2016 is almost over, and it's been a busy year. Content marketing and inbound marketing are not just buzzwords, but smart marketing strategies that are converting leads and driving new business for B2B organizations. If you're not planning an inbound marketing or content marketing strategy for 2017, you should! Content is king and will be far into the future.

But if you're already using inbound or content marketing, do you know if you're inbound effectiveness is stacking up with the rest? 

Infographic Transcript:

 B2B marketers love content and inbound marketing, and with good reason. Inbound marketing costs approximately 62% less than outbound marketing and content marketing delivers results — over 74% of B2B marketers say their content marketing is effective.

It’s a winning combination, but is your B2B marketing strategy measuring up? 

The Most Effective B2B Marketers Plan for Success

While 88% of B2B marketers use content marketing as part of their marketing strategies, it’s those who invest who see results.

• Marketers who allocated only 28% of their total marketing budget said they were the least effective.
• The most effective B2B content marketers allocated 42% of their total budget to content marketing.
• 53% of the most effective marketers have a documented content marketing strategy
• But 40% of the least effective marketers had no strategy at all.

Taking the time and investing the resources to creating, and documenting, a content strategy pays off in the long run.

A Plan Is Only as Good as the Content

Documenting and investing are only part of developing an amazing content and inbound marketing strategy. You must keep your audience interested.

• Producing engaging content is the top priority for 60% of content marketers.
• Creating engaging content is the top priority for 72% of content creators.
• 96% of B2B buyers want content with more input from industry thought leaders.

Engaging content holds the reader's attention.

• The average time people spend on an online article is 37 seconds, a quarter of the average session duration B2B businesses should aim for.

What Inbound and Content Tactics Are Effective in 2016?

Content creation and distribution was found to be the most effective in these mediums:

• Webinar/Webcast 66%
• Cast Studies 65%
• White Papers 63%
• Videos 62%
• Research Reports 61%
• eNewsletter 60%
• Blogs 59%
• Infographics 58%

Where Is Content and Inbound Marketing Heading?

What distribution channels marketers are planning to add:

Video is topping the list when it comes to expanding content. After all, 50% of internet users look for videos related to a product or service before visiting a store. 

• 48% YouTube,
• 39% Facebook video

Social channels are expanding

• 33% Instagram (“if you don’t gram it, it didn’t happen”applies to everyone now)
• 13% Snapchat

Inbound marketing and content production are essential for B2B marketers, but the most effective ones know that it takes more than posting a blog to your website once a month. You must plan and document your content strategy if you want to succeed and you must keep your eye towards the future as you evaluate where you want your content to go in 2017.

Resources

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/2016_B2B_Report_Final.pdf

http://www.hubspot.com/marketing-statistics

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2015/12/10/35-content-marketing-statistics-you-need-to-know-in-2016/#373d13974363

https://www.saleshub.ca/blog/comparing-inbound-marketing-roi-to-outbound

https://hingemarketing.com/blog/story/top-b2b-website-metrics-to-monitor-using-google-analytics