Rejoice! Content Marketing bottoms out in the Trough of Disillusionment – @Gartner_inc #ContentMarketing

In July’s update of the Gartner Hype Cycle for Digital Marketing & Advertising, Content Marketing has reached the very bottom of the Trough of Disillusionment.

That’s great news for both marketers and their clients. At last, exaggerated expectations have been washed out and the impressive reality remains. It also means that many of the wannabes have fled the market.

Gartner Hype Cycle for Digital Marketing & Advertising, 2017. Source: Gartner Inc.

The reality, of course, is that a content marketing approach really works. Done well, it drives deeper customer engagement, and stronger loyalty. But, to get there, businesses need to integrate the approach into their business (this can’t be a shiny bolt-on) and begin to think strategically and slightly long-term about their objectives. It means thinking about how various pieces of content (and channels) work together to deliver a coherent story and to leverage the investment in each piece. How do various pieces of content support one another? How do they work together?

The businesses that think through how to get the biggest return on their investment (both of budget and of customer goodwill, where interviews and quotes and case studies are part of the mix) see the biggest returns over time.

Some interesting perspectives:

 

Photo of Gullfoss, Iceland, by Tim Wright on Unsplash

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