The transition from brands to publishers is not a new concept. But what has caused content marketing to emerge as the new superpower in the world of marketing, and why has it made it to the top of priority lists?
The answer is simple, claims Joe Pulizzi, founder of the Content Marketing Institute: it's the fact that consumers are not interested in brands and what they do. Instead, they are interested in themselves, their needs and their desires. Content marketing is a very effective way to establish a relationship between a brand and consumers – while at the same time making those consumers feel that they matter and and are appreciated by brands.
Traditionally, brands have seen advertising as distracting consumers from what they are currently doing (watching TV or reading a magazine) and showing them what they can offer. According to market research company Yankelovich, people living in cities are exposed to about 5,000 such distractions in an average day. Being in the centre of such a flood of information is tiring and many people fail to find what they are looking for.
This is why content marketing first appeared. It doesn't have direct sales offers at its core but provides information, help and entertainment, usually on social media, blogs and corporate websites. The quality of content is essential to grab consumers´ attention and make them return for more, but here's the trick – they have chosen the article, blog or website they're viewing, which makes the selected brand much more credible in their eyes.
