Only about 9 percent of business-to-consumer marketers plan on bringing content generation in-house in 2017, even though almost everyone is boosting content marketing budgets this year. According to Forrester Research, using third-parties for content creation services is a smart move because outside agencies are better judges when it comes to content marketing performance. Outsourcing content also lets you leverage efficiency and experience that isn’t possible when you keep all content generation in-house.
Using a Content Creation Company Boosts Efficiency
According to Hubspot research, the majority of marketers spend more than an hour to write a short blog post, and close to a third spend four or more hours just to net 500 words. Content marketing expert Neil Patel encourages publishers to look carefully at statistics and goals before determining how often to post, but he also notes inbound leads increase with posting frequency, so you can’t afford to minimize content generation because it takes a long time.
The time it takes your team to write a blog post is time that could be spent innovating, creating new strategies or interacting directly with customers. Add in the time it takes to conduct research, manage keywords, ensure branding is consistent across all posts, launch social media content or keep a constant shine on product descriptions, and content marketing can quickly become expensive and force you to sacrifice quality elsewhere.
Outsourcing content creation moves these burdens off in-house staff so you can leverage their talents to manage your processes, drive new ideas or create cost-saving efficiencies.
Reaching Outside Your Organization Means Extended Expertise
Most marketers or brands can’t draw on the experience of hundreds of writers, editors and SEO experts, but outsourcing lets you benefit from crowdsourced models that are carefully controlled with proven methodologies. In one contact, you can gain access to SEO expertise, professional research, marketing and sales content options, ideas for entertaining and educating your audience and high-level editing to ensure your brand looks like the expert it is. Keeping content generation in-house means relying on the limitations set by existing staff experience and time; outsourcing breaks through limitations so you can expand your message and your reach.
Third-Party Agencies Live and Breathe Content Marketing
The Content Marketing Institute notes that 55 percent of business-to-business marketers admit their organizations are unclear on what successful content marketing looks like. Business-to-consumer marketers note similar struggles; over 75 percent use content to drive branding and conversion, but only 33 percent believe their strategies are effective.
For third-party agencies that specialize in content services, content marketing is the product. Brands can only devote a small portion of their time to understanding content marketing because they are busy making better products or creating new services. It wouldn’t make sense for a hospital to spend numerous resources perfecting blog post templates or for the owner of a new restaurant to spend his nights reading everything published about social media marketing. When you work with a content company, you gain those insights without sacrificing the time and resources.
Yes, brands of all sizes and types must understand some basics about content marketing if they want to succeed. But Forrester Research and other industry leaders are noticing that marketers who work with experts on content generation see more success than those who try to carry the entire load in-house.
If you want to start 2017 with less burden and more success, contact us to find out how we can help lighten the load.
