The Content Revolution

This year has been tough.

We’re navigating the unknown, and more than ever we need one another.

Whether it’s an employee leaning on their company, a consumer leaning on a product or service, or a brand leaning on their consumers, we all are using content to stay connected and informed. Due to consumer expectations and consumer confidence constantly shifting amidst the chaos, content teams need to be able to determine what’s working and what’s not in real time. They also must track their content to assess if it is laddering up to their business outcomes. And finally, they have to continue to share meaningful, nuanced stories that connect with consumers and reflect the experiences we are all facing. Content is growing, and that means it’s even more crucial for brands to get it right. 

More than 9 million people currently work in content, and of those content folks, most identify their role as having three main functions: marketing, business development, and/or communications. This year, despite a global pandemic and economic downturn, the need for content creators at brands has risen. Over 25,000 jobs have been posted in the content space on Linkedin this year (a number already above previous year over year metrics just nine months into this tumultuous year.) The overall projected increase for content jobs in 2020 is 35% compared to 2019. Other marketing jobs aren’t as lucky and will see a decrease of 9% this year. Given the world we live in, storytelling must be at the forefront, and as such, brands are looking to hire content folks from a variety of backgrounds, including tv programming and journalism.

Money is not just being spent on hiring. CMOs are spending money on content as well. Forrestor recently reported that by 2021, CMOs will spend $119 billion in content, making the industry itself worth an estimated $412 billion by the end of next year. Yet content creators are struggling to keep up with this growth. Not only are they struggling to connect in real time with their consumers, but brands themselves are struggling to produce enough content to support their consumer’s needs. A recent study by FINITE showed that 35% of marketers faced challenges producing enough content to reach audiences in 2020. 

While we have seen this uptick in content creation, we also have seen a demand from content leaders to have more visibility of content trends and competitor research in real time. Because brands need more content produced, trends become all the more vital, especially in a fast turn around environment, like the one we are living in. We all know COVID-19 has been the center of most content today, but over recent months, we have seen COVID-related content shift to centering around money and asset management over health-related content. This is likely due to factors such as unemployment remains high and government relief packages remaining stalled in DC. Other content trends in the COVID category include mental health, remote work, and jobs. Another topic that has been trending over much of the summer was the Black Lives Matter movement (BLM.) While we have seen a significant decrease in content centered around the movement itself, diversity & inclusion content remains high by brands. Most content in the area of D&I centers around thought leadership and includes topics such as: employer brand, case studies, and ways to improve overall workplace culture and experience. Beyond these two hot-button issues, last month we saw brands heavily promote election-centric content. Brands saw voter content as an opportunity to raise brand awareness and strengthen relationships with employees and shareholders through thought leadership. In 2018 Edelman reported that consumers are more loyal to brands that take a stand on issues they care about—and while some issues are hyper-partisan, we are seeing issues like COVID-19, racial injustice, and the general election trend high and remain a priority for brands.

This Content Revolution isn’t ending any time soon. Brands will continue to be tasked with producing meaningful content that resonates with their consumers, and content leaders, in turn, will be tasked with connecting that content to business outcomes. Our current world is ever-changing, which means consumer expectations are consistently shifting as well. Today’s content must be nuanced, purposeful, and agile. Brainstorm and production time must be shortened to publish content that remains relevant by the time it’s launched. And, lastly, content will remain a crucial part of the customer journey, particularly heightened in our current quarantined environment. Brands will expect content leaders to tie content to designated outcomes and deliver metrics and performance data in real time.

Everything brands are creating right now is content - from HR messaging to marketing emails. Content has the world’s attention, and content leaders have the unique opportunity to be at the forefront of this revolution.