What is content marketing? How and where did it all start?

A great majority of businesses, small and big, are using content marketing in some form or another.

But how much do you know about the history of this highly effective marketing form?

The guys and gals over at Venngage (thanks again!) have helped me create this infographic on the evolution of content marketing, chronicling its history from the beginning, in 1895, when the Deere & Company released their very own magazine, journeying through the golden age of advertising, and finally, reaching the present.

Now, the question is: what’s next? The best (and probably) only way to accurately predict the future, is to understand the past.

What is content marketing?

Content marketing is a marketing strategy that leverages content; content is created and shared with the purpose of instigating interest in the products and/or services of a business. This content is not meant to sell the product/service (and is mentioned sparingly).

When did content marketing start?

The first major example of content marketing, as we understand it today, is a magazine created by agricultural company, Deere & Company, back in 1895. From there, it’s had its highs and lows; it gained real popularity when Procter & Gamble introduced soap operas – which is why they are named this way, as P&G were using them to promote their washing products –  and took a nosedive when the golden age of advertising came about.

The 80’s brought about new opportunities, but it wasn’t until ’96 that the term ‘content marketing’ was actually introduced. And from there, once more and more people had access to the Internet, content marketing boomed.

Now, it’s used by companies of all shapes and sizes, all over the world. It’s one of the most effective forms of marketing. Who knows how long until the next thing pops up to take over – but for now, it looks like it’s the golden age of content.

But enough talking; take a look at the infographic below to go through the evolution of content marketing and see for yourself how it got to be so popular today:

What is content marketing? The evolution of content marketing

Hope you enjoyed the infographic – and if you want to embed and share it, please feel free to do so (the embed code is at the end of this post). And once again, huge thanks to Venngage for helping me create it.

So, what’s next in the world of content marketing? What will the future look like? Please share your thoughts below and share the post if you enjoyed it 🙂

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