The number of companies employing a content marketing strategy continues to grow and with so much competition the art is constantly evolving.  There are certain constants such as written blogs, whitepapers and ebooks that will remain as the foundation of any well thought out program but there are additional building blocks that will become standard in the near future.  Adapting your campaigns to provide the flexibility to keep up with the times is essential to remain competitive.  Improved technology and automation are at the core of these changes and incorporating them into your marketing budget is more important than ever.  Innovative solutions to grab reader’s attention are needed as the amount of content available online continues to increase.  Here we’ve outlined some likely trends to keep an eye on in 2017.

Live Stream

Video blogs and pre-recorded webinars are going to continue to be mainstays in the content marketing world but live streaming events is beginning to gain in popularity.  Platforms such as YouTube Live and Facebook Live are providing quality and inexpensive ways to live stream events, webinars, product launches and industry discussions.  This avenue gives you worldwide reach for promoting your events and other streamed content.  As marketers become more creative and diverse with this platform it could show a similar impact that live television has on viewership.

Email Optimization

Many marketers believed that email has been dying off over the last few years but the numbers actually show a recent increase in engagement.  The reasons for this increase is up for debate but optimization and content quality play a large role.  There has also been a larger focus on list segmentation which increases the amount of relevant content reaching the proper contacts. Email newsletters targeted at a variety of decision makers and different stages of the funnel are becoming highly optimized for lead generation while still providing an educational experience.

Paid Social Media

Keeping your company’s social pages stocked up with consistent quality industry articles from both your company blog and third party sources will remain important but with changes to social media algorithms paid advertising is playing a larger role.  With so much information being shared it can be difficult to catch the eye of your target audience and not all of your messages will show up on your followers news feed.  Paid advertising through social networks has improved drastically over the last two years and companies are beginning to realize it’s an efficient way to expand their social reach.

Interactive Content

Traditional forms of content such as whitepapers and case studies will remain a viable source of lead generation but the demand for interactive content is on the rise.  Developing quizzes and questionnaires that engage readers will be necessary in order to gain followers and recognition.  Comment sections have long been a popular way for readers to share their thoughts and opinions.  Taking advantage of the need people have for their voice to be heard will help drive engagement.

Diversification

This is perhaps the trend that is gaining the most steam at this point and it’s something all marketers will need to recognize.  It’s no longer enough to just post written blogs that link to more in depth premium content.  It has become necessary to provide a more diversified content strategy that includes videos, infographics, webinars, surveys and other forms of information.  In order to establish yourself as a thought leader and maintain an online following you will need to include variety to keep your visitors interested.

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