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Data is an integral part of any above-and-beyond marketing strategy. Data can spark a conversation, end an argument, and form the basis for effective marketing.
Todd Lebo is partner and Chief Marketing Officer at Ascend2, a team of research and marketing professionals. Ascend2 publishes data on a variety of strategies and tactics within digital marketing. We hosted Todd on this week’s episode of the Marketing Cloudcast — the marketing podcast from Salesforce — to learn some of the latest data around content marketing, demand generation, and more.
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Take a listen here:
Subscribe for the full episode, and read here for a few takeaways from our conversation with Todd.
Todd sees content marketing as the foundation of digital marketing. “We see continously that content marketing is such a powerful tool to educate, build your brand, and build trust with your prospects and your clients.”
Todd believes that valuable content is the most powerful way to communicate with your customers. In a recent survey, Ascend2 found that “89% of the marketers that we talked to said that the effectiveness of their content marketing program increased over the last twelve months, and 35% said increased significantly.”
“With the content you’re generating — are you maximizing the effectiveness of that content through a variety of channels?” asks Todd.
Knowing that you should create content is one thing, but knowing how to slice up your material, use it, and reuse it to get the most out of every nugget is another.
“We asked ‘What’s the most effective type of content?’ And, actually, research reports were number one, blog posts were number two, and video and podcasts were number three. The research report is just step one. You should be using that research in podcasts, webinars, infographics. Make it part of a nurturing campaign, incorporate in into multiple blog posts. There are so many ways to use that research beyond the initial report.”
“The companies that are continually looking to improve the quality of their data tend to be having more success," Todd confirms, according to Ascend2.
“We did a marketing data management survey, and we looked at the top usage of data management: number one was campaign targeting, two was content personalization, and number three was customer journey analysis. What better use of your data to prove the performance of your marketing?”
Just as your consumer has access to endless information, so do you, as the marketer. It’s important to focus on only the data that will help you accomplish your goals. Todd believes that marketers of today “are more savvy because they have this data at their fingertips now."
“The number one barrier to success is a lack of an effective strategy," confirms Todd.
“Marketers are getting out there and getting their hands dirty [with] some very difficult tactics. But the strategy is what’s holding them back. Marketers really need to take a step back and see if they’re spending adequate time creating the strategy, implementing the strategy, and then going back and refining that strategy.”
Todd recommends, “As marketers, I think we owe it to our companies to be willing to take the bold chance.”
Marketing today is more than just doing what you’ve always done. Tactics and trends shift often, and it takes a determined marketer to keep up. As Todd puts it, “Great marketers are great leaders.”
“As a marketer you can no longer just stand firm with this is what works for me, because what works now could change in six months. Always be reading, always be talking to smart marketers. Be willing to change. I salute the companies and the marketers that take those bold chances. They have data to back them up, but they’re willing to take that chance.”
And that’s just scratching the surface of our conversation with Todd Lebo (@ToddLebo). Get the low-down on the latest marketing data from a top researcher in this episode of the Marketing Cloudcast.
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