All businesses need to do two things. They need to attract as many people as possible who might have a need for their services. Then they need to nurture these new contacts, so prospects become leads; leads become customers; customers become fans. PR, advertising, events – they all have their place in the marketing mix. Content, though, is different. It’s the only kind of marketing that remains equally impactful throughout the duration of the customer’s journey. It helps build awareness among key customers, establish your business’ credentials and credibility and then nurture leads through to sale. Unfortunately, most businesses know this – and we’re drowning in content as a result. People consume 285 pieces of content (some 54,000 words) every day! So we need to tell a better story in order to stand out from the crowd. There are rich rewards for those that get it right. For every dollar spent, content marketing gains three times as many leads compared to paid search and outbound marketing, and at a third of the cost.