Outbrain surveyed top brand and agency marketers about their content marketing efforts to learn about the types of content they're creating, how they get traffic to it and how they measure success of their strategy.

1. The State of Content Marketing, 2012
Content marketing continues to be one of the rising stars of the online marketing world as brands from American Express
and Proctor & Gamble to GE and General Mills use it alongside more traditional strategies to reach their target audiences.
Why? Unlike traditional marketing, branded content is engaging, provides value and adds to the online experience instead
of interrupting it.
At Outbrain, we’re all about great content, which is why we wanted to get the scoop from some of the folks in the
trenches. Earlier this year, we surveyed senior-level brand marketers and agency executives as they gathered to judge
entries for the 2012 Effie Awards -- a program that recognizes the most effective and impactful marketing and advertising
communications. What follows is an insider’s look at the state of content marketing.
Key Findings
100% of brand and agency marketers surveyed utilize content marketing in their overall marketing strategies. At
87% of respondents, video is the most common form of content created.
Social media is the most popular channel marketers use for driving traffic to content with 96% of respondents
currently utilizing. Usage is up from 88% in 2011.
Marketers employ content marketing efforts to drive brand awareness and target top of purchase funnel consumers
rather than for generating direct leads or sales. Social media engagement is the most popular indicator marketers
consider when measuring the success of content marketing efforts (89%), followed by views or content downloads
(76%).
Social media, video advertising and content marketing are viewed as the most effective tactics used for brand
awareness, consideration and affinity.
82% of brand and agency marketers expect to increase content marketing efforts in 2012.
Video is tops among content marketers
One hundred percent of the marketers surveyed utilize content marketing as a part of their overall marketing strategy and
are currently creating digital content specifically for informational and/or entertainment value to consumers. Eighty-seven
percent of marketers create video content, making it the most popular medium. Written content, such as blog posts (67%)
and articles (44%), also has a place in content marketing strategies. Other visual mediums such as slideshows and photo
galleries are used by 44% of respondents.
Popularity of Content Types Created by Brand & Agency Marketers
SLIDESHOWS/
VIDEO BLOG POSTS ARTICLES OTHER
PHOTO GALLERIES
The State of Content Marketing, 2012, Outbrain
The State of Content Marketing, 2012 Page 1 of 4
To download, visit outbra.in/ContentMarketing2012

2. Social media leads content marketing distribution efforts, paid search marketing on the rise
All of the surveyed marketers are creating content, but how do they get it in front of consumers? Social media continues
to grow in importance as a tactic for content marketing. Ninety-six percent of marketers utilize social media platforms such
as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to distribute their brand’s digital content, up from 88% in 2011.
Other popular traffic acquisition tactics include paid search marketing (78%), display advertising (76%), and organic search
optimization (69%). Paid search saw the biggest increase in adoption over our 2011 survey with an increase of 9%.
Content Distribution Tactics Utilized by Brand and Agency Marketers
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
CONTENT
PAID SEARCH DISPLAY EMAIL SYNDICATION
SOCIAL MEDIA SEO RECOMMENDATION
MARKETING ADVERTISING NEWSLETTERS PARTNERSHIPS
PLATFORMS
The State of Content Marketing, 2012, Outbrain
Brand awareness and top of purchase funnel consumers are target for content marketing efforts
Social media engagement ranked as the most popular factor that marketers use to measure the success of their content
marketing efforts (89%), which is unsurprising given that they rely heavily on social media platforms for content
distribution. In fact, consideration of social media engagement as a success metric increased drastically from our survey
results last year (66%).
The 2012 survey results found increased emphasis on success metrics that focus on brand awareness and target
consumers in the top of the purchase funnel such as social media engagement and organic search referrals. We also saw
a concurrent drop in direct response metrics such as lead generation, which fell from 69% to 53%.
How Brand and Agency Marketers Measure Success of Content Marketing Efforts
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
SOCIAL MEDIA VIEW/DOWNLOADS LEADS REFERRALS DIRECT SALES
ENGAGEMENT OF CONTENT GENERATED FROM SEARCH
AND/OR REFERRALS
The State of Content Marketing, 2012, Outbrain
The State of Content Marketing, 2012 Page 2 of 4
For more, visit outbra.in/ContentMarketing2012

3. Social media, video advertising and content marketing are the most effective tactics for developing brand
awareness
We asked respondents to rank the effectiveness of popular marketing tactics in creating brand awareness, consideration
and affinity online. Social media, video advertising (pre-roll) and content marketing were the highest ranking tactics. Email
marketing was collectively viewed as the least effective tactic for creating brand awareness.
Marketing Tactic Effectiveness on Brand Awareness and Consideration
SOCIAL
MEDIA
VIDEO
ADVERTISING
CONTENT
MARKETING
SEO
DISPLAY
ADVERTISING
MOBILE
CAMPAIGNS
EMAIL
MARKETING
The State of Content Marketing, 2012, Outbrain
82% of marketers intend to increase content marketing efforts in 2012
From this year’s survey results, it’s clear that marketers are beginning to rely on content marketing as a trusted tool to
reach consumers. It’s also clear that the industry shows no signs of slowing down, with 82% of respondents planning to
increase or greatly increase their efforts in the coming year.
In 2012, I Expect To...
9% I DON’T KNOW
71% INCREASE CONTENT MARKETING EFFORTS
9% KEEP THE SAME
CONTENT MARKTING EFFORTS
11% GREATLY INCREASE
CONTENT MARKETING EFFORTS
The State of Content Marketing, 2012 Page 3 of 4
For more, visit outbra.in/ContentMarketing2012

4. About Outbrain
Outbrain (www.outbrain.com) is the leading content discovery platform, helping publishers, brands and agencies reach a
highly engaged audience through distribution on leading media sites. Outbrain works with publishers like CNN, Fox
News, Hearst, Rolling Stone and MSNBC as well as brands and agencies including American Express, P&G, General
Electric, Media Contacts and Starcom to increase site traffic and generate new revenue through customized links to
recommended content. Founded in 2006, the company is headquartered in New York with offices in London, San
Francisco, Chicago, Washington, DC, Paris, Hamburg and Netanya, Israel, and is backed by Index Ventures, Carmel
Ventures, Gemini Israel Funds, GlenRock Israel, Rhodium and Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Contact Us
Outbrain: Press Contact:
Kelly Reeves LaunchSquad for Outbrain
116 East 16th Street, 12th Floor Gavin Skillman or Lindsey Scott
New York, NY 10003 outbrain@launchsquad.com
marketing@outbrain.com 212-564-3665
212-353-5897
The State of Content Marketing, 2012 Page 4 of 4
To download, visit outbra.in/ContentMarketing2012