With the SiriusDecisions Summit coming up on May 21st through the 23rd, we’ve compiled a list of the best people for content marketers to meet at the event. This list aims to help organizations make a more informed decision on whether to attend the summit, as well as how they can optimize their time spent.

If the SiriusDecisions Summit isn’t on your list of events to attend this year, be sure to follow these experts on social media for insights on the latest trends. Stay connected with other happenings at the event on Twitter with @SiriusDecisions and #SDSummit, or follow MichaelGerard.

Jack Androvich Practice Director, SiriusDecisions

Jack is a talented marketing executive, recognized as a thought leader in the integrated marketing and marketing IT, personalization, big data and B2B analytics fields. He has over 20 years of experience with a background in both marketing and technology.

What to talk to Jack about: Jack has experience in all aspects of marketing, business development and product management for companies both large and small. Have a question you can’t seem to find an answer to? Jack’s your guy. (@jandrovich)

Tom Berger Director of Digital Marketing, Iron Mountain

As the Director of Digital Marketing at Iron Mountain, a leading provider of online storage and information management used by over 156,000 global organizations, Tom is an expert in online marketing. He is responsible for managing their web marketing strategy including SEM, SEO, demand generation and e-commerce.

What to talk to Tom about: Tom has over 18 years of experience in global digital marketing. Thinking about taking your digital strategy worldwide? Seek out Tom’s advice on best content management practices. (@BergerTJ)

Rich Eldh Managing Director & Co-Founder, SiriusDecisions

With over 25 years of experience leading marketing and sales teams worldwide, Rich is an industry thought leader in sales and marketing. He has worked with his team at SiriusDecisions to build and grow an incredibly influential organization.

What to talk to Rich about: A marketing strategy with effective tactics is a must in order to make it in today’s business world. Rich can give you insight on how to build and grow a successful content strategy and operations plan. (@RichardEldh)

Andrew Gaffney Editor/Publisher, Content4Demand

As the editor of a company that helps clients publish compelling, relevant content, Andrew is content marketing thought leader. Content4Demand specializes in creating B2B custom content solutions for organizations in many different verticals.

What to talk to Andrew about: If your company is lacking the right targeted messaging for your audience, seek out advice from Andrew on developing calls-to-action and providing the right content to guide prospects through the funnel. (@agaffney)

Michael Gerard, CMO, Curata

Before leading marketing at Curata, the leader in content curation software, Michael co-founded IDC’s CMO and Sales Advisory Practices to build brand awareness, increase productivity and drive leads for many of the world’s best-in-class technology sales and marketing teams. Michael’s expertise in content marketing, his 25 years of marketing and sales experience, and his recent marketing research with startup to large companies make him your go-to marketing process and technology expert.

What to talk to Michael about: Michael can tell you everything you need to know about building thought leadership and driving leads with content marketing. Look to Michael for advice on how build a content marketing team, ramp up your content strategy, or integrate content marketing with your demand generation process.  He can also speak about the latest content technologies and best practices. (@MichaelGerard)

Malcolm Gladwell Bestselling Author

Malcolm Gladwell has been named to TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people and is the author of five New York Times bestsellers — The Tipping Point, Blink, Outliers, What the Dog Saw, and now, his latest, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits and the Art of Battling Giants.

What to talk to Malcolm about: In his latest book, David and Goliath, Malcolm states that many of us underestimate the value of adversity and overestimate the value of privilege. Tap into his brain for insight on how to make the most out of any situation. (@Gladwell)

Tony Jaros SVP Research, SiriusDecisions

Tony has 20 years of sales and marketing experience. His thought leadership has fueled the overall research function at SiriusDecisions since 2001 and he has advised multiple market leaders.

What to talk to Tony about: Tony has a wide span of B2B marketing knowledge. Ask him your field marketing, demand generation, marketing communications and inside sales questions. (@tjaros)

Marisa Kopec Vice President and Group Director, Go-to-Market, SiriusDecisions

Marisa leads SiriusDecisions’ Portfolio Marketing, Strategic Communications, and Product Management services to provide research and insights to product marketers. She spent 12 years at Gartner prior to SiriusDecisions where she was responsible for the launch of new products.

What to talk to Marisa about: Marisa is your resident product marketing expert at the SiriusDecisions Summit. Go to her for advice on sales channels, sales communication and external promotion. Be sure to check out her session in the Content Marketing track, B-to-B Content: 2014 and Beyond. (@Marisa_Kopec)

Heather Loisel VP and GM, Consulting, SiriusDecisions

Heather Loisel is a leader at SiriusDecisions. As an expert in demand generation, brand messaging and positioning, she helps drive growth and brand awareness using modern marketing and communication strategies.

What to talk to Heather about: With the evolution of technology and marketing, it’s becoming increasingly important for  leadership in these roles to work together. Don’t miss Heather’s session, CIO/CMO/CSO: Forging the Relationship. (@HeatherLoisel)

Megan Lueders VP Global Marketing, LifeSize

Megan drives the strategy behind the LifeSize communications and positioning, brand messaging, marketing operations, PR, demand generation and online & offline marketing programs worldwide. She is an expert on communicating brand identity across borders.

What to talk to Megan about: Having your content strategy resonate across your marketing, communications and sales departments can be a difficult feat – especially if you’re an international company. Ask Megan for advice on coordinating content to position your brand as in-the-know. (@MeganLueders)

Joseph Moke Senior Manager, Digital Marketing, Dell

As the Senior Manager of Digital Marketing at Dell, Joseph knows a thing or two about about engaging a large audience. He is an expert in interactive digital content that generates leads and spreads brand awareness.

What to talk to Joseph about: Need some tips on creating compelling digital spaces? Check out Joseph’s session From Landing Page to Marketing App: The Evolution of Digital Experiences for some insight into how you can create a more interactive experience with consumers.

Stefan Nandzik Senior Manager, Field Alignment, Citrix

Stefan optimizes Citrix, a global marketing organization, by aligning core processes, systems and services. He and his team help develop and execute marketing campaigns to internal marketing stakeholders.

What to talk to Stefan about: In order to find consistent, long-term success, your organization must establish alignment with brand identity, content messaging and best practices. Ask Stefan for tips how get your marketing and sales teams on the same page.

Julie Ogilvie Research Director, SiriusDecisions

Julie has over 20 years of marketing and communications experience which spans areas such as PR, social media, content, branding, strategy, web design and event management. She’s developed and executed transformational marketing strategies in organizations from startups to market leaders.

What to talk to Julie about: Julie’s thought leadership spans many marketing fields. Ask Julie for tips on how you can align your strategy, social, content and branding efforts to maximize engagement. (@julieogilvie)

Erin Provey Service Director, Strategic Communications Management, SiriusDecisions

With over 10 years of experience in brand strategy, including positioning, identity, public relations, digital strategy, copywriting and account management, Erin is a marketing communications expert.

What to talk to Erin about: Is your organization aware of what content aligns with buyers’ goals and interests and what content is falling flat? Need advice on what content tools to use? Check out Erin’s session in the Content Marketing Track, The Enterprise-Wide Content Audit: Strategies and Tools. (@eeestep)

Kim Reaves Director of Digital Marketing, NACCO

Kim is an experienced leader who is responsible for the development and execution of the digital marketing strategies, including marketing campaign management, CRM management, website development and analytics analysis at NACCO.

What to talk to Kim about: Starting a new digital marketing campaign? Kim can provide insight from how to manage the process from development, to implementation, to promotion and analytics.

Tim Riesterer Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer at Corporate Visions

Tim is the co-author of Customer Message Management and Conversations That Win the Complex Sale – both aim to help salespeople communicate with prospects and existing customers. He’s an expert on aligning content marketing with sales to drive conversions.

What to talk to Tim about: Go to Tim for advice and on how to get your sales team the best content to align with steps in the buyers’ journey and improve the conversations they have with customers. (@corpv)

Jill Rowley Social Selling Evangelist

Jill is an expert in social selling and her insight has helped thousands of marketers drive revenue growth. She provides tactics on how marketing and sales teams can use social media and content to develop and maintain relationships with their potential buyers and existing customers.

What to talk to Jill about: Is your sales team prepared to communicate with the modern buyer? Ask Jill for tips on social selling and how to leverage social networking, content and search to provide value and establish relationships with customers. (@jill_rowley)

Ryan Schwartz Director of Marketing Systems and Operations, DocuSign

Ryan is the Director of Marketing Systems and Operations at Docusign, making him an expert when it comes to aligning marketing processes to get the most out of B2B marketing tactics such as social and mobile.

What to talk to Ryan about: Need to boost your content marketing strategy? Ryan knows more than a few tips and tricks when it comes to marketing with social and mobile add-ons in marketing automation tools. (@schwartzrw)

Kurt Stoll Marketing Automation Programs Manager, HP

As the Marketing Automation Programs Manager at HP, Kurt is an Eloqua expert with experienced know-how in demand generation, lead nurturing, marketing strategy and marketing operations.

What to talk to Kurt about: Kurt can advise you on how to get the most out of marketing automation as well as what types of content generates leads and which content doesn’t make the cut. (@kurtstoll)

Rachel Young Research Director, SiriusDecisions

As a Research Director in Portfolio Marketing at SiriusDecisions, Rachel has more than 20 years of experience and leadership in product marketing, demand generation and marketing communications.

What to talk to Rachel about: Personalization works. If you’re not correctly targeting your audience, be sure to check out Rachel’s session, Personas in Action: Client Vignettes on how to attract the right buyers. (@rpyoung_)

The experts listed above are just some of the content thought leaders attending this year’s event. Check out the full list of speakers here.

Looking to chat content marketing, content technology or content curation? Get in touch with Michael before or at the conference at [email protected]. @michaelgerard

For more information on content marketing best practices, tips and tactics, download our Content Marketing Tactics Planner. To learn how to feed your content beast and complement your created content with curation, request a free demo of Curata.

Content marketing events are one of the best ways to expand your expertise, hear the latest trends and connect with thought leaders in your industry. If you’ve had a chance to check out The Ultimate List of Content Marketing Events, then you already know that hundreds of marketers are heading to New York next Tuesday to attend the Content2Conversion Conference.

With all the great events taking place this year, we understand that it’s difficult to attend as many as you’d like to – as well as optimize your time spent at the ones you do attend. Keeping this in mind, we like to put together a list of the content leaders attending each event so that: 1. Content marketers can make a more educated decision on whether to attend; and  2. Content marketers can connect with the right experts and make the most of their time spent at the event.

As Content2Conversion is quickly approaching(May 6-7), we’ve compiled below the content marketing leaders you should meet if you’re attending the conference. If Content2Conversion isn’t in your marketing budget this year, be sure to keep up with these experts on social media for the latest insights on content strategy.

Dayna Rothman Sr. Content Marketing Manager at Marketo

As the managing editor of Marketo blog and head of Marketo’s content initiatives, Dayna’s expertise covers content marketing, social media and of course, marketing automation. Marketo is one of the industry leaders when it comes to marketing automation and customer engagement.

What to talk to Dayna about: Dayna is your go-to if you’re looking to increase brand awareness and buyer engagement. Are you implementing content marketing tactics, but struggling to create a successful strategy as a whole? Dayna can advise you on how to pull it all together. (@dayroth)

Pam Didner Global Integrated Marketing Strategist at Intel

Not only does Pam lead Intel’s worldwide marketing campaigns and manage the Intel Developer Forum across nine countries, but she also develops Intel’s worldwide Enterprise and Small Business strategies. She was named as one of B2B’s Top Digital Marketers in 2011 and 2012.

What to talk to Pam about: Thinking about extending your content strategy across international borders? Talk to Pam for best practices on how to plan, develop and manage content that can be used on a global scale. Be sure to check out her session, Repurpose, Reuse, Refresh for tips on how to break down long form content. (@PamDidner)

Lee Odden CEO of TopRank Online Marketing

Lee’s book, Optimize: How to Attract and Engage More Customers by Integrating SEO, Social Media and Content Marketing, is a go-to information source for online marketers due to his expertise in digital strategy, search, content & social marketing and PR. His marketing and PR agency, TopRank Online Marketing, provides services to Fortune 1000 companies, and his writing has resonated with reputable publications such as Forbes and The New York Times.

What to talk to Lee about: Lee’s blog has been ranked #1 by Content Marketing Institute three times, so go to him for insights on how to keep up with trends and create engaging content. Lee helped to inspire our  content expert video series and he is an excellent source of information on overcoming your content challenges. (@leeodden)

Pawan Deshpande CEO of Curata

As CEO of the leading content curation software company Curata, as well as a background at Microsoft and Google, Pawan is your resident expert on content curation and content marketing technology. He is a regular speaker at content marketing events and his thought leadership has been featured on the likes of Content Marketing Institute, MarketingProfs and Forbes.

What to talk to Pawan about: Struggling to feed the content beast or trying to get your curation strategy off the ground? Ask Pawan about how curated content can help support your creation strategy and be sure to attend his session, Content Curation in Action. (@TweetsFromPawan)

Ashely Brookes Senior Brand and Content Manager at Hootsuite  

Ashely leads Hootsuite’s created content strategy to help support readers’ needs for valuable content throughout the buyer’s journey. Her expertise revolves around brand awareness, increasing customer engagement and driving leads. She’s helped grow Hootsuite into the industry’s leading social management solution.

What to talk to Ashely about: If you’re creating content, but you’re not sure how it aligns with each stage of the marketing funnel, Ashely is your go-to. Talk to her for advice on providing value to customers at each stage of the buyer’s journey. (@ashjbee)

Ardath Albee CEO of Marketing Interactions

Ardath is the author of eMarketing Strategies for the Complex Sale, which exemplifies how B2B marketers are implementing content technology and coordinated content strategies. She has been named one of the Sales and Lead Management Association’s 50 Most Influential People in Sales and Marketing for the last three years.

What to talk to Ardath about: Ardath has 28 years of sales and marketing experience and knows how to turn prospects into customers. Ask her what content platforms and strategy adjustments can improve your current workflow. (@ardath421)

David Lewis CEO & Founder of DemandGen International 

David is a leader in the digital marketing space with over 20 years of experience. His revolutionary work on the transformation of sales & marketing is displayed in his book, Manufacturing Demand: The Principles of Successful Lead Management. 

What to talk to David about: Are your content campaigns falling flat? Check out David’s session, Creating Content Campaigns That Push the Mental Buy Button for insight on how to drive customer growth. (@demandgendave)

Jim Lenskold President of the Lenskold Group

Jim’s award winning book, Marketing ROI, has set global standards on marketing ROI best practices and standards. His ROI expertise helps marketers worldwide measure the profitability of their campaigns. Lenskold group helps organizations get the most out of their marketing performance.

What to talk to Jim about: Jim has over 25 years of experience of improving marketing performance across a broad range of industries. Content marketing ROI can be a difficult thing to measure and keep track of. Go to Jim with questions about how to get the most out of your content and check him out in our content marketing expert series. (@LG_mROI)

Tim Riesterer Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer at Corporate Visions

Tim is an expert on improving conversations with customers in the buying process. He is the co-author of Customer Message Management and Conversations That Win the Complex Sale – both aim to help salespeople communicate with prospects and existing customers.

What to talk to Tim about: If your content marketing and sales teams aren’t on the same page, check out Tim’s session, Three Critical Selling Conversations You Must Enable with Content for more on how to equip your sales team with valuable content. (@corpv)

Trip Kucera Vice President of Client Success & CMO-in-Residence at Harte Hanks

Trip helps his clients execute successful content marketing strategies and optimize content for demand generation. His experience as a senior research analyst at the Aberdeen Group makes him an expert in addressing key content trends, challenges and opportunities.

What to talk to Trip about: Does your content strategy address your customer’s interests and goals? Trip’s session The Content Continuum: Winning the Hidden Sales Cycle with the Right Answer will help content marketers answer their buyers’ questions at each stage of their journey. (@TripKucera)

Michael Gerard CMO at Curata

Before joining Curata, Michael co-founded IDC’s CMO and Sales Advisory Practices to build brand awareness, increase productivity and drive leads for best-in-class technology sales and marketing teams. His 25 years of marketing and sales experience coupled with his work with startup to large companies make him your resident content and marketing strategy expert.

What to talk to Michael about: Chat with Michael for ideas on how to build thought leadership and drive leads with content. Looking for insight on how you can boost your content strategy? Michael can provide you with content marketing enlightenment. (@MichaelGerard)

Brian Kardon CMO at Lattice Engines

The CMO Institute named Brian a Top 10 Global CMO for companies <$250 million revenue. He carried his expertise in aligning marketing with sales from Eloqua to Lattice where he leads integrated marketing, demand generation and is responsible for thought leadership.

What to talk to Brian about: If you’re having difficulty identifying the best opportunities with prospects, inquire about Brian’s big data know-how and how you can apply predictive analytics to customer behavior. This will not only help to increase sales, but allow you to create more compelling content. (@bkardon)

Tony Zambito Buyer Insights & Personas Expert

Tony is the leader in today’s buyer insights and persona research. He established the first buyer persona development methodology, which was created specifically for B2B marketing and sales. Tony helps leading companies boost their business, content and marketing strategies as a whole with deeper insights on their buyers.

What to talk to Tony about: Understanding your audience is a key factor in a successful content strategy. Ask Tony how to establish buyer personas and keep up the trends in buyer behavior. (@TonyZambito)

Costanza Tedesco SVP Brand Experience at SAP

Costanza is responsible for developing and managing the SAP brand. She leads teams that focus on content development and production, advertising, media planning, product naming, etc. SAP’s value has increased over $9B under Constanza’s leadership.

What to talk to Constanza about: Content is a huge part of your brand’s identity. Talk to Constanza for insight on how to align your brand’s voice with your content to provide value for your readers. (@CostanzaT)

These are just some of the experts attending Content2Conversion this year. Be sure to check out the full list of speakers.

This morning, the runners of the Boston Marathon took to the streets of the city once again in pursuit of crossing the finish line on Boylston. I commend their hard work, drive and dedication to reach the finish line, not only due to the physical feat of running 26.2 miles, but because the marathon is no longer just a race for Boston. As a local company, we proudly support the achievements of all the athletes who choose to run for the city.

In the spirit of today’s event, and because we wish we could be cheering on the sidelines ourselves, we’ve put together a step-by-step content marketing marathon guide. Need help getting your content campaigns to cross the finish line? Take a look at the infographic below for tips on how to keep a steady pace, look to your fans for support and reach your content marketing goals.

Did you find this infographic helpful? Check out these other resources for more advice:

• Content Marketing Tactics Planner
• The 4 Steps to Content Marketing Enlightenment
• Content Marketing Tools: The Ultimate List

Or get a free demo of Curata today.

Content marketing – either through blogging, newsletters, social media or microsites – is growing in popularity for a reason. The results of our most recent study show that 71% of marketers are planning to increase their content marketing spend this year, as 76% of survey takers saw an increase in buyer engagement and 62% saw an increase in lead quality.

Even with this surge in content marketing, however, not all marketers understand how to leverage content. Content for readers cannot just be repurposed internal assets, consist of only your brand’s opinions or be rephrased material from other sources in your industry. Successful content must be relatable for your audience.

Enlightened content marketers know how to humanize their content by publishing thought leadership pieces, curating from third-party sources and finding inspiration for new created content from their customers. Always remember to write for people – not search engines.

My advice to getting the most out of your content strategy is to follow these four guidelines.

1. Develop a Content Workflow

If you don’t already have a company blog, start with a free blogging tool such as WordPress. Then set up your editorial calendar as the basic framework of your content marketing workflow. An editorial calendar is perhaps the most important aspect of your content marketing strategy as it will answer the following questions:

• What topics are we writing about and when?

• Why are we focusing on these topics? (Are they part of a larger content initiative, such as an eBook campaign?)

• Who is writing each piece? Who is editing and publishing each piece?

• When is the draft due? When are the edits due? What is the posting date?

• Where is this content being posted?

• How and where are we going to promote this piece of content once it’s published?

Once you get your blogging strategy down, here are some key content marketing tactics to pursue:

• Perform (and leverage) your own primary research to establish thought leadership

• Turn your research into eBooks, webinars and whitepapers

• Implement the Content Marketing Pyramid into your strategy to get the most out of each piece of content

• Make sure to market your marketing and distribute it to appropriate channels, as well as measure the impact of each piece of content

• Attend industry events and push for speaking engagements

• Create engaging, digestible content with infographics and videos

• Establish relationships with reputable publishers in your industry and push your content out to these sites

• Curate content from credible third-party sources to support your created content strategy, save time & money and provide a valuable variety of information for your readers

• Utilize social media platforms to promote and distribute content

It’s important that content has it’s own department, or at least it’s own executive, within your organization. Forty-three percent of organizations already have a content marketing executive in place to facilitate the ideation, creation, promotion/distribution and analysis process. Content marketing is no part-time job and requires a dedicated team of coordinators, managers and writers.

2. Writing for People, not Search Engine Bots

Many marketers believe that quantity, not quality, is factored more heavily into search engine ranking. This is not the case. Although optimizing for search is important, keyword stuffing and misleading titles for clicks could be potentially damaging to your brand’s reputation as a trusted source.

The most effective content marketers write for quality, not quantity. This means writing for customers, not for search engine bots. Search visibility and traffic will come with high quality, valuable posts that seek to inform readers. Become a trustworthy source of information on your topic, and readers will be more likely to read and share your content.

Keep the interests and goals of your readers in mind when you publish content in order to provide as much value as possible. Performance metrics are important, but they must be taken into consideration in parallel with quality during the content development process. Plan titles, inbound & outbound links and promotion & distribution methods ahead of time. This will ensure that content meets your readers’ standards as well as your campaign goals.

3. Drop the Ego

Even with the best intentions of providing content of value to buyers, many marketers are communicating with audiences in their voice only. As knowledgeable as your organization is on your topic, readers want to hear from other credible sources. If you’re not publishing a diversity of information, potential buyers are going to look elsewhere. Variety means value.

Egocentric marketing can be cured with content curation. Content curation is when an individual (or team) consistently finds, organizes, annotates and shares the most relevant and highest quality digital content on a specific topic for their target market.

Curating content from reputable third-party sources gives readers diversity in perspectives. Publishing curated content alongside your created content will make your organization a go-to source of information – as well as lightening up your marketing budget and the creation load on your writers. Best-in-class marketers employ a content mix of 65% created, 25% curated and 10% syndicated.

4. Create Value & Build a Connection

Technology

Our recent Content Marketing Tactics study found that marketers are naming their top content challenges as limited staff, limited budget and creating enough content. If your organization doesn’t have the budget or resources to fill these needs, there are still plenty of ways to create value for customers and potential buyers with content marketing.

Utilize content marketing specific technology to publish high quality content consistently even with a small marketing team and matching budget. Content curation platforms allow users to publish content consistently in a fraction of the time it would take one of your writers to create an original post – and a fraction of the cost it would be to hire an in-house writer or freelancer to create content.

Content management solutions keep your workflow organized so small teams can efficiently push content out the door, and marketing automation platforms & social management tools give small marketing teams a major leg up when it comes to keeping track of leads, assets and your online community.

Inspiration & Ideation

Readers want diversity and fresh content on a consistent basis. Running out of ideas? Draw inspiration for new created content by listening to and following your audience. Read and interact with their comments and social posts. What types of content are they looking for? What are their challenges? Seek to provide information that addresses their needs, helps them overcome challenges and guides them through the buyer’s journey. Switch it up in terms of format as well. Some readers may be more visual learners – create infographics and presentations.

Tap into your marketing and sales teams for inspiration as well. Even though they may not be a part of the content development team, they’re speaking to customers on a daily basis. Crowdsource ideas from across your organization. This will strengthen your connection with customers and allow your content to resonate with their interests.

Practice Selective & Ethical Curation

Build a connection with your audience by hand-picking only the most relevant, high quality articles to curate. Publish only information that pertains to what your readers are looking for. Always be sure to annotate it with your own insights and opinions as well. Never simply regurgitate common market insight and opinion.

Enlightened marketers contextualize all content that they hand-select for readers by adding commentary, insights or opinions to the curated piece. In many cases, curated pieces with these added annotations are more valuable than the original article. This helps establish thought leadership in your industry and provides new information for your audience.

Not only is annotating content an enlightened marketer practice, but retitling curated pieces, using thumbnail images and making sure your commentary is longer than the quoted segment of the article are all ethical best practices. Ethical content marketing is essential for a successful content strategy as it will establish trust with readers, peers and help boost your search engine rank.

When you have the right strategy in place and employ the necessary tactics to relate to your audience, content marketing is the most effective way to reach readers and drive leads. Looking to get started on the path to content marketing enlightenment, or need some more tips on how to attain it? Download our latest eBook, The 4 Steps to Content Marketing Enlightenment or request a free demo of Curata.

If you’re caught up on your content marketing education, then you already know that 67% of B2B content marketers believe event marketing is the most effective strategy. Events are an excellent way to connect with other professionals in your industry, gain new insights on your topic and discover actionable takeaways for your own marketing strategy; however, with marketers’ limited time and budget, it’s of the utmost importance to be selective in your analysis of which are the best marketing-focused events to attend, as wells as to optimize the time that you spend at your selected events.  

An effective technique that we employed to optimize our time at the 2013 Content Marketing World was to identify ahead of the time who the best people would be to meet (check out 17 People You Should Meet at Content Marketing World). With Social Media Marketing World right around the corner, we assembled below the 20 content marketing experts you should meet if you are attending the event. Not planning to be there in person?. . . then at least follow these folks through social media channels to stay connected with the latest and greatest strategies and tactics in content marketing.

Jay Baer President of Convince & Convert & Author of Youtility

Jay’s Convince & Convert blog was named the #1 content marketing blog by Content Marketing Institute. As a top social media marketing consultant, he helps businesses revamp their marketing strategies and has worked with over 700 companies.

What to talk to Jay about: Jay is all about hype-free content that aims to help readers, so if you’re unsure about how to create valuable content – he’s your guy. If you listen to his weekly podcast, Social Pros, that could also be an excellent place to start. New to content marketing? His ability to break down big ideas into more digestible pieces will have you thinking “we can do this.” Without a doubt you’ll be impressed with his innovative ideas. (@jaybaer)

Brian Clark Founder of Copyblogger.com and CEO of Copyblogger Media

Brian has started eight successful companies and has become an expert in online marketing techniques since quitting his job at a law firm in 1998. His blog, Copyblogger, teaches marketers how to drive engagement through thought leadership and with attention commanding content.

What to talk to Brian about: Starting a new business? Brain’s entrepreneurial expertise can point your content marketing in the right direction. Bring some of your content ideas to the table and get some advice on how to shape them into an influential strategy. He’ll inspire you to harness the power of the online media revolution. (@brianclark)

Lee Odden CEO of TopRank Online Marketing

Lee’s expertise covers marketing, PR, digital strategy, search, content and social; making his book, Optimize: How to Attract and Engage More Customers by Integrating SEO, Social Media and Content Marketing, a go-to information source for online marketers. His marketing and PR agency, TopRank Online Marketing, provides services to Fortune 1000 companies and his writing has resonated with reputable publications such as Forbes and The New York Times.

What to talk to Lee about: Lee is an excellent source of information on any of your content marketing questions. Struggling to create enough content to keep your readers satisfied or having a hard time discovering relevant topics? His advice on overcoming these content challenges helped to inspire our content expert video series. (@leeodden)

Jason Miller Senior Content Marketing Manager at LinkedIn

Jason’s experience as the Senior Manager of Social Media Strategy at Marketo, and his ten years launching marketing campaigns at Sony, make him an expert on how businesses can increase engagement for their brand and drive leads. Jason’s thought leadership is authored on the likes of Content Marketing Institute, Social Media Examiner and MarketingProfs.

What to talk to Jason about: Jason is your go-to resource on online marketing campaigns. His eBook, The Social Media Tactical Plan has received over 156,000 views and his session at this year’s SMMW, 7 Tactics for Integrating LinkedIn into Your Marketing Strategy, is a must for marketers looking to extend the reach of their content campaigns. (@JasonMillerCA)

Michael Stelzner Founder and CEO of Social Media Examiner

As the leader of one the the world’s largest social business blogs, and the host of the Social Media Marketing podcast, Michael knows the world of social media and content inside and out. As if you weren’t convinced of Michael’s business savvy thought leadership, over 230,000 marketers subscribe to the daily content that is published on Social Media Examiner.

What to talk to Michael about: Michael can tell you how to use social media to ramp up any and all of your online marketing efforts. In particular, if you’re looking to increase customer engagement and create meaningful connections with your audience, check out his podcast, Relationship Marketing: How to Build Meaningful Connections that Lead to Business. (@Mike_Stelzner)

Todd Wheatland VP of Marketing and Thought Leadership at Kelly Services

Todd is a frequent speaker at marketing events and has written several books on marketing and recruiting including The Marketer’s Guide to SlideShare, and The New Rules of Recruiting. He has 15 years of experience in HR and consulting.

What to talk to Todd about: Todd is an expert in social marketing and knows all about how to get the most out of SlideShare. Whether you’re already using the presentation channel, or it’s brand new to your business, you should check out his session at SMMW this year, How to Use SlideShare for Business: The Success Formula. (@ToddWheatland)

Joe Pulizzi Founder at Content Marketing Institute & Author of Epic Content Marketing

Joe is a content marketing evangelist with Content Marketing Institute boasting one of the top content events, Content Marketing World, as well as publishing the leading magazine in the content marketing space, Chief Content Officer.

What to talk to Joe about: Joe has great advice on how to give readers a unique perspective. In today’s online publishing industry, it’s becoming increasingly important for content writers to break through the noise in order to reach their audience. You’ll be impressed with his innovative advice and new ideas on how to reshape your content strategy. (@JoePulizzi)

Jeff Rohrs Leader of the Marketing Insights Team at ExactTarget (a Salesforce.com company)

Jeff oversees content marketing, social media and overall thought leadership at ExactTarget, a leading digital marketing software company. He’s an expert on understanding how consumers interact with brands through digital marketing and is the author of Audience: Marketing in the Age of Subscribers. Jeff also co-hosts the Social Pros podcast with Jay Baer.

What to talk to Jeff about: Having a hard time reaching the right audience or gaining a following? See what Jeff has to say about revamping your strategy and publishing more thought leadership pieces that will resonate with your target audience’s goals and interests. (@jkrohrs)

Andy Crestodina Co-founder of Orbit Media

Andy’s 13 years of experience providing online marketing advice to over 1000 businesses make him an all-encompassing source of knowledge for content marketers. His award-winning web design company, Orbit Media, is home to the Orbiter, a blog focused on providing only the most valuable information to digital marketers.

What to talk to Andy about: Being an online brand can be difficult because it requires you to also be an online publisher if you have any hopes of keeping up with the competition. Dip into Andy’s pool of blogging knowledge during his session, Advanced Blogging: Analytics, Optimization and Outreach, and come to him with any questions on how to get your blog to be more like the Orbiter. (@crestodina)

Jessica Gioglio PR & Social Media Manager at Dunkin’ Donuts

Jessica is a leader in engaging content. She started Dunkin’s first company blog and works with a cross-functional team to engage customers through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, YouTube and Vine. She understands that making her brand relatable to customers and letting them in on what’s happening at Dunkin is one of the best ways to gain a following.

What to talk to Jessica about: Jessica is an expert in perhaps the most important aspect of content marketing – celebrating her customers. Having trouble connecting with yours? See what Jessica has to say about it. (@savvybostonian)

Gini Dietrich CEO of Arment Dietrich & Founder of Spin Sucks

Gini leads Arment Dietrich, a leading integrated marketing communications firm. She also founded Spin Sucks Pro, a professional development site for PR and marketing pros, as well as Spin Sucks, a reputable marketing blog. Talk about an online marketing powerhouse.

What to talk to Gini about: Undoubtedly, Gini is your go-to on how to build an online following. If you’re producing good content, but still can’t build an online community, talk to Gini and make sure you attend her session with Marcus Sheridan, Building an Online Community: A Hard Look at the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. (@ginidietrich)

Michael Gerard CMO of Curata

Before leading the marketing team at Curata, Michael co-founded IDC’s CMO and Sales Advisory Practices to build brand awareness, increase productivity and drive leads for many of the world’s best-in-class technology sales and marketing teams. Michael’s expertise in content marketing, his 25 years of marketing and sales experience, and his recent marketing research with startup to large companies make him your go-to marketing process and technology expert.

What to talk to Michael about: Michael can tell you everything you need to know about building thought leadership and driving leads with content marketing. Need advice on how to ramp up your content strategy? Chat with Michael about the latest content technologies and best practices. (@MichaelGerard)

Marcus Sheridan Founder of The Sales Lion

Marcus grew his pool company, River Pools and Spas, to the most popular of its kind due to a well-respected blog and strategic inbound marketing. This background led to the development of The Sales Lion. The Sales Lion is a brand and blog that helps build brands and boost content marketing strategies within organizations.

What to talk to Marcus about: Marcus knows all about online branding. If you’re struggling to make your content stand out, ask Marcus for pointers. He’s presenting alongside Gini Dietrich on building online communities, as well as giving the closing keynote at SMMW on qualities of excellent content and social media marketing. (@TheSalesLion)

Susan Beebe Manager of Social Media & Online Communities at Tyson Foods

Susan leads content strategy, community development and community engagement at Tyson and previously served as Dell’s first “chief listener” while developing Dell’s famous Social Media Listening Command Center – making her a leader in the world of social content. She’s an engineer and holds a UCLA law grad, bringing technical savvy and curiosity to the world of social media.

What to talk to Susan about: If your content isn’t addressing your audience’s wants and needs, it won’t spur any engagement. You need to listen to what your customers are saying and imbue that into your content strategy. Aren’t sure where to start? Ask Susan. (@susanbeebe)

Joel Comm Author of Twitter Power 2.0: How to Dominate Your Market One Tweet at a Time

Joel knows how to stay on top of the marketing movement. With this aptitude for spotting up-and-coming trends, Joel has become a leader in social, online video, podcasting, content creation, Internet marketing and more. He’s such a popular presenter because he’s not only a great speaker, but always aims to entertain.

What to talk to Joel about: Are you looking to become an expert in your field? Joel’s session is titled From Blogger to Published Author: How to Become a Recognized Expert in your Field, will help you gain a better understanding of how to command more respect from your audience, as well as your peers. Talk to Joel for advice on thought leadership. (@joelcomm)

Michael Hyatt Former Chairman & CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers

Michael has 30 years of experience in the publishing industry. His book is titled Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World. His blog has over 300,000 monthly visitors and he’s spoken on over 100 television shows, many on ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN. He now spends his time writing, consulting and speaking. You better believe he’s an expert on how to gain recognition from content marketing.

What to talk to Michael about: Now more than ever, it’s increasingly important for marketers to start acting like publishers. With all the content that is written online today, it can be difficult to break through the barriers standing between you and your audience. Michael is your guy for advice on how to write popular content and reach readers. (@MichaelHyatt)

Gideon Shalwick Author of Millionaire Drop-Out Secrets & Truckloads of Leads and Roadmap to Become a Blogger

Gideon’s specialty is online video marketing. He helps businesses utilize video for content marketing, and enables content creators to produce more compelling video for their marketing strategies. His latest book, Rapid Video Blogging, has become the new standard for marketers seeking to improve their content efforts with video blogging.

What to talk to Gideon about: Gideon is your resident video expert at SMMW. Video is one of content marketing’s newest mediums. If you’re thinking about embedding video in your content strategy, ask Gideon about best practices to make sure this tactic is successful. (@GideonShalwick)

Joel Price Senior Manager of Digital Content for the San Diego Chargers

Joel heads strategy, innovation and execution of content initiatives that support the Chargers’ brand. Joel is so good at what he does because he’s able to balance his passion between marketing and being a fan. This has helped grow the team’s social presence to a community of millions. Joel’s ten years of experience in online marketing make him a seasoned social content veteran.

What you should talk to Joel about: If you’re a large organization looking to shape up your social strategy or you want to engage with your online community in a more creative way, ask for his advice. (@joelprice)

Charlie Kautz Content Development and Management at TaylorMade-adidas Golf

Charlie’s last seven years with TaylorMade have made him proficient in content marketing for a large brand. He heads content for emerging and social media, and in a pilot role as “PGA Tour Correspondent,” he spent over a year developing and publishing content from professional golf tours and championships. The handle @CharlieTour documented his experience on the road to make the campaign more engaging for readers.

What to talk to Charlie about: Charlie can tell you all about what it takes to create engaging content for a large audience. Need to get better at taking advantage of instant opportunities to keep up with a fast-paced industry? Take a page out of Charlie’s book. (@CharlieKautz)

Jon Wuebben CEO of Content Launch

As the leader of a content marketing agency that developments and maps out strategies for hundreds of customers, Jon knows it what it takes to build brand awareness and drive qualified leads. He wrote Content is Currency: Developing Powerful Content for Web & Mobile which has become an important tactical guide for many readers.

What to talk to Jon about: Although many marketers understand the importance of content marketing and are increasing their content budget, most of them are diving in without a well-thought out workflow. If you’re one of these marketers, ask Jon about how to map out your strategy. (@jonwuebben)

These are only just a handful of the social media and content experts that will be attending Social Media Marketing World this year. Check out the full list of speakers at this year’s event here.

Hope this has been helpful to those of you attending SMMW! If you can’t be there, be sure to check in on Twitter by following @smexaminer, as well as the hashtag #SMMW14.

Want to learn more about the content marketing movement?. . What it is?. . How you can develop and optimize your own content marketing initiatives? Check out our Content Marketing Tactics Planner or request a free demo of Curata’s content marketing solution.

Even with 71% of organizations increasing their investment in content marketing this year, only marketers with well-planned content strategies will achieve positive ROI. Having the right content marketing mix and using curation to complement created content will be a key part of that success. Content curation is a growing trend for businesses seeking to provide their customers with the best, and most relevant, information on the web. Curation is implemented in content marketing strategies to support brand messaging, build awareness, provide added value for readers and ultimately drive leads.

Curata defines content curation as an individual (or team) consistently finding, organizing, annotating and sharing the most relevant and highest quality digital content on a specific topic for their target market. Today, the best content marketers are only creating 65% of content, with the rest being 25% curated and 10% syndicated. These content marketers are using the power of curation to support their creation strategies and content campaigns as a whole.

One example of a leader in the content marketing and curation space is Alcatel-Lucent.  With over 150 years of experience, Alcatel-Lucent is established in the field of communications technology, products and services.

Alcatel-Lucent’s Enterprise group serves over 500,000 customers in over 130 countries to deliver mobile, fixed access, IP technologies and other various applications. Consistently at the forefront of innovation, the Enterprise group seeks to provide the highest quality content for their readers in order to drive success within their organization.

Content Marketing Challenges

Ed Youngblood, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise’s Director of Content Strategy, and his communications team know that in order to support their mission to discover the potential of a world connected world, they need to provide the most up-to-date, relevant and innovative information for their readers. To become a go-to resource for an executive level audience, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise must provide thought-leadership with consistent brand messaging from diverse sources.

The Enterprise group needs to publish on the latest in the IT industry, consistently. Even with a communications team, this can be difficult – especially when it comes to finding a variety of credible sources.

“Significant opportunity exists for enterprises to better leverage communications and networking technologies”, states Ed. “However, it is very difficult for enterprise professionals to find the best insights from across the Internet to help with their strategic decisions.”

Alcatel-Lucent is certainly an excellent source of knowledge for IT consumers. However, these professionals want to keep track of various thought-leaders in the space to learn from their diverse perspectives and opinions. These readers are more likely to trust information from their peers and other industry professionals than the sole insights of one organization.

As Ed indicates, “we needed to develop a destination on the web that, in addition to our own research and insights, would provide our audience with a direct link to the highest quality and most relevant content to help them be more successful in their organizations as well as throughout their career.”

Thousands of articles surrounding IT are published on the web every day. This makes it incredibly difficult to sort through these pieces of information and hand-pick the best and most relevant articles to publish for readers in real-time.

As a leader in IT innovation, the Enterprise group knew it was crucial to find a way to provide readers with not only topic-specific material, but thought-leadership driven information from the best sources.

Curation in Action

In response to their need to find and publish diverse information for readers, the Enterprise group implemented curation as part of their content marketing strategy. The group launched the IT Strategist, a curated microsite, as a destination for their customers and buyers seeking information on the IT industry.

“This site, built on Curata’s content curation platform, is enabling us to amplify our content marketing strategy, extending our reach and validating our messaging in the context of the market,” Youngblood said. “In addition, Curata has allowed us to scale our content curation efforts using fewer marketing resources in a more connected manner.”

Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise uses content curation technology to find topic-specific information and publish multiple articles per day, in real-time, to keep up with the industry. Their goal is to provide as much value possible by reporting on actionable, strategic pieces that readers can implement into their own strategies, rather than publishing product-centric information.

With Curata, the Enterprise group has been able to report on the most valuable knowledge on the web for readers; from how executives can improve their business models, to information on up-and-coming technologies.

Curation Results

Ed and his team have measured increased web traffic on the Alcatel-Lucent corporate website as a direct result of their curation efforts. In addition, “We find a lot of value across marketing just to be able to monitor the industry chatter using Curata. This in of itself provides a lot of internal value,” he continued.

Curated content has also influenced other content tactics within the group. “The content Curata discovers for us gives us new ideas for created content and inspiration for new stories and editorials. Curata helps me readjust my editorial calendar based on the trending content that comes in from my sources. I see a ramp up of information on the cloud or some other topic we should be covering. The curated news feed also gives us great Twitter fodder.”

Enterprise plans to continue their curation efforts to supply their readers with fresh, relevant content in one central hub. They’ve also utilized Curata’s bookmarklet tool, giving everyone on the communications team the ability to easily curate articles they come across on the web. Crowdsourcing ideas and content from across your organization is an excellent way to publish more information as well as fulfill the ideation and creation needs of your content strategy. As of today, the team produces between 5 to 30 articles per week from various sources, providing thought-leadership and building credibility as a go-to source for IT information.

Alcatel-Lucent is once again leading a new innovative shift in technology, this time with the elimination of egocentric content marketing by curating content from other reputable sources. The information they publish for their CIO/executive level audience consists of their own research and opinions in parallel with the most relevant pieces on IT strategy and new technologies from across the Internet. This benefits not only their own organization, but their buyers and customers who want to learn from various expert perspectives.

Interested in driving results with content curation? Check out the the Content Curation Look Book or register for a free demo of Curata.

Marketers from all over the world, including our very own CMO, Michael Gerard, are heading to San Diego on March 26th for the kick-off of Social Media Marketing World. The event, scheduled to include presentations by social media experts from March 27th to the 28th, is hosted by Social Media Examiner.

We had the opportunity to interview Phil Mershon, Social Media Examiner’s Director of Events. He filled us in on what content marketers can expect at the event this year, including not-to-miss sessions and additional information on content marketing meet-ups.

Can you provide a brief overview of the event?

Social Media Marketing World is the world’s largest pure play social media conference for marketers and business owners. We expect up to 2000 marketers from all over the world (currently 13% of attendees are international and a full 10% from outside of North America) this year. The conference features extensive networking opportunities, including two evening events plus purposeful networking breaks in the mornings and at lunch on Thursday and Friday. Additionally, the conference will have over 80 content-filled sessions covering a wide range of social media related topics–all being packed with actionable tips and strategies delivered by over 120 of the leading experts in the field.

What impact has content marketing had on your agenda this year?

Content Marketing is one of 4 primary tracks at the event, the same as last year. The other tracks are Social Tactics, Social Strategy and Community Management / Business Building. The Content Marketing track will review content creation and various strategies and tactics that marketers can implement into their own organizations.

How do you draw the line between what is content marketing vs. social media marketing?

The content marketing sessions focus on the creation of content you own via blogging, video, and podcasting. In contrast the social media sessions focus on how to use the various social media channels to market your business. That could include the sharing of content you own or content created specifically for those channels (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc…). Content marketing and social media marketing form a symbiotic relationship that cannot be separated in practice, but can be understood independently.

What are the 3 most important sessions that you’d recommend as “not to miss” for content marketers attending the event?

There are many great sessions available for content marketers. I recommend searching the agenda here. In addition to Marcus Sheridan’s closing keynote, which no one should miss, three must-see track sessions are:

1. 5 Content Marketing Practices that Most Businesses Ignore, but Shouldn’t by Joe Pulizzi

2. Build Your Own Media Empire: Here’s How by Chris Brogan

3. How to Build a Multi-Author Blog For More Visibility and Sales by Denise Wakeman with Brian Clark and Michael Stelzner

Do you have any other plans in place to facilitate meet-ups for content marketers during the event?

We plan to have Interest Group lunches on Friday about several topics content marketers might appreciate: podcasting, blogging and video marketing. We also will have Table Talk conversations on Thursday at lunch on many different topics that will pertain to the interests and goals of content marketers.

Want more information on Social Media Marketing World? Check out their site or watch the video below.

Sign up for Social Media Marketing World 2014 and connect with Phil Mershon on Twitter to stay up to date on event information. If you’d like to discuss content marketing during the event, connect with Michael Gerard and start the conversation on what content strategy and tactics you’re planning for this year.

Planning on attending more events in 2014? Check out Content Marketing Events 2014: The Ultimate List. 

More and more organizations, large and small, are using curation to complement their created content strategy. Content curation is when an individual (or team) consistently finds, organizes, annotates and shares the most relevant and highest quality digital content on a specific topic for their target market. According to our most recent study, first-class marketers only create 65% of content, the remainder being 25% curated and 10% syndicated.

Top drivers for content curation are: limited staff & budget, the ability to publish quality content consistently, discovering credible third-party sources and establishing thought leadership – to name a few. Not to mention content curation helps organizations increase site traffic and drive a higher quality and quantity of leads.

Here’s a rundown of how 360Chestnut, a startup in Cambridge, MA, uses curation to solve their content marketing challenges, publish great content and increase their bottom line.

Who is 360Chestnut

360Chestnut connects energy efficient contractors and homeowners, providing energy saving incentives and rebates to customers in Massachusetts and the Tri-state area. Their mission is to create a more knowledgeable green efficiency community, while developing trusting relationships with homeowners and contractors alike. With the growing concern for the environment and an increase in green-home initiatives, more people are looking to save energy, live healthier and do it all cost-effectively.

Harold Simansky is 360Chestnut’s founder and CEO. He and his team understand that the best way to grow their business is to share compelling green-home information with potential customers. This includes information on the incentives and rebates in energy efficient solutions in their area, as well as how consumers can incorporate these solutions into their homes.

Content Marketing Challenges

Because 360Chestnut is startup with limited budget and staff, they faced a challenge in pushing out enough created content to keep readers engaged and attract new customers. Before implementing a content curation strategy, they were only able to publish new content once or twice a week.

In addition, their single location in Massachusetts made it difficult for 360Chestnut to discover green incentives and rebates outside of New England, as well as publish on region-specific information that they weren’t experts on – like a new energy efficient heating & cooling system in Virginia, for example. Much of this information is highly localized and difficult to keep track of without a large staff.

There’s no doubt that 360Chestnut is a leader in their industry, but their 100% created content strategy wasn’t allowing the startup to reach a wide audience and provide these readers with diverse information from various credible sources. The team knew it was critical to drive potential customers to a blog that offered thought leadership in order to provide the most relevant information on green-initiative home projects. This, in parallel with the implementation of a multichannel promotion strategy, would allow 360Chestnut to reach more customers.

Curation in Action

To solve these challenges, 360Chestnut implemented Curata’s curation tool into their content strategy to discover green home rebates and incentives across the country, publish topic-specific content daily and help their blog become a go-to source of information. Their blog is now populated with original, created content as well as high quality, relevant curated content.

Curata provides a feed of relevant, high quality content, allowing the team at 360Chestnut to hand-pick the pieces they want to publish for readers. To provide even more value for these potential customers, the team annotates these curated articles with their own knowledgeable insights and opinions before sharing them through multiple channels (blog & social media platforms) with one click in order to reach a wider reader base.

Once 360Chestnut picks an article to curate for their audience, they use ethical best practices to annotate, optimize and publish the content. These best practices include a new title & image, introducing the reader to the curated content, providing unique insights and clearly attributing the content to the original source. Here’s an example of a curated blog post from the 360Chestnut Blog:

Not only does curation allow 360Chestnut to discover and publish on a wide variety of high quality content on a consistent basis, but they’ve also been able to increase their time to market by publishing curated articles on energy efficient homes in real-time instead of having to craft a new article from scratch.

Curation Results

The team at 360Chestnut is now able to publish content five to seven times per week, provide information from knowledgeable third-party sources on topics they aren’t experts on and find green incentives and rebates across the country using Curata’s discovery engine.

The content that populates their curated feed also provides fodder for created content ideas. They’re able to see what type of information is trending and what will best resonate with their readers. This information can be turned into engaging original articles that can be complemented with related curated pieces.

“We’re getting a much higher quality of visitors to the site as a result of great content. We’ve seen a 40 percent increase in marketing leads since Curata’s installation,” says Simansky. The startup has also seen at 20 percent increase in Twitter followers due to the increase in content.

Curation has also allowed 360Chestnut to collect ideas from their knowledgeable staff. Curata’s bookmarklet allows users to crowdsource content across their organization, as well as with external parteres. With content curation, the content manager or resident writer doesn’t have to be the sole contributor. This is great for organizations for which hiring more team members may break the bank.

360Chestnut is able to leverage content curation to improve their content marketing strategy, consistently publish valuable content for their readers and ultimately increase leads.

Interested in finding content marketing success using curation? Check out the 2013 Content Curation Look Book or register for a free demo of Curata.

We hear all the time that content marketing has come a long way in the past few years and that this strategy will continue to be a growing trend in the future.

But where’s the proof?

I’ve pulled together 51 of some of the most compelling content insights on the web to help marketers plan and adjust for this $44 billion dollar industry. The information compiled below consists of content marketing tactics, use cases across various channels and actionable information to better prepare your organization for content management and production.

Here’s a curated list of a few of the most interesting statistics out there from some of the most knowledgeable content marketing information sources. I highly encourage you to dig deeper into the reports provided below for more detailed information on topic-specific studies.

Content Marketing

93% of B2B marketers use content marketing (Content Marketing Institute)

Content marketing generates 3 times as many leads, per dollar spent, as traditional marketing tactics (Demand Metric)

$135 billion will be spent on creating new digital marketing collateral in 2014 (WebDAM Solutions)

Proving bottom-line results of inbound strategies is a concern for 25% of marketers (HubSpot)

43% of organizations have a dedicated content marketing executive (Curata)

1.2 billion users access the Internet from their mobile devices (Epik Consulting)

7 out of 10 readers would prefer to learn about a company through their content, rather than an ad (Custom Content Council)

61% of B2B organizations believe webinars are an effective content marketing tactic (CMI & Marketing Profs)

47% of users ignore mobile ads in apps and 43% think ads disrupt UX (Forrester)

33% of marketers don’t know which channel generates the most revenue for them (MediaBistro)

Content marketing makes 70% of consumers feel closer to a company (Demand Metric)

56% of marketers use a form of content-specific technology (Curata)

67% of B2B content marketers believe event marketing is the most effective strategy (MediaBistro)

A majority of the audience you’re marketing to, 65%, are visual learners (WebDAM Solutions)

Online audiences spend 20% of their time reading content (Demand Metric)

60-70% of content created by B2B organizations goes unused (Sirius Decisions)

10-20% of website content drives 90% of it’s web traffic; 0.5% of that content drives over 50% of traffic (Inbound Writer)

Content published by influencers is 74% editorial (Technorati Media)

82% of consumers trust a company more when the CEO/leadership team are active social media users (TopRank)

33% of content marketers are unable to measure the effectiveness of their strategy (Polaris)

Digital marketing spend will surpass 50% of total program spend by 2016 (IDC)

71% of organizations plan on increasing spend on content marketing in 2014; 39% plan to increase spend on curation (Curata)

65% of content marketers tailor content to industry trends (CMI & Marketing Profs)

40% of marketers use some sort of CRM technology (Act-On)

76% of content marketers used newsletters to reach consumers in 2013 (eMarketer)

Reaching the right audience and converting leads are the top marketing priorities for 23% of marketers (HubSpot)

Multichannel campaign management is a top priority for 27% of content marketers (Adobe)

77% of business buyers prefer different content at various stages of the product research process (Pardot/Salesforce)

Social Media

Social Media is used by 87% of B2B marketers to distribute content (Demand Metric)

LinkedIn’s conversion rate is 3 times higher than Twitter and Facebook (Quick Sprout)

Images result in a 98% higher comment rate on LinkedIn (Quick Sprout)

33% of consumers discover new brands, products or services by reading messages on social networks (eMarketer)

There are over 420K c-level executives on Twitter (Social Strand Media)

70% of organizations have a presence on Google+ (Jeff Bullas)

Increased exposure is the top benefit of social media marketing for 89% of marketers (Social Media Examiner)

Content marketing is a top strategy for 57% of marketers (Altimeter)

34% of marketers have generated leads through Twitter (Jeff Bullas)

Google+ has 300 million active monthly users (USAToday)

71% of tweets are ignored, only 23% generate replies (Search Engine Journal)

43% of content marketers say social media is a top contributor to marketing success (Gartner)

29% of organizations are producing content assets each week (Eloqua)

YouTube attracts 1 billion unique users each month (YouTube)

50% of consumers are more likely to purchase from organizations they follow on Twitter (TopRank)

Search

92% of marketers find content marketing an effective driver for SEO (Sekari)

41% of traffic to content sites is from search (TopRank)

2000 words is the average length of posts that rank on the first page of Google (Optimind Technology)

40% of B2B website traffic is from organic search (MediaPost)

Blogs

23% of a user’s time online is spent on social media and blogs (CMI)

Blogs give websites 434% more indexed pages and 97% more indexed links (Content+)

77% of your online audience reads blogs (Ignite Spot)

57% of marketers have acquired a new customer from their blog posts (Sekari)

Over 27 million pieces of content are shared every day (AOL & Nielson)

75% of marketers are increasing their focus on marketing automation; 63% are increasing focus on blogging (eMarketer)

B2B companies that blog create 67% more leads than organizations that don’t (WebDAM Solutions)

Email

Online services most likely to influence purchases include brand sites, 34%, and blogs, 31.1% (Technorati Media)

75% of readers are likely to delete emails that can’t be read on their phones (Marketo)

76% of CMOs say email marketing generates brand awareness (iContact)

The most trusted online services are news sites at 51% and blogs are trusted by 29% of readers (Technorati Media)

Hope this list got you up to speed on the latest in the world of content marketing! Know of any other intriguing content marketing statistics? Let us know in a comment below & check out our Content Marketing Tactics Planner for more information on what tactics over 500 organizations are putting in motion this year.

Also, if you’re ready to learn how content curation can help complement your created content and better engage your audience, then reach out to us for a brief demo of Curata’s solution.

Created content should stand as the backbone of your content marketing strategy, since original material helps differentiate your brand from the competition. But the reality is that limited budgets, staff, and time often make it nearly impossible to create enough original content and keep all your channels updated on a consistent basis. Too much created content can be a morale-killer because it often requires a back-breaking pace of constant creation for employees. Plus, not all organizations have strong storytellers who can create high-quality content on a consistent basis.

These are just a few of the reasons why many savvy content marketers include a combination of created content and curated content in their strategy. Our recent survey of top marketers found that on average, they use 65 percent created content and 25 percent curated content, with 10 percent of content syndicated from third party sources.

Curated content solves some of the pain points created by a 100 percent creation strategy, and when done well, curated content actually includes elements of creation such as incorporating additional context, opinions, and so on. It’s also more realistic for marketers with a limited budget or small staff to supplement their created content with curation rather than to create it all themselves.

Curation Complements Creation

Here’s why curation is the ultimate complement to created content:

• Solves resource issues: Unlike created content, curated content doesn’t have the resource challenges mentioned above. It’s not as expensive or time-consuming to produce and doesn’t require a huge team of writers. Curated content allows you to get more content out the door and ultimately increase leads without a proportionate amount more original content. When news breaks, it’s easier to curate articles on the topic in real time versus producing them yourself.

• Gives readers other perspectives: Your readers or customers don’t want egocentric marketing that focuses entirely on your products, your perspective, you, you, you. They want to hear from third-party sources who can offer a different point of view, and curation affords you this opportunity. Annotating curation by adding your own point of view or commentary helps drive thought leadership. In fact, 55 percent of the marketers we surveyed said curation has helped improve thought leadership, while 63 percent said it has helped boost brand visibility.

Content Mix Best Practices

Now that we’ve convinced you of curation’s value, here are some best practices for content curation:

• Curate consistently: To get the best results from content curation, you need to curate content on a consistent basis – ideally every day. Sixteen percent of the marketers we surveyed curate third-party sources for their audience every day, while about half are curating from third-party sources at least once a week.

• Devote time each day to curation: To maintain reasonable frequency, set aside time each day for curation. Use tools to streamline your curation process, easily distribute content to multiple channels and ultimately, save time. Our survey found that nearly half of marketers are spending over two hours per day on curation. These marketers are likely wasting time annotating content that isn’t brand relevant or manually sharing to multiple channels. We recommend spending about 30 minutes per day on curation and using content specific technology that can help you find, annotate, organize and share content efficiently.

• Publish across multiple channels: The top three places that marketers publish curated content is on social media, their blogs and newsletters. But posting manually to these channels isn’t necessary. One-click to multi-channel publishing can help you get more mileage out of every piece you curate in a fraction of the time.

For more insight on content marketing strategies, including the latest statistics on best practices and what top content marketers are doing this year, download Curata’s Content Marketing Tactics Planner 2014.