{"id":144,"date":"2015-02-08T12:46:32","date_gmt":"2015-02-08T12:46:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staunstrup.se\/en\/?p=144"},"modified":"2015-02-08T12:46:32","modified_gmt":"2015-02-08T12:46:32","slug":"11-myths-content-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staunstrup.se\/en\/content-marketing\/11-myths-content-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"11 myths about content marketing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Content marketing could be the best way to reach your target audience and become a trusted advisor. But there are a lot of myths and incorrect ideas surrounding content marketing. Here are 11 myths that you should ignore, and some simple truths to replace them with.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Myths\"<\/a>1. Content marketing equals blogging<\/h3>\n

Content marketing is a lot more than having a blog. Fundamentally it\u2019s about creating relevant content for your target audience, How you distribute it depends on where you can interact with them.Relevant content can be a customer case, a list of tips and tricks, a demo video, and lots of other things. And you can use a variety of formats: text, images, video, sound or graphics.<\/p>\n

2. It’s digital only<\/h3>\n

Content marketing is a way of marketing, not a channel. It can involve magazines, websites, presentations and a whole lot more. The key question is in which channels you can interact with your target audience. And how you can get in early in the buyer\u2019s journey. Read more about how digital and analog content can work together<\/a><\/p>\n

3. You need a lot of content<\/h3>\n

Content marketing is about quality, not quantity. The danger of creating too much content is that it becomes irrelevant and uninteresting, as well as expensive. And that does more harm than good. Make sure your content really helps your target audience solve problem and realize opportunities. That way the quantity doesn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n

4. It’s just a fad<\/h3>\n

Content marketing has been around for a long time. The reason why it\u2019s used more nowadays is because it provides good results. So don\u2019t ignore it, or assume that it will disappear. Try to find ways you can make use of it instead.<\/p>\n

5. It can be automated<\/h3>\n

There are many tools out there that can help you get the right content to the right recipient, to keep track of leads and lots of other things, But they\u2019re only tools. You can never do content marketing on autopilot. To get the best results you need to work with it all the time; adapting, adjusting and developing.<\/p>\n

6. It’s cheap<\/h3>\n

Content marketing costs a lot less than many of the traditional marketing ways. But creating great content and making sure you distribute it properly costs money. Use content marketing to get better results, not to save on your budget.<\/p>\n

7. Creating content is enough<\/h3>\n

Creating great content is important. Making sure it gets to your target audience is just as important. And it has to be done efficiently and for a reasonable cost. This means that you have to work really hard on packaging and repackaging your content, and distributing it in the right channels \u2013 which can be anything from magazines to social media.<\/p>\n

8. It only works for “sexy” products or companies<\/h3>\n

Content marketing isn\u2019t just for companies like Red Bull or Coca Cola \u2013 well-known brands with exciting products. No matter what business you’re in you have a target audience that wants relevant, useful content. Content marketing is about making sure they get that, so you can turn them into customers.<\/p>\n

9. It should be a separate activity<\/h3>\n

Content marketing isn\u2019t something you should do separately from your marketing, PR activities or communication projects. You get better results if you work with consistent messages in owned media (your own channels), paid media (advertising) and earned media (PR). Read more about converged media here<\/a><\/p>\n

10. It’s just for creating awareness or building relationships<\/h3>\n

Content marketing isn\u2019t limited to top-of-the-funnel activities or vague efforts at creating awareness. If you chart the buyer\u2019s journey of your target audience you can create and distribute content that is relevant to them every step of the way. All the way to a purchase in some cases.<\/p>\n

11. You should just dive into it<\/h3>\n

In order to succeed with your content marketing you need a strategy. It should define who your target audience is, your goals, messaging, channels, what to measure etc. And what resources you have. Otherwise you might find yourself without content, without an editorial calender or a plan for distribution. Content marketing is a marathon, not a sprint, and you want consistency in quality and effort.<\/p>\n

A final word<\/h3>\n

I hope this has cleared up what content marketing is and what it isn’t. I believe there are great benefits to using it – to help you reach your target audience early on in their buyer\u2019s journey, to gain their trust, and to help them navigate to a purchase.<\/p>\n

Good luck with your content marketing!<\/p>\n

If you prefer another format, I’ve put together a presentation:<\/p>\n