Measuring Success in Content Development

Create link worthy content via content marketing

Measuring Success in Content Development

Prospective clients often tell us that their previous or existing SEO agency is producing X pieces of content for them on a monthly basis.

My follow-up question is always “How is that working out for you?”

Many clients respond with “What do you mean?”

Content and Goals

In many cases, content developed for “SEO” reasons is not tied into the goals of the website or business. This content is produced to rank well. If anybody ever reads the content or responds to the page’s call for action—these are considered bonuses and not expectations.

When a client asks us to develop content for them I ask them two questions:

What is the goal of this content?

The three most common content objectives are to increase leads, to increase sales, and to build awareness. Occasionally the client desires content that is not product-related. For instance, some clients require a FAQ page, covering the most commonly asked questions. In this case, the goal might be to decrease the number of support phone calls over time.

How will content success be measured? By rankings?
Typically, increasing rankings is not a goal of content creation because SEO agencies often develop content targeting a very specific long-tail keyword that barely anyone searches. Is ranking #1 for an obscure keyword really the goal of content development? In most cases, the answer is no.

By leads or sales?

Sometimes a client will need content developed around a very specific product or service, where the search volume is low, but the buyer intent is really high. In this case, the goal for that piece of content is to generate leads or sales. It is not to rank highly because ranking highly without the subsequent sale doesn’t help the client reach their business objectives.

How Are You Measuring Success?

When your SEO agency creates content for your website, how are you measuring its success and impact on your business goals and objectives? Are your content goals directly linked to your larger objectives? If not, let us help! Contact us to learn more about our content marketing services.
If you’re looking for a content marketing agency that can help you achieve your business goals, contact Braveheart Digital Marketing today. We’ll be happy to discuss your content needs and provide a content strategy that aligns with your overall business goals.
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CMO’s Unhappy With Content Marketing Efforts

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CMO’s Unhappy With Content Marketing Efforts

With seventy percent of B2B marketers creating more content than they did last year, you would think that their bosses would be happy with their content marketing results.

But more is not always better and that appears to be the case according to a recent survey by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council and NetLine Corporation. The survey found that 90 percent of CMOs said they have a content strategy, but only 2 percent consider their existing approach to demand generation highly effective

The challenge for many CMOs, and marketers in general, is producing content that translates into business results. How can they do that? By following these three strategies.

Content Amplification

Only 12 percent of marketers believe they have a content marketing strategy and amplification to target the right audiences with relevant and persuasive content. They are also not using multiple distribution and syndication channels for maximum reach, impact and return.

“Generating demand and ensuring the consistent flow of high-quality, actionable leads is paramount to the success of today’s business-to-business marketer." “Sales enablement and pipeline performance remain key mandates as organizations look to fine-tune their content marketing practices to be high-performance growth engines.”
Donovan Neale-May
Executive Director of the CMO Council.

Customized Content

Seventy five percent of marketers measure the success of their content marketing efforts by the number of downloads or registrations they get.

But often those goals are not met due to:

  • Not developing customized content for target audiences (48 percent of respondents)
  • Not allocating sufficient budget to create engaging and authoritative content (48 percent)
  • Not producing content that is relevant or meaningful to different audiences (44 percent)
  • Not reaching the right decision makers across the organization (43 percent)
  • List ItemNot leveraging the right distribution channels and syndication opportunities to maximize reach (39 percent)

As Robert Alvin, CEO and Founder of NetLine Corporation put it:

“The quantity and quality of audience-appropriate content directly correlates to the number of leads that will end up in the sales pipeline. “Content demand generation programs start with the asset but must ensure proper consumption. Syndication and distribution to target audience groups with measurable results is indispensable for a successful content strategy.”
Robert Alvin
CEO and Founder of NetLine Corporation
If you’re looking for a content marketing agency that can help you achieve your business goals, contact Braveheart Digital Marketing today. We’ll be happy to discuss your content needs and provide a content strategy that aligns with your overall business goals.
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Only Twenty-Three Percent of B2C Marketers Are Successful at Tracking Content Marketing ROI

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Only Twenty-Three Percent of B2C Marketers Are Successful at Tracking Content Marketing ROI

A new study from the Content Marketing Institute/MarketingProf called B2C Content Marketing 2015: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends—North America, sponsored by EnVeritas Group, shows that only 23% of B2C marketers are successful at tracking the ROI of their content marketing efforts.

Percentage of B2C Marketers Who Have a Content Marketing Strategy

What Are Successful Marketers Tracking?

The survey showed that the top metric that B2C marketers use to measure the ROI of their content marketing efforts is website traffic. Regardless of company size or effectiveness and whether or not the company has a documented strategy or not, measuring content’s ROI by tracking traffic proves most successful.

Metrics for B2C Content Marketing Success

Fewer than 30% of B2C marketers said that they use the following metrics to measure ROI: Customer Renewal Rates (26%), Inbound Links (23%), Benchmark Lift of Company Awareness (23%), Benchmark Lift of Product/Service Awareness (21%), Sales Lead Quality (16%), Cost Savings(15%), and Sales Lead Quantity (15%).

What Percentage of Marketers Have a Content Marketing Strategy?

While study after study shows that marketers will invest more money in content marketing in 2015, only 27% of B2C marketers have written their strategy down, meaning that the majority of marketers do not document their strategies (as illustrated in the bar graph below).

The 50% of B2C marketers who say that their agreement regarding their content marketing strategy is expressed verbally are less likely to track ROI successfully than those B2C marketers who process and document their strategies. Of the B2C marketers with a documented content marketing strategy, 43% say they are successful at tracking ROI (compared with the 23% cited for the total sample).

How Is Content Distributed?

Despite all the negative press in 2014 about the decrease in organic reach on Facebook, Facebook remains the primary channel for content distribution by B2C marketers.

B2C Content Marketing Social Media Platform Usage
B2C marketers are now using an average of seven social media platforms to distribute content as opposed to last year when the average was six. All social media platforms have experienced some level of increase this year (except for LinkedIn, which has stayed the same). The biggest increase this year has been with Instagram (up 17 points) followed by Google+ (up 13 percentage points).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the data regarding B2C Marketers and their content marketing strategies demonstrate that successful B2C Marketers:
  • Measure the ROI of their content marketing efforts by tracking website traffic.
  • Iterate their content marketing strategy in writing.
  • Use social media platforms to the advantage of their strategy.
If you’re looking for a content marketing agency that can help you achieve your business goals, contact Braveheart Digital Marketing today. We’ll be happy to discuss your content needs and provide a content strategy that aligns with your overall business goals.
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