36 Content Marketing Ideas from 2013

Earlier this week, Joe released the 6th annual

content marketing predictions. While it’s fun to hypothesize on what 2014 will have in store, it’s also amazing to see how much has changed across the content marketing industry in the last year. While we had dozens of savvy experts cover the gamut of the past year’s advances, nine themes seemed to have emerged to characterize the 2013 content marketing landscape.

Strategy

If nothing else, 2013 distinguished itself as the year of strategy. As our annual content marketing research revealed, those with a documented content marketing strategy are far more likely to be effective than those working without one. How do you create a strategy that will guide your content marketing efforts in the right direction? Here are some essentials to get you started:

1. Build a Successful Content Marketing Strategy in 7 Steps

2. How Content Strategy and Content Marketing Are Separate but Connected

3. How to Create a Documented Content Marketing Strategy: 36 Questions

Planning

One key component of a successful content strategy is editorial planning, which was a hot topic this year. What type of info do you need to have to build a workable plan, and how do you keep it organized as your content processes take shape and start to grow? These posts address these questions, and more:

1. Build Your Content Calendar: 3 Easy Steps

2. Editorial Plan Best Practices: Prime Your Content Marketing for Success

3. Learn What Makes a Content Plan Successful by Taking One Apart

4. 17 Essential Content Templates and Checklists

Content Ideas

Of course, you need to fill your calendar with content. If you are looking for fresh ideas to keep the pump primed, these posts can provide some inspiration:

1. 8 Remarkable (and Stolen) Content Marketing Ideas

2. 7 Ways to Use Google Trends to Punch Up Your Content Creation

3. Content Marketing Playbook: 24 Epic Ideas for Connecting with Your Customers

4. Make Your Content Marketing Processes More Creative: 5 Actionable Tips

Storytelling

While the notion of brands as storytellers is nothing new, it’s tough for brands to find the right story to tell, let alone become familiar with the new perspective and processes that content marketing brings to the table. To learn what it takes to excel at brand storytelling, check out these posts:

1. Brand Storytelling: 10 Steps to Start Your Content Marketing Hero’s Journey

2. Corporate Storytelling Lessons from Kevin Spacey

3. Mapping the Next Frontier in Brand Storytelling

Google

The world of SEO is ever evolving, and this year was no exception. Google underwent a lot of changes that kept content marketers on their toes, in addition to introducing a new suite of tools:

1. Keep Your Website Content Ranking after Google Hummingbird: 8 Tips

2. 5 Content Creation ‘Yellow Cards’ Google Issued in 2013

3. 12 Ways to Measure Content Effectiveness After Google’s “Not Provided” Decision

4. 3 Content Strategy Commandments for Google Hummingbird Success

5. 3 Ways To Use Google Media Tools for Content Marketing

Value

The job of content marketing is never done. Rather, smart marketers realize that they continually need to measure what is working (and what isn’t) and evolve. At many organizations, it’s also imperative to prove value on a regular basis, making ongoing measurement essential to the content marketing process. If this is your challenge, these posts can help:

1. 8 KPIs Your Content Marketing Measurement Should Include

2. Effective Content Marketing on Google Plus: 5 Tools to Measure Success

3. How to Build a Scorecard to Measure Content Marketing Effectiveness

4. Prove Content Marketing ROI to Your CEO: 4 Values to Communicate

5. 3 Content Optimization Questions That Google Analytics Can Answer

Social

Like search, social media plays a huge role in providing content marketers with content ideas and giving them a way to distribute their content. The consensus is that marketers should focus on the channels that make the most sense for their audience and customize their messages and content for those channels to make the biggest impact:

1. Manage Your Social Media Content with These Top Tools

2. How to Amplify Your Content Strategy with Social Media Advertising

3. Social Media Content Channels: How and When to Focus Your Efforts

4. 6 Steps for Successful Content Marketing Using SlideShare’s Secret Search Sauce

Curation

While creating original content is key to most organizations, curating content can also play a significant role — if executed in a smart way:

1. Content Curation: 6 Strategies to Add Value With Your Own Commentary

2. Is Your Content Curation Ethical? A 10-Step Checklist

3. Content Curation: Key Tips and Ideas for Brands

4. Content Curation Buyer’s Guide

Brands

While there is no substitute for trying things yourself, it’s also helpful to learn from what others are doing — particularly those businesses that are finding great success with content marketing. Our readers have found these stories on what brands have accomplished through content to be particularly inspiring:

1. Kraft Foods: Tools to Create the Right Recipe for Your Content Marketing Plan

2. How GE Makes Big Brand Content Feel Up Close and Personal

3. How to Use Brand Storytelling to Make Your Customers Go Bananas

4. Foster a Creative Content Marketing Culture: 5 Takeaways from Coca-Cola

I’d love to hear from you: What are your favorite lessons from 2013 that you’ll be taking into 2014?

Cover image via Bigstock