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CONTENT MARKETINGBenchmarks from the Agency PerspectiveWhat content marketing success will look like in the year ahead and howagencies plan to achieve it, based on a broad-range of client experience.
Ascend2 Research Conducted in Partnership with SharpSpring
Content Marketing: Benchmarks from the Agency PerspectiveAscend2 Research Conducted in Partnership with SharpSpring.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Content Marketing: Benchmarks from the Agency Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Most important content marketing objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rating the success of content marketing strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Most challenging obstacles to success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Automating content marketing processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Types of premium content used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Effectiveness of premium content used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Degree of difficulty producing premium content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
“Fast and easy” trumps content effectiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Most effective content distribution channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Research methodology and demographics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
About the Research Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014 3
CONTENT MARKETINGBenchmarks from the Agency Perspective
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What are the MOST IMPORTANT OBJECTIVES for your content marketing strategy in the year ahead?
Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
The Most Important Objective Agencies Aim To Achieve With Content Marketing Is Lead Generation.
SPRING FORWARDLead generation is whatfuels the entire sales process. Without leads,you don’t have anyone tosell to. Marketingautmation can identifythe 98% of web traffic that is usually completelyanonymous - enabling youto significantly increaseleads from your web traffic.
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How do you RATE THE SUCCESS of your current content marketingprogram to achieve important objectives?
Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
Only 14% Of Marketing Agencies HaveGenerated “Very Successful” Results For Their Clients.
SPRING FORWARDIt can be tough to accurately quantify howeffective your marketingstrategy is. Marketingautomation platforms offer tools that allow you to identify which campaigngenerated a lead, and thencalculate the ROI for thatcampaign - enabling youto see what is working and what isn’t.
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What are the MOST CHALLENGING OBSTACLES to achieving your content marketing objectives?
Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
Even For Agencies, Content Creation Is One Of The Biggest Roadblocks When Implementing A Successful ContentMarketing Strategy
SPRING FORWARDContent creation is very challenging, so it’s important to make thatcontent count. Marketingautomation enables you toleverage content more efficiently. It provides a wider reach, and ensuresthat the content goes topeople who want it. Content marketing and marketing automation gohand-in-hand: when youuse your content better,you don’t need to createas much.
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To what extent does your agency USE MARKETING SOFTWARE to automate and manage the content marketing process?
Agencies Are Adopting Marketing Automation At AFaster And Faster Pace.
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SPRING FORWARD
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Over half of marketingagencies are already usingmarketing automation.Marketing automationgenerates billable hoursand retainer-basedrelationships so effectivelythat it’s becoming harderand harder to competewithout it.
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Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
Which of the following types of PREMIUM CONTENT has your agencyused for marketing purposes?
The Top 3 Forms Of Premium Content Used By Agencies Are White Papers, Case Studies, and eNewsletters.
SPRING FORWARDContent is the key to a successful marketing strategy, but it’s not thewhole picture. The role ofmarketing automation inthe content marketing process is to maximize thebenefit that the content produces. Developing content without usingmarketing automation islike filling up a grill with charcoal without havingany way to light it.
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Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
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Email-distributed Newsletters Are The Most Effective Form OfPremium Content Used By Agencies, But Better Segmentation Is Changing This.
Of the types of premium content used, which is the MOST EFFECTIVEfor achieving important objectives? SPRING FORWARD
Although marketers haverelied heavily oneNewsletters, they’rebecoming a thing of thepast. Thanks tomarketing automation, the ability to send personalemails to very narrow leadsegments can generatemuch higher conversionsthen traditional bulk generic eNewsletters.
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Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
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Content Creation That Requires A Lot Of Resources Can Be Very Difficult For Clients To GenerateOn Their Own.
Of the types of premium content used, which is the MOST DIFFICULT to execute?
SPRING FORWARDIt takes a lot of resourcesto generate qualitycontent on a regular basis.The best way to make sure that effort isn’t going towaste is to ensure that thecontent gets deliveredwhere it will have the greatest effect.
Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
FIND OUT WHY
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Clients Generally Prefer That Their Marketing Agency Use Fast And Easy Methods Over What May Be More Effective Methods.
Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
Premium Content: Most Effective versus Most Difficult to execute.SPRING FORWARDClients often have adifficult time justifyingpaying more for moreeffective methods,because it can be tough to quantify how much amarketing program is actually doing. Being ableto track ROI for individual campaigns from lead generation all the waythrough the end of the sales funnel overcomes this.
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What are the MOST EFFECTIVE CHANNELS used to reach prospectsand customers with your content?
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Email Is The Most Effective Channel Used To Reach ClientProspects And Customers With Content.
SPRING FORWARDSending content to clientsdoesn’t matter if theclients don’t bother to read or act on that content. By segmentingleads well, you can make sure you’re sending your leads content that isinteresting and engagingto them.
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Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014
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Discover Why Hundreds of Agencies Around The World Choose SharpSpring
• Drive More Sales• Generate More Leads • Prove ROI
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Discover Why Hundreds of Agencies Around The World Choose SharpSpring
Built To WorkWith Everyone
• Drive More Sales• Generate More Leads • Prove ROI
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Ascend2 Research Surveys are conducted online from a panel of more than 50,000 US and international marketing and sales decision-makers and prac-titioners representing a range of contact roles, company types, sizes and geographic regions. The questionnaire used is standardized to incorporate these methodologies across all studies while maintaining our proven 3-Min-ute Survey format. Survey findings are examined in a quantitative context by experienced analysts and reported objectively.
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SURVEY DEMOGRAPHICS
Agency Location Agency Size (Employees)
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ABOUT THE RESEARCH PARTNERS
Learn more at www.SharpSpring.com
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Research - Based Demand Generation for Marketing Solution ProvidersMarketing software firms and marketing agencies partner with Ascend2 to reli-ably generate new business opportunities. Our integrated research , content creation and demand generation programs are transparent – putting the spot-light on your brand and the interests of your audience.
Content Marketing Benchmark Survey, N=111 Marketing AgenciesSharpSpring in partnership with Ascend2, published June 2014