The Hidden Costs of Blog Content Marketing

Travis Morgan 578 Views 3 min read Share

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  The cost of blog content marketing isn’t exactly a secret, but it might as well be. Part of this is because it’s relatively new: There just hasn’t been enough time for firmly established rules to develop. Another reason is that the price of content is dependent on the buyer’s particular needs. Are you just looking for someone to write an article? Do you have a writer, but still have a hole of design and development to fill? The rate for each of these will be different, and that’s before even taking the quality of work into account. It’s a world packed with nuance, but content marketing isn’t the wild west. There is some semblance of order. We’re here to help you sort things out so you can unravel this mystery once and for all. Let’s get crackin’!  

The Not So Hidden Value of Content and Inbound Marketing

Why is content powerful? It educates people with useful information that is easily digestible. Consumers automatically associate your brand with quality if you assist them in finding a solution. Continue to present your business as a valuable resource, and visitors will make repeat visits that bring them closer and closer to being qualified leads. People never get tired of good information. Because of this, even small companies can establish a foothold in markets where they face competition from larger businesses. Not to mention, marketing campaigns that are centered on educating customers are usually very cost-effective (chi-ching!). Just ask HubSpot. According to their estimates, the average Inbound Marketing lead costs 60% less than its outbound relative. To further elaborate on this point, let’s take a look at some monetary figures. If an outbound-focused company pays $346 for a given lead, and Inbound-oriented business would spend around $135. The projections above will vary from business to business. Plus, marketing success doesn’t sprout from a single factor. Still, Inbound Marketing can be the spark that sends your campaign to a new level.  

Secrets Revealed: Average Monthly and Yearly Expenses

So, how much is this Inbound thing going to cost you? Well, we can’t answer that just yet. You see, before anyone can give you a number, you have to set your budget. It sounds counterintuitive, but we have the data to back it up. The SBA recommends that if your annual revenue is below $5 million, it’s wise to allot 7-8 perfect of that revenue to marketing. For digital marketing in particular, 2-5 percent of your gross revenue should be the right amount of fuel to keep the engine running. With everything taken into consideration, Inbound Marketing has the flexibility to fit into a variety of budgets. Although, the time and resources needed to create content may be the larger concern. If managing a team in-house is a strain on your already packed schedule, working with an Inbound agency could be an alternative solution. Here’s the skinny on the rates:

• For quality content production, agencies usually charge between $3,000 and $10,000 per month.
• In a year, you can expect to pay anywhere from $36,000 to roughly $120,000.

Remember, many agencies only work with year-long contracts. It’s a commitment, but in addition to Content Strategy development, the production of the content (writing, design, development, SEO, etc.) is also provided. If you already have a team on deck but have questions about strategy, there are Inbound agencies that can assist you. After all, one of the staples of Inbound Marketing is a consultative approach.  

The Bottom Line

The cat’s out of the bag. You now have a pretty good idea of how much blog content marketing will cost you. The next step is to set your budget and hit the ground running…after some careful planning, of course. Just as there isn’t a uniformed set of prices, there’s no one-size-fits-all strategy. Be sure to tackle your content marketing campaign from a unique, laser-focused point of attack.