There are many channels and strategies available to content marketers. Management of earned, paid and owned media is an essential aspect of content marketing.
All of them work together to drive traffic, conversions, and sales. Some have a higher investment while others have a greater ROI (return-on-investment).
This post will discuss each media type, their use in content marketing and the best ROI.
Here are some quick tips:
Paid, owned and earned media are all part of a digital marketing strategy. However, organizations will have the greatest success using all three.
Next, we will look at each media type.
What is Paid Media?
Paid media can include any type of advertising. Paid media comes with a cost tag that varies depending on which channel you are using. This is what marketing is about, unfortunately.
Paid ads are designed to direct users to your own media. This can be done with:
Paid search on Google and other search enginesSocial media advertisingSponsorships for events (live or virtual).Partner emailsInfluencer MarketingDigital display ads on third party sitesSponsored content from third-party platforms that is credible to your buyersRetargeting
Paid Media Benefits
Instant results from the moment the ad starts. Fast lead generation and traffic to own mediaYou decide the strategy. You decide the format, content, and target audience of the ad, even though you don’t control the channel.
Paid Media Stats & ROI
Does paid media work? With the right strategy, paid media can work. Payed media cannot deliver ROI if the ad is not running. It’s over when it’s done.
The majority of content marketers use paid channels. CMI’s 11th Annual B2B Content Marketing Report revealed that 72 percent of them do.
Image by CMI
Which paid channels are they using? Social media was the most popular, followed closely by paid search. LinkedIn was the top-ranked social media platform, followed by Facebook and Twitter.
Paid media can help your brand reach new audiences and increase exposure. There are some limitations to advertising that can hinder ROI. Because of constant inundation, buyers are often “ad blind”. Paying for leads through paid channels is not always a good idea. You can expect lots of spam from paid search. You’re still paid, regardless of whether the lead qualifies.
Every business will have a different paid media ROI. This will depend on the competitiveness of your industry, which will lead to higher keywords bids. Other factors include the quality of your ad and how you target. There are many options for targeting. LinkedIn and other social media platforms allow you to target people by location, industry, job title or interest.
Display ads and sponsored content will give you impressions and clicks. However, these don’t tell you the ROI. It is important to be able attribute the event to a sale. This can be difficult.
What is owned media?
All content you own is considered owned media. Your website is the largest part of your own media. Your website is yours to design and publish unique content.
But a website and digital presence are not enough. You want people to stay on your website, whether they come from paid or earned sources. This requires you to be committed to creating a great user experience (UX), and engaging with your customers.
Social media posts are another owned media. Although you don’t have control over the channel, you can make decisions about what and when you post. The algorithms will take control, but it is still owned in its original form.
Email marketing is also an owned medium. Buyers grant you permission to email them. You can then dictate the messages and offers. This is a channel you can use to nurture and foster customer relationships.
Other options for owned media include podcasts and virtual events. The content and experience are yours to design. You don’t have any distribution channels or platforms. It’s still brand content, and it has a stronger impact than third party events.
Benefits of Owned Media
You have total control over content and design. It’s always driving ROI, as long as it is liveInvestment is not for ad dollars. You’ll be able build trust with audiences. This is the biggest contributor to organic searches rankings.
Statistics on Owned Media and ROI
Content marketing is built on owned media. This is your brand’s story, told in many formats and on different channels. But you have complete control over the narrative. Content marketing is more effective than advertising in most cases.
Your ROI for every dollar you spend on SEO and email marketing is $40 and $22.24, respective. As you can see, owned media perform better than paid.
Image by Smart Insights
It is also cheaper to own media and do content marketing than it costs to pay, by about 62 percent. Blogs are 68 percent more effective than blogs that do not.
According to the CMI report, the ROI for owned media is quite clear. B2B marketers will invest in it most in 2021.
Image by CMI
What is Earned Media?
Earned media refers to any exposure or visibility that is not provided by paid channels. Earned media can often be used to reach the destination of owned media. Earned media can be described as the digital version of word-of-mouth. It is a way for others to recommend your brand or endorse it.
Earned media includes mentions, reposts/retweets and reviews.
A strong SEO strategy is essential to increase earned media. These rankings are earned by brands that provide high-quality content with backlinks and optimization. Google is the “recommender”, showing you your own content in search rankings. This must be used in conjunction with a content strategy that creates valuable, relevant content for your audience.
Earned Media Benefits
Google ranks you higher if you optimize your owned media. Audiences have “social proof” about the quality of your products or services. Greater reach for your brand to draw new customers. Mentions in publications can increase brand reputation and improve your thought leadership
Earned Media Stats & ROI
Earned media is measurable with social media metrics of engagement–mentions, reach, comments, and more. This analytics can be used to calculate earned media metrics such as:
Amplification rate: Ratio of shares to total followers. Applause rate: Ratio of likes to total followers. Share of voice: The ratio of mentions of your brand to all mentions for your brand.
These metrics will help you gauge the importance of your brand’s presence in social conversations. You can also determine the ROI of earned media by using these other metrics:
Does testimonials and reviews refer to conversion? Do testimonials and reviews refer to conversion?
Not all earned media is good
Another thing to remember is that not all earned media are positive. There will be some negative comments and mentions. This is normal. Be prepared to answer any negative comments.
Which media has the best ROI?
You don’t have to choose one or the other. You need all three media types. They can overlap and work together.
Owned media has the highest ROI but is less popular than paid or earned media.
Strategically integrating them all is the best way to go.
Use Paid, Owned and Earned Media to Produce Consistent Content
Content is essential to leverage any media. This requires constant publishing. We can help you if your organization doesn’t have the funds.
Our Content Builder Service can help you get more visitors to your website by publishing quality content consistently.
Contact me to set up a consultation and I will send you a PDF copy of my books. Get started today to generate more leads and traffic for your business.
The post What are Paid, Owned and Earned Media? Which Drives More Return on Investment? Marketing Insider Group published the first post.
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By: Michael Brenner
Title: What Are Paid, Owned, and Earned Media, and Which Drives More ROI?
Sourced From: marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/what-are-paid-owned-and-earned-media-and-which-one-drives-more-roi/
Published Date: Thu, 07 Apr 2022 16:00:06 +0000
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