Bid these 7 Content Marketing Myths farewell as we embrace 2018

Updated Sept 2018

Another year is upon us.

It's time to put away childish things.

Kick some persistent content marketing myths to the curb. Out with the old. In with the new.

Adapt.

Adapt.

Adapt.

Content Creation, SEO Content development, Content Curation, and marketing health have been filled with misconception and straight out lies. Let's put them in their place once and for all.

7. Content Marketing is Free Advertising

Come on. We know better. Everything worth having costs something, usually in the form of time or money or both. Too many of us neglect this slice of our marketing budget because we expect it to be the one that brings us all of the leads for free. It's just content. Anyone who graduated from high school could write a blog or design a basic info graph. Most kids could do it these days.

Wrong.

Content marketing takes a time and money investment to succeed. And unfortunately, too many give up when the find out the truth rather than making the investment and reaping the benefits. But that's why'll you'll succeed where others fail.

6. People don't read

What?! Most people love to read whatever interests them. The majority of people on the Internet self-identify as blog readers and say they feel closer to brands who provide them with custom content. If you can capture their attention with your words, you have the power.

Reading is how customers in 2018 connect with their brands.

I'm not saying you shouldn't mix it up with a variety of content. But high quality blogs and other written media forms reach their audience at a critical phase in the sales cycle and convert to sales.

5. Content Marketing will Get Me Quick Sales

Content marketing in its truest form akin to inbound strategy, although we can argue about where the distinctions or overlaps lie. Unreasonable outbound goal setting is the leading reason that so many content marketing campaigns fail.

Those of us who've been in the "game" a while, studied hard for our MBAs (or beyond), often try to transplant outbound goals to inbound marketing techniques.

If we can't meet the same metrics with inbound we -- or our superiors -- conclude that it's not working. Digital content marketing is a different animal. At it's heart it is about nurturing a loyalty and authority that generates leads.

If your goal is to be a shooting star (shine bright and then be gone), content marketing is not your "magic bullet" --- unless you plan to use some black hat techniques to bring people kicking and screaming off the search engines into your site.

Content will however generate more leads and inspire more loyalty than any other form of marketing over a given time period.

And it will keep working for you long after your investment of time and money. With basic maintenance, evergreen content can continue to work for you long into the future. This is where the extreme ROI you hear touted by experts comes from.

4. Shares/Likes/Visits = Sales

Not so fast. These are important parts of your strategy. But you still have to have a product/service that people want. You still need to provide a great customer experience. And you still need to be able convert views to sales. You can think of shares/likes/visits /links as another opportunity to establish your credibility with your target.

On average, a person will interact with your brand 8-11 times before they buy anything. So don't get discouraged by low conversion rates at first. Even a "hyperdrive" campaign will need time to build momentum. Content, like traditional commercials, give you more touchpoints and opportunities to make a sale. The more you build it, the greater your influence.

3. Small Businesses/agencies can't compete

Content marketing is the market differentiator for small businesses. It's how no name companies become must have brands.

If you can provide content that your target wants, if you can generate leads and make your existing customer feel closer to your brand, you can not only compete with the "big dogs", you can lead the pack.

2. My Business/Agency doesn't have the resources to create content

Most businesses and agencies outsource content creation. You're too busy running your business and executing that marketing strategy to create content too. A professional content creator can evaluate your needs, goals, branding, etc. to develop content that meets your objectives.

The right content creator for you knows marketing strategy and your target industry, so that they can provide as much or as little assistance in the process as you need.

1. I can't afford content

Once we jump that hurdle of expecting content to be free or thinking that just any old content will get the job done, we realize that the cost of content is very affordable and the Return on Investment immense.

You get what you pay for, And you can expect strong returns from the right investment.

It's time to cast aside 2017 and embrace the new year with better content.