Content today is most definitely not king. You’re shocked? I say this because there seems to be a skewed misconception of what the term “content” means. Too often marketers produce thin content as a way of generating quick web traffic and increasing conversion rates. This content can no longer be classified as royal.
In my eyes, effective content marketing should use tactics to provide information and entertainment to consumers that they feel is valuable, thus building relationships. Ann Handley rightly states “companies, organizations, and individuals place quality content over quantity.”
In her predictions of digital trends in 2015, Mari Smith says brands will gather and integrate data more deeply to truly personalize content. “This content will have a more light-hearted feel, including the use of selfies and micro-video clips shot on location with smartphones, giving the consumers the fly-on-the-wall impression.” This is the type of content that strikes me as being king.
Poor quality content campaigns often come down to a lack of knowledge about who is targeted and what they really want. Take J. C. Penney Company, for example. It was once a well-known brand offering discounted merchandise, but decided to rebrand around a strategy based on how the customer should be valued and not cheaply bought. The tone of voice took the premise of “enough is enough,” presuming that is how customers felt. Little did J. C. Penney know that its customers actually embraced the value of discounted merchandise. This epic fail led to a drop of 20% in sales and a gradual decline ever since.
