Content marketing has been here way before you started doing business online.
You’ve probably heard of its countless times, and you acknowledge its role in helping brands come out of their shell.
Like all other things in the world, it had its humble beginnings; there was a time of irrelevance and mediocrity, but it led to the concept’s development over the years.
To further understand the evolution of content marketing, we first must understand what it is.
Everyone knows that content marketing helps a business expand its reach, thereby allowing more room for growth. But that’s more of a description than a definition. Content marketing is the creation and simultaneous distribution of high-quality content that fosters customer engagement at different levels.
Protip: Today, it is an indispensable element of a B2B marketing strategy. With different communication tools and media at their expense, marketing companies find multiple ways of consumer engagement. In theory, content marketing offers real value.
Like all other success stories, content marketing didn’t just come out of nowhere. In its infancy, it was nothing but a new concept that some brands and companies took the risk of trying just to keep up with the competition.
In other words, it was an experiment that could’ve succeeded or failed. But soon after marketers realized the power of content, it eventually became a crucial part of every marketing strategy.
What Was Old Content Marketing Like?
As someone new to content marketing, you probably think that it’s a modern invention. It’s not. It wasn’t as popular and hyped as it is today, but those in the business of selling products and offering services knew that it was worth their effort. Old content marketing is characterized by the following:
- Technological innovations helped brands connect with a wider audience, but they were too expensive for small and medium-sized businesses to adopt. The lack of budget meant the absence of content marketing integration.
- Pioneering brands of their respective industries took the initiative of using content marketing and go beyond the conventional sales strategy. It worked for most of them and allowed those old connections to form new relationships with the new generation of clients.
- The earliest form of content marketing was not only expensive but time-consuming. Companies had to gather up artists, writers, distributors, and publishers to make it work. With the absence of the internet and other modern communication, it’s hard to imagine how it would’ve worked.
- Many businesses and companies that took the risk of spending money on content marketing eventually leap-frogged everyone else in terms of success.
The Modern Take on Content Marketing
Editor’s Note: Before we dive too deep, we did an excellent podcast on the Do’s and Don’ts of Content Marketing with Bosco Anthony HERE
John Deere’s “The Furrow” is credited by many as the pioneering work on content marketing. The magazine convinced farmers to reinvest in their farms in the hope of increasing their income.
The goal was to motivate them to buy John Deere equipment.
This concept remains the same and untouched today. But “The Furrow” isn’t the only “early” contender for making content marketing what it is today.
There are other noteworthy pioneers, too:
1 – The Michelin Guide
Although it was launched in the 1900s, it still rings a bell up to this day. The guide was intended for drivers to help them maintain their vehicles and learn of the best places to dine and stay while on the road.
Today, restaurants worldwide strive to get those “Michelin Stars” as proof of the quality of their food. This concept wouldn’t have existed without The Michelin Guide.
2 – Jell-O Recipe Collections
Unveiled by Kraft in 1904, this content marketing strategy focused on offering free recipes to its audience through a collection of books and materials.
The creative part is that it featured the company’s products. The first collection was thought to have brought over $1 million in sales in roughly two years of marketing.
3 – “World’s Largest Store” Radio Show
Radio eventually became an integral part of marketing, and one of the most memorable campaigns was that of Sears. The company launched a radio broadcast that targeted the farming industry.
While advertising its products, the show provided helpful content about farming. The show also included comedic sections and musicals to put the icing on the cake.
The show had surprising results, too. Aside from Sears getting a substantial increase in its sales, people also bought radios to hear the show.
The Rise of Advertising Almost Killed Content
Content marketing took a step back when advertising suddenly became a significant force in the media industry. The precipitous increase of capital in advertising made quite an impact on consumer behaviour.
The “stand-still” in content marketing started in the 1940s up until the late 1950s. Advertising consumed much of the available media, and brands were taking advantage of the trend.
It looked familiar because content marketing did the same thing a couple of decades back. During this period, brand-driven material almost killed the very concept of content marketing.
The Arrival of the Digital Age
The introduction of computers and the internet (starting in the 1980s) created a whole new avenue for content marketing. For some people, the digital age brought in a completely new form of content marketing.
The birth of websites, email, and other digital media forms made companies think of more efficient ways to reach out to an audience.
It was in 1993 when O’Reilly and Associates launched what many consider as the first commercial website.
At this very moment, advertising’s full control over media ended. With a computer and access to the web, any business can now create and push content to whoever they want.
Editor’s Note: Here’s a list of the best blogging tools you’ll need to create high-quality content HERE
Social Network Revolution
The marketing world has never seen anything as dynamic and wide-reaching as the internet. But no one was prepared for the emergence of social networking.
The increasing availability of the web in the 1990s paved the way for the birth of social networks. This one was another channel that brands took full advantage to reach consumers.
There were a handful of pioneering platforms, but the revolution officially started with the unveiling of Facebook in 2003.
Two years later, YouTube took social networking to a whole new level, focusing on video content marketing. Twitter joined the craze in 2006, introducing the concept of “real-time” discussions by businesses and their consumers.
In its entirety, social networking revolutionized content marketing by allowing direct and simultaneous interactions between companies and the people who are likely to buy their products or avail of their services.
What the Future Holds
The unprecedented growth of content marketing in its short history shows that there’s more to it than meets the eye.
We could be seeing a new channel or a technological breakthrough that’ll bring brands and companies closer to its consumers more than ever. It also means a much better buying experience for everyone.
With so much content out there, content is really about being seen as an authority and a thought leader in your field aka creating high-quality content that is unique, specialized and captivating.
If you want to learn more we have written a blog about how to use content marketing to establish yourself as a thought leader HERE
Joel Mark Harris graduated from the Langara School of Journalism in 2007. Joel is an award-winning journalist, novelist, screenwriter and producer.
He has ghostwritten numerous books in all types of genres including true life crime, business, memoir, and self help. With over 1,000 blog posts to his name, he has helped hundreds of business owners scale their business and increase their visibility. You can email him at info@ghostwritersandco.com
