content marketing tools 2015: a marketer’s...

A Digital Marketing Depot Research Report

M A R K E T I N T E L L I G E N C E R E P O R T :

Content Marketing Tools 2015: A Marketer’s Guide

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© 2015 Third Door Media, Inc. • http://digitalmarketingdepot.com 1 Email: [email protected]

M A R K E T I N T E L L I G E N C E R E P O R T:


Table of ContentsScope and methodology ........................................................................................................... 2The content marketing imperative ........................................................................................... 3

Table 1: Do you use content marketing (2014)? ............................................................... 3Table 2: 2014 B2B content marketing spending over the next 12 months...................4

Venture Funding, Mergers, and Acquisitions Shape Vendor Landscape.............................4Table 3: Selected content marketing venture funding, 2012-2014 ............................... 5Table 4: Selected content marketing mergers and acquisitions, 2012-2014 ................ 6

The core elements of content marketing ................................................................................. 7Table 5: Selected core elements of content marketing ................................................ 7

Content marketing tool capabilities ......................................................................................... 8Content creation and curation ............................................................................................. 8Content amplification/distribution ...................................................................................... 8Content optimization ........................................................................................................... 8

Table 6: Selected content marketing vendor capabilities: ........................................... 9Content analytics ............................................................................................................... 10Content management ....................................................................................................... 10

Table 7: Selected content marketing metrics ............................................................. 10Choosing a content marketing tool ........................................................................................ 11

The benefits of using content marketing tools .................................................................. 11Content marketing pricing ................................................................................................ 11Recommended steps to making an informed purchase .................................................... 12

Table 8: Selected content marketing tool pricing ....................................................... 12Step One: Do you need a content marketing tool or platform? ....................................... 12Step Two: Identify and contact appropriate vendors ........................................................ 13Step Three: Scheduling the demo .....................................................................................14Step Four: Check references, negotiate a contract ........................................................... 15

Conclusion ................................................................................................................................. 16Vendor Profiles ......................................................................................................................... 17

Adobe (Creative and Marketing Clouds) ............................................................................... 17Brandpoint ............................................................................................................................. 19Contently................................................................................................................................ 20DivvyHQ ................................................................................................................................. 21idio ......................................................................................................................................... 23ion interactive......................................................................................................................... 24Kapost .................................................................................................................................... 25NewsCred .............................................................................................................................. 27Optimizely .............................................................................................................................. 29Oracle ..................................................................................................................................... 30Outbrain ................................................................................................................................. 31Percolate ................................................................................................................................ 32Rallyverse ............................................................................................................................... 34Skyword .................................................................................................................................. 36SnapApp ................................................................................................................................ 38Taboola .................................................................................................................................. 39Triblio ..................................................................................................................................... 40Visual.ly .................................................................................................................................. 41Zemanta ................................................................................................................................. 42

Resources ..........................................................................................................................43




Scope and MethodologyThis report examines the current market for content marketing tools and the considerations involved in implementing content marketing software. This report answers the following questions:

• What are the core elements of content marketing initiatives?• Why do marketers need content marketing tools?• What capabilities do content marketing tools provide?• Who are the leading players in content marketing tools?• How much does content marketing software cost?

If you are considering licensing a content marketing tool, this report will help you decide whether or not you need to. The report analyzes the current market for content marketing tools, including the types of vendors serving the market and the capabilities available. The report provides recommended steps for choosing a content marketing tool and contains profiles of 18 content marketing vendors. The report features relevant information for both B2B and B2C marketers.

For the purposes of this report, content marketing is defined as:

The use of software and/or services to automate one or more of the following marketing functions:•content creation, content curation (discovery); •content optimization (SEO, testing, recommendation engines, audience identification and

targeting);•content analytics; and •content management (planning, workflow, regulatory and brand compliance)

– with the organizational goal of increasing consumer engagement and ultimately, conversions.

The definition of content itself has expanded beyond written products such as whitepapers, webpages, and product manuals to include advertisements, sales rep telephone conversations, online images, and infographics.

The vendors profiled in this report represent the choices available for content marketing automation; they are not a comprehensive list of content marketing vendors. This report is not a recommendation of any content marketing tool or company, and is not meant to be an endorsement of any particular product, service, or vendor.

This report was prepared by conducting in-depth interviews in October and November 2014 with leading vendors and industry experts. These, in addition to third-party research, form the basis for this report.

December 2014Research/Writer: Karen Burka, Senior Research ConsultantEditor: Claire Schoen, VP, Marketing Services, Third Door Media

http://thirddoormedia.com/




The content marketing imperativeA fundamental shift in the relationship between brands and consumers is driving an equally significant change in how – and how often – marketers communicate with their target audiences. The convergence of user-generated online content, social media, and mobile communication has put control firmly in consumers’ hands. Rather than coming to the brand website, store or sales rep with questions, consumers now come armed with product and purchase information gathered from a wide array of sources, via multiple channels.

“Content marketing” has become a core component of brand marketing strategies as a result. Eighty-six percent of B2B marketers and 77% of B2C marketers are using content marketing, according to B2B Content Marketing: 2015 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America published by the Content Marketing Institute, MarketingProfs, and Brightcove (see Table 1). Nearly half of those marketers have a dedicated content marketing group.

The challenge for marketers has become how to create, distribute, optimize, analyze, and manage the growing volume of content that is being generated on a daily basis.

Source: B2B Content Marketing: 2015 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America

Table 1: Do you use content marketing (2014)?

The challenge for marketers has become how to create, distribute, optimize, analyze, and manage the growing volume of content that is being generated on a daily basis. Nearly three quarters of B2B marketers say their organizations are creating more content than last year, according to the 2015 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America report. The average number of content marketing tactics used, i.e., social media posts, blogs, infographics, whitepapers, webinars, microsites, or e-newsletters, has grown to 13 for B2B marketers and 11 for B2C marketers.

Yet only one third of B2B marketers and one quarter of B2C marketers say their organizations have a documented content marketing strategy, the 2015 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America report found. Altimeter Group has similarly reported that 70% of marketers lack a consistent or integrated content strategy.

86%

14%

B2B marketers

Yes No

77%

23%

B2C marketers

Yes No




The content marketing vendor landscape is evolving rapidly, as venture capitalists continue to fund startups and enterprise technology giants such as IBM and Oracle enter the market through acquisition.

Source: B2B Content Marketing: 2015 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America

Table 2: 2014 B2B content marketing spending over the next 12 months

9%

46%32%

2% 11%

Significantly increase

Increase

Remain the same

Decrease

Unsure

This gap between the need to use content marketing and the ability to manage it has given rise to a crowded and complicated market of content marketing tools and platform vendors. The software and services available vary from interactive content apps and testing tools, to automated editorial calendars and social publishing apps, to global networks of content creation professionals. More than half of B2B marketers plan to increase content marketing spending in the next twelve months (see Table 2).

Venture Funding, Mergers, and Acquisitions Shape Vendor Landscape

The content marketing vendor landscape is evolving rapidly, as venture capitalists continue to fund startups, and enterprise technology giants such as IBM and Oracle enter the market through acquisition. Vendors including NewsCred, Contently, Optimizely, Percolate, Skyword, and Triblio all received new rounds of venture financing in 2014 (see Table 3). SnapApp, Triblio, Rallyverse, Kapost, and Percolate were all founded since 2010.

Zemanta is using a $2 million round of funding received in November 2013 to expand its platform to native and content-based advertising technology. NewsCred executives stated that funds from a $25 million Series C round in January 2014 would fuel aggressive marketing promotion and salesforce growth. Content optimization platform Taboola, which has attracted $40 million from venture capitalists, used some of its funding to purchase Perfect Market, a programmatic advertising tool, in August 2014 (see Table 4). The company’s goal is to grow beyond content recommendations into product recommendations.




Source: Third Door Media

Table 3: Selected content marketing venture funding, 2012-2014

Contently

Optimizely

Taboola

Kapost

Percolate

Visual.ly

idio

Outbrain

Triblio

NewsCred

Skyword

Zemanta

Vendor

January 2014

January 2012

May 2014

April 2013

February 2013

June 2012

July 2013

January 2012

March 2014

November 2012

January 2014

June 2013

October 2013

June 2014

January 2014

March 2013

September 2014May 2013April 2012

November 2013

Date

$9M Series B

$2M Series A

$57M Series B

$28M Series A

$15M Series D

$10M Series C

$5.6M Series C

$1.5M Series B

$24M Series B

$9M Series A

$8.1M Series A

Lightbank, Sigma Prime Ventures, Sigma West, Dave Lerner, Contour Venture PartnersLightbank, ff Venture Capital, Consigliere Brand Capital LLC

Bain Capital Ventures, Benchmark, Andreesen HorowitzBattery Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures, Benchmark, Google Ventures, InterWest Partners

Pitango Venture Capital, Marker, WGI Group, Evergreen Venture Partners, Eyal GuraMarker

High Country Ventures, Lead Edge Capital, FloodgateHighway 12 Ventures, Circle P Capital, High Country Ventures

WPP, Sequoia Capital, GGV Capital, First Round Capital, Lerer Ventures.Lerer Ventures, First Round, GGV Capital

SoftTech VC, Correlation Ventures, Crosslink Capital, 500 Startups, Giza Venture Capital, Quest Venture Partners, and Kapor Capital

$2.4M Series A

$35M Series E

$3.4M

$25M Series C

$15M Series B

$11M$6.7 M$6M

$2M

Notion Capital

Rhodium, GlenRock Israel, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Carmel Ventures, HarbourVest Partners, Gemini Israel Ventures, Index Ventures, Vintage Investment Partners

Kepha Partners, Longworth Venture Partners

InterWest Partners, Mayfield Fund, IA Ventures, FirstMark CapitalMayfield Fund, IA Ventures, FirstMark Capital, Greycroft Partners

Cox Media GroupCox Media GroupCox Media Group

Union Square Ventures, Social Starts

Amount Investors




Enterprise technology companies also view acquisition as their entrée into the market. Oracle bought content marketing platform Compendium in October 2013 and subsequently integrated it into the Oracle Marketing Cloud (along with previous acquisition Eloqua) as Oracle Content Marketing. IBM’s May 2014 purchase of SilverPop indicates the company’s move into the marketing automation space, which is becoming more closely aligned with content marketing.

Enterprise technology companies also view acquisition as their entrée into the market.


Table 4: Selected content marketing mergers and acquisitions, 2012-2014

Oracle

Outbrain

NewsCred

Taboola

IBM

Skyword

Optimizely

Vendor

Compendium

Visual RevenueScribitVertical Acuity

Daylife

Perfect Market

SilverPopXtifyTealeaf

Vidaao

Synference

Acquired

October 2013

March 2013December 2012December 2012

October 2012

August 2014

Marketing automationCloud-based mobile messagingCustomer experience management

Real-time predictive analyticsContent discovery Content logistics

Cloud-based media

Digital publishing software

May 2014Oct. 2013June 2012

September 2014

June 2014

Marketing automationCloud-based mobile messagingCustomer experience management

Video production marketplace

Predictive analytics

Date Capabilities




The core elements of content marketing At this early market stage, content marketing means different things to different brands in different industries. An enterprise B2C brand may seek deeper engagement with target audiences through games or contests, while a high-tech B2B marketer might use content marketing to collect prospect data through interactive infographics or polls. A core set of content marketing tactics has emerged, however, that contribute to organizational goals and content strategies (see Table 5).

An enterprise B2C brand may seek deeper engagement with target audiences through games or contests, while a high-tech B2B marketer might use content marketing to collect prospect data through interactive infographics or polls.• Create, compile, organize, store content assets

• Discover relevant external content sources • Establish links to curated content

Content creation and curation

• Publish original content to paid media, publisher sites and social networks

• Identify and push content to social influencers

Content amplification or distribution

• SEO through keyword/phrase analysis and optimization• Multivariate and A/B testing• Recommendation engines• Audience identification, segmentation, and targeting• Mobile device optimization

Content optimization

• Track and measure key metrics including views, downloads, traffic, leads, conversions

• Centralized dashboard • APIs for integration with CRM, MA, PPC, digital analytics

platforms

Content analytics

• Content scheduling/calendar• Permissions/access by role, department, location, etc.• Compliance review/approval process• Centralized, searchable asset library or repository

Content management

Table 5: Selected core elements of content marketing





Content marketing tool capabilitiesContent marketing tools come in a variety of shapes and sizes, from point solutions that automate workflow and content production, to A/B and multivariate testing tools, to services that provide access to global networks of content creation professionals. The content marketing vendors profiled in this report provide one or more of the following core content marketing capabilities:

• content creation or curation;• content amplification or distribution; • content optimization (including mobile); • analytics; and• content management.

Few content marketing tools are positioned as full-service platforms that offer an end-to-end solution. Several vendors combine core content marketing capabilities, or offer more advanced features including the following:

• apps to repurpose passive content into interactive assets;• paid media campaign creation and execution;• integration (through API) with CRM or marketing automation systems; and• managed or professional content marketing services.

The following section discusses these core capabilities in more detail, as well as the key considerations involved in choosing a content marketing tool (see Table 6).


Relevant, engaging content is the lynchpin of content marketing. The definition of content has expanded to include advertising text, blog posts, landing pages, emails, infographics, pictures, and videos. Content can be created in house with existing marketing staff, or outsourced through a content marketing vendor that offers access to a network of content creation professionals. Brands can also curate content from external online sources with links to their owned media properties.

Content creation and curation tools facilitate the development, organization, compilation, storage, and publishing of original and curated content assets. Authoring tools vary from WYSIWYG editors and title wizards to content scoring tools that optimize content as it is written to maximize engagement with target consumers. Some tools also provide customizable templates that incorporate brand and design guidelines for consistency. Several vendors repurpose existing content assets into interactive infographics, quizzes, calculators or assessments to boost user engagement.

Content amplification/distribution

Content amplification or distribution tools push content assets out to target audiences across multiple channels, including paid media, websites, and social networks. Social sharing among fans, followers, and influencers further drive traffic and consumer engagement. Content amplification tools also can help publishers find the most relevant audiences for their content assets across aggregated publisher networks; some include the ability to manage paid media campaigns.

Content creation and curation tools facilitate the development, organization, compilation, storage, and publishing of original and curated content assets.




Table 6: Selected content marketing vendor capabilities

Contently

Percolate

ion interactive

SnapApp

Kapost

Taboola

NewsCred

Triblio

Optimizely

Visual.ly

Oracle Content Marketing (Compendium)

Zemanta

idio

Skyword

Adobe Creative Cloud1

DivvyHQ

Rallyverse

Brandpoint

Outbrain

4

4

44

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4 4

4

4

4 44 4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

44

44

4

4 44

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

4

44

VendorContent

amplification or distribution

AnalyticsOptimizationContent

managementContent creation Content curation

1 Content amplification, optimization, management, and analytics features available through Adobe Marketing Cloud, a separately priced product suite.Source: Third Door Media





Content optimization software is designed to improve content performance through search engine optimization (SEO), multivariate and A/B testing, recommendation engines, and audience development and targeting tools. The goal is to identify audiences and their interests, develop audience segments and personas, and create content that is relevant to those personas. The majority of content marketing tools that provide optimization software also offer APIs to facilitate integration with existing CRM and marketing automation systems. Content can also be optimized by device, including for desktop, tablet, and smartphone.

Content analytics

Success in content marketing hinges on tracking and measuring content performance. According to the Content Marketing Institute, the most popular content marketing metrics are:

• website traffic (including page, document, and video views);• sales lead quality/quantity;• conversion rates/sales;• SEO ranking; • time spent on site; • inbound links; and • subscriber growth.

Content marketing metrics can be categorized into four groups – content consumption, sharing, lead generation, and sales. The most important metrics will vary based on each organization’s unique KPIs and expected ROI (see Table 7). The majority of content marketing vendors offering analytics capabilities use a centralized dashboard to track content assets. Many include real-time reporting and notifications and/or predictive analytics to optimize content marketing programs.

Content marketing metrics can be categorized into four groups – content consumption, sharing, lead generation, and sales.

Table 7: Selected content marketing metrics

Page viewsVideo viewsDocument viewsTime on siteDownloadsSocial chatterSEO rankings

Consumption

LikesTweets+1sPinsForwardsInbound links

Sharing

Form completionsDownloadsSubscriptionsBlog comment

Online salesOffline sales1

ROI by programConversion rates

Lead generation Sales

1 Through integration with marketing automation systems.Source: Content Marketing Institute

Content management

Content management centralizes the important functions of content scheduling, workflow, and compliance with brand, style, and regulatory guidelines. These tools feature customizable permissions and access that cover both internal and external roles (such as agency partners). Content management is a critical aspect of content marketing because it streamlines, formalizes, and communicates content strategy across the organization. Several vendors profiled in this report offer a managed services options for brands that lack the internal resources to execute a content marketing strategy.




Choosing a content marketing toolThe benefits of using content marketing tools

Managing the volume of marketing content that needs to be created, distributed, analyzed, and managed has become complicated, time consuming and costly for many marketing organizations. Automating these processes – or partnering with a content marketing vendor that provides content creation services – can provide numerous benefits:

• Increase the relevancy and effectiveness of your content. When consumers view and interact with content, they reveal a lot about their preferences and buying stage. By capturing and analyzing their content consumption, you can provide them with more relevant information that may push them further into the sales funnel.

• Improve message consistency across all marketing channels. Managing brand style and consistency is a huge challenge for global brands and multi-location marketers. By centralizing content assets in a CMS or database, those assets can be standardized and monitored for compliance with style and regulatory guidelines.

•Collect more accurate customer data. Content marketing optimization and analytics tools track and measure content consumption across multiple touch points. Metrics are moving from quantity based (i.e., how many pages viewed) to quality based (i.e., time spent reading specific pages). By automating the process, data can be integrated with CRM and marketing automation systems to enhance prospect data.

•Grow social sharing, referrals, and engagement. More personalized, relevant content is shared more frequently across social networks, which will amplify the impact and awareness of your brand.

•Decrease marketing campaign costs. By sending the right content to the right consumers through their preferred channels, campaign efficiency increases and campaign costs decrease.

Content marketing pricing

Cost is an important consideration in choosing to automate content marketing. The majority of content marketing vendors license their tools as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) that is based on a number of variables such as seats, content assets, consumption, or digital properties or accounts. Several vendors also offer flat-fee pricing that is based on traffic guarantees or the creative assets purchased.

Fees vary widely depending on the type of tool licensed and the size of the enterprise. Among the vendors profiled in this report, annual fees range from $300 to $500,000 (see Table 8). Professional or strategic services, if needed, will add to the total, as will implementation fees that cover system configuration and integration with legacy systems.

Managing the volume of marketing content that needs to be created, distributed, analyzed, and managed has become complicated, time consuming and costly for many marketing organizations.




Understanding your current marketing processes, knowing how to measure success, and being able to identify where you are looking for improvements, are all critical pieces of the content marketing decision-making process.


Table 8: Selected content marketing tool pricing

DivvyHQ

Oracle Content Marketing

ion interactive

NewsCred

Skyword

SnapApp

Visual.ly

idio

Rallyverse

Optimizely

Vendor

Content management

Content optimization, amplification, analytics, management

Content creation

Content creation, amplification, optimization, management

Content creation, curation, amplification, optimization, analytics

Content creation, analytics

Content creation


Content creation, curation, optimization, amplification, analytics, management


Product focus

$300-$2,340/user

$16,000-$64,000

$24,000-$120,000

$35,400-$126,000 Custom enterprise pricing.

$35,000-$500,000

$12,000-$24,000

$595-$11,995/asset

$12,000-$180,000

$70,000-$120,000 (enterprise)

$228-$4,788. Custom enterprise pricing.

Annual fee range

Recommended steps to making an informed purchase

Understanding your current marketing processes, knowing how to measure success, and being able to identify where you are looking for improvements, are all critical pieces of the content marketing decision-making process. The following section outlines four steps to help your organization begin that process and choose the content marketing tool that is the right fit for your business needs and goals.

Step One: Do you need a content marketing tool or platform?

Deciding whether or not your company needs a content marketing tool calls for the same evaluative steps involved in any software adoption, including a comprehensive self-assessment of your organization’s business needs, staff capabilities, management support, and financial resources. Use the following questions as a guideline to determine the answers.

1. Have we identified our content marketing strategy and goals? Automating content marketing can benefit the organization in many ways – but you need to know what you want to achieve and how you’re going to achieve it. Do you want to raise brand awareness or build a more qualified email marketing list? Do you need to nurture prospects along the buyer’s journey or do you want to retain customers and increase the frequency or value of their purchases?

2. Have we established KPIs and put a system in place for tracking, measuring, and reporting results? Once you’ve established clear goals you will need to measure your progress achieving them with a series of KPIs that range from day-to-day traffic increases or time spent on site, to high-level content ROI that links content consumption to conversions.




3. Do we have C-level buy-in? Content marketing software can be a five- or six-figure investment annually for enterprise organizations. Skeptical CMOs need to understand what the return on that investment will be. Outlining your strategy, goals, and KPIs is critical to winning their long-term support.

4. Who will own or manage content marketing? Content marketing falls within the purview of the CMO. However, specific roles vary within each marketing organization. Who will manage the content and conversation on each marketing channel, for example? Determine who will be accountable for each aspect of your content marketing initiatives, with the goal of making sure that everyone within the marketing organization understands their roles and responsibilities.

5. Do we have the staff to execute content marketing? Content marketing vendors offer a variety of software and services that range from self-serve to managed service. Take inventory of your current marketing staff and capabilities. Do you have in-house creative writers and editors? Do you have marketing analysts who can interpret the tool’s data and reports? If not, you will need to consider working with a vendor that offers more of a full-service approach.

6. What is our budget? Can we invest in staff training? To maximize your content marketing investment, input should be solicited from all stakeholders and end users for requirements, input, and collaboration. In addition to the costs of the technology (i.e. licensing fees, onboarding costs, APIs, etc.), your staff may need training on how to use the tools as well as content marketing itself. Only 24% of marketers surveyed by Alimeter Group say employees are formally trained and empowered to publish on behalf of the brand.

7. Can we integrate content marketing with our existing marketing systems? Integration among content marketing, CRM, marketing automation, SEO and other digital marketing platforms is essential. Make sure you understand whether or not your current systems are built with an open architecture and flexible APIs to enable seamless integration with a content marketing platform. If not, find out the costs involved with a custom integration.

Step Two: Identify and contact appropriate vendors

Once you have determined that content marketing software makes sense for your brand, spend time researching individual vendors and their capabilities. Make a list of all the content marketing capabilities you currently have, those that you would like to have, and those that you can’t live without. This last category is critical, and will help you avoid making a costly mistake.

For example, if content creation is a primary need, this is one capability you will focus on during vendor interviews and demos. If you find that one vendor doesn’t offer this “must-have” capability, it’s obviously not a fit.

Take your list of capabilities and then do some research. The “Resources” section at the back of this report includes a list of blogs, reports, and industry research that will help. (Many of the vendors profiled in this report also provide whitepapers and interactive tools that can help.)

Once you’ve done the necessary research, narrow your list down to those vendors that meet your criteria. Submit your list of the content marketing capabilities you’ve identified, and set a timeframe for them to reply. Whether or not you choose to do this in a formal RFI/RFP process is an individual preference, however be sure to give the same list of capabilities to each vendor to facilitate comparison. The most effective RFPs only request relevant information and provide ample information about your brand and its content marketing needs. It should reflect high-level strategic goals and KPIs. For example, mention your company’s most important KPIs and how you will evaluate the success of your content marketing efforts. Include details about timelines and the existing digital technology you have deployed.

Once you have determined that content marketing software makes sense for your brand, spend time researching individual vendors and their capabilities.




When written properly, an RFP will facilitate the sales process and ensure that everyone involved on both sides come to a shared understanding of the purpose, requirements, scope, and structure of the intended purchase. From the RFP responses, you should be able to narrow your list down to three or four platforms that you’ll want to demo.

Step Three: Scheduling the demo

Set up demos with your short list of vendors within a relatively quick timeframe after receiving the RFP responses, to help make relevant comparisons. Make sure that all potential internal users are on the demo call, and pay attention to the following:

• How easy is the tool to use?• Does the vendor seem to understand our business and our marketing needs?• Are they showing us our “must-have” features?

Other questions to ask each vendor include:

1. How will the platform help us create more valuable content or get more value out of the content we’re already producing? If you need help developing content, know the differences between vendors that offer content creation services and content optimization tools. Some content marketing vendors provide access to networks of skilled writers, designers, and photographers. Other vendors offer apps that will boost the value of existing content assets by optimizing them for search engine rankings or consumer engagement.

2. Does your platform make it easier to manage the content marketing process, such as asset review, approval, and publication? Workflow is a critical piece of the content marketing puzzle, especially at the enterprise level when compliance with regulations, brand guidelines, and editorial style are difficult. Find out what type of workflow tools are included to facilitate those processes.

3. How easily does the platform integrate with our existing CMS, CRM, and other marketing automation platforms or tools? Integrating digital marketing systems has become critical for brand marketers that are trying to increase consumer engagement. Find out if the vendor offers an API to connect with your existing systems, or if you will have to invest more in custom integrations.

4. Do you have customers in our vertical industry? How successful have they been with the platform? When they’re not successful, what are the reasons? B2B and B2C marketers may have different goals for their content marketing initiatives. As a B2B marketer, you may be looking to fuel the sales pipeline for your reps, while a B2C brand may be seeking more customer engagement. Find out if the vendor has experience with companies in your vertical that may have goals similar to yours.

5. How scalable is the platform? While your current content marketing needs may be simple (i.e., increasing engagement by turning passive content assets into interactive assets), your content marketing initiatives may expand and grow quickly into new channels or across global locations

6. How quickly and efficiently can we set up, train our staff, and use the platform? How involved will our IT team need to be? Find out what the average implementation period is for a company of your size and vertical, and if the tool can be easily used by marketing end users without IT support.

If you need help developing content, know the differences between vendors that offer content creation services and content optimization tools.




7. What kind of ongoing support and client engagement will your account team provide? Content marketing vendor support varies from self-serve (i.e., online knowledgebase) to full serve, with management services and dedicated support teams. Consider your internal skills and resources to understand how much help you’ll need during the life of your contract and how quickly (or slowly) the vendor will respond to your email or phone support issues.

8. What new features are you considering? What’s the long-term roadmap and launch dates? The content marketing landscape is rapidly maturing. It’s important to understand the vendor’s level of innovation and the ability to add and track emerging technologies. Knowing a vendor’s new feature release schedule and its ability to stick to committed timelines is also very important.

Step Four: Check references, negotiate a contract

Before deciding on a particular vendor, take the time to speak with one or two customer references, preferably someone in a business similar to yours. The content marketing vendor should be able to supply you with several references if you cannot identify ones yourself. Use this opportunity to ask any additional questions, and to find out more about any questions that weren’t answered during the demo. Make sure that the person you’ve been referred to is someone who is a primary user of the solution. Consider also asking these basic questions:

• Why did you move to a content marketing tool or platform?• Why did you select this tool over others?• Has this tool lived up to your expectations?• How long did the system take to implement?• Are you also using additional tools for content creation, optimization (SEO), amplification,

or management? • Were there any surprises that you wish you’d known about beforehand?• Where have you seen the most success? The biggest challenges?• How are you measuring your own success?• How easy was the set-up process and how long? Did the vendor help?• How responsive is customer service?• Has there been any down time?• What is the most useful, actionable (favorite) report the tool generates?• What do you wish they did differently?• Would you recommend this platform?

Although not all vendors require an annual contract, many do. Once you’ve selected a vendor, be sure to get in writing a list of what technology and support are covered in the contract. Ask about what kinds of additional fees might come up. Are there charges for custom integrations, if so, how much? What is the hourly charge for engineering services, and is there a minimum? What partner organizations are available to install and integrate the tool? If you need to train a new hire mid-year, what will that cost? What is the “out” clause? Obtaining the answers up front – and having them in writing – will ensure fewer surprises or additional costs down the road.

Before deciding on a particular vendor, take the time to speak with one or two customer references, preferably someone in a business similar to yours.




ConclusionThere is a strong marketing imperative to automate the processes involved in content creation, publishing, optimization, analysis, and reporting. The relationship between brand and consumer has changed, with the convergence of user-generated online content, social media, and mobile putting control firmly in consumers’ hands. Rather than coming to the brand website, store or sales rep with questions, consumers now come armed with product and purchase information gathered from a wide array of channels.

A crowded field of content marketing tools has emerged to help brand marketers automate their content marketing strategies and tactics. Content marketing tools come in a variety of shapes and sizes, from point solutions that standardize or schedule content creation and publishing, to platforms that amplify, optimize, and manage the effectiveness of content across multiple digital channels. Choosing the right partner means conducting a rigorous internal evaluation to determine your business priorities, needs, and goals. Have you established a clear content marketing strategy and goals? Is your C-suite on board with the investment? Do you have the right staffing in place to manage content creation? And, have you put KPIs in place to measure the return on your investment? With the answers to these and other questions, your organization can move forward and reap the benefits of content marketing. n

The relationship between brand and consumer has changed, with the convergence of user-generated online content, social media, and mobile putting control firmly in consumers’ hands.


Vendor Profiles



Adobe (Creative and Marketing Clouds)345 Park AvenueSan Jose, CA 95110-2704(T) 408-536-6000http://www.adobe.com/creativecloud.html

Target customer

• Micro-businesses, SMBs, students, photographers, agencies, and enterprise brands.

Key customers

JetBlue AirwaysLime PicturesStargate StudiosThe Happiness LabsViacom/MTV StudiosWellcom Worldwide

Key executives

Shantanu Narayen, President and CEOBrad Rencher, SVP and GM, Digital Marketing David Wadwhani, SVP and GM, Digital Media

Company overview

• Adobe Systems founded in December 1982.• More than 40 worldwide offices in North America, Europe, Asia, South America, the

Middle East, and Africa.

Product focus

• Adobe Creative Cloud is a cloud-based, subscription service that allows users to download Adobe’s professional, creative desktop applications.

Provides online services for file sharing, collaboration, and publishing. Includes services such as Creative Cloud Libraries, Creative Cloud Market, Creative Cloud Extract, Typekit fonts for desktop and web, and a suite of mobile apps that integrate with Adobe desktop apps.

• Adobe Marketing Cloud, a separate product suite from Creative Cloud, is a cloud-based, subscription service that enables marketers to leverage centralized and shared data, content assets, and profiles.

Solutions include Adobe Analytics, Adobe Target, Adobe Media Optimizer, Adobe Campaign, Adobe Experience Manager and Adobe Social.

n Tag management, profile and audience management, digital asset sharing, administration and user management, and mobile services are included.


• June 2014 release featured 14 new versions of Creative Cloud (CC) desktop applications, including tools such as Adobe Photoshop CC, Adobe Illustrator CC, Adobe Dreamweaver CC, and Adobe Premiere Pro CC.

Launched three new mobile apps for iPad, new creative hardware called Adobe Ink, a new digital pen, and Adobe Slide, a new digital ruler.

• October 2014 release of Creative Cloud included significant feature updates to 13 CC desktop tools that

link to a new family of integrated mobile apps. Photoshop CC and Illustrator CC include touch support for Microsoft Windows 8 and Surface Pro 3. New Creative Profile drives deep connections between CC desktop tools and nine new or updated mobile apps that extend the power of the Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, and Premiere franchises onto mobile devices. Mobile apps integrate with desktops to sync content between devices.

http://www.adobe.com/creativecloud.html




Vendor Profiles




• Available through Adobe Experience Manager (part of Adobe Marketing Cloud) enables customers to organize, manage, and deliver creative assets and other content across digital marketing channels. Specific capabilities include:

Digital asset management.Web content management.Social communities .Forms management.Mobile application development.


• Available through Adobe Target (part of Adobe Marketing Cloud) and provides:

A/B and multivariate testing.Rules-based targeting.Automated decision-making, targeting, and personalization.

n Adobe Media Optimizer (part of Adobe Marketing Cloud) enables customers to manage, forecast, and optimize media through cross-channel optimization, search engine marketing management, and display and social advertising management.

Analytics

• Available through Adobe Analytics (part of Adobe Marketing Cloud), provides customers with digital marketing insights via custom reports and

dashboards. Features include:Real-time web, social, video, and mobile analytics.Advanced, ad hoc segmentation, predictive analytics, rules-based and algorithmic attribution.

• Data integration with offline and third-party sources

• Integration with other Adobe Marketing Cloud products for email marketing, remarketing, audience segment creation and sharing, and advertising optimization.

• Data accessible in real time, or via daily/hourly data feeds, streaming feeds, reporting APIs, native Excel integration, and scheduled reports.

Pricing and support

• Tiered Creative Cloud membership plans include:

$9.99/month for the Photography Plan.$29.99/month for individuals.$49.99/month per user for small businesses.

• Customized enterprise pricing based on seats or users, as well as number of apps licensed.

Discounts available with annual contracts.Enterprise customers supported by dedicated customer care staff, on-site onboarding, and 24/7 email and phone.

• Adobe Marketing Cloud is a SaaS-based solution that can be purchased separately from Adobe Creative Cloud.

Adobe (Creative and Marketing Clouds)345 Park AvenueSan Jose, CA 95110-2704(T) 408-536-6000http://www.adobe.com/creativecloud.html





Vendor Profiles



Brandpoint500 5th Street SouthHopkins, MN 55343 (T) 877-374-5270www.brandpoint.com

Target customer

• B2B and B2C mid-market brands.

Key customers

BankrateClub MedDirect BuyGallery FurnitureLincoln Technical InstituteSears

Key executives

Scott Severson, PresidentDavid Olson, SVPAdam McBroom, CTO

Company overview

• Founded in 1996.

Product focus

• Service-oriented content strategy, development, and distribution provider.


• On-staff writers and designers develop blogs, articles, ebooks, social posts, newsletters, whitepapers, emails, and infographics.


• MAT release service distributes sponsored content assets to digital media sites (Hearst Media, ABC, CBS, FOX, etc.) and social networks.

Guarantees 800 digital publisher placements and an 18 million audience.

• Infographic distribution service delivers an average of 600 online placements per infographic.

Guarantees 500 placements and a site audience of at least 15 million.


• SEO audits of keywords and search phrases by Google-certified content strategists used to create customized content strategies and calendars.

Content management

• Proprietary Content Workflow platform manages content review, comments and approvals and automatically publishes assets to websites and social networks.

Pricing and support

• Flat fees based on guaranteed site traffic.

http://www.brandpoint.com/

http://www.brandpoint.com/


Vendor Profiles



Target customer

• B2B and B2C enterprise brands.

Key customers

American Express OpenCoca ColaGeneral ElectricGeneral Motors GoogleWalmart

Key executives

Joe Coleman, Co-founder and CEO Dave Goldberg, Co-founder and CTOShane Snow, Co-founder and CCOPaul Fredrich, VP, Product

Company overview

• Founded in December 2010.• Raised $12.3 million in venture financing from Lightbank, Sigma Prime Ventures,

Sigma West, Dave Lerner, Contour Venture Partners, ff Venture Capital, and Consigliere Brand Capital LLC.

Product focus

• Cloud-based content management and analytics platform that provides access to global network of professional content creators.


• Contently Talent Network includes 40,000 professional journalists, designers, videographers, and photographers globally.

Analytics

• Patent-pending Contently Insights analytics suite measures engagement (i.e., content consumption time), rather than page views or volume of pages visited.

Content management

• Calendar tool maps out customized strategy and content production workflow through unified interface.

Users can add, subtract, or move assignments; sort by category, due date or topic; and manage multiple publications.

• Integrates content with CMS for one-click online publishing.

Pricing and support

• Not available.

Contently598 Broadway, Fourth FloorNew York, NY 10012(T) 646-767-6817www.contently.com

https://contently.com/

https://contently.com/


Vendor Profiles



DivvyHQ4012 Washington Street, Suite 5Kansas City, MO 64111(T) 877-573-4889www.divvyhq.com

Target customer

• B2C and B2B SMBs to enterprise brands.

Key customers

AARPCiscoTomTomTrueCarWalmartYMCA

Key executives

Brody Dorland, Co-founder and CEOBrock Stechman, Co-founder

Company overview

• Founded in June 2011.• Undisclosed level of venture financing from Dundee Venture Capital and Digital

Sandbox KC in August 2013.

Product focus

• Cloud-based, content collaboration tool designed to help marketing teams plan, assign, schedule, and produce digital and traditional content assets.


• Content teams can curate and store content ideas in the DivvyHQ Parking Lot, a structured repository.

• Once scheduled, content ideas can be created within the Divvy content editor, which includes a robust WYSIWYG editor, asset storage, team collaboration (commenting), and approval routing tools.

Content amplification and distribution

• Social platform integration enables direct publishing of social content to platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Content management

• The Dashboard provides a centralized view of all content projects per user. Dashboard columns include:

Recent Activity: a chronological feed of recent actions, task updates, and comments.Content Items Due: a list of all content items that are due in the next 30 days. Published Content: a list of published content items in the last 30 days. Production Tasks: a quick list of the user’s assigned tasks.

• DivvyHQ calendar interface allows users to visualize the schedule of all content initiatives and filter calendars by the following criteria:

Individual departments, markets, brands, teams or clients (for agencies).Individual content types (blog, email, social, website, webinars, etc.).

http://divvyhq.com/

http://divvyhq.com/


Vendor Profiles



Buyer segments, profiles or personas.Content topics, categories, themes or campaigns.

• Task management features allow the creation of production tasks for each content item.

• Divvy Pro and Enterprise customers can create custom workflow templates for each calendar or content type to automate production task creation and deadline scheduling.

Pricing and support

• Divvy Lite: $25/month per user with an annual contract.

• Divvy Pro: $99/month per user with an annual contract.

• Divvy Enterprise: $195/month per user with an annual contract.

• 14-day free trial available.• Online and phone support included;

enterprise pricing also includes dedicated support specialists.

DivvyHQ4012 Washington Street, Suite 5Kansas City, MO 64111(T) 877-573-4889www.divvyhq.com

http://divvyhq.com/

http://divvyhq.com/


Vendor Profiles



Target customer

• B2B and B2C mid-market and enterprise brands in the technology, automotive, travel and hospitality, telecom, and financial services industries.

Key customers

Centaur Media DeloitteDiageoScripps Unicef

Key executives

Edward Barrow, Co-founder and CEOAndrew Davies, Co-founder and COOJames Griffin, CTO

Company overview

• Founded in August 2006.• Received a total of $8.5 million in Series A funding, led by Notion Capital.

Product focus

• Content intelligence platform comprising three products designed to identify, analyze, and integrate content consumption and audience behavior data with CRM to increase marketing and sales engagement with prospects.


• Insight tracks and measures content performance based on audience interests and content consumption.

• Utilizes natural language processing (NLP) to extract and analyze keywords and phrases.

• Dashboard identifies, analyzes, and displays individual profiles and audience segments.

• Reporting surfaces content, channels, and campaigns driving conversions.

•Engage provides real-time, personalized content across channels based on individual interests and audience segments.

•Salesforce Intelligence app integrates audience profiles and segments with CRM to increase sales rep engagement with prospects.

Also includes call center integration.

Pricing and support

• SaaS-based subscription for Insight and Engage products based on the number of unique visitors.

Pricing starts at $1,000/month for one product or $1,500/month for both.

• Salesforce app pricing based on seat licenses.$250/month for a minimum of 10 users.

• Average annual customer spend ranges from $12,000 to $180,000.

idioThreeways House40/44 Clipstone StreetLondon, W1W 5DW United Kingdom(T) 44-203-540-1920www.idioplatform.com

U.S. Headquarters:31 W. 34th Street, Suite 8028NY, NY 10001(T) 844-438-4346

http://www.idioplatform.com/

http://www.idioplatform.com/


Vendor Profiles



Target customer

• B2B mid-market and enterprise brands.

Key customers

Citrix SystemsDellDHL ExpressGeneral Mills CanadaIron MountainPaychex

Key Executives

Justin Talerico, CEOScott Brinker, President and CTOAnna Talerico, Executive Vice President

Company overview

• Founded in 2007.• Additional office in Boca Raton, FL.

Product focus

• Marketing apps platform designed to turn passive content assets into interactive digital content to generate sales leads and revenue through greater consumer engagement.


•Quick Start Cloud offers a library of customizable, drag-and-drop marketing web apps that can be branded and launched within hours.

•Creative Studio digital design toolset enables customers to design interactive content assets including whitepapers, infographics, quizzes, assessment tools, calculators, and configurators.

Pricing and support

• SaaS-based licensing fees range from $2,000/month to $10,000/month based on traffic volume and services used (i.e., creative, design, account management).

Unlimited number of seats/users and platform apps included.

• Managed services option available to develop and execute customer campaigns.

Includes account managers, designers, writers, conversion optimization specialists, and web producers.

ion interactiveOne Broadway, 14th FloorCambridge, MA 02142(T) 888-466-4332www.ioninteractive.com

http://www.ioninteractive.com/

http://www.ioninteractive.com/


Vendor Profiles



Kapost800 Broadway, Suite 180 Boulder, CO 80302(T) 720-446-9085www.kapost.com

Target customer

• B2B enterprise brands.

Key customers

Dell ExactTarget IBMJohnson ControlsLenovoUSGBC

Key executives

Toby Murdock, Co-founder and CEOMike Lewis, Co-founder and PresidentNader Akhnoukh, Co-founder and CTO

Company overview

• Founded in April 2010.• $8.7 million raised in three rounds of venture funding, including $5.6 million in July

2013 from High Country Ventures, Lead Edge Capital, and Floodgate.

Product focus

• Multi-tool platform designed to automate content management, distribution, optimization, analytics, and reporting.


• Content pushed to 50 publishing partners through included Application Center.

Partners include SlideShare, Facebook, LinkedIn, WordPress, and Curata.


• Application Center features CMS, social, marketing automation, CRM, and content sharing and editing apps from partners including Drupal, HootSuite, Joomla!, Outbrain, Tumblr, Scripted, Marketo, Pardot, and Oracle/Eloqua.

Analytics

• Analytics app focuses on persona-driven metrics that track content assets by personas and sales stages.

Measures cross-channel leads, conversions, and movement through the sales pipeline.

• Content scoring tools track and measure how each content asset is driving leads and conversions, including identifying patterns for how content is furthering buyer journeys.

Content management

• Workflow tools include automated calendar, collaboration, and tasks.

• Campaign tools for organizing related content.• Strategy tools for organizing content around personas,

buying stages, theme, and other metadata.• Kapost Library acts as central repository for content

assets.Asset sharing and distribution across departments, regions, and product lines.

• Content Auditor gathers digital content from websites, blogs, and YouTube.

Content can be organized by persona, buying stage, theme or custom attributes.

http://kapost.com/

http://kapost.com/


Vendor Profiles



Pricing and support

• Tiered SaaS-based subscription fees based on apps licensed.

Starter: Starts at $2,000/month with a 12-month contract and includes Auditor, Library, and Personas apps.Pro: Starts at $3,500/month with an annual contract and adds Calendar, Campaigns, and Analytics apps, as well as unlimited integrations.Enterprise: Customized pricing includes all Starter and Pro apps as well as single sign-on, advanced security, global view, API, and custom integrations.

• Included Kapost Academy provides online classes on content marketing strategy and tactics.

• Add-on professional services offer best practices content operations consulting, interactive workshops, and customized 18-month content marketing roadmap.

Kapost800 Broadway, Suite 180 Boulder, CO 80302(T) 720-446-9085www.kapost.com

http://kapost.com/

http://kapost.com/


Vendor Profiles




• Custom content creation, design, and hosting through The Newsroom, a proprietary original content network of writers, photographers, videographers, and designers.

Page Templates tool provides multiple formatting options.

• Licensed content available from over 4,000 publishers.Uses Natural Language Search for intuitive content searches by topic, source, category, and date.


• Content pushed directly to website or mobile app feeds.• WordPress integration available through VIP plugin tool.• Paid advertising distribution across networks including

LinkedIn, Outbrain, Google Adwords, Yahoo!, and Facebook.


• Real-time recommendation engine analyzes social channels to surface most relevant content.

Factors in brand voice, target audience, marketing goals, and SEO priorities.

Analytics

• Content and social analytics measure page views, uniques, top content, top topics, and engagement metrics and top social posts by channel.

• Provides in-depth profiles of individual people engaging with a brand’s content, including who they are, where they work, and where and how often they engage.

• Content journeys profile individuals across the buying cycle.

• Ranks top influencers engaging with content by importance to brand KPIs.

Target customer

• B2C and B2B enterprise brands.

Key customers

Dell Microsoft Pepsi Proctor and GambleVisaYahoo!

Key executives

Iraj Islam, Co-founder and Chief Product OfficerShafqat Islam, Co-founder and CEOAsif Rahman, Co-founder and Chief ArchitectKayvan Salmanpour, VP, Sales

Company overview

• Founded in 2008.• Raised $46.8 million in venture financing, including $25 million Series C round in

January 2014 from InterWest Partners, Mayfield Fund, IA Ventures, and FirstMark Capital.

• Additional offices in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and London.

Product focus

• Content Marketing Cloud providing a unified platform to plan, source, discover, publish, and measure content marketing at scale.

NewsCred 386 Park Ave. S., Sixth floorNew York, NY 10016(T) 212-989-4100www.newscred.com

http://www.newscred.com/



Vendor Profiles



• All data points feed into recommendations engine for real-time content suggestions tailored to the brand, audience, and KPIs.

• Competitor analysis also available. Content management

• Advanced collaboration tools for managing workflow.

• Includes variable permission levels, content queues for editorial approvals, freelance and external resource contract management.

• Intuitive editorial calendar to schedule content and set publishing frequency goals.

Automatic alerts signal when goals are not met.

• Organizes owned, earned, licensed, and social content.

Tags and indexes assets within a single library.

Pricing and support

• Basic: $2,950/month billed annually includes three seats.

• Core: $5,500/month billed annually includes five seats.

• Pro: $10,500/month billed annually includes eight seats.

• Enterprise and Agency: Custom pricing for 10-plus seats billed annually.

• One-time integration fee applies to all pricing plans.

NewsCred 386 Park Ave. S., Sixth floorNew York, NY 10016(T) 212-989-4100www.newscred.com




Vendor Profiles




• Online A/B and multivariate testing tool that offers web and mobile website testing, cross-browser testing, multi-page funnel testing, and visitor segmentation.

• Customers insert a unique, single line of javascript (Optimizely snippet) into webpage HTML reader.

Advanced users can work within full HTML, CSS, Javascript or jQuery editor.

• Experiments (tests) built by loading page URL into Optimizely Editor.

Visual point-and-click editor offers range of testing elements, i.e., text, color, image, or arrangement.

Pricing and support

• Tiered SaaS-based pricing plans with discounts available for one- and two-year contracts.

Bronze: $19/month for up to 2,000 monthly visitors.Silver: $79/month for up to 20,000 monthly visitors.Gold: $399/month for up to 200,000 monthly visitors.Enterprise: Customized pricing.

• 30-day free trial available.• Email support included for Bronze and Silver customers;

phone and developer support provided to Gold customers.

Enterprise customers receive dedicated success team, onboarding, and advanced developer support.

• Optiverse online community publicly available.

Target customer

• B2C SMB and enterprise brands.

Key customers

Fox Interactive MediaMTVNew York magazineStarbucksThe Walt Disney CompanyYelp

Key executives

Dan Siroker, Co-founder and CEOPete Koomen, Co-founder and PresidentTravis Bryant, VP, Sales

Company overview

• Founded in 2010.• Received a total of $88 million in five rounds of venture financing, including $57

million in May 2014 from Bain Capital Ventures, Benchmark, and Andreesen Horowitz.

• Acquired Synference, a predictive analytics platform, in June 2014.• Additional office in Amsterdam.

Product focus

• Web optimization tool providing A/B and multivariate web and mobile testing to allow dynamic website updates.

Optimizely 631 Howard Street, Suite 100San Francisco, CA 94105(T) 800-252-9480www.optimizely.com

https://www.optimizely.com/

https://www.optimizely.com/


Vendor Profiles




• Defines personas and audience segments. • All content tagged by persona and funnel stage.• Integrated with Eloqua marketing automation software

to map individual personas to user segments and feed digital marketing campaigns.


• Distributes content to relevant channels (i.e., websites, blogs, social media) directly or through marketing automation platforms.

Analytics

• Content marketing dashboard measures content and content author effectiveness.

Content management

• Provides WYSIWYG tools to manage content planning, writer assignments, personas and funnel stage build outs, production, and scoring.

• Intuitive content calendar to schedule and promote multi-channel content.

Pricing and support

• Tiered pricing based on number of users, publishers, and integrations.

Light: $16,000 annually.Basic: $32,000 annually.Standard: $64,000 annually.

Target customer

• Enterprise brands.

Key Customers

3MBass Pro ShopsCVENTGymboreeOuyeaa

Key Executives

Reggie Bradford, SVP, Product Strategy, OracleChris Moody, Director, Content and Social Marketing

Company overview

• Oracle was founded in 1977.• Compendium was founded in January 2007.• Oracle acquired Compendium in October 2013.• Oracle Content Marketing is part of the Oracle Marketing Cloud, which includes

previous acquisition Eloqua.

Product focus

• A cloud-based, content marketing platform that helps customers plan, produce, and deliver engaging content across multiple personas and channels throughout the customer lifecycle.

Oracle Content Marketing 500 Oracle ParkwayRedwood City, CA 94065(T) 800-633-0925http://www.eloqua.com/products/content-marketing.html

Compendium Headquarters:55 Monument CircleIndianapolis, IN 46204

http://www.eloqua.com/products/content-marketing.html





Vendor Profiles



Target customer

• B2C SMBs, agencies and enterprise brands.

Key customers

AllstateFederated Media (FM)General Electric (GE)New York PostSlate

Key executives

Yaron Galai, Co-Founder and CEOTom Foran, Chief Revenue OfficerZiv Kop, COOItai Hochman, SVP, Engineering

Company overview

• Founded in January 2007.• $99 million in venture funding, including $35 million in October 2013 from Rhodium,

GlenRock Israel, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Carmel Ventures, HarbourVest Partners, Gemini Israel Ventures, Index Ventures, and Vintage Investment Partners.

• Acquired real-time predictive analytics engine Visual Revenue in March 2013.• In December 2012, purchased content discovery platform Scribit and content

logistics platform Vertical Acuity.• Additional offices in Netanya, Israel; London; Paris; Munich; San Francisco; Chicago;

Washington, DC; Atlanta; Singapore; Sydney; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Milan; Madrid; and Tokyo.

Product focus

• Content discovery platform providing recommended links to increase traffic and generate revenue.


•Outbrain Amplify distributes content as recommendations on third-party publisher sites.

Publisher network includes 100,000 sites including CNN.com, Slate, and ESPN.


•Outbrain Engage is designed to help marketers and publishers offer on-site content recommendations.

Discovery Modules showcase most engaging content and redirect audiences to specific site sections.

Editorial Suite toolset includes on-the-fly controls to change headlines or images, based on real-time testing and conversion metrics.

• Provides responsive design, customized mobile modules, and mobile optimized content recommendations.

Pricing and support

•Amplify customers choose daily budgets and CPC limits.• Online help center, email and phone support included.

Dedicated campaign management teams service enterprise customers.

OutbrainArieh Regev Street 4 Netanya, Israel

U.S. Headquarters:39 West 13th StreetNew York, NY 10011 (T) 646-867-0149www.outbrain.com

http://www.outbrain.com/

http://www.outbrain.com/


Vendor Profiles



Percolate107 Grand Street, 2nd FloorNew York, NY 10013(T) 646-470-8346www.percolate.com

Target customer

• B2B and B2C mid-market and enterprise brands.

Key customers

Anheuser-Busch InBevGE Harry’sMasterCard PandoraUnilever

Key executives

Noah Briar, Co-founderJames Gross, Co-founder

Company overview

• Founded in January 2011.• $34.5 million in venture funding, including $24 million Series B round in March 2014

from WPP, Sequoia Capital, GGV Capital, First Round Capital, and Lerer Hippeau Ventures.

Product focus

• Designed to be a “marketing system of record” that provides brand compliance, planning, content creation and curation, audience acquisition, social relationship management, and analytics.


• Content creation tools include Photographer and an integrated image editor for creating images.

• Certified Content Partners generate creative at scale for global clients.

Partners include Scripted, Getty Images, Visual.ly, Shutterstock, FlashStock, Tongal, and Twenty20.Certification criteria includes competitive rates, content that aligns with brand guidelines, integration with the Percolate platform, transparent, flexible content rights, and permissions across brand channels.


• Proprietary publishing tools push content directly to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

• Supports WordPress, Drupal and other content management systems through API.

• Paid media campaign execution through internal

Facebook and Twitter workflows, as well as integrated partnership with SocialCode.


•Ambassador mobile app optimizes content for employee and brand advocate mobile devices.

• Partners with Facebook and Twitter to manage paid media campaigns.

Analytics

• Central architecture tags all content assets with metadata to track and measure clicks, shares, retweets, engagement rate, paid media impressions, etc.

• Customizable based on organizational KPIs.

Content management

•Percolate Planner is a cross-channel marketing calendar that connects content, event, media, advertising, social,

http://percolate.com/



Vendor Profiles



and mobile marketing.Offers in-line brief creation and conversation streams.Users can use tags to index and filter content by tag, topic, event, campaign, etc.

•Media Library acts as a single storage destination for marketing images and video.

Syncs with Percolate’s web and mobile content creation tools, including Photographer or Ambassador.

Users can search and sort images and video by date, tag or marketing performance

Pricing and support

• SaaS-based subscription pricing based on number of markets or brands.

Two product tiers: mid-market and enterprise.

Percolate107 Grand Street, 2nd FloorNew York, NY 10013(T) 646-470-8346www.percolate.com




Vendor Profiles




• Publishing tools for posting text, images, and videos directly to Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn accounts.

• Users can build html blog posts and package posts for marketing emails.


• One-click posting tools enable users to package brand-approved content for sales teams, recruiters, colleagues, and executives to share with their social networks.


• Patented content recommendation algorithm monitors real-time conversations on social media to determine the most relevant content and topics.

Built-in feedback mechanism improves and personalizes recommendations.

• Connects brand-owned content assets for surfacing and publishing relevant existing content.

Users can search for and select content by keyword, category and individual sites.

Analytics

• Audience analytics derived from Twitter Firehose and LinkedIn proprietary audience segment data.

• Tracks content effectiveness, including clicks on individual posts.

• Day-part analysis provides insights into engagement by time of day.

• Reports can be downloaded as CSV or accessed via API. • REST API available to retrieve brand settings,

recommendations, and carts.

Content management

• Editorial calendar for scheduling and sharing content posts.

• Customizable role-based workflow tools for determining editing and publishing permissions.

Target customer

• B2B and B2C agencies and enterprise brands in the technology, healthcare, retail and automotive markets.

Key customers

DemandforceHumana Intuit Johnson & JohnsonMicrosoftZenithOptimedia

Key executives

Joe Doran, Co-founder and CEOGabe Bevilacqua, Co-founder and COOJorge Varona, VP, Engineering

Company overview

• Founded in May 2010.

Product focus

• Positioned as an end-to-end content marketing platform that manages content publishing, curation, discovery, recommendations, analytics, and reporting.

Rallyverse1201 BroadwayNew York, NY 10001(T) 646-504-9563www.rallyverse.com

www.rallyverse.com

www.rallyverse.com


Vendor Profiles



Pricing and support

• SaaS-based license based on number of brands, markets or geographies (i.e., branded Facebook page for the U.S. versus branded Facebook page in Germany).

• Average annual enterprise customer spend ranges from $70,000 to $200,000.

• Account setup, email, and phone support included in pricing.

Rallyverse1201 BroadwayNew York, NY 10001(T) 646-504-9563www.rallyverse.com

www.rallyverse.com

www.rallyverse.com


Vendor Profiles




• Supports original content in any format (article, slideshow, image, infographic, video, whitepaper) and a variety of languages and markets (English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, and Russian).

Language support includes interface, grammar/style/spell check, search optimization, and local market search recommendations and performance measurement.

• Offers access to a searchable database of global writers, videographers, photographers, and graphic artists organized by domain expertise, social influence (by topic), language, location, and performance metrics.


• Customers can schedule, create, and manage Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter posts.

• Enables content creators (authors, videographers) to promote and amplify content via their own social channels.

Measures creator promotion and reports efficacy to both the customer and creator.

• Partners with Outbrain for content amplification services.


• Assignment creation tools advise content strategists how frequently terms are searched, allowing them to select assignments.

Provides creatives, editors, and other reviewers with SEO scoring that grades each piece of writing during

Target customer

• B2B and B2C enterprise brands.

Key customers

AutoTrader.comGMIBMMasterCardPhillips LifelinePurina

Key executives

Tom Gerace, Founder and CEORob Murray, PresidentDarryl Gehly, EVPJohn Mihalik, CTO

Company overview

• Founded in December 2010.• $25.5 million in private funding, including $11 million in September 2014 from Cox

Media Group.• Acquired video production marketplace Vidaao in September 2014.• Additional offices in New York, Pittsburgh, and Palo Alto.

Product focus

• Service-oriented content marketing platform that provides access to a global network of content creators, content amplification through a partnership with Outbrain, workflow management, and proprietary analytics to measure content relevancy and results.

Skyword25 Thomson PlaceBoston, MA 02210(T) 855-SKYWORDwww.skyword.com

http://www.skyword.com/



Vendor Profiles



the creation/review process. • Allows customers to create and

manage customized keyword lists that drive future content assignments.

• Measures how Skyword-created content ranks in search results for the customer’s brand and shows progress over time.

Analytics

• Pixel-based tracking system measures content consumption.

Metrics on readership by topic, consumption of each individual content asset, keyword rankings, article rankings, source of traffic, and social shares. Creator analytics measure whether writers submit content on time, how much editorial overhead is required for their work, and how

effectively the contributor drives traffic from earned search and social.

• Integrates with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ APIs to gather social sharing information.

• Leverages Google Analytics for local marketing measurement.

Pricing and support

• Monthly subscription fees for creative services, program management, and editorial production based on content volume and publishing frequency.

Customers pay contracted content creators through the Skyword platform (no mark-up or tax involved).

• Average annual enterprise spend from $35,000 to $500,000.

Skyword25 Thomson PlaceBoston, MA 02210(T) 855-SKYWORDwww.skyword.com




Vendor Profiles




• Content creation tools feature drag-and-drop WYSIWYG interface and design customization.

• Offers a wide range of customizable interactive content types, including assessments, calculators, tests, polls, surveys, whitepapers, contests, brackets, and galleries.

• Interactive content assets can be embedded on websites, blogs, social networks, and email.

Analytics

• Customizable dashboard tracks and measures campaign results.

Customer Success Managers work with customers to analyze results, and share recommendations and best practices.

• All content interactions are captured and flowed into marketing automation or CRM platforms in real time.

Data can be used for lead scoring, trigger campaigns, disqualifications, and sales intelligence.

• Integrates with marketing automation, CRM, CMS and email service providers including Oracle/Eloqua, Marketo, Salesforce, HubSpot, WordPress, MailChimp, and Act-On.

Pricing and Support

• SaaS-based licenses start at $1,000/month.Average customer spend is $2,000/month.

• 90-day onboarding and training included.• All customers work with dedicated Customer Success

Managers on platform training, KPIs, and programmatic strategies for leveraging content.

Target customer

• B2B marketers and media companies with content/advertising opportunities.

Key customers

AtmelCorporate Executive BoardEMCHearst MediaPBSUnitrends

Key executives

Seth Lieberman, CEORussell Franks, COO

Company overview

• Founded in September 2010.

Product focus

• Interactive content marketing toolset designed to generate leads and drive revenue across the web, mobile, email, and social media.

SnapApp55 Chapel Street, Suite 10Newton, MA 02458(T) 855-762-7277www.snapapp.com

http://www.snapapp.com/

http://www.snapapp.com/


Vendor Profiles




• Uses advanced, mathematical algorithms to analyze consumer browsing history, context, geography, collaborative filtering, and social media trends, to predict content consumption interests and needs.

Recommended content delivered within a customizable on-page widget.

• Serves 150 billion recommendations each month on high-traffic publishing sites including USA Today, Time.com, The New York Times, Fox Television, The Food Network, and The Daily Mail.


• Taboola Newsroom optimizes homepage content by tracking clickthrough rates for homepage articles, as well as A/B testing headlines and thumbnails.

Supports desktops, tablets, and smartphones.• Offers advertisers goal-based campaign optimization,

targeting, retargeting, and a mobile app for campaign management.

Pricing and support

• Demand-side, CPC-based biddable marketplace. Publishers and advertisers place bids based on budget and ROI goals.

Target customer

• B2B and B2C publishers and brands in the financial services, entertainment, sports, politics, news, and healthcare markets.

Key customers

Ancestry.comBen & Jerry’s General ElectricNetflixThe AtlanticThe Motley Fool

Key executives

Adam Singolda, founder and CEOEldad Maniv, President and COOLior Golan, CTO and Taboola Israel GMPaul Jelinek, SVP, Business Development

Company overview

• Founded in July 2007.• Raised $40 million in venture funding, including $15 million in February 2013 from

Pitango Venture Capital, Marker, WGI Group, Evergreen Venture Partners, and Eyal Gura.

• Acquired Perfect Market, a digital publishing software provider, in August 2014.• Additional offices in Pasadena, Tel Aviv, London, and Bangkok.

Product focus

• Content discovery platform using predictive algorithms to recommend editorial and sponsored content to consumers across a wide network of publishing sites.

Taboola19 W. 22nd Street, Fifth floorNew York, NY 10010(T) 212-206-7663www.taboola.com

http://www.taboola.com/

http://www.taboola.com/


Vendor Profiles




• Publishing tools to create website pages, microsites, and landing pages.

• Author templates available to optimize content using customized scoring guidelines, as well as design for specific branding and site style guides.

• Sources content using persona-based algorithms.• Generates unique story streams that resonate with

individual personas.• Discovers social posts and media mentions that support

customer brands.

Analytics

• Tracks metrics by channel and sales rep.• Embeds progressive profiling and other data-driven calls

to action.

• Generates lead scores derived from content consumption.

• Inserts content scores into marketing automation or CRM systems.

• Automatically delivers personalized content to sales channels to enable social selling.

• Integrates with lead generation platforms including email, display advertising, and syndicated content solutions

• Recommends best-performing content to promote across corporate channels such as email, social, sales, and websites.

Pricing and support

Not available.

Target customer

• B2B mid-market and enterprise brands in the technology market.

Key customers

DeltekMarketBridgeNetProspex Neustar Parature

Key executives

Andre Yee, CEOMike Ball, CTOJason Jue, CMO

Company overview

• Founded in June 2014.• Raised $3.4 million in venture funding in June 2014 from Kepha Partners and

Longworth Venture Partners.

Product focus

• Content creation, curation and analytics toolset designed to generate B2B sales leads and conversions.

Triblio 12007 Sunrise ValleyReston, VA 20191(T) 703-942-9557www.triblio.com

http://www.triblio.com/

http://www.triblio.com/


Vendor Profiles




• Connects brands with global network of content journalists, designers, animators, and developers.

• Cloud-based Project Center houses creative briefs, which outline customer goals, style guidelines, and communications.

Pricing and support

• Flat-rate pricing based on assets created.Infographics start at $1,995.Videos start at $6,250.Web experiences start at $11,995.Presentations start at $1,595.Micro-content starts at $595.

• Customer care team provides 24/7 email and phone support.

Target customer

• B2C and B2B SMBs and enterprise brands.

Key customers

Charles SchwabFarmers InsuranceLenovoNikeTwitterVisa

Key executives

Matt Cooper, CEOTal Siach, Co-founder and CMOAdam Breckler, Co-founder and VP, ProductLee Sherman, Co-founder and CCO

Company overview

• Founded in 2011.• Received $8.1 million in Series A funding in January 2014 from SoftTech VC,

Correlation Ventures, Crosslink Capital, 500 Startups, Giza Venture Capital, Quest Venture Partners, and Kapor Capital.

Product focus

• Content marketplace designed to connect brands with global network of creative professionals.

Visual.ly77 GearySan Francisco, CA 94108(T) 855-968-3282Visual.ly

http://visual.ly/

http://visual.ly/


Vendor Profiles




• Allows customers to programmatically distribute promoted content across a network of publishing partners including Outbrain, Yahoo!, AOL/Gravity, IAC/nRelate, Adiant, and Triplelift.


• Manages content campaigns, including creative testing and bid adjustments.

Analytics

• Centralized dashboard manages campaign results and content sources.

Content management

• Aggregates and indexes marketing content for multiple native ad formats.

Pricing and support

• Platform and service fees based on actual partner media costs.

Zemanta is a transparent platform where all actual media costs are shared with the clients.

Target customer

• Enterprise B2C and B2B brands and their digital agencies responsible for the paid promotion of marketing content.

Key customers

AllstateDigitas LBiEmpower MediaMarketingIntuitiProspect/CovarioStarcom

Key executives

Todd Sawicki, CEOAndraz Tori, CTO and Founder Greg Gortz, VP, SalesJeff Reine, VP, Business Development

Company overview

• Founded in September 2007.• Raised $7.4 million in venture funding, including $2 million in November 2013 from

Union Square Ventures.• Additional offices in San Francisco, Seattle, and Slovenia.

Product focus

• A demand side platform (DSP) for native ads that distributes content as promoted recommendations, in-stream ads, promoted headlines, and in-text links through a network of native ad exchanges, platforms, and publishing partners.

Zemanta33 W. 17th StreetNew York, NY 10011www.zemanta.com

http://www.zemanta.com/

http://www.zemanta.com/




ResourcesWebsites

Altimetergroup.comDigitalmarketingdepot.comContentmarketinginstitute.comMarketingland.comSearchengineland.com

Articles

“How to Build a Better Content Marketing Strategy” by Michele Linn, Content Development Director, Content Marketing Institute. http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/10/build-content-marketing-strategy/

White papers/ebooks

Buyer’s Guide: Evaluating Content Marketing Solutions, published by Oracle (Eloqua). www.eloqua.com/content-market-ing

The Essentials of a Documented Content Marketing Strategy: 36 Questions to Answer, published by The Content Mar-keting Institute. www.contentmarketinginstitute.com

A Field Guide to the 4 Types of Content Marketing Metrics, published by the Content Marketing Institute and Convince & Convert. http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2012/11/a-field-guide-to-the-4-types-of-content-marketing-metrics-ebook/

Research reports

B2B Content Marketing: 2015 Content Marketing: Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends, published by The Content Market-ing Institute, MarketingProfs, and Brightcove. http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/10/2015-b2b-content-market-ing-research/

Content Marketing: Insights, Landscape & Vendor Analysis published by Demand Metric Research Corp. http://www.demandmetric.com/content/content-marketing-solution-study

The Content Marketing Software Landscape: Marketer Needs and Vendor Solutions, written by Rebecca Lieb with Jessica Groopman and Charlene Li. Published by Altimeter Group. www.altimetergroup.com

http://www.altimetergroup.com/

http://digitalmarketingdepot.com/

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/

http://marketingland.com/

http://searchengineland.com/

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/10/build-content-marketing-strategy/



www.contentmarketinginstitute.com

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2012/11/a-field-guide-to-the-4-types-of-content-marketing-metrics-ebook/

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2012/11/a-field-guide-to-the-4-types-of-content-marketing-metrics-ebook/

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/10/2015-b2b-content-marketing-research/

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/10/2015-b2b-content-marketing-research/

http://www.demandmetric.com/content/content-marketing-solution-study

http://www.demandmetric.com/content/content-marketing-solution-study

http://www.altimetergroup.com/

content marketing tools 2015: a marketer’s...

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