Tuesday, June 7, 2011

How Much Content Is Needed For Content Marketing?

"Buyers and influencers of high consideration B2B technology solutions typically use about three distinct content types during the awareness, the consideration, and the purchase phases of the buying process, a total of nine pieces," says Forrester Research analyst Daniel Klein.

But there's more: you are likely to have a minimum of three to four key buying influences for any moderately complex solution. "That means you’ll need to ensure that you’re applying the 3x3 to each buyer and influencer," says Klein. See http://blogs.forrester.com/daniel_klein/11-05-30-the_right_ratio_for_your_content_marketing_strategy_guiding_principle_number_three.

Does that mean any brand has to create 27 to 36 different content pieces? Actually, no, and the reason is the existence of the Internet. Buyers and influencing parties typically find 70 percent of the content that they consume on their own, says Klein.

All brands will create some of their specific content, but no brand should expect to create most of the content potential buyers will use. Also, "look for reuse or shared content," says Klein. That's the basic principle behind content curation: you don't have to create all the useful content, but you can aggregate and point to it.

Also, 3:1:1 is the simple but powerful ratio that should guide your content strategy, says Klein. Buyers and influencers of high consideration solutions find 70 percent of the content they consume on their own, 15 percent of the content that they consume is typically sent to them by marketers and the remaining 15 percent is delivered to them by sales (or an indirect sales channel.

The 70 percent of the content that they find on their own can take many forms. They find it via a search query, come across it while reading an online article, seek it out by coming to your website and through other means as well. Because this percent is so great, you can’t possibly control everything they find, but you can still help them find the content. That's what content curation is about.

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