I often wonder why a brand would choose to ignore the potential of content marketing and social media. Especially with so many singing its praises these days. There are two simple reasons: fear and ignorance. And both come from a few huge misconceptions about content marketing.

It costs too much

The goal with any content marketing strategy should be to save money, not spend more. This is achieved by replacing some of the expensive paid media spots with creative content that can be shared through blogs, articles and social media. You will end up reaching more people that actually have a use for your products than if you paid big bucks to do a radio or t.v. commercial.

We already have too many channels to manage

You don't have to utilize every available channel. Just choose the ones relevant to your brand and customers, and create quality content that will engage those users. This allows you to stay on top of communications and focus on what works for you.

There's no way to measure the effectiveness of content marketing

Wrong again. Technology makes tracking and analyzing social media and content marketing easy, so you can quickly see what works best. Google Analytics is just one of several free tools you can use to get started. Once you see and measure how effective content marketing is, you too will be a believer.

B2B brands don't need content marketing

This is another huge misconception. While B2C and B2B brands do market differently in many cases, both can use content marketing to engage buyers and differentiate their products. At the end of the day, a buyer is a buyer.

Content has become a central component in B2B marketing. Brands that continue to give excuses for why they are not participating will soon find their content-savvy competition has left them in the dust.