1. Picture this: B2B Content Marketing
Content Marketing has been thriving over the past couple of years.
While mobile’s been stealing the digital headlines with trillions of pixels
devoted toits march, Content Marketing has continued its ascent so that
9/10 B2B* marketers are now using in it some way. This raises some
interesting questions for us marketers: such as how did we get here?
What does this mean for the digital landscape as a whole? And where
will this Content Marketing revolution take us?
The first of these questions is simultaneously the simplest and the most
complex. In simple terms the rise of more powerful digital devices,
applications and platforms have made what was once out of reach to all
but the biggestbrands a realisticoption. Digital cameras, YouTube and
Piktochart, LinkedIn and the like have, to an extent, handed brands the
capability to become content marketers.
Capability itself though isn’t a sufficient catalyst for the explosion of
activity we’ve witnessed. Marketers have the capability to create their
own social media platform, host mobile videoconferences and run
campaigns entirely in alternate realities such as ‘Second Life’. They
don’t because they’re complex and the propensity to failure is high.
So there’s more to it than capability, but what? Efficacy? Well there are
plenty of B2B brands that’ll espouse the effectiveness of their Content
Marketing efforts.Deloitte, Caterpillar and Logitech have all won
plaudits and stakeholder engagement through effective Content
Marketing. That though smacks of follow-the-leaders and that too feels
like a partial rationale.
No, I’d contend that the rise of Content Marketing is part of a wider
digital trend. In a world of 24/7/365/360°media, good Content
Marketing’s appeal is its immediacy, share-ability and its delivery of
value – be that a solution, an insight or a diversion. Facebook, Twitter
and YouTube have all thrived on these premises andfed a content-
hungry virtual world at the speed of digestion it demands.And as the
meteoric rise of sites such as Pinterest, Instagram, Medium and Vine
attests, content consumers are becoming more voracious and in need of
ever speedier satiation.

2. And let’s not forget the role that technology has had to play in this.
Smartphones now have the computing capacity NASA had when it
launched Apollo 11; data charges are falling faster than the ROSAT
satellite and with connectivity increasingly becoming the norm,
consumers are demanding more, now and that its delivered to their
virtual door.
How quickly things have changed… Under web 1.0 content consisted of
static information hosted on destination sites that were mainly aimed at
selling something. Content outreach consisted of emails, banners and, if
you were particularly valued, a CD-ROM. Today the digital donut is a
reality with consumers surrounded by a rich ring of content that they
can digest at their leisure, content that informs, validates and supports
purchases like never before.
Sowhat does this mean for the B2Bmarketing landscape? At a basic level
it means gaining engagement is going to become even harder.
Marketers are going to have to work with end consumers to give them
what they want – and more importantly– need. Need is all: need is the
passport to consumers’ world and its satisfactiontheir connection to that
brand. Just as importantly need is another driver of collaboration, for
unless brands discover stakeholders’ needs and plan their Content
Marketing accordingly then they cannot hope to find engagement and
their efforts will be for naught.
For some marketersthis may all be a hard sell,as the hard sell will have
to take the high road. But for those who are prepared to the
engagement legwork and work with stakeholdersto give them what they
wantin the format they want it the long-term future isbright.
In the wider digital domain too, Content Marketing is having an impact.
Searches for Content Marketing doubled in 2012** and the likes of
Google’s Panda update, the introduction of Plus and +1 buttons have
made content – shared and liked especially–of paramount importance to
organicrankings. Indeed some in the SEO industry are already calling
Content Marketing the new SEO.
So where is this Content Marketing revolution will take us? If it
continues then it will force brands to collaborate with stakeholders,
share information and customers will expectmore in terms of

3. support.Oracle’s Technology Networkis a great example of this. This
portal allows users and support to come together to solve problems and
share knowledge.Smaller brands will embrace Content Marketing too as
they realize the value of the stories they have to tell. OK they may not
reap the huge rewards the likes of B&Qand Remingtonhave through
their production of video content vignettesin our Mission Studios, but
through whitepapers, talking heads video product demos and
infographicsthey’ll see engagement and returns.
Content Marketing is just the latest step down the path to brand-user
collaboration that Web 2.0 heralded. Unlike some other children of that
revolution –sCRMorBig Data analytics for instance – it’s something that
all brands can capitalize upon and which is ignored at your peril and your
competitors’ delight. It’s easy to see in the not-too-distant future – as
connected TV takes off – Content Marketing becoming embedded into
mainstream broadcasting. Viewers route to purchase will be so
seamless that they’ll purchase without even having to pause live TV.
And beyond that it’s possible – probable even – that Content Marketing
will be used as a trigger for crowd curation of products. Prototypes –
ideas even – will be broadcast and via the magic of social media
moulded into the perfect product. These, as they say, are exciting
times…
If you’d like to know more about balloon dog’s Content Marketing
capabilities please email giles.luckett@balloondog.co.uk
* The Content Marketing Institute 2012 Survey
** Google Adwords