Content Marketing Definitions:: What The Experts Say

A few weeks ago I had a text exchange with a friend of mine who owns a small business. I attempted to explain content marketing to him in a nutshell … through a text!

I could see that it was going to take more than a nutshell when he replied, “Never thought about this what I’d call ‘form of advertising’…”

The fact that he didn’t fully grasp content marketing from a mere text shouldn’t surprise me. Industry leaders have been working to educate companies, business owners and marketers on the virtues of content marketing going on 10 years.

According to an Unemployable podcast interview between Brian Clark of Copyblogger Media and Joe Pulizzi of Content Marketing Institute, many marketers are still expecting methods that interrupt attention – paid advertising and social media – to increase their bottom lines. And yet Seth Godin declared in his 1999 book, ‘Permission Marketing’ that we had transitioned into an era in which you have to earn the privilege of marketing to people.

Yikes! That was almost 20 years ago!

As a content marketing strategist and writer, part of my job is to study the discipline and help educate clients and website visitors. And I learned very quickly that a text may get the conversation going but it’s certainly not going to be the deciding factor. It takes time, effort and clarity to understand content marketing.

To that end, with this post I’m creating an ongoing list of content marketing definitions from some of the leading content marketers, course developers and authors in the field. I have three content marketing definitions to share with you right now. And as I find more definitions, I’ll add to this list with the hope of creating a resource that will help all of us expand our understanding and knowledge of this revolutionary marketing form.

Expert #1: Sonia Simone, Chief Content Officer of Copyblogger Media.
“Content marketing is the strategic creations of text, imagery, audio, or video that delivers a relevant and interesting message to a customer or prospect while at the same time paving the way for a sale.”
Source: Copyblogger Certification Program

Expert #2: Joe Pulizzi, Content Marketing Institute
“Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.”
Source: www.contentmarketinginstitute.com

Expert #3: Pamela Wilson, Executive VP of Educational Content, Rainmaker Digital and Copyblogger
“With the advent of the internet, a seismic shift has happened. Consumers now hold the power during the purchasing process. Instead of waiting to see which ad catches their attention, they go in search of answers. They arm themselves with information so they can make a qualified decision. And those of us how want to market our products and services serve up the information they’re searching for in the form of readable, friendly content.”
Source: Pamela Wilson, author of Master Content Marketing

More content marketing definitions to follow.