Content Marketing Institute Study Shows 84% of B2B Professional Service Firm Marketers Use Content Marketing

CLEVELAND, Feb. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report by the Content Marketing Institute written by Clare McDermott of SoloPortfolio reveals that professional service firm (PSF) marketers are heavy users of content marketing—particularly social media, articles, and e-newsletters. What's more, 51% plan to increase their investment over the next 12 months, and another 46% expect their investment to remain steady.

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• PSF marketers were much more likely than average to use blogging as a content strategy (63%) compared to their peers (51% on average).
• PSFs are also more likely to use LinkedIn as a distribution tool (62% vs. 52% on average).
• PSF marketers deem in-person events the most effective content marketing tactic (85% believe it is effective vs. a cross-industry average of 72%). PSF marketers also find webinars/webcasts relatively effective (67% vs. 56% average across industries).

"While adoption of content marketing is high among professional service firms, the sophistication of content strategy just isn't there yet," explains McDermott. "Only 52% of PSFs are measuring whether their content programs are generating sales, and many fewer are looking at key content marketing measurements such as lead quality, SEO ranking, or inbound links."  

"Though content marketing is not new, many marketers are still learning," says Joe Pulizzi, Founder of the Content Marketing Institute and co-author of Get Content Get Customers. "Most marketers are beginning to grasp the basics, but the findings show they need help developing and executing a plan."

The B2B Content Marketing 2010: Professional Services Industry Report represents the experiences of 112 professional service firms, mainly in the small- and mid-size business category. This report is a subset of the Junta42 and MarketingProfs B2B Content Marketing: 2010 Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends report, based on surveys of over 1,100 B2B North American marketers.

Download the report at the Content Marketing Institute.

About Content Marketing Institute

Content Marketing Institute is the leading content marketing resource on the planet. The CMI group includes the Junta42 content agency matching tool, Chief Content Officer Magazine and Content Marketing World, the premiere international content marketing event.

About Clare McDermott

Clare McDermott is principal of SoloPortfolio, a marketing strategy and editorial branding firm for professional service firms. She is also editor of Chief Content Officer Magazine.

Contact: Michele Linn

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Content Marketing Institute