I was reading a blog from Joe Pulizzi on ContentMarketingInstitute.com and actually found this comment by Steve Faber the most interesting of the article. You can read the full blog post here. But basically Pulizzi talks about how brands are getting bombarded with all these different companies coming at them pitching their content marketing strategies, but how do they know which ones to choose. Faber left this great comment. During a time when everything feels immediate, videos seem to blow up over-night and companies wants to get a piece of it, Faber comes in with some realism, a good reminder that not everything happens in seconds and even those that seem too, have been at it for a long time. Long-term planning and goals are important, getting real customers that aren't just "likes" on facebook are important. Having true interactions with real people to build a solid customer-base that wants to share and "spread the word" is what content marketing is looking to achieve .
"One challenge we face with clients, especially those used to
"traditional" marketing, is the long term view content marketing
requires. Sure, you can get the occasional "one hit wonder", but brand
building through content requires long term consistency. Not that brand
building is the only reason to use CM, but it's often the outcome, no
matter the initial goal, if everything's hitting on all cylinders.
We focus on planning, an oft-neglected part of the process. Goal
setting, and a road map to achieve those goals is ignored by businesses
that have heard all about the content marketing magic bullet.
Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way, as all too many discover, much
to their chagrin.
It's funny that most organizations have no problems creating a
marketing plan, and in fact, do so. When it comes to making a
honest-to-goodness CM plan as part of that, well.... that's a whole
different ballgame. So many are using the "hope something sticks"
approach.
Thanks for highlighting the value inherent in using a CM plan. It's a
critical success step in the process. It's not a loss leader, and
agencies should treat it as such, although the lure of a long term
project is sometimes too attractive to ignore." -Steve Faber
