content marketing executive buy-in

By J.S. McDougall

Executive buy-in is vital to the success of any content marketing campaign. Without a patient and trusting executive on your side—one who understands the long-term value of an enthusiastic community—your budgets will disappear before you've had the chance to prove your methods are working. In fact, according to the B2B Content Marketing: 2012 Budgets, Benchmarks and Trends from the good people at Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs, 12 percent of content marketers cite executive buy-in as the biggest challenge they face.

So, to pay tribute to my foot-in-mouth-syndrome, and to help you learn from my mistake—and there are so many—I offer you these three data-packed tips to winning executive buy-in.

1. Don't Assume Anything! Build Your Case Carefully.

I stepped in it. You don't have to. In your meetings, start building your case slowly, and with money in mind. Cite your experience, your research and your numbers calmly. Be open to advice. You don't know everything the execs are up against. They have a tough job and their own bosses to answer to. If they are going to sign your checks, they'll need a better reason from you than "cuz spending time on Twitter is way more fun."

If you're not far enough along in your content marketing efforts to have your own numbers, charts, spreadsheets and evidence, cite trustworthy data. Here's some:

● Eloqua's comprehensive ebook called The ROI of Content Marketing reports that in mid-sized businesses, content marketing costs 31 percent less than paid search. And, in large businesses, content marketing costs 41 percent less than paid search.

● The 2012 Buyersphere Report, from Base One and B2B Marketing, reports that 87 percent of shoppers look for advice online before choosing an item. Only 21 percent of those shoppers are turning to social media. The majority are hunting for content (articles, videos, how-to, etc.) through search engines.