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Content Marketing vs. Advertising: Which is Better?

content marketingHow to choose the best marketing channels for your needs

Trying to decide if content marketing or paid advertising is the best way to promote your company? Why not try both? Content marketing has become widely recognized as a highly effective way for B2B and B2C companies to generate leads. Paid advertising, such as Google AdWords and Facebook Ads, is another useful way to generate leads.  Both methods can be effective. Fortunately, you don’t have to choose one or the other. Comparing content marketing vs PPC advertising reveals how combining the two can boost the effectiveness of each strategy to achieve the best ROI possible.

Content marketing vs paid advertising

Interesting, relevant content is a long-term marketing strategy that improves your visibility, increases engagement with your brand, and generates leads. Content marketing takes time to become effective, generating more leads and increasing your online visibility as visitors come to rely on your brand for relevant information. The longer you engage in content marketing, the more effective this marketing strategy becomes.

Paid advertising through PPC ads can generate visibility for your brand in a hurry. This marketing strategy is great at generating leads while the ads are active. So you have two ways to generate leads – one that grows more effective over time, and one that is instantly effective with no residual effect. Combining the two strategies can be extremely helpful and significantly increase the ROI of your efforts.

How to combine content marketing and paid advertising

One of the greatest challenges of content marketing is figuring out how to distribute your content in a way that grabs customers’ attention. PPC ads are a highly effective way to distribute content and bring it to the attention of customers so it can generate leads. Using Promoted posts on Facebook and Twitter to promote your best performing content can help you reach more customers and generate more leads. In fact, Forbes reports that B2B marketers are increasing their PPC marketing spend in 2017, as it represents the most effective paid method for promoting and distributing content.

Content marketing ROI statistics

If you’re not sure if how to tell if your content marketing is successful,  you’re not alone –  55% of B2B marketers say they are unclear on what content marketing success or effectiveness looks like.  Let’s take a look at some content marketing ROI statistics for different types of content to see what kind of results you can expect.

  • Blogging ROI: B2B companies who consistently blogged (20 or more blogs) gathered 67% more leads per month than companies who did not have blogs. B2C companies performed even better, generating an incredible 88% more leads than companies without blogs!
  • Social Media ROI: 90% of all marketers indicated that their social media efforts have generated more exposure for their businesses, according to HubSpot. B2C companies who market their companies through Twitter generated two times more leads than customers without a Twitter account.

  • Email ROI: Email has one of the highest returns for content marketing channels, with a ROI of more than $39 for every $1 spent.

  • Community Engagement ROI: Actively participating in discussion groups on Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and other marketing channels generates positive ROI in the form of more website visitors – Community users visit nine times more often than non-community users, according to McInsey.

Content marketing vs traditional advertising

If you take a look at the ROI of content marketing vs traditional advertising, the benefits of content marketing are clear. Traditional forms of advertising such as television, radio, and print ads, only market your company while you are paying for them. Blogs and other online content will continue to market your company for years after they are initially posted, generating more leads over time. Content marketing engages customers instead of turning them off – 73% of customers prefer to get their information about companies through a series of articles rather than through traditional advertising.

So what’s the bottom line?

When you compare content marketing, paid advertising, and traditional advertising, the best marketing strategy becomes rather obvious. Traditional advertising is a stand-alone marketing strategy that is of limited duration and is ineffective at engaging customers and building relationships.  Combining content marketing with PPC ads is the most effective marketing strategy. This combo digital marketing strategy makes content marketing and PPC marketing more effective, so companies can generate more leads and increase their marketing ROI.

If you would like help using content marketing and paid advertising to generate leads, consider calling on Blue Interactive Agency. We can provide you with SEO content creation services and promote your content through PPC ad campaigns, using expert keyword research, dedicated landing pages, and more to create highly effective digital marketing strategies.  Call today for a free consultation to discuss how we can work together to achieve your online marketing goals.

Contact us at Blue Interactive Agency at 954-779-2801 for help using content marketing and paid ads to effectively market your business today!

About the Author

Sean d'Oliveira

Sean d'Oliveira

After graduating from the University of North Florida with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, Sean d’Oliveira began his career in journalism. After a decade in the industry, Sean transitioned into the world of digital marketing in 2017, where he honed his online marketing skills and copywriting expertise for various clients.

About the Author

Sean d'Oliveira

Sean d'Oliveira

After graduating from the University of North Florida with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, Sean d’Oliveira began his career in journalism. After a decade in the industry, Sean transitioned into the world of digital marketing in 2017, where he honed his online marketing skills and copywriting expertise for various clients.

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