Interesting tidbit alert! The average human attention span in 2013 was 8 seconds, according to StaticBrain, while the attention span of a goldfish is a whopping 9 seconds. Pretty crazy, right? So how do marketers make sure their efforts are realized in such a short window of opportunity? They keep it tight and check it’s right.
Not only should the quality of the content generated be high, but the performance of the campaigns must be gauged as well. The different content marketing initiatives deployed do much more than act as keyword-rich, informative filler to boost SEO. Marketing content is imperative to supporting various departments throughout the company, enhancing advertisements, nurturing leads and opportunities, and shortening sales cycles.
Design the Content
Marketers are finding their content is having a large impact on lead generation and the sales lifecycle, as the average customer will look at three pieces of content before making a purchasing decision. A study from Forrester explained customers typically spend the first 60-70% of the sales lifecycle reading through research on a company, product, or service. That means two-thirds of the purchase journey is often separated from any interaction with sales representatives, and is mostly driven by marketing campaigns specifically content.
If this marketing content is not concise, effective, or consistent, the results can be harmful to sales conversions and market penetration. Marketers must ensure that the content being delivered is not only high-quality, but consistent across each channel and integrated into an overarching campaign for short-term engagement and long-term profits.
StaticBrain found 17% of Internet page views last less than 4 seconds, while just 4% extend beyond 10 minutes. Marketers cannot expect customers to read through novels of information before getting to the point, and must make sure campaigns are effective ASAP to improve marketing ROI. The content should range from attention-grabbing and introductory to in-depth, and big picture. The information should travel with the customer from start to finish as they discover a product or service, research the value, and understand where it fits in the business model.
Companies will likely enjoy higher returns and faster conversions when their content marketing, along with other marketing tactics, are tracked, managed, and analyzed with customized solutions.
Follow The the Content
It can be difficult to plan out a marketing campaign strategy from start to finish with the understanding that creating marketing campaigns that integrate blogs, videos, eBooks, webinars, ads, and other content can be very effective. But while understanding total leads, opportunities, and accounts generated is helpful, you should really track views and responses from each piece of content individually to understand exactly what’s working and what isn’t. When you can see the efficacy of each gear in the machine, poor performances can be adjusted to improve ROI and support future decision-making.
You can use a combination of marketing automation tools and web analytics technologies like Google Analytics to gather online data. But you should also use call tracking technology to measure how each piece of content is generating phone calls to your business. That data can then be included with your Google Analytics data and CRM data to properly track leads from each piece of content through the sales cycle.
When data is collected individually and integrated together, marketers can gain a deeper understanding of the ideal customer’s decision-making process and how better to engage these buyers and convert them into sales.
To learn more about gauging ROI, download our Marketer’s Guide to Proving (and Improving) Content Marketing ROI white paper.