Is content marketing really working? Advice and insight from #ClickZChat

We talk a lot about content. How to make it, what makes it work, how to measure it’s effects, if there’s too much of it and more. The fact that we’re a good few years into the content marketing revolution but we’re still having these conversations is telling in itself.

Despite many, many assertions to the contrary, a number of people and organisations simply do not believe that content works.

We took to Twitter to find out why this myth persisted, and what we could do about it in this week’s #ClickZChat.

As always, we asked three questions in one hour. Here’s the insight and advice from our witter followers:

As always – one hour, three questions. Please use A1, A2 or A3 and the #ClickZChat hashtag in your answer. pic.twitter.com/gyP1R3aUHc

— ClickZ (@ClickZ) May 18, 2016

Q1: Do you think the C-Suite *really* believe in the value of content marketing Why or why not?

Q1: Do you think the C-Suite *really* believe in the value of #contentmarketing? Why or why not? #ClickZChat pic.twitter.com/Se6P9ZlkFb

— ClickZ (@ClickZ) May 18, 2016

Many felt that we were still relatively early in the content marketing adoption cycle, and that this view would change given time (and proof of data)

@sewatch industry recognition (and investment) will come as the quality of brand-inspired content rises #ClickZChat

— DigitasLBi U.S. (@Digitas) May 18, 2016

However, when it came to companies already doing it, metrics were often a sticking point.

Q1: I think a lot of orgs struggle to recognise value, because for all the talk, we’re still looking for one-step conversion #ClickZChat

— Matt Owen (@lexx2099) May 18, 2016

Last-click conversion was still being used in many cases, which made it harder to show genuine dollar value

A1) Content is only king if its got ROI to back up the talk. Managers see value in content, but need a$$urance. #ClickZChat @sewatch @ClickZ

— Chicago Style SEO (@chicagostyleseo) May 18, 2016

A1: Ultimately the c-suite only care about money. The cash upshot needs to be made clear to them. #ClickZChat pic.twitter.com/AWfpA7Hn8j

— Andrew Warren-Payne (@agwp) May 18, 2016

It is worth mentioning that there are plenty of trackable numbers out there, some of which may not fall under the traditional ‘marketing’ banner. Search was a popular measure of success

A1: I would have thought the value of content is self-evident, esp when it comes to SEO. But I’m not a C-suite manager, so… #ClickZChat

— Bex Sentance (@rainbowbex) May 18, 2016

@sewatch The best thing they could do is show them the benefits of doing it, but it’s really hard to make someone understand #ClickZChat

— Jonathan Nuñez (@JohnNunez2905) May 18, 2016

And ultimately we may just need a little faith and patience. Not something we all have the luxury of unfortunately

do #contentmarketing for helping the customers , money will follow you later. have patience #ClickZChat https://t.co/zLAmWtStyL

— bhola prasad (@b_prasad26) May 18, 2016

So, how are marketers measuring ROI from content? Next up, we asked or followers for personal tips and examples…

Q2 How do YOU measure ROI from Content Marketing?

Q2: How do YOU measure ROI from Content Marketing? #ClickZChat Tools, metrics and tips please! pic.twitter.com/hsjbfRex9m

— Search Engine Watch (@sewatch) May 18, 2016

Starting with the basics. Having analytics in place, but also tracking human responses to content:

A2) #GoogleAnalytics ofc but also peep #socialmedia engagement. Whats the point of quality content w/o the 👀 ? #ClickZChat @sewatch @ClickZ

— Chicago Style SEO (@chicagostyleseo) May 18, 2016

It’s also important to have clear goals to begin with. Success looks very different from company to company

@sewatch It really depends on what you want to achieve with your content, do you want more SM followers? email subscribers? #ClickZChat

— Jonathan Nuñez (@JohnNunez2905) May 18, 2016

Raj mentioned that simple actions could lead to larger results. It’s important to consider which action you are driving, and at what stage it sits in your sales funnel

A2. If it’s content downloads or webinar registrations, use hubspot landing pgs & tie to salesforce crm #ClickZChat https://t.co/AcdD6TEoHT

— Raj Nijjer (@rajnijjer) May 18, 2016

With this in mind, it’s important to remember that it may not have to make ANY money. Content could reduce paid media costs, or work as a lead generation machine that does not convert directly

A2: For B2B, it’s a cost per lead thing unless you have data that ties all the way to sale. #ClickZchat pic.twitter.com/SkkIXJhpEZ

— Andrew Warren-Payne (@agwp) May 18, 2016

Q3: Which roles would you have as part of your content marketing dream team?

Q3 Our final question today – which roles would you have as part of your content marketing dream team? #ClickZChat pic.twitter.com/2p1SVxtfvi

— ClickZ (@ClickZ) May 18, 2016

Initially, the focus was very much on creation, with lots of votes for key roles like designers, writers and editors:

@sewatch A3 : Copywriter(s), editor(s), design studio #ClickZChat

— John Watton (@jwatton) May 18, 2016

As mentioned earlier though, once you have created something, you need to have it seen by the right people

Q3 Titles differ, but need writing skills, design, and a distribution supercharger (Growth hacker, social manager etc) #ClickZChat

— Matt Owen (@lexx2099) May 18, 2016

it’s also worth pointing out that editorial and creative should have a strategic structure, rather than just concentrating on standalone pieces of content

A3. A kick-ass Editorial/Journalist skillset with ability to tell stories for prospects and customers #ClickZChat https://t.co/VlfbqbEgsf

— Raj Nijjer (@rajnijjer) May 18, 2016

A3. Depends on the org.
Definitely get the internal team involved with thought leadership content.
Analytics team to measure.#ClickZChat

— Jason Stockwell (@jj_stockwell) May 18, 2016

And needs to know the brand and the audience intimately

@ClickZ A3: Not a role, but I think wit is really underrated. A funny voice is something brands w the best content tend to have in common.

— Mike O’Brien (@MikeO13rien) May 18, 2016

And we received this remarkably thorough answer from Chris Lake which highlights the crossover between roles very nicely:

A3 I know @lakey from @empiricalproof has previously mapped out his content dream team #ClickZChat pic.twitter.com/r4R8wiUWsf

— Andrew Warren-Payne (@agwp) May 18, 2016

Overall it seems that marketers are convinced by the ability of content to go beyond push marketing and create measures like engagement which are more valuable over time, but currently many of us are lagging when it comes to proper planning and measurement techniques. Hopefully the continuing advance of digital transformation will see this change for the better.

If you’d like to know more about content marketing, check out this useful Content Marketing Strategy Documentation Map.

Thanks as always for all your fantastic answers. Join us over on twitter every Wednesday for the next #ClickZChat

Here’s a new content marketing strategy documentation map