How Long Does Content Marketing Take To Work?

So, how long before your content marketing shows results?

Let's see what the stats and experts say: “When you’re planning a content marketing initiative, take the long view. Any solid initiative needs at least six months to yield impact. The day-to-day, however, is important as well. Evaluate and iterate constantly” (Source: Forbes.com)

“And, whether you know it or not, you’re playing the long game with content” (Source: CopyBlogger.com)

“... Not right away. In fact, it could be anywhere from 6-9 months. Not every company is going to see results within that time frame. There will be some companies that see results before or after those 6-9 months” (Source: ArtilleryMarketing.com)

“In my latest book, Content Inc., we found that it took an average of 15 to 17 months of consistent content creation and distribution to reach monetization (or results)” - Joe Pulizzi, ContentMarketingInstitute.com

“6-8 months: You should see positive movement compounding each month” (Source: LeanLabs.com)

Is this a good enough answer? No let's be specific....

What stage of business are you in?

I have to give credit to Michael Masterson. In his book Fire, Ready, Aim he outlines these 4 stages of growth. And here we're going to start from the top down, the biggest to the smallest.

Please note: these are only ballparks and general rules of thumb. Some businesses are outliers and do not strictly fall into one of these categories.

Stage #4: $50m plus:

You’re no longer a small business and you might actually get featured in Forbes or Fortune. You figured out how to sell beautifully, how to develop an endless stream of products, and to build enough structure to support your growth without crushing it.

So, how fast to get results from content marketing? Instantly. Whatever you do gets picked up and generates leads, attention, sales and yes, PR. You are guaranteed ROI from content marketing.

Stage #3: $10m-$50m

You’ve turned your business into a selling machine with hundreds of employees and lots of customers.

You have big presence on social and a customer list that you regularly communicate to. You're shaping thought leadership if you’re in a tight niche. You're not shaping it as much if you're in a broad niche, but you are getting there.

So, how fast to get results from content marketing? Instantly. Whatever you do gets picked up and generates leads, attention, sales and possibly, PR.

Your numbers probably won't be as big as the Stage 4 business but you will definitely generate awesome ROI in a small window of time from content marketing.

Stage #2: $1m-$10m

You have regular customers and are an expert on selling one product. You have mastered the art of marketing and sales and if there’s a customer out there looking for your product, you have found them.

You probably keep a database of customers... and you probably communicate to them regularly. You probably have a social presence of thousands and maybe tens of thousands. You or your company is not a Thought Leader yet but reputation is slowly building in your space.

So, how fast to get results from content marketing? That depends on how you define results:

If we're talking awareness and consideration by your audience: instantly

If we're talking some sales, say the equivalent of 2%-5% of annual sales: days and weeks. Say your annual run rate is $5 million then you can realistically expect $100,000 - $500,000 in new sales via content marketing.

If we're talking lots of sales, say the equivalent of 15% plus of annual sales: at least 3 months i.e. $750,000 plus increase in business.

That's because you have content distribution via your email list, direct mail list and social platforms - you have an "existing" audience to hear your message!

So if you’re strategic and a smart cookie, you know how to put the content to work.

If however you're in Stage 2 and you do NOT have an email list, or customer list that you nurture or social presence, then you should reduce that timetable I just mentioned by at least half. Content marketing will deliver ROI but because you're missing message distribution you must temper expectations.

Stage #1: Less than $1 million sales.

This means you no real active lead generation or sales conversion process. You are probably a solopreneur or have a few employees. You have no real opt in list or social presence.

That means at this time you do NOT have message distribution.

What you DO need is leads and customers. So that means hustle, hustle and hustle. Work the phones. Hit the pavement. Use paid ads on a modest budget. Set up joint venture opportunities. These are the fastest ways to build out your front end lead generation because they are fast burn activities.

Content marketing should be a tiny % of your marketing dollars. Certainly less than $1,000 per month, maybe even half that. It doesn't mean you put off content marketing. In fact you need to start ASAP because it's a slow burn and therefore needs time. Just be sensible about how much you invest in it.

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