destination wedding” social media contests– all illustrate the close creative bond between travel and PR. Fortunately, travel industry prospects have improved as consumers and clients move forward and the economy continues its slow recovery: travel experts and industry reports say 2013 is shaping up to be a good year....
The Top Internet Retailers On Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest And Google+ [INFOGRAPHIC]... Back in May we looked at a visual from Campalyst that presented a wealth of data on the top 250 internet retailers in social media – Facebook and Twitter led the way as the social networks of choice. Fast-forward to the present, and Facebook and Twitter are still numero uno amongst internet retailers, commanding a 97 percent and 96 percent presence respectively. YouTube maintains its third place, being used by 90 percent of respondents, while still wet-behind-the-ears Pinterest has leap-frogged Google+. Some 78 percent of the top internet retailers use Pinterest, ahead of Google+’s 73 percent, which is up 6 percentage points since May.... [Marketers will find these stats interesting ~ Jeff]
Storytelling is a really important way to connect with your audience – it is at the heart of families, communities and cultures around the world. Storytelling will help you develop emotional connections and build relationships. [Great storytelling tips from a screenwriter ~ Jeff]
Via Kathy Hansen
The CEO is not exactly tripping over themselves to integrate social media into your company's marketing plan. So, where does that leave you? You are the chief marketing officer at your company and you have to approach the big man or woman about trying something out. The goal, to get them to sign off on putting major time and effort into a social media campaign. Yes, the company is doing well overall, but you and others know it could be turning an even bigger return on investment. The sticking point, however, the CEO is not exactly tripping over themselves to integrate social media into your company’s marketing plan. So, where does that leave you?... [How to make the social media case ~ Jeff]
This weekend I saw a perfect example of a great piece of PR. Richard Herman has spent the weekend being interviewed by national newspapers, TV news channels and radio stations after he successfully charged £220 to a cold calling company for wasting his time. Why is that a great PR story? Because, as the Daily Mail pointed out quite blatantly in its story, Richard runs a company that sells call recording equipment. It was his experience doing this that gave him the knowledge to achieve his goal of exacting revenge on a company that kept calling his home phone when he had asked them to stop. [He won his cse in court and the court of public opinion ~ Jeff]
Major Airline SM Word Cloud via Brian Solis It amazes me that even in today's social media savvy business environment there are still big companies that fail to engage with their customers, particularly customers that are frustrated and unhappy. [Ignoring customer complaints, especially online, is no longer an option for savvy companies. The outcome positive or negative will impact your brand equity. This report should be required reading for marketers and reputation managers. - JD]
Stories bring brands to life, giving them a perspective and personality. But where are these stories told? Stories create conversation between brands and consumers through packaging, websites, e-newsletters, blogs, brochures, magazines, and social media channels like Facebook and Twitter. These vehicles give brands a voice and become a storytelling platform where conversation happens and relationships are nourished. [Good read for marketers and PR - JD]
it's evolution Well, you know We all want to change the world" - The Beatles, "Revolution" Is the Era of Social Media over? It's a hard question to answer. Plainly, though, no…far from it. It’s just begun. Which is why the Social Media Revolution is on it’s last legs....
Today’s web is an endless 24/7 cycle fed by content and social actions. In this cycle, brands are realizing that content is currency and social actions are the transactions in this marketplace for eyeballs and attention. To remain relevant, not only do brands need to produce more interesting, useful and more timely content, they need to adapt to a new “social publishing model” to best feed the social graph and this hungry cycle.
I’ve listed two ways below that our brand, Intel, is tackling this content and social publishing challenge....
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![Kyle Monson on Why Empathy Matters in Content Marketing [INTERVIEW] | Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight | Scoop.it](https://img.scoop.it/OgxPMDVcoO3iG08oCVINCzl72eJkfbmt4t8yenImKBVvK0kTmF0xjctABnaLJIm9)
![The Top Internet Retailers On Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest And Google+ [INFOGRAPHIC] - AllTwitter | Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight | Scoop.it](https://img.scoop.it/d3DGU5phLtDlIue1sCNZDDl72eJkfbmt4t8yenImKBVvK0kTmF0xjctABnaLJIm9)
I thought a higher percentage of companies would think their content marketing is actually effective. I found it interesting that making companies don't set up goals or objectives and ways to measure their marketing.