Success with content: CMA Director Clare Hill talks about how to make content marketing a winner

One-way advertising has had its day. In 2014, brands can no longer rely on this type of marketing to sell their products or find customers for their services. Content marketing is the new buzzword in marketing and communication – and for good reasons. CMA Director Clare Hill explains how you can employ content marketing successfully.

We’re living in a world of information overload, in which we happily flick from one piece of information to the next. Traditional advertising is no longer the most successful way to get your message across. This way of communicating with the target audience is rather static and its effect is often short-lived. Traditional advertising is still useful, but brands are starting to realise that the key to long-term customer relationships lies elsewhere, in quality content that captivates customers. And that’s exactly where content marketing comes in. To put the value of content marketing in the spotlight, Pieter Vereertbrugghen and Frederik Hautain visited the new offices of the Content Marketing Association (CMA) in London for an interview with its director Clare Hill. The CMA is the UK’s industry body for advertising and content marketing agencies.

Content marketing is a fairly new term in the world of marketing, and many people do not understand it very well yet. What definition does the CMA use?
To us, content marketing refers to the creation of quality editorial branded content in all media channels and on all media platforms. The objective is clear: long-term customer relationships, consumer appreciation and measurable success for brands.
Content marketing is not just about the creation and publication of content for a brand. It is more than that: content marketing guarantees that the target audience reads or sees the content and stays loyal to the brand in question.
 
But the main focus is still on the creation of quality content?
Absolutely. Fantastic content has always been at the heart of successful campaigns and it should still be the foundation of every new campaign. Of course, you also need an efficient strategy for a clearly defined target group.
However, you can only utilise the full potential of content marketing with content that invites the customer to your brand universe. This is in stark contrast with the more intrusive marketing tactics of traditional advertising. With quality content, you can hold your audience’s attention for much longer.
Content agencies play a crucial role in terms of brand support in the creation of effective content for several channels – print, video, internet, social media and so on.
 
How important is a multi-channel strategy for content marketing?
Good content will work in any channel, but you achieve the most powerful effect if you spread your efforts across several channels and platforms. Today’s customers are active in various channels, and brands must be present where their target groups are. This does not mean that you have to have a presence in every channel. If your target group is not active on LinkedIn, then being there in any substantial way will achieve very little.
My key message? In a successful content marketing strategy, the customer comes first. Make sure you are wherever your target group is, regardless of the combination of print, internet, mobile and social media this involves. Provide mutual links and synergy between your channels. This will strengthen your brand message enormously.
 
So brand loyalty is an important measure for the success of a particular content marketing initiative?
Brand loyalty is more than ‘important’ – it is the key factor. If your content fails to sink in with your audience, it has missed its target. As I said before: the purpose of content marketing is to develop long-term customer relationships. Consumers have to find something – or better still, a whole range of things – in your content that meets their wishes and needs. That is the only way to draw their attention and make them come back for more.
The loyalty factor is also vital because content marketing does not focus on immediate sales. What it does focus on is the creation of meaningful and valuable content to inspire confidence, which in turn may encourage or contribute to sales.
 
Why would companies invest in content marketing if it has no immediate effect on their sales?
Because crude sales tactics are no longer welcome. Brands focusing solely on their own benefit have an old-fashioned, cold and inaccessible image. That is not what you want for your company. Content marketing adds brand personality and character. It turns a logo or image without a face into a living, breathing team of well-informed, friendly experts. Investments in content marketing do not just make your company accessible, they also make it fun to do business with. If you succeed in making the customers in your target group brand ambassadors, then the sky’s the limit.
 
What do the statistics say? Does content marketing work?
Many studies and our regular CMA research have shown that content marketing does work, but the most convincing proof is the fact that more and more brands are dedicating a major part of their marketing budgets to content marketing.
In the UK, more than 30 per cent of marketing budgets go to content marketing – and this percentage keeps going up. That is huge.
Measurability is now greater than ever, which is a positive evolution. There are a number of established methods to measure the effectiveness of all forms of content: apps, video, websites, infographics, customer magazines and so on.
The importance of measurement cannot be stressed enough. You need to know if your content marketing is working. Only then can you keep readjusting your process to the expectations of your target audience.

This article was originally published in Custo Magazine.