Content engagement remains THE challenge

“Content is King!” has been marketing’s rally cry for some time, yet content engagement (whatever that means) remains a challenge. More and more, brands who were dubious have boarded the content train. They’ve seen (by watching competitors) the power of content marketing to educate, connect with, and engage an audience. Never mind how important content is in their lead generation. Many brands have thrown big bucks at digital content. Are they creating quality? Do they know what to do with that content? The answer is ‘no.’

In fact, most brands find it difficult to get engagement and the ROI they expected from their content marketing. If you watch brands do this, you’ve noticed that most branded content is little more than marketing messages and puffery. Delivering real value? Too often, no.

The engagement disconnect

BrightEdge’s recent Content Engagement Report looks at how content engagement—defined as traffic, conversions, and revenue—varies by industry. As this graphic shows, other than in hospitality, the results are disappointing, and in retail, deeply concerning.