Content Marketing in 2020: Who’s Reading Your Content and Is It Effective?

If you’re like most businesses these days, you’re investing time, money (or both) into content marketing in the hope that it will boost your profile and bring you new customers.

And while it’s clear that a targeted and effective content marketing plan will do wonders for your SEO and credibility, have you ever wondered who is actually consuming and (importantly) responding to your content?

A recent survey conducted by digital marketing agency Sonder dug a little deeper into what consumers really think about content marketing and how they are interacting with it.

They asked 1001 Australians whether they use content to make purchase decisions and the results showed a clear and significant difference between the habits of different age demographics.

This is critical information that can make or break your campaign. So before you brainstorm your next blog or marketing plan, read on to discover more about how Australians are interacting with content today.

Who’s reading the content?

When it comes to spending time searching for and reading content relating to potential purchases, over 45s are the age group most likely, with just over a third (34%) reporting that they’ve used content to make purchasing decisions in the past. Of this group, 10% often turn to longer form content such as how-to guides or blogs to point them in the right direction when buying products, while one in five who haven’t, would consider doing so in the future.

The rest of the population shows similar numbers, with just under a third (28.5%) saying they have used content to make purchases before and 10% reporting using content to guide their decisions often. However, when you look at those in the 18–24 years old demographic, there is quite a shift, with only 13% using content in the past when making buying decisions. But on the flipside, 12% say they often seek guides when researching online, which is higher than the over 45s.

Why is this so?

The fact that Gen Z have grown up with an abundance of content available on almost every subject conceivable, would at first suggest that they should be the ones using it the most. However, those aged 18–24 may prefer to look for information in other places, such as social media. Although, having said that, with over 10% of those surveyed reporting that they do use content often, it seems there are still a large number who rely on blogs and other longer form content too. The plus 45s on the other hand, tend to lean towards content more often, perhaps because they trust it as being a more reliable source than social media posts and tweets.

What does this mean for your next campaign?

How this affects your marketing strategy really depends on who you are trying to reach. The numbers represented in the survey tell us that content marketing is an integral part of any digital marketing strategy. With one in three Australians reporting content has influenced their purchases and one in ten saying they are open to using content to educate themselves online, it delivers serious bang for your buck in terms of both reach and impact.

But keep in mind, that if your potential customers include Gen Z, including a healthy dose of short and sharp social media posts and tweets is an effective way to reach and influence this demographic.

Need help putting together your content strategy?

Whether you’re keen to get content working for your business but don’t know where to start, or you already have a campaign up and running but it’s not generating the results you want, we can help. Our free resources are a great starting point, or post a question below or get in touch with our team direct for expert advice.

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CLCK Team