A Content Marketing Strategy, also referred to as "Custom publishing, custom media, customer media, customer publishing, member media, private media, branded content, corporate media, corporate publishing, corporate journalism and branded media." (www.junta42.com) is "a marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience - with the objective of driving profitable customer action" (www.junta42com).

In other words: Specific Marketing Content + A specific target group = Increased sales.

Would you not prefer to be properly informed - to be approached, as an adult, by companies trying to sell you things? That is the bottom line when using the Content Marketing Strategy approach - providing information which is relevant and valuable, only.

Some of the mediums, where relevant and valuable information is placed, for a successful Content Marketing Strategy include:

• Print Magazines/Newsletters
• e-Newsletters/e-Zines/E-mail
• e-Books/White Papers
• Video Series
• Webcasts/Virtual Events
• Social Content Marketing/Social Media

This is achieved by employing methods whereas, "Instead of pitching your products or services, you are delivering information that makes your buyer more intelligent. The essence of this content strategy is the belief that if we, as businesses, deliver consistent, ongoing valuable information to buyers, they ultimately reward us with their business and loyalty." (www.junta42.com)

According to figures provided by Custom Publishing Council and Roper Public Affairs:

• 80% of business decision makers prefer to get company information in a series of articles versus an advertisement.
• 70% say content marketing makes them feel closer to the sponsoring company
• 60% say that company content helps them make better product decisions.

Clearly, the public has stated that they prefer content to flash. We, The People, want to be properly informed and wish to THINK versus being dazzled with nonsense and deceit.

With the assistance of - yes, the internet, "During the 12-year life span of Google, magazine readership actually increased by 11 percent, according to MRI, a research agency used by the magazine industry." (www.junta42.com)

Heavy hitter magazines such as Time Inc.'s Fortune have opted to go with using Content Marketing Strategy vs. flash-n-trash. ""We're redesigning it from a graphic and design point of view and to some extent from an editorial point of view," said Managing Editor Andy Serwer" (www.junta42.com)

There is nothing like the internet. It is the public's number 1 choice to go for information. "The web has become an essential place to go for research, connection and commerce. Even in niche B2B markets; even for products & services that can't easily be sold online; even for companies with no web footprint." (www.danblank.com)

The beauty of e-books is that you are able to reach millions of people, simultaneously. Also, e-books are very effective in Content Marketing Strategy because the topic is content and target specific. If you are not specifically interested in a topic that a certain e-book discusses, you simply do not download it.

According to www.contentmarketingtoday.com, 5 reasons why e-books are an effective Content Marketing Strategy tool:

1. You can quickly, compellingly, visually, and inexpensively establish thought leadership with an e-book that provides relevant information on the toughest challenges your customers face. Although you should have complete, in-depth information on your website that delves into those same challenges, an e-book distills your organization's wisdom in an easily digestible format. In the case of the RPO group, they boil it down to 5 Secrets of Talent that target c-level executives who care deeply about talent but probably think very little about the minutia of recruitment.
2. Offering a free e-book, is a wonderful incentive to entice your prospects to begin in their engagement with you. You don't need to require that they sign up to download your e-book In fact, author David Meerrman Scott, stresses that you should never require registration for the downloading of e-books. The RPO group follows this rule and has managed to get more than 4000 prospective customers to download theirs. Their CEO, Liam Ovenden, explains their thinking about providing this kind of great, free content, "Now we've got qualified buyers coming to our website who are being turned from strangers into friends. And that makes our business development instantly more successful, which was the whole point in the first place."
3. E-books, in the universally acceptable PDF format, are easy to pass along from one prospect to another, giving you potentially infinite reach. This means that however many initial downloads you get, you will undoubtedly get much broader viral reach with an e-book that delivers relevant and compelling content. E-books don't suffer from the limitations of print material. Once you have made the initial investment it costs no more to generate a million copies than it does to generate a hundred copies.
4. If you need help in designing your e-book and in generating the content, you can find talented designers and freelance writers easily. The skill set required to create an e-book is much more universal than that required to build a highly sophisticated website. Thus, there is plenty of available talent. The key is to make sure to partner with folks who understand the importance of great content that precisely targets your ideal customers.
5. If your budget is very limited, you can create your own e-book by starting with PowerPoint and then transforming the PowerPoint files into PDF files. Even if you need to bring in professionals to fine tune your work, your investment will still be minimal while yielding maximum results. Take a look at the 5 Secrets of Talent and you'll see that although it is certainly well designed, you could probably replicate the basic style yourself and wind up with a highly effective content marketing vehicle that delivers infinitely greater impact and reach than a traditional print brochure.

Videos are a powerful way of transmitting a message. When you come across a website with a choice between a video and text, the majority of people will opt for the video.

How may you conduct a Content Marketing Strategy with video? www.contentmarketingtoday.com recommends several methods such as "putting a welcome video on your website, recording and posting client testimonials and creating video tutorials."

With the advent of YouTube.com the smallest of businesses have a shot at having quality presence on the internet via videos.

With tools such as Upstream.tv it is now very easy to create your own channel and disseminate the information you want using Content Marketing Strategy.

Press releases may be considered "persuasive presentations" (www.contentmarketingtoday.com), in print and, currently, the best example of a Content Marketing Strategy. They are a very effective way to provide the public with relevant information in a concise manner. Video press releases are a relatively new animal, in the marketing world, which are quickly catching up and becoming mainstream, replacing the print version.