7 Reasons NOT to do Content Marketing

It seems everyone is jumping on the content marketing bandwagon these days. Even though we are indeed all publishers today, and that content marketing is now a core and growing part of the marketing toolkit for the majority of brands out there, there are times when brands need to say no.

Yeah, I said it.
 

There are quite a few reasons why some brands just shouldn't be creating content as part of their marketing programs.  Here they are...

Reason #1 - No Content Marketing Strategy

We should be blogging.  We need an enewsletter. Let's do a custom magazine  Does this sound familiar? 

For years (and into today) this is how the content marketing conversation was started.  All tactics and no strategy.

Before you launch any content marketing tactic, ask yourself why. What's the objective?  What outcomes would you like to see?  What are the customer behaviors?

Reason #2 - Lack of Executive Buy In

Even the best content marketing programs get killed because someone in the c-suite just doesn't get it. Before you start your content marketing, make sure your bosses understand the why of content marketing.  Probably the best reason to buy Get Content Get Customers is to help your key executives understand the fact that they need to be acting like publishers.

Reason #3 - No Plan for Consistency

Content marketing is not a campaign. It's more like a love letter to your customers and prospects. It's you, helping them, do something better.  This positions you as a trusted expert.

If you launch a blog, an enewsletter, a webinar series...this is a content promise to your customers.  It's a pact. Breaking that promise is the worst thing you can do.  Better not to have started at all.

Reason #4 - Content that's Just Like All the Rest

If your messaging is just like your competitors, you have a problem Houston. What are you offering that is any different from what your customers can get elsewhere? Your content needs a higher purpose...it needs to take a stand. If it's same ole same ole, kill it.

Reason #5 - It's Great Information, But Has Nothing to Do with Your Product or Service

If you are a chip company, why are you aggregating pictures of babies and puppies? Why are you spending time and resources on content marketing that will have no hope of generating more revenue or cost savings in some way?  Know who your customers or influencers are and help them, not everyone else.

Reason #6 - Me, Me, Me

Content marketing is not advertising.  Stop talking about yourselves.  Realize that your customers really don't care about you. Your ISO certified gizmo magic machine really doesn't solve world hunger.  Make customers care by focusing on them, not you.

Reason #7 - Content Suffers Due to Lack of Resources/Expertise

Especially during this great recession, more companies have decided to put content marketing on the backs of marketing or communications. Write the blog. Create the video. Author the white paper.

Sometimes this works.  Many times, it's just plain awful.  It's bad to have no content marketing.  It's a tragedy to have crappy content that just clutters up the Internet. 

Focus on what you do well and outsource the rest. That's why Junta42 was created.  If you can do it internally, great.  Most brands outsource at least a portion of their content marketing.  You should too.   

I'm sure I missed a few.  What are they?

If you need a kick-start getting started, try downloading this complimentary white paper on attracting and retaining customers with content marketing.  You'll see that it all starts with Why.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Comments

[John]

Good article -- I especially agree with the point about content like all the rest. It seems as though somewhere along the road "more is better" became everything with content marketing.

Too many marketers just jump over each other to try and grab specific keywords.

It really leaves a bad taste in my mouth when I am looking for something, and it is just the exact same points everyone else is making regurgitated over and over again.

[Hans de Groot]

You are wrong, Joe

It should be '7 Problems You Have To Solve Before You Are Able To Do Great Content Marketing'.

Read your book! :)

[Jon Buscall]

I totally agree with the "No executive buy-in". It can be hard to persuade the C-suite that eyeballs / visitors aren't as effective as genuine connections with content. Old school interruptive marketing still has a lot of true believers out there.

Good metrics are a way of persuading the C-suite so I think us content marketers need to embrace the geekier side of online marketing to help persuade.

Great post!

[Larry]

Absolutely agree that tactics without a strategy are worse than nothing at all. But....Would you agree that it's a good idea to get started before the strategy is completely fleshed out? You can establish a presence, and then develop and refine the strategy as you go -- and as you receive feedback from the community.

[Mark Delfeld]

Great point Jon,
I recommend Charlene Li's recent book "Open Leadership" on this subject. Basic premise is that for Social Media to make an impact senior management needs to open up more.

I somewhat disagree with the reason #7. For social media (or content marketing) to work, the internal SME's need to be brought into the fold to help produce relevant content.

I believe 4, 5 and 6 could be lumped into the category of firms that produce content but don't map it the needs of the customer. If content isn't linked to a high priority need that the company can solve, its irrelevant except for branding purposes...

[Joe Pulizzi]

@Jon...thanks and good points.

@Larry...yes, I believe you are right for a small company or startup. Larger businesses need to develop this as part of their marketing plan.

@Mark, good points. I see your point on making sure the process is integrated internally. Indeed it should...but we are seeing a number of organizations benefit substantially from managing editors and content experts to guide them as they transform their marketing departments into publishing departments.

Nice discussion!

[Daniella Santos]

This is an interesting post! I like how you enumerated points of what a content marketing is about. There may be people who uses such strategy, because they think of how it can help their business. This will help a lot of people, especially those who just use this strategy because of its efficiency and not how it really works.

[Arthur Charles Van Wyk]

One that I would add is:
You are unable to conduct a normal conversation (chronic academics for example)and therefore unable to communicate conversationally..

At the same time I'd like to say that the opportunity exist to diseminate content,market to and build a community of these drone-like people, because that there is itself a niche.

[Pawan Deshpande]

I have written a blog based off of this one entitled "6 Reasons why Content Curation May Not be for you:

http://www.contentcurationmarketing.com/articles/11618/6-reasons-why-content-curation-tools-may-not-be-fo/

If you are considering using content curation as a part of your content marketing strategy, you may find my post relevant.

[Nenad]

Great points, Joe. Lately I've encountered most of what you wrote here.
#3 - an organisation is thinking of quitting publishing its 16 year-old custom monthly due to current financial troubles despite it is its most recognisable brand!

#5 I am still receiving custom magazines that are a hybrid between content marketing and plain internal magazine with babies and puppies and has nothing to do w/ helping their customers/readers, rather it's more about #6, and they absolutely sincerely believe that is how it's supposed to be done. Regarding #6, in a costum magazine we published (for a reason, described in the strategy, concept of the magazine and that specific issue) a really top-notch interview that any magazine would be more than proud of, however the company complained that they (by name ...) haven't been mentioned at all in the interview published in their own magazine! It hurt them a lot!

But the upgrade to your post, dear Joe, is what I am having trouble with, would be how to "persuade" companies they should change their behavior/actions/way of thinking?

[Joe Pulizzi]

Nenad...very interesting indeed.

To answer your question with a question...how are they measuring their activities based on their marketing goals? In my experience, the only way to persuade companies is to base it on as many facts as possible. For example, if we can tell what the readership is of their puppies and babies article, we can measure the engagement of that article versus the other, more relevant articles. Can that be done?

[Mick Dickinson]

Excellent post, as ever. Reason #3 is the one that is driving me crazy ATM. Getting budget to fulfil a runway of content - a content calendar - seems more difficult then getting buy-in to the idea of marketing with content. Keep on keepin' on!

[John Jenkins]

Great post.

I especially agree with #6. When you promote your own products you are advertising (taking) not content marketing (giving).

Unfortunately most companies don't have any grasp on the law of reciprocity.

[Jorge Sandrini]

This is an excellent post, mainly because it is so relevant to the real issues faced by marketers attempting to launch and manage successful content marketing programs. I personally have found that executive buy-in is extremely important if not THE most important element, because once you secure that, the resources organizational become more available to carry-out the rest. Without it, you can only hope to limp along.

[Roger Wilson]

One real reason not to do (too much) content marketing is that content selling might be more cost effective. At one point in my career I did a quarterly newsletter in my field of event marketing but spent most of my time working directly with prospects. A buyer once told me that "its not what you sell me but what you tell me that is important." Telling not selling thus became a motto.