There is no denying the pivotal role content plays when it comes to marketing your business today. In fact, 90 percent of marketers who used content marketing in 2021 plan to invest the same amount this year.
A lot of people use the terms “content writing” and “content marketing” interchangeably. Although both terms are connected, they are not the same, and it is important to understand this.
While content writing can be a part of content marketing, the latter covers a much broader scope of content types, as well as a wider strategy.
With that being said, below, we will explain the key differences between content marketing and content writing so you can get a better understanding. This should help you to understand how to use both content marketing and writing in the most effective manner for your business.
Content marketing is a full suite of services provided by a content marketing business. There are specialist content marketing agencies available based on the type of business you run, for example, you could hire a SaaS content marketing agency or a healthcare content marketing firm.
Content marketing is the activity of planning, creating, and distributing useful information, with the purpose of acquiring a clearly-defined audience. Content is used as a marketing tool, yet this is in a subtle and non-promotional manner.
Depending on the nature of your company, the preferences of your audience, and the audience touchpoints, a mixture of audio, written, and visual content can be used across social media, email, organic search, and paid search to drive your consumers from the awareness stage to the final action stages.
Some of the different examples of content marketing include:
Content marketing is all about providing free insights and information for your audience so that they feel empowered and compelled to make the most of the services and products you provide.
It is the A to Z of anything a brand can do when it comes to creating and using content for marketing purposes.
There can be a number of positive outcomes that come from content marketing. It can build organic traffic, improve a brand’s backlink profile, grow brand authority, build brand recognition, and ultimately, attract new customers.
Content writing refers to the process of creating written content that supports all of your content marketing goals.
Examples of content writing include:
Not only does this include writing engaging content but all of the actions needed to deliver text that is ready to publish, for example, interviewing experts, sourcing images, and conducting research.
The objective of a content writer is to generate high-quality, valuable content that can be used by the content marketer in their content marketing strategy.
Therefore, content writing depends on content marketing. A writer is only able to create strategic content once the content marketing strategy has been laid out.
When you consider the information provided, the difference between content marketing and content writing is that content writing can be a part of content marketing, yet content marketing cannot be a part of content writing.
Content writing is purely written content creation. However, content marketing can include many different elements, such as:
Whenever a marketer uses content for generating awareness and promoting a brand, they are carrying out content marketing. If they also create written content as part of their marketing efforts, then they are using content writing as part of their content marketing.
It is important to point out that you can write a piece of content without ever sharing it with anyone else. This is still content writing. On the flip side, you can market a brand without ever putting pen to paper and writing content, for example, by using podcast appearances and videos.
To help you get a better understanding of the difference between content marketing and content writing, let’s separate the differences into categories.
Content writing and content marketing done correctly mean they should be done together. So long as you comprehend the distinct purpose of each, which you should now, you will have no issue combining forces.
These services are very much like strawberries and cream. While they taste incredible on their own, they are even better when they are combined.
After all, you can hire a content marketing company to provide you with a solid and interesting piece of original content. However, if you do not have a compelling headline, you are not giving your audience a reason to click on the piece in the first place. This is where content writers really show their worth.
On the other hand, if your content purely reads just like an ad, it is not going to be enjoyable for the reader. A content marketing service should ensure digestible and valuable content.
Content marketing and content writing services work together in harmony. When this happens, you will end up with a piece of content that delivers value for the reader while also converting them into customers.
As you can see, there are some clear differences between content marketing and content writing. Although a lot of people have a tendency to use these terms interchangeably, they are not the same.
While content writing can be a part of content marketing, it cannot work the other way around. Also, you do not necessarily need content writing to be part of your content marketing strategy, although it is typically wise to do so.
Featured image by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash.com
Pasquale is Founder at Increasily.com, a H2H marketing agency based in Dublin, Ireland, and owner at print-on-demand ecommerce Mintycase.com. Pasquale has worked in Digital Marketing and Account Management since 2004. He currently lives in Dublin with his wife, stepdaughter and cat.
Pasquale Mellone