Jerod Morris says, “Each new year seems to bring with it a new buzz term or two describing a concept that will change how we reach an audience, or how we build and grow a business. Some of these buzz terms pan out and become legitimate, long-term parts of the lexicon because they work and prove important. Others flash then fade like the pet rock. So the question now as we look ahead to 2015 is what buzz concept should you be paying attention to? Because if there is a concept that is starting to pick up steam, and will prove worthy, you’re going to want to get in on it at the ground floor”. Adaptive... [...]

Ayaz Nanji says, “B2B buyers consider short, text-based content most useful at the beginning of the sales cycle, and time-intensive content types (videos, detailed guides, etc.) most useful right before making a decision, according to a recent report from Eccolo Media. The report was based on data from a survey of 100 plus people at B2B companies who are either responsible for buying decisions (67% of respondents) or influence buying decisions (33%). Respondents came from a mix company sizes (34% enterprises; 36% mid-market; 29% small businesses) and had a range of titles (24% C-level executives;... [...]

Joe Pulizzi says, “For the seventh consecutive year, I’m proud to announce our annual eBook of content marketing predictions (you can also view our forecasts for 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012,2013 and 2014). Special thanks to our friends at Marketo for making this year’s eBook possible. My favorite part about these predictions is that I’m usually wrong (as you know). Despite this, I don’t mind going out on a limb again this year.  For the record, here are my (soon-to-be-failed) predictions for 2015: We will see a surge in print magazines from brands in 2015. As most brands continue... [...]

Brian Clark says, “The “what” and “why” phases of the content marketing revolution are over. To effectively gain and maintain your competitive advantage, you need a clear and concise strategy with the exact tactics to effectively execute. More than that, you need the best talent you can get. You’re tasked with finding and assessing the right strategic partners, content production pros, and technical resources to optimize the audience experience that builds your business. Enter Authority Rainmaker. Happening again this year in Denver, Colorado, it’s live content marketing training... [...]

Jean Spencer says, “We just hired our first full-time PR person at Kapost. His name is Dan. When we were hiring for the position, I remember cautiously warning each candidate we interviewed, “We’ve never really had an ‘official PR person’ on the team. Historically, it’s been our philosophy to avoid traditional marketing tactics.” Our company is a firm believer in pure content marketing over traditional marketing. We always lumped “PR” in the “traditional marketing” bucket, so this hire broke our unadulterated code of content marketing ethics and forced us to answer this... [...]

Graham Charlton says, “As 2014 comes to a close, we asked a series of marketers for their thoughts on where content marketing is going and what brands and publishers have been doing particularly well this year.  What do you see as the key trends for content marketing in 2014? James Carson, Director at Digital Factoid: More and better video is being produced by brands all the time. With Facebook’s newsfeed and shorter formats, it’s easier than ever to get video seen. Indeed it’s hard for me to go to the Facebook newsfeed on my mobile and not watch a video. I can only see this trend get... [...]

Arnie Kuenn says, “As content marketing involves influencing customer purchase decisions through content creation and distribution, most marketers understand the necessity for compelling content. However, many often forget about the impact SEO can have on content marketing success. In addition to publishing high-quality, helpful content, your content and website must be well optimized in order to be found by search engines, and more importantly, your audience. Unfortunately, with the amount of misinformation about SEO published online, marketers make many SEO mistakes without even realizing... [...]

Adam Lundquist says, “Though pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and content marketing appear to be marketing islands unto themselves, many smart marketers use PPC to enhance their content marketing efforts. Both tactics are useful on their own, but when you combine them you create a powerful marketing double-team that allows you to use the reach and targeting benefits of PPC while harnessing the trust-building and thought leadership aspects of content marketing. This article will show you three ways you can use PPC to enhance your content marketing no matter your audience. 1. Use display advertising... [...]

Erin Hogg says, “Sherpas are renowned for their skills in mountaineering — ascending mountains and conquering the toughest conditions in the world. Sherpa Software (no relation to MarketingSherpa) faced a mountainous challenge in content production for lead generation. Leveraging blog microsites to display their content across multiple sites, the team received a wakeup call when Google changed its algorithm. Overnight, a strategy that was working was no longer viable. Learn how the team conquered this challenge by pivoting and restarting an inbound marketing effort, bringing all content back... [...]

Richard Baxter says, “As content marketing evolves, the list of media you could choose to communicate your message expands. So does the list of technologies at your disposal. But without a process, a project plan and a tried and tested approach, you might struggle to gain any traction at all. In this post, based on my MozCon 2014 presentation, I’d like to share the high level approach we take while developing content for our clients, and the lessons we’ve learned from initial research to final delivery. Hopefully there are some takeaways for you to enhance your own approach or... [...]