Over the years, the marketing landscape has changed. Thanks to changes in technology and consumer mind-sets, more and more companies are moving away from outbound forms of marketing (such as billboards, print ads, and TV commercials), and finally taking content marketing more seriously. While companies have been developing content for decades, the rising need for branded, high-quality content such as blogs, social media posts, podcasts, and more is undeniable – but companies are wondering how to keep up.
Enter the role of the content marketing strategist.
As companies begin to strategise how to best produce content that meets the needs of their “always on” target audience, companies turn to content marketing strategists, a new role that has been on the rise in the last couple of years. Content marketing strategists help businesses not only produce great content, but also come up with meaningful strategies on how to gain the most out of that content, and make sure it’s read by the right audience.
While content marketing strategists have been around for a while, current marketing trends show that 2022 may be the year of the content marketing strategist. Why? Here are a few reasons:
CHANGES IN BUYING BEHAVIOUR
For years, marketers simply focused on buyer behaviour alone. However, over the last couple of years, the behaviour of buyers has changed, and a brand’s marketing strategy has to change with it. Today’s consumers are “always on” and tend to use multiple devices throughout the purchasing process – sometimes using two at the same time! This means that marketers now need to be available on all different platforms, not knowing which step in the buying cycle a consumer might be in when they see their marketing. To do this, a more holistic view of a buyer’s behaviour has to come into play, including social, psychological and emotional factors.
Content marketing make both of these new marketing tasks achievable. That’s because content enables marketers a chance at resonating directly with the customers they’re trying to reach; speaking to them on a customer’s terms and providing value that goes beyond just the basic customer buying cycle.
However, achieving this through content isn’t as simple as it may sound, which is why content marketing strategists are becoming more vital in today’s marketing teams. A content marketing strategist helps brands take ownership of their content, establishing editorial standards for the brand’s communication, and doing so with a substantiated idea of what the target audience wants. By doing this, branded content can easily fit directly into the consumer’s already established behaviour, and seamlessly integrating themselves into a consumer’s life – sometimes without them even realising it.
CREATING IS NOT THE SAME AS STRATEGISING
As mentioned above, creating content that is successfully read by a target audience isn’t as easy as it sounds. In recent years, as the importance of content marketing has risen, many companies have made the mistake of thinking that creating content, without anyone guiding the strategy, equals a successful content marketing strategy. But what many of them find out is they either can’t keep up with the amount of content being produced, their content isn’t being read, or they’re attracting the wrong type of people to their website.
This is another reason why the need for a content marketing strategist is on the rise. Today, after floundering with unsuccessful content plans, companies are realising the necessity of hiring a content marketing strategist to guide their branded content into the right audiences. Content marketing needs to have a focus, and that focus is on a brand’s target audience. Content marketing strategists know how to do just that.
Content marketing strategists know how to create a content strategy that is aimed at weaving together an experience for the company’s target audience that makes for an enticing buyer’s journey. They’ll know what type of content a consumer wants to consume.
It is vital that content marketing has a focus, otherwise it can quickly get out of hand. And a company should put that focus on their target audience. A content marketing strategist will know how to produce a content marketing that focuses on the needs of the audience, producing content that they want to read, all while fulfilling the marketing goals of the company.
SMALL BUSINESSES GAIN FROM IT THE MOST
Marketing to your target market, and improving their buyer’s journey was once something only brands with large marketing budgets could achieve. But with content marketing, that’s not the case anymore.
If your small businesses is pre VC Investment , you won’t have the luxury of massive budgets to experiment and test different types of advertising, allowing for large amounts of money to be spent on ineffective advertising. Content marketing not only allows businesses to quickly test what works and what doesn’t work, it also drives brand awareness and increases leads with very little budget needed.
Small businesses can gain the most from investing their time and money into content marketing and hiring a content marketing strategist, compared to time and money spent on any other marketing service. A content marketing strategist will help a small business generate awareness, increase engagement and leads, while also building trust with new potential clients, helping more customers feel comfortable enough with the brand to make a purchase.
Quality content marketing can continue to drive customers to a brands website – no matter what size the brand – over and over again. And a content marketing strategist is a smart investment for any small budget looking to get the most out of their marketing budget.
Overall, it’s not news that content marketing is a successful tool for businesses these days. However, with companies finally getting on board with content and realising its much harder work than simply just creating content, the content marketing strategist is on the rise, providing great value to companies of all sizes. That’s why we foresee this year, 2022, as being the year of the Content Marketing Strategist as more and more companies discover the benefits of investing and hiring one to manage and steer their content marketing strategies in the right direction.
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