According to a 2014 report by Content Marketing Institute and the UK Direct Marketing Association on Content Marketing in the UK, lack of a documented content marketing strategy is one of the biggest threats to successful content marketing. We can all agree that a strategy is vital, but an interesting question is, why do so many companies not have one?
Lee Odden wrote in a recent blog post that the reason many companies do not have a content marketing strategy isn’t because they lack sufficient time, resources, or funding to create one, but rather it’s due to a lack of vision and empathy for the customer experience. There is much to be said for the case Odden makes, but my experience as a strategist tells me that there is an even greater and more profound reason: fear.
A key aspect of strategic development is that it forces us to make — and commit to —decisions. That’s the core of what a strategy is designed to do — help us decide what actions to take, what to target, and how to reach our ultimate goal. To many managers, this is a frightening prospect.Continue Reading
