Understanding Marketing's Dynamic Duo: Data & Content
Andrew Moravick
Thriving father of two, seasoned marketer (often salty), word-worker extraordinaire... and occasionally funny. I operate on campground rules -- always try to leave a place better than when you found it...
Respectful Disclosure: Data & Content are a dynamic duo specific to marketing; the late, great Adam West & Burt Ward as Batman & Robin are THE dynamic duo by which all other duos must be measured.
How well do marketers understand and use their data? And by "data" (as having a common understanding is critical) we mean “the general pool of insights and information used to carry out operations which includes things as simple as contact information in email addresses, or complex data in documented demographics, behaviors and activities that can be used for targeting, modeling, or other strategic analyses.”
Also, how effective are marketers at crafting, sourcing, deploying and driving conversions with their content? Again, for clarity, by content, we mean "structured materials like videos, infographics, reports, and other assets used to deliver value to potential buyers and advance the purchase process via its consumption.”
These two questions are crucial to answer, as data and content serve as foundations for effective marketing. In the simplest sense, data represents marketing advantages based on what can be known, and content represents advantages of what can be communicated at scale.
In terms of where content marketing is today, previous Aberdeen Group research has shown that while many marketers use content, only those with refined skill sets actually gain advantage from it. I'll spare you the long analysis (you can read all that in Critical Capabilities for Effective Content Marketing from Aberdeen Group), but I'll let the chart speak for itself.
Figure 1: Those Who REALLY Get Content (Leaders) Get Ahead, Those Who Just Have Content (Followers -- lacking above-average performance) Get Left Behind
As for data, previous Aberdeen Group research on data-driven marketing has also shown, at the time of the last study, only 19% of all marketers surveyed were able to track all of their marketing efforts in order to use data to drive improvement.
As you can tell, a lot goes into understanding data & content for marketing. That's why, I won't lie, there's a lot of questions in my latest survey investigating how well marketers understand data & content. Why it's worth your time to answer all the questions in this survey, though, is pretty straightforward. With your insights, I'll be able to give you clear, quick, actionable answers on data & content best practices for marketing.
If you've ever thought "dang, I wish there was something more I could do with my data to get more value from it..." Take this data & content survey!
If you've ever worried, "Am I missing something to make my content drive more conversions?" Take this data & content survey!
If you've ever wished someone could talk to hundreds of marketers and condense all their awesome insights into quick, compelling takeaways... Well, you're probably a figment of my imagination to make me feel needed & important, but if not... Take this data & content survey!
Also, if hyperlinks in the body text of a post make you nervous about clicking on a path that's just a shortlink, well, take this survey by clicking on this really long link (and also, of course, take my sincere appreciation for taking the time to complete this): https://surveys.aberdeen.com/snapwebhost/s.asp?k=149997132257&utm_source=Moravick&utm_medium=Marketing Research&utm_campaign=Data_Content&utm_term=Data and Content&utm_content=Survey
In short, data & content are vital building blocks for strong marketing performance. Help me (and help Aberdeen Group) help you in improving your marketing efforts by taking our survey!