THOUGHT LEADERSHIP DISRUPTED:
NEW RULES FOR THE CONTENT AGE
Heather Taylor
@HeatherATaylor

What we really need is a mindset shift that will make
us relevant to today’s consumers, a mindset shift
from ‘telling & selling’ to building relationships.
Jim Stengel
Former Global Marke3ng Officer
Procter & Gamble

In associa3on with
In associa3on with

WE ALL WANT TO CREATE
RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR
CUSTOMERS

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GOOD THINGS HAPPEN WHEN WE DO IT RIGHT
CONSUME
MORE
SHARE
MORE
z
PURCHASE
MORE
ADVOCATE
MORE
z

BUT THE PROBLEM IS,
WE’RE DOING IT WRONG

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AUDIENCES ARE REACHING CONTENT
OVERLOAD
3 in 5 global
executives admit
sometimes feeling
confused or
overwhelmed by the
volume of content
they encounter

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YET MARKETERS KEEP CHURNING OUT CONTENT
80%
of marketers plan to
increase the
amount of thought
leadership content
they produce
Half of marketers
believe
<20%
of current output
gets engagement

‘The challenge for B2B content is
that it competes in a huge array of
media fighting for time against
other always-on entertainment.’
John Rudaizky, Brand & Marketing
Leader, Partner, EY
WE STILL NEED TO FIND
A CONNECTION

SO HOW DO WE CLOSE THE
CONTENT GAP?

LESS IS MORE
RULE #1
RETURN TO THE FUNDAMENTALS

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SURPRISE!
TEXT STILL MATTERS

Developed Market, Exploratory Content
Developed Market, Decision Based Content
Emerging Market, Exploratory Content
Emerging Market, Decision Based Content
SHORT-FORM
HIGHLY VISUAL &
INTERACTIVE
IN-DEPTH, TEXT-BASED
CONTENT
MOBILE
LAPTOP
DEVICE
CONTENT
FORMAT
LOCATION & PURPOSE
1.19 billion people
in APAC go online
via mobile
90% of conversions
on the Economist
were generated via
desktop pages
The majority of
emerging markets
access content
via feature phone
80% of BDMs are
casually consuming
mobile video clips
85% of execs report
preferring text in the
form of articles over
video and audio
when making
business decisions

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UTILITY IS KEY

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GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT
(AND NEED)
NOT JUST WHAT YOU’RE
WILLING TO GIVE
RULE #2

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EXECUTIVES ARE HUNGRY FOR CONTENT

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FOCUS ON THE AUDIENCE’S INTERESTS

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BE CREDIBLE

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AND LAY OFF THE SALES PITCH

RULE #3
INNOVATE WITH DISTRIBUTION,
FORMAT AND CADENCE

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MAKE SURE TO GET OUT
OF YOUR OWN WAY
RULE #4

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MARKETERS ARE STILL BATTLING
INTERNAL DISCONNECTS

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AND LOOKING FOR
ANSWERS IN ALL THE
WRONG PLACES

WE MUST REMEMBER:
IT’S THEIR JOURNEY THAT MATTERS…

…NOT TRYING TO STUFF THEM IN OUR
SALES FUNNEL

SO WHAT ARE YOU
GOING TO DO?

HEATHER TAYLOR
Director, Crea3ve Strategy - North America
@heatherAtaylor