Since the early days of the modern Internet, the creation and consumption of digital content has been steadily increasing. Unsurprisingly, this has led to a growing focus on content marketing in the B2B marketing space, as companies seek to increase the distribution and impact of their content across various channels and platforms to increase awareness, strengthen lead generation, and improve ROI.
However, although the growth of content has not slowed down, our relationship with the broader digital ecosystem as both consumers and businesses has evolved rapidly, making the development of effective and consistent content marketing strategies challenging and more difficult.
In particular, beyond dealing with an overcrowded market, B2B marketers must adapt to address growing concerns about data privacy from users and regulatory agencies. And this is by no means an easy task, especially in 2024, as much of our industry has been disrupted by the proliferation of shiny things, whether it’s the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI), Google’s eventual decision to withdraw the cookie, or advanced automation and personalization tools.
Simply put, while technological advances may be helpful in navigating the current climate, what marketers should really demand from their suppliers is compliance with a new level of transparency, as well as one that ensures both constant compliance and the elimination of unclear transaction processes.
Challenges on all sides
To fully appreciate the urgent need for transparency in content marketing, it’s important to understand that it’s a multifaceted issue and one that encompasses the variety of challenges facing B2B marketers today.
Among the most obvious issues are those related to the changing climate around data privacy. In recent years, heightened global concerns have led to the introduction of new laws and requirements. This includes Europe’s General Data Protections Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), both of which have placed restrictions on how businesses collect and use audience data and will continue to have stricter and more widely enforced compliance measures.
However, regulatory agencies are not the only ones violating data privacy. Even in the absence of strict legal requirements, there is still a need to address consumer expectations, which are already dramatically shaping how businesses capture and use user data at scale.
For example, demands for improved data protection led to the creation of Google’s Privacy Sandbox, an initiative focused on preventing the tracking of user strategies. Most notably, the company recently aimed to eliminate third-party cookies from its Chrome browser, forcing advertisers to rely on obtaining express consent before collecting data. And although this step has recently been abandoned, Google will go further by allowing users to choose whether to accept cookies. It’s worth noting, however, that Chrome currently handles more than 65% of online activity worldwide, and studies have shown that 70% of users would block tracking if given the choice.
Transparency in content marketing is not just about following rules to protect users or meeting compliance requirements. It’s about helping marketers ensure their content is well positioned and the leads are high quality. This is especially important as audiences become harder to reach within the crowded digital ecosystem. The truth is, even though marketing providers have long been working in the “black box” perpetuating these obscure practices, this is no longer the case.
Secure profits in current and future markets
Calling for a new level of transparency and content marketing framework is much more than a temporary fix to the current challenges facing today’s markets; it is an important task for any brand or agency that wants to bring their skills and marketing strategies up to date with the modern era in a permanent and sustainable way.
Consider the growing importance of data management and analytics in effective account-based marketing (ABM) strategies. At the end of the day, the main goal of a multi-channel and content marketing approach is to reach new audiences and improve ROI, in today’s market that requires the ability to intelligently access and evaluate all the relevant data. However, to ensure that all information is accurate and available in accordance with regulations, advertisers need to be fully transparent from external content marketing and lead generation providers about the tactics they use to capture, process, and evaluate audience data.
In terms of direct compliance, businesses in all industries continue to struggle with their practices around data privacy and security, not to mention those associated with the providers they rely on to distribute their content. A study published in 2023 reveals that nearly 75% of companies believe they can do better in protecting their data. Ensuring the security of consumer data is no longer an option but a requirement for any business hoping to thrive in today’s digital ecosystem.
Ensuring transparency in selling content isn’t just a legal requirement—it’s about a moral obligation. Brands and agencies alike are calling for it and that’s why one of my first actions as CEO is to establish new levels of transparency, as respecting the values and preferences of the audience is more important than ever. In fact, the only option would be to place blind faith in anyone who promises the most attractive results and put your brand image and regulatory position at great risk in the process.
Keith Turco is the CEO of Madison Logic.
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