The opportunity to publish content and the ever-increasing consumption of content has reached a crescendo — according to Google News, 18 million+ online articles were published in Q2 2016. And with it has risen a crowded market of content marketing agencies and professionals touting their services to make anyone and everyone into an overnight guru. Even prestigious online publishers like Wired and Forbes have gotten into the game.
While there are some admittedly talented agencies and professionals out there, I have seen on too many occasions lately the fever-pitched drive to over-produce content for the sake of getting it published, regardless of the platform or more importantly the meaningfulness of the content.
For BtoB technology-driven organizations, of which we have represented a diverse and large number, their content investments should be strategic and driven by a goal to ultimately encourage a qualified reader to learn more about their organization, the industry and its innovations. Content should be developed with an overall endgame in mind that is more than a check mark off the list.
*Note: A version of this post also appeared in the July 2016 issue of The Spark newsletter.