Why the single biggest threat
tocontent marketing is content marketing.and how building a Great Content Brandwill help you survive the deluge.

Do the math.Content marketing hastaken
off.

Nine out of ten B2Bmarketers
will beproducing much morecontent next year thanthey did this year. The tenth is clueless and probably won’t be bothering anyone anyway

Most of these will produceeven
more content the yearafter that.

. . . .This creates
some real problems.

The first is a contentmarketing
skills gap.B2B marketing departmentsneed to build out theirinternal content teams.

SEO agencies are becomingcontent marketing
shops.

Social media agencieshave discovered content
asthe new social lubricant.

Every B2B marketing agency iscramming
the word ‘content’into everything they do. Making us old-timers go all snippy

CopywritingAgencies Videoare now productioncontent farms.
companies Contract are now publishers “rich content are rebranding creators.” themselves as content marketing experts. Even their UK trade group is now called the Content Marketing Association — a smart play

All of them needpeople and
all of themare already strugglingto find the right talent: People who ‘get’ content, understand context and can actually produce things that audiences want to consume.

Again:Do the math.

Lots and lots and lots
More Content. From more and more sources.From a pool of inexperienced contentcreators that are stretched to the limit. There’s only one conclusion:

We’re all about to be
buried in

‘Me-too’ blog posts.Three-sentence ideas pumped
up into 36-page eBooks. Video interviews that mightas well be subtitled, ‘Yadda-yadda-yadda.’Microsites full of the obvious disguisedas the profound.

This doesn’t just suckbecause we’re
allgoing to be targetedby all this drek. It sucks because the people we’re marketing to will start to raise their barriers again.

After all,a main sourceof the
power ofcontent marketingis that it getsprospects to lowertheir Marketing Long enough,Defense Systems we hope, to get their attention andfor a few minutes. earn their custom.

But when the Content Effluent
Deluge begins (many would say it already has), people will start to invoke those Marketing Defense Systems again. Content t ten t And they’ll Con ten nt Con Content Content Co nte be right to nt Content nteContent Content Content Content Content Content Content Content do so. Co Content Content Content Content ontent ContentContent Content Content Content Content Con Content Content Content tent Content Content Content Co Content Content Con Con nt Co tent en nt tent t en t Con tent

If you’re in the business
of the kind that really helps people do their jobs; the kind that entertains as well as informs; the kind that blows people’s socks off, then sells them slippers; you’re increasingly going to beup against the other kind of content. The Shite

The weak content will look
from the outside a whole lotTo make like the good stuff.things worse, Snappy titles. Come-hither subtitles. Friendly, open design. It’s only when people actually eat the stuff that they’ll discover just how bad it is.

And that will make them
much morereluctant to trust the next content thatcomes along. Your Content

It’s inevitable.Less traffic.Fewer page views.Fewer
opens, click-throughs, downloads, form fills.Fewer leads.Less revenue. Ouch.

But we won’t all suffer
this fate.Some of us will be protected against it.

Some of us will findour
traffic and openrates and downloadsand revenues actuallyincreasing – againstthe market trend. Who willthese people be?What makes them sodamn special?

The winners in the Post-Deluge
erawill be the companies thatbuild something precious.

The winners will be those
who build Great Content Brands

Great. Content. Brands.‘Great’ ‘Content’ ‘Brands’
because you because this is because a brand aim high and hit different from is a promise. the target. your product or And a strong service brands. brand is built on this is about promises upheld. being known for producing top-notch content.

A Great Content Brandis a
brand that’s famous forproducing intelligent, usefuland entertaining content that’salways worth consuming.

‘Well-known’ is not enough. Go
for famous (in your market). A Great Content Brand Never condescending or over-simplified. is a brand that’s famous for Utility is the essence of content marketing. producing intelligent, useful Make yourself useful.This doesn’tmean a laugh and entertaining content that’s always worth consuming.riot. It meansconfident,clear and easyto read witha bit of attitudeand energy. If you fail once, Even if each piece you damage the brand. doesn’t nail their exact info-needs, they’ll be glad they invested the time.

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands
Be the buyer Everything starts with their challenges, needs, prejudices and concerns.

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands
Be authoritative Stay in your Sweet Spot, where the things you understand better than anyone else intersect with the things your prospects really care about.

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands
Be strategic One-off content islands don’t add up to a content strategy.

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands
Be prolific Content Marketing is a marathon not a shot put.

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands
Be passionate If you don’t care about this stuff, why should anybody else?

Six Principles ofGreat Content Brands
Be tough on yourself You’ll know if you’re being lazy. Don’t be lazy.

If you builda Great Content
Brand,you will never struggle £to get your stuff read.Your Return on Contentwill always rise.

Because peoplewho consume yourcontent really
like it.And they share itwith other people. Who also really like it. And share it with other people. Who also… Share Share Share S repeat until famous

There’s an added benefit.Remember the
skills gap thatkicked off this whole rant?Well Great Content Brands alsoattract great content peoplewho make… great content. It’s a virtuous circle and it’s FUN to ride.

Finally, a Great Content Brandwill
throw a bright, clear lighton your main corporate, productand service brands.Just as surely as a weak content brandwill drain hard-earned energy awayfrom your main brands.

Let’s not kid ourselves,Building a
Great Content Brandhas always been hard.Today — with all the pressureto produce more and moreand more content — it’s harderthan ever.

But as the Content Effluent
Delugegets nearer and nearerbuilding a Great Content Brandis also more importantthan ever before. In fact, it’s critical. hear that roar?

A thought experiment.Pull out that
pocket compact you havein your handbag or bottom drawer.Flip it open and look in the mirror.Now ask yourself, “Am I building a Great Content Brand or am I just building an efficient content machine?”

If the little round face
in the mirror says,‘The latter’, close the compact and go revisit your strategy. “I’m building a Great Content Brand or I’m just building an efficient content machine”

But if it says, ‘The
former’,then may the light of a thousandbeacons shine on your career. “I’m building a Great Content Brand or I’m just building an efficient content machine”

£ $ € $ €
£ € €€£ And may the revenue of a thousand eager $ buyers wash over your naked, quivering body. £ ££

Bottom line:The Content Deluge is
approaching.Raise your game, build a great contentbrand or prepare to get soaked.

Thank you.

Some more content you may
like.The B2B Marketing B2B Content Marketing The B2B Content Three PoisonousManifesto Strategy Checklist Marketing Workbook Metaphors in B2B Content MarketingA tirade against the reactionary Great content marketing starts A short primer on the single We like metaphors.forces of traditional marketing. with a sharp content marketing most important weapon in the But sometimes, metaphors leakA wake up call. Okay, a bit of a strategy. This Checklist will help B2B marketing arsenal: content back into the real world andtemper tantrum. you sharpen yours. marketing. It’s hot! distort our view of that world. www.velocitypartners.co.uk/ideas-and-insightsThe B2B ContentMarketing BlogA joyride through the meanstreets of B2B

Velocity is a B2B content
marketing agency.We help great companies capture all they knowto delight the people they need to meet (thenturn that delight into revenue).www.velocitypartners.co.uk