We’ve heard it before, and we will continue to hear it until the digital cows come home: Content Is King.
In order to see a higher ROI, marketers must create compelling content. Fancy ads, catchy radio ditties, and cold calls are losing their grip on consumers.
According to HubSpot’s State of Inbound 2014 report, marketers who make blogging a priority are more than 13 times more likely to see a positive ROI. But in this year’s edition of the State of Inbound Report, HubSpot did not iterate the importance of content creation (we should all know this by now), but rather concentrated on an emerging trend: outsourcing content.
The Rise Of Outsourced Content
Sourcing content from external entities, such as freelancers, guest contributors, and agency partners, is on the rise. Why? Because the demand for quality content is also on the rise.
In the Content Marketing Institute and Marketing Profs’ 2016 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends Report, 76 percent of respondents claimed they would produce more content in 2016 than in 2015. Marketing Profs also informed that the most successful B2B marketers allocate 42 percent of their total marketing budget to content marketing.
In this year’s State of Inbound Marketing Report, HubSpot surveyed nearly 4,000 marketing and sales professionals in 150 countries. The 2015 report showed 13 percent of companies used freelancers, up 1 percent from 2014. In 2015, 10 percent of respondents reported they utilized agency partners, up 2 percent from 2014. In-house writers dropped from 46 to 41 percent.
As a content marketer at a small, start-up agency, this insight is not “eyebrow-raising” to me at all. Nearly half of respondents polled in the State of Inbound Report work for a company with 10 or fewer employees.
That’s ROI Online. We employ nine full-time employees; two of those nine represent the Content Department. Another two make up the Creative Department. Our client list consists of a diverse group of companies, from a regional oil and gas automation business and a self-storage REIT to a locally owned salon and a cosmetic surgeon. Each of our clients requires unique, original content for their blogs, web pages, videos, premium downloadable content, and print marketing materials. Twenty-plus clients and nine employees? You can do the math.
According to the State of Inbound report, “the most successful marketing organizations launch a balanced attack on churning out compelling content.”
Last year, LinkedIn’s Technology Marketing Community shared its B2B Marketing Report, which stated writing and design projects make up the majority of outsourced assets.
At ROI Online, we love creating our own content, but unfortunately, the odds aren’t always in our favor. (My boss sent me this assignment Friday afternoon, so I had no choice but to write it myself! J/K.) That’s when we turn to trusted agency partners and reliable freelancers we have carefully procured over the years.
For example, the Content Dept. regularly utilizes Zerys, a content marketplace that unites businesses with skilled writers and editors. We continually hunt for talented, dependable writers we can hire for our infinite number of projects.
The Creative Dept. frequently outsources photo editing and other small, yet time-consuming projects to People Per Hour. For larger, more in-depth projects, like web design, they deploy to 99 Designs.
If we didn’t outsource some of our blogs, white papers, and infographics, we would never have the time to actually meet with and engage with our clients. We wouldn’t have an opportunity to brainstorm inbound marketing campaigns. Outsourcing is essential for many small agencies.
To view a full list of online content creation services,
check out Curata’s extensive list, here.
Once we receive the outsourced content, we always give it the “ROI treatment.” Before sending it out for the whole world to see, we edit the content so it accurately conveys each client’s voice and brand. Most likely, your freelancers are not equipped to provide these finishing touches. However, you can at least enlist them for the heavy lifting, like research and creating the "skeleton" of the content.
Outsourced Content Drives Higher ROI
The State of Inbound report also revealed organizations that employed both in-house writers and outside sources enjoyed a higher ROI.
“Inbound marketing has traditionally been touted as small companies’ answer to big marketing budgets,” the State of Inbound report expounded. “While large companies command sizable budgets to spend on flashy advertising, smaller organizations have struggled to get the word out on a relative shoestring. But that changed with inbound marketing...”
The operative word here is SMALL. Small companies do not have the manpower or budget to produce all of the content necessitated by their customers' inbound marketing campaigns.
Ultimately, content creation and curation are more cost-effective for small agencies and their clients. Just compare the cost and the return of an evergreen blog and accompanying social media campaign to that of a rapaciously priced 30-second commercial spot during the big game.
How To Balance Content Insourcing & Outsourcing
Today, many businesses are torn between hiring a content marketing team and outsourcing. To relish in a high ROI, content marketers must discern a healthy balance between producing content in-house and outsourcing it.
Ask yourself, “Where do I excel?” and “Where does my team fall short?” Be honest. If brevity isn’t your strong suit, maybe you should steer clear of infographics and instead focus on long-form content, such as eBooks and editorial content for your clients. If you’re a one-man team, outsource the brunt of the work to freelancers and tack on essential elements (tone, CTA, branding) yourself. Always provide clear, organized instructions to ensure you don’t waste your or your freelancer’s time though.
Bottom line: Consumers desire good content. If you haven't already, invest in it now.
2016, like every other year before and after it, will witness new inbound marketing and sales trends. Be sure you and your agency are on top of them by downloading HubSpot’s State of Inbound Marketing & Sales 2015 Report!
