Your B2B Marketing Content Has Royal Lineage

By Perry Rearick, Chief Editor, Follow Your Buyer

Cue the eye roll! The phrase “content is king” has been attributed to Bill Gates in an essay he wrote in 1996 and since then, a chorus of digital marketers and content creators have been singing its praises regularly.

In the essay, Gates envisioned the internet as a giant, endless broadcast network that would generate money, much like television broadcast networks of that day but better, and content would be the source of the money. He was right, but much has changed since 1996!

The internet has evolved at a pace, and in ways no one could envision, perhaps even Mr. Gates. And his reference, while often used, has also evolved.   

In a recent interview I had with Christine Slocumb, author of “Stop Starvation Marketing”, she referred to content as the entire back row of the chess board, the royal rank of king, queen, bishop, knight and rook. These are the most important and, except for the king, powerful pieces on the chess board that can change the outcome of the game with several strategic moves.

Yes, content has that kind of power, and its use deserves adequate thinking and planning.

Too often I speak with B2B marketers who are consumed by a chaotic world of reacting to the latest, greatest idea that could come from just about anywhere in their organization, and it is often not tied to any business outcomes or marketing strategy. Let’s stop that madness!

Part of your overall marketing strategy is your content strategy, not just tactics, but strategy! This is a longer look at your content marketing plan that will guide you, with flexibility, throughout the year, or more.  

My friend Wendy Jacobson refers to it as a framework that includes understanding the issues that are important to your target audiences, having a written plan to follow, tying content to business objectives, and being able to measure the results.

Your marketing content doesn’t serve as pawns with limited capabilities, but rather the power movers of your marketing strategy.

You can listen to the entire interview with Christine Is Your B2B Marketing Suffering From Malnutrition and Wendy Creating Incredible Marketing Strategies for more insights.