As content marketing continues its rapid ascent among PR and communications priorities, a new industry report examines how today’s content marketers assess the strengths and weaknesses of their strategies, skillsets and integration alignment.
The research from integrated B2B and healthcare agency PAN Communications is presented in the firm’s sixth annual Content Fitness Report, which continues to serve as a strategic guide for its own customers—and as a model for B2B marketers seeking advice and direction throughout their content marketing journeys.
This year, the agency partnered with Heinz Marketing to amplify the reach of the survey, enabling its Content Fitness Test to hit an expanded network of marketers for data collection.
Research highlights include:
- 61 percent of respondents want thought leadership and executive programs to become a content priority. Brand awareness and thought leadership are the top goals for marketers’ content programs.
- 62.5 percent of marketers define their strategy as fully integrated, a 9% increase from the previous year.
- Customer experience is the No. 1 priority for marketers in terms of brand advocacy and trust, but only 30% of marketers have implemented a ‘Voice of the Customer’ program.
- 69 percent of respondents are not confident in their content measurement strategy and delivering ROI.
In 2019, will your content marketing efforts or budget flow into any of the following programs?
“The Content Fitness Reportcontains insights that have the potential to influence decision-making and strategy for marketers across the industry,” said Matt Heinz, president of Heinz Marketing, in a news release. “This year’s survey touched on topics like content integration and executive thought leadership—areas that have continued to influence customers and prospects for both of our agencies. I’m excited I was able to collaborate with PAN as they celebrate six years of delivering consistent, impactful content marketing insights.”
In terms of gaining trust and advocacy from your customers, what would you consider a priority?
This year’s data aligns with what brand marketers are seeing across their content marketing programs. Over the past six years, PAN has seen an uptick in the amount of premium content being produced, as well as a wider variety of content styles such as video, eBooks, white papers and surveys that are designed to better target specific audiences.
The demand for executive thought leadership content has also risen
PAN attributes this trend to the rapidly evolving tech industry. Technology’s ever-changing dynamic has sparked the need for proactive commentary and unique points of view to help differentiate a brand’s personality.
Download the full report here.
Each year, PAN surveys 100+ marketers on their content marketing challenges and pain points to evaluate specific trends and uncover actionable insights for the year ahead.