All About Content... And AI

In a world of constant pings, infinite feeds, and digital overwhelm, staying focused and present has never been harder. That’s why we’ve launched “Ditch The Scroll” — a fresh take on Digital Minimalism from the creators of this newsletter.

Like minimalism in the physical world, Digital Minimalism helps you cut through the clutter — but this time, it’s your screens, apps, and habits on the chopping block.

✨ Subscribe for practical tips, honest insights, and smart strategies to:

* Simplify your digital habits

* Reduce distractions

* Reclaim your focus

* Build more meaningful online connections

Whether you're feeling tech burnout or just want to scroll with intention, Ditch The Scroll is your guide to a saner, more balanced digital life.

💌 As a subscriber, you’ll also get full access to our archive and one-on-one advice from The Tab Tamer to help you declutter your digital world.

Subscribe to Ditch The Scroll.

We've seen many startup owners or small businesses blame a whole lot of other reasons for the failure of their product or service. Not many though attribute lack of marketing in the immediate post-launch period as one of the reasons. Merely asking friends or colleagues to "spread the word" is not enough.

However, the cost of a post-launch marketing plan can be a significant investment, especially for a startup.

Launching your product is just the beginning, but many startups/developers face a post-launch slump. Why? They get swamped, leaving little time for marketing.

But if you do not have the necessary bandwidth for marketing your startup in the days following its launch, don’t worry. Get “Plug”, a service by New Age Content Services. Get it for your post launch marketing.

(This podcast was made using Google Notebook LM)

Thanks for reading All About Content... And AI! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Generative AI (gen-AI) tools have advanced in their editing capabilities, enabling them to analyze and improve text rapidly, sift through vast amounts of content, and provide real-time feedback. They can also help maintain consistency across content portfolios, saving time and resources for content professionals.

But for now, gen-AI lacks genuine creative insight and emotional intelligence that human writers naturally possess, which is essential for producing compelling narratives that resonate with audiences on a deeper level.

Gen-AI can simulate creativity, generating new ideas based on existing patterns and information, but it does not possess the intrinsic motivation or personal perspective that characterizes original thought. As a result, articles, stories, or essays written by gen-AI may come across as formulaic or lacking in depth, leaving readers wanting more substance and connection.

….For New And Experienced Writers

The impact and utility of gen-AI tools for new and experienced writers are nuanced. New writers can use AI tools to alleviate writer's block by providing fresh ideas and suggestions, while experienced writers can benefit from AI's ability to enhance productivity and streamline mundane aspects of writing.

However, over-reliance on AI-generated content can lead to a homogenization of ideas, which threatens the originality and engagement that define compelling writing.

Both new and experienced writers can benefit from gen-AI tools, but how they leverage these resources differs substantially. New writers can use AI as a stepping stone to encourage creativity and improve technical skills, while experienced writers face the challenge of balancing AI's efficiency with the need for originality and personal touch.

Catch the full rundown on the podcast.

Thanks for reading All About Content... And AI! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

The podcast above was made using Google NotebookLM.

Heard of the “Whatifi” app? Launched globally a few days ago, Whatifi is a highly unusual and a very interesting smartphone app that, by the way, has raised US $10 million in funds. This “story hacking” app pushes the envelope where interactive content by taking it into a hitherto untested area — movies.

Imagine a group of friends and you getting together to watch a film virtually, i.e. on your respective smartphones? Only this time all of you can choose the ending you all want, or change the plot to your group’s liking.

The app “unlocks the ability to discuss, debate and decide what happens next in the movies” (that) you watch with others. Which means here is an app that offers movie buffs dozens of plot lines, and…. endings!

Now, don’t get confused here because this kind of “gamification” will only be for films especially made by and for Whatifi, and will not allow you to tinker with your average Hollywood blockbuster. Right now, it has two movies playing, and you can choose between 80 endings.

Each Whatifi film is broken down into short segments. At key points, the “watch party” is presented with a dilemma and has to take a decision. And if the group can’t decide unanimously, they can jump into the built-in chat feature to discuss.

So why am I telling you about Whatifi? Because it’s a great example of the unique use of interactive content, and also serves to highlight what I am about to tell you.

The new normal, living and managing a business through a pandemic, has digital marketers in a tizzy today. There’s no rule book for this one, nor experience to fall back on. I would think with the lockdown and work from home becoming the norm, now is a good time as any to use interactive content to engage with your leads or customers.

I shall quickly explain the three different categories of content that a marketer can use: static, dynamic and interactive. Examples of the static type are website pages whose content does not change, e-books, white papers, and so on. Examples of dynamic content are social media feeds, website pages (like news) whose content changes at regular intervals, and emails. On the other hand, interactive content means stuff like virtual reality (VR), immersive web, polls and calculators.

Now is the time to go interactive

Interactive, as the word so tells you, is a two-way street, where your brand opens up a communication channel with audiences, just like the Whatifi app. But get this straight, you need the active participation of your target audience, they are very much a part of it, or else, this tactic will fall flat on its face. You can put out an opinion poll to gauge the pulse of the market, but if nobody responds, well…..

So why the tilt towards interactive content now? Two reasons: the world has slowed down a bit because of COVID-19 and so can spare some more time, and the interplay this form of content allows with your customers can point you in the right direction in relation to your messaging during the pandemic.

One form of interactive content that’s being under-utilized so far is the calculator. These are insurance or mortgage calculators, i.e. what loan amount is a potential customer eligible for, and what is the payable monthly installment? A quick answer by the online calculator, and perhaps you have snagged a customer even with the person having spoken to a representative first.

Opinion polls as an interactive content form remains the most “over-used”. Once upon a time, asking someone their views on a certain matter would make their self-esteem soar. Today, with audiences drowning in all that information, that’s no longer the case. Polls are passé, and unless they are planned and executed well, with the right questions asked, audiences no longer bother with them.

The most exciting entry in interactive content is mixed reality. Though still nascent, MR uses VR and augmented reality to create a world where physical and virtual objects co-exist in real time. Audiences can manipulate the objects in virtual and real environments.

Here’s an example to further simplify this tech: you stand in a showroom that’s selling carpets, wear a headset, then walk on a carpet (or carpets) that physically don’t exist but are virtual objects. Nearby is a real vase. You can move a particular carpet to another spot in the room, even “touch it” with what’s called haptic technology. Or, better still, walk up to the (physical) vase and move it.

Online quizzes, games and competitions remain in the forefront of interactive content. After all, who can resist a challenge, right?

Entertain, educate, inform, observe. That’s how marketers should use interactive content. Personalization is one of its high points; almost everyone feels individually addressed.

But a word of caution: interactive content could also become an unnecessary barrier between your brand and your lead or customer. It should not become a hurdle for them to surmount to get to your brand. To avoid that, ask yourself this before creating anything interactive — what’s the purpose of my content?

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Snackable content and its long-form counterpart have often been compared to fast food and a proper sit down meal. In debates past, some experts even dubbed snackable content as the “junk food of marketing”.

A re-cap: snackable content is bite-size pieces of content meant to tackle the pain point of shortening consumer attention spans. The aim is also to capture immediate business leads. Infographics, less than 30-sec videos, quotes, memes and GIFs are some examples.

For about 8 years now, content creators, marketers, SEO and assorted experts have been debating the promises and perils held out by these two forms of content. Content purists will have nothing to do with this “millennial creature” whose creators dare harbor the notion that a few words or a caricature are “good enough” to enthrall people.

Though part of the ecosystem, I’ve listened to the arguments by both sides from the sidelines without actually participating. That’s because I started off as a long-form writer in an era when there was no such word in a writer’s lexicon, and as such feel I am a compromised party.

But here are some interesting observations:

1) If there was no World Wide Web, there would (almost) be no short-form content.

2) It would also have not been so rampant if technology had not been democratized.

3) Social media made snackable content enter public consciousness.

4) Digital marketing and its myriad ways allow it to breed.

5) The proliferation is because the demand exists (the most important fact).

6) Much of such “snacking” is done in the B2C world than the B2B one.

7) Has a far shorter shelf-life than any other form of content.

8) Does not rank much on search engines.

9) Helps generate immediate RoI.

10) Occasionally helps in overcoming the information overload hurdle.

(In point 1, I’ve said “almost” because prior to the www, there were ads, TV spots and so on, which were the old-world version of snackable content.)

Here’s what I feel: there’s no reason to pick one and ditch the other. Refer to point 5: the condensed content form continues to be popular because there’s a demand for it. There’s no denying that. We also cannot wish away the fact that we live in a highly digitalized world, one that relies in a major way on technology to give you what you want.

Brand managers, and consumers even, need to understand this. Both forms — snackable content and the long-form — can co-exist; nay, they must. Each has a different set of rules that can be used to positively maneuver the brand in public space.

I look at it like this, since food is the metaphor often used in this debate: short-form content can be used by marketers as an appetizer. It can be finger food, starters, or could even be the first course in your content spread to pique the interest of your audience. In marketing terms, snackable content may be used as part of overarching campaigns.

But to win brand loyalty, a mere starter, however, lip-smacking, is not enough. A smart manager can use it to whet the appetite of his intended audience and lead them on to a satisfactory “wholesome meal” (brand experience). You use snackable content as bait to cut through all that digital noise, and then reel in the line with the catch.

The tactic will fail though if there’s no value offered. Value can be in any form: information, entertainment, a nugget of data ….but any form of content, irrespective of length, will malfunction if it does not help the intended audience one way or the other.

So, as a marketer, rather than agonize over the size of the content, you could do well to fuss over what benefits your piece of content offers to your audience. Clearly, in this instant, size does not matter.

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

Marketers and brand owners often ask me in today’s time of the COVID-19 pandemic: do we need to change our messaging? When they hear the affirmative reply, the next, inevitable question is: how?

Like all of you, the unprecedented pandemic is new to me. And so is its impact on content and digital marketing. The fund crunch has forced many brands to drastically cut spending on PPC and advertising, leaving them with largely “organic” ways of reaching out to audiences.

Here are some lessons learned in the first months of the virus:

Forget the long term for now as the situation is evolving almost every day. Learn to adapt and be even more agile. You cannot afford to drop the ball.

Be sensitive in your selling. Keep a tight rein on the copy. Humor is fine, but to a degree. In-your-face and over-selling are a complete no no so back off.

Your content pillars, the foundation of your content marketing activities, have served you well so far but use this time to have a re-look. Eg: Long-form articles running into 2k-3K words, white papers, e-books and so on. Maybe they need updating or reorientation. Or embellishment in the form of a new video, perhaps?

In normal times, your content should be ideally geared to fetch results but that becomes even more imperative in today’s coronavirus times when demand and supply chains lie broken. Ensure all content put out is solely result-focused.

All messaging must be conversation-oriented and targeted.

With WFH and more time on people’s hands, re-check your messaging platforms themselves. Are they still good to go? Does X social media channel fetch you results even during these perilous times? If not, do not hesitate to switch to address the right community.

Re-think your content forms. Enlarge your distribution pipeline. Do not over-rely on just one.

Which is where I come to webinars. Every day, I get 20 webinar invites on an average. Initially, I would try to attend a couple till webinar fatigue hit me. Now, my eyes glaze over when I see a webinar invite. Some companies are holding a webinar almost every 3rd day, thinking they can capitalize on the “captive” audience. What they forget is that the basic principles of a webinar still hold. Which are: (a) only if the topic interests me and has the potential to add to my knowledge repository (b) only if my profile matches that of the enterprise’s target audience.

I’ve heard people griping and groaning, “Oh, no mate, not another webinar”. Even during normal times, webinar as a marketing form was fast threatening to turn into this dull, post-lunch activity that our blood deprived brains barely registered. The over-kill by over-zealous marketers during COVID-19 may hasten its end?

Webinar may be a COVID-19 victim but it can be replaced with a podcast or a video newsletter. An occasional “live” stream may also not hurt. Try it if not done before.

Content creators and marketers must look at COVID-19 as an opportunity to hone their audience engagement skills. Use the period to start providing (if not done already) a highly personalized experience. Nobody on your contacts list wants to get the exact copy of content that everyone’s getting. Customizing the message for individual customer should be the mantra.

There’s nothing like video to personally reach out to your audiences. Figure out which video platform suits your brand because YouTube may not always be the go-to channel. Think Snapchat, TikTok. Do they work for your one-on-one messaging? Hundreds of brands are pushing out short, 15-second videos with some pretty powerful messages. Maybe even LinkedIn for B2B products or services?

In all this, don’t forget your website, the centerpiece of your content marketing activities. Do a hard review. Try and figure out if the content there remains relevant in today’s abnormal times. If not, try and re-shape it either by adding or deleting.

Unlike the “webinar people”, do not put all your content marketing eggs in one basket while the COVID-19 pandemic lasts. (Not a good idea even in normal times.) Diversify, test the waters, figure out very quickly what’s working and what’s not. Change, accordingly.

Personalized messaging to targeted audience, and the tone of the message are things you need to focus on as a brand marketer in order to survive and fight another day.

Image by Keith Johnston from Pixabay

Chances are subscribers of this newsletter may have never heard of automatic content recognition (ACR) technology. No problem. That’s why you have signed up for All About Content — the newsletter that brings you developments from the crossroads of content, digital marketing and technology.

So today, let’s catch up with what is ACR, and its various consumer-facing applications. A heads up, this edition of the newsletter is all about how content is consumed rather than created.

ACR is a complicated piece of tech at work, so I shall try to explain it as simply as possible. But believe me when I say this — it is one of the handful of technologies that is disrupting the content ecosystem.

Automatic content recognition is really a broad term that covers a family of software that aims to help consumers synch content consumption across hardware like a smart TV, laptop, and so on.

What does that mean? Let’s say you are watching an animal-related documentary on your smart TV. Clearly, you are an animal lover. When there’s an ad break, you will be served up animal-related content on your tablet, simultaneously. That content on your second screen could be an ad for pet grooming products or a promo for a similar documentary that’s coming up next week.

But just how did “someone out there” realize you were watching an animal related documentary on your TV in the first place? It’s not magic but ACR tech at work. You see, ACR involves the placing of an “embed” in your piece of content like a video to “track” audiences. That embed can be a digital fingerprint or even something as simple as a watermark. It is this embed which “messages” the tracking company of the route taken by a piece of content no matter where it is viewed.

Here’s one explanation that I found that describes ACR quite succinctly: Most smart TV manufacturers use ACR tech to know what you watch. Pixels from the program or ad you watch are analyzed by the ACR software and cross-referenced with a database to determine exactly what you are watching and the content source. Your IP address ascertains your geo-location and is used to match you up with other audience information associated with your IP collected from other sources.

Compared to other tech, ACR is fairly new, having come on the scene at the start of the last decade. Initially, it was part of legacy apps to prevent content theft and copyright infringements. But over the years, companies, especially advertising and marketing agencies, woke up to its “tracking” prospect and its potential to serve up synchronized advertising across platforms. ACR is now being used for specific messaging to target audiences. The tech is also being installed in smart TVs by manufacturers to record and understand a viewer’s watching habits; the data is then sold to ad agencies which in turn use it to increase revenues of their clients.

Take the example of the animal documentary I quoted above. ACR helps programmers know that their short film was consumed on both devices simultaneously. So, the tech helps with analytics.

What’s driving growth?

Two factors are driving the adoption of ACR tech despite severe reservations expressed by online privacy advocates: the demand for customized content, and the growth of consumer electronics. Increasingly, automatic content recognition technology is being embedded in “smart” devices such as TVs and mobile computing devices, including our phones. Increased levels of adoption of portable devices have been instrumental in maximizing the growth potential of the market.

For now, say experts, the world of ACR is in a stage of upgrade: there’s new hardware and software coming in. But research says the market for this tech is set to grow exponentially globally.

ACR applications

Over the years, it was the broadcasting, advertising and media worlds that were the largest users of ACR tech. But others like gaming companies, industries, consumer electronics and education, too, have now climbed aboard. With every advertiser’s and marketer’s thrust on targeted messaging, ACR is set to get incredibly popular, allowing them to measure and understand audience viewing patterns, which will then be used to beam content for a specific audience.

To give an example of the use of ACR in 3rd party apps: it is being used by digital voice companies in their offerings for turning text into audio. Podcasts and audiobooks apart, a trend that’s emerging of late is that of turning website text into audio, allowing visitors to “hear” rather than read what you have up on offer. ACR is helping in a big way in such text-to-speech efforts.

In conclusion: Automatic content recognition is poised to disrupt the content industry, and will be adopted in a big way in the days to come to help serve up targeted content.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

In these times of the pandemic when most are in a lockdown mode, where clients have vanished and when an hour feels like 24, it is but natural to be in a blue funk. That’s one way of going through this phase of life. The other is to use the time to upskill.

Before COVID-19 put the brakes on life, it was always a race against time for content creators. Ironically, now there’s plenty of time but little else. So use this break to update your skills.

Subscribers of this newsletter are already aware that merely being a good writer does not cut the mustard anymore. If you want to make a career in content, or want the stamina to stay in this long-distance race, there’s a long list of additional skills you need to learn or align with.

Based on some spot research, some trend-spotting, and some talk with a few content clients, I’ve come up with a list of the top 3 skills you can pick up as a content developer during the pandemic. When you emerge on the other side, you will be a well-rounded content professional.

1) Learn content marketing: Content marketing is on the same plane as programming. Most content creators think “it’s not my job”, yet, learning even the basics will only help.

Only when you beat the drums does the message spread in the jungle. For the moment, firms and enterprises have individual content providers and content marketers, and they work in tandem. But the situation’s changing fast. What better than for the original content creator to “sell” the output, too? The day’s not far off when clients will hire one person for both the tasks. So now is the time for you, the content creator, to pick up some marketing skills.

2) Learn new content forms and formats: Text and still images no longer remain the only forms to convey your thoughts, ideas or message. Depending on the content form and format you currently specialize in, try to add at least one more. If you are a blogger or a long-form content writer, try learning about video or podcasting. If you are already doing podcasts, move on to making social videos. If short videos is already your thing challenge yourself by learning how to ‘livecast’ over your smartphone. Similarly, bloggers can look at creating e-books. Or infographics.

3) Get rid of your tech illiteracy: I can already visualize the frowns on the faces of some of my subscribers over this. In the past, I’ve had content creators ask me this — is it necessary for me to learn tech? My answer then, as now, is: yes. This is inevitably followed up with: but what and how much?

The “what” is easily answered. The following technologies may be emerging today, but will become mainstream soon (in no particular order):

1) Virtual, augmented and mixed reality (for immersive web)

2) Artificial intelligence

3) Programming

4) Data analytics

This is certainly not an exhaustive list. I’ve only listed technologies that are either already in the content ecosystem or about to, with the forecast that they are here to stay.

Internet companies like Mozilla, Google and Facebook are already working to make the www “immersive”. Almost all have launched the first iterations of their efforts. The aim obviously is to move away from the flat, 2D perspective that web browsers offer today to one where the content consumer is either fully immersed in a situation or where the situation comes to the user.

The word “immersive web” covers an entire spectrum of “experiences” starting from VR, AR, MR and 360° videos. All of it sitting right in your web browser, with the “connect” being VR enabled headsets.

Obviously, immersive web will require immersive content. Its impact on marketing, advertising and sales is going to be “game-changing”.

So far as programming is concerned, learn to rid your fears of digital technology, at least where content is concerned. You need to know the “basic” stuff; HTML5, PHP, CSS, and so on. If you still don’t know what a 404 error code is, and what it stands for, you better get your act together.

So to what level should you go to pick up or hone your tech skills?

I would say the sky is the limit. Determine your present level of understanding of each of the above. Then, either learn new things at your level or go for the next. The mantra is — you must know the basics, whether it is coding, AI or data analytics.

In fact, use this free time, pick any one or all of the 3 skills that I’ve listed above, and go for it. For each, there’s a boot camp tailored for content creators that you can find online, for free or for a fee. Enroll in one of those and get going.

Elementary “students” can start with the basics. Let go of prehistoric notions that you are ONLY a content creator, and that you don’t need any of this. Content creation is one of the top career choices for 2020 and beyond. While that may be good news, the downside is there’s too much competition now. But, if you are a 360°content developer, chances of you landing more clients go up substantially.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Old timers can vouch for this — there’s no shortcut to developing quality content. As a content creator, you have only your skills and talent to rely on. The star will always be the human content developer.

But all help is welcome, right? With the advent of the digital age, technology has come to play a major role in the content ecosystem. While welcome, many content developers, especially the new crop, have got the impression somehow that they can slapdash a few words or raw video footage, drag these through the labyrinth of tech and hope for the best. They couldn’t be more wrong.

Tech can only play a supportive role. Betting your entire basket on technology will not help you turn out a good copy or a great video.

There are hundreds of content tools out there. I shall list them here:

* Headline Analyzer

* Title Generator

* Keyword Research Software

* SEO Tools

* Graphic Design Tools

* GiF Creators

* Video Tools

* Animation Tools…..

….and more.

This list can be divided into two: tools that help during the actual content creation, and those that come into play after it’s over. Eg: A graphic design tool is to make graphics while you are writing an article, while a headline analyzer is after the fact.

In the previous newsletter, I’ve talked of some of the above tools. But here’s the thing — for the content developer to use them, there’s one basic requirement — he/she has to write the basic copy first.

Yes, if you must rely on technology for content, you can only use it to embellish your work. There are actually content clients, including some big enterprises out there that have started using these tools to “produce” content, rather than outsource it to content agencies! You cannot use an SEO tool before writing your content, right? It’s like putting the cart before the horse. So, folks, you are seriously mistaken to think that only tech will help you produce your copy for you.

Take a headline analyzer for instance. These run on algorithms largely build on the principles of human behavior, i.e. how a human being perceives a certain combination of words. There’s a lot of math at play here. Most of these analyzers work by pegging an overall score to the “quality” of the headline. So, you key in your headline and within seconds it analyzes and puts a number to it + mini scores on other aspects like length of the headline, word balance, and even its appeal to search engines.

Just to reiterate — it does not write your headline for you, but tells you whether your title will resonate with the audience or not. There are even tools that analyze the emotional connect of a headline!

Serious workers of the craft will be pardoned at scoffing at such “machines”. But as a veteran (and over-worked at that) in the business, my take is — why not? This is data analytics at work for content, and there’s a science to the madness, so anything that helps to better your labor of love should be welcomed. So far as the veracity of the scoring of such “analyzers”, I am no expert so can’t tell. Obviously, the same headline comes out with different scores when put through three different headline analyzers.

To sum up, technology is not the hero of this movie, it is the human being, mostly a creative one, who is spear-heading the process. Tech is the support cast.

Image by fancycrave1 from Pixabay

In the digital world we live in, content and its marketing ride on the back of technology. So, it is imperative for businesses to ask themselves this question periodically — how mature is my marketing tech stack? More pertinently, how ready is it for 2020 and beyond?

A MarTech stack refers to a cluster of technologies used by marketers to execute and analyze marketing campaigns. MarTech plays a vital role in B2B marketing because of the complex buying patterns and customer journey involved.

As compared to B2C marketing, a business selling to another business has to tackle:

* 1+ people who participate in the buy process

* The length of the decision-making cycle

Such complexities may push digital marketers, including content marketers, to look to leveraging new technologies in B2B marketing. While that may be a good thing, digital marketers need to simultaneously audit their existing MarTech stack in order to understand:

(a) if some of the technology has got outdated

(b) if some of the tools need refining

(c) if all the tools still “connect” with each other

If these two events — taking stock of your MarTech and introducing new tech — are not done together, there’s a high chance that your content marketing will end up with siloed tools, or even redundant ones.

Content marketing is a valuable part of the overall B2B marketing strategy. If done right, it can prove to be the most effective one for lead generation.

The implementation of this strategy has at least 4 stages requiring different technology to make it effective:

Marketing Research: You need to understand the profile of the audience you will be addressing. Get it wrong, and you’ll find yourself publishing content targeting the wrong audience. The tech required here is your customer relationship management (CRM) system, keyword research tools, search engines, etc.

Content Creation: The forms and formats of content need to be decided at this stage: whether it will be an email, a newsletter, a blog post, or a podcast, a short video, and so on. The tech here ranges from a content management system for your website or blog to a CRM, infographic software, visual content creation tools, editorial calendar templates, SEO software, and so on.

Content Promotion Software: Once you’ve created content that’s optimized, you need to put it in front of your target audience. The tech here is again your CRM, your website, your blog, social networks, videos, SEM, email marketing, and e-books.

Analysis: You need to analyze whether your content is hitting the right chord. For this, you need to rely on analytics tools offered by search engines or 3rd parties, marketing automation platforms, social media platforms, CRMs, and so on.

All the 4 steps are inter-linked, and so are the respective technologies, and all of this constitutes your MarTech stack.

Periodically, maybe every 6 months or so, your content, marketing and tech teams need to collaborate and examine the validity of the tech, its efficacy, its deliverables, its updation. Obviously, obsolete tech will have to be replaced to ensure the effectiveness of your content marketing efforts.

Is Your Content MarTech Smart?

Which brings us to the question: is your B2B content marketing stack ready for 2020 and beyond?

Is your entire MarTech stack relevant and ready for your B2B content marketing? Also, are you aware of the new channels and content formats that are available in the market today?

One recent trend I uncovered after speaking to digital marketers, content developers, and following online conversation is that all-in-one solutions are getting more traction with content marketers today. Work smart, not hard is the guiding motto even where technology is concerned. This has been understood by CRMs, and they are now trying to offer everything under one banner, so to speak.

Of course, new content creation tools are top of every marketer’s list. Videos and infographics are old hat. “Live” video, which today does not require too many tools, and is easily scalable, is the new flavor, and is used to conduct interviews of industry leaders or influencers.

Immersive content is another development being slowly embraced by content developers and marketers. As I had mentioned in an earlier newsletter, the word “immersive web” covers an entire spectrum of “experiences” starting from VR, AR, MR and 360° videos. All of it sitting right in your web browser, with the “connect” being VR enabled headsets like Google's Daydream, Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR, and AR-enabled mobile devices.

There’s little doubt that in the coming days, “smart” will be the operative word for B2B content marketers. So, get ready.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay