Posted by Paid advertising is great because once you’ve got ads and a funnel that works, you can turn on the switch anytime you’re willing to spend money to make money.
But content marketing is still important, and some would argue that in the long run it’s far more valuable than paid advertising.
- When you compare content marketing with paid search, content marketing gets three times the leads per dollar spent. This is huge, but remember to factor in your time when creating content.
- Effective content marketing generates over three times as many leads as outbound marketing and yet it costs 62% less. Of course, a proven outbound campaign is generally easier and less work intensive to run, so you’ve got to weigh your options.
- In 1984, a person saw an average 2,000 ads/day. By 2014, they saw around 5,000. Which means they actually pay attention to very few ads, thanks to ad overload. Content marketing is the ultimate work-around, coming in under their radar and building trust in a way that no advertising can.
- Almost half of 18- to 49-year-old people get their news and information online – and those numbers are growing. People 50 and older are no slouches when it comes to the internet, either. Think of how many people you know who aren’t online. Personally, I know of one. Just ONE. And her husband is online, so even she is reachable if you can get his attention.
- Small businesses with blogs get 126% more lead growth than small businesses without. You can teach businesses how to blog, or even set up a blogging service for them.
- After reading recommendations on a blog, 61% of U.S. online consumers made a purchase. Have you got a blog yet?
- Content marketing rakes in conversion rates six times higher than other methods. SIX times. That’s hard to even fathom.
- The most effective SEO technique? Content creation. This is real content that helps people. “Have you got a leaky roof? Here are 10 reasons your roof might be leaking and 5 ways to repair a leaky roof yourself. Would you like help finding the leak? Call us for a free inspection because we’re here to help.” It’s no wonder why content like that will be more effective than an ad screaming, “BUY YOUR NEXT ROOF FROM US!”
- Businesses publishing 16-plus posts a month get almost 3.5 times more traffic than businesses publishing zero to four articles. Publish or perish, they say, and it’s true.
Paid advertising has its place. But if you also have a continuous stream of quality content to share with your audience, you’ll build trust and gain business that simply cannot be achieved in any other manner.