Paralleling content marketing's growth in the U.S., a different region is seeing sustained success with the strategy, too. Many who enter the content world are surprised to find that Australia, of all nations, has a similar hunger for leads, and it's growing rapidly.
Why is this?
Instead of discussing the specific practices that define Australian content marketing (which Content Marketing Institute covered in depth in its annual study), I took a look at the country's underlying infrastructure and media habits and found that it provides a firm foundation for content consumption.
These three elements are driving Australian content marketing:
1. Crocodile 4G
Despite its oceanic isolation, down under (the ground), Australians are benefitting from a number of contentious yet progressive government and corporate developments. Foremost is the National Broadband Network (NBN), a countrywide wholesale data network designed to reach 93 percent of Australians by 2021. At this point, the network has only become accessible to about one-eleventh of that estimate, but progress is being made.
Mobile telecommunications tech is also taking off, as LTE capabilities finally became commonplace in Australia last year. Between the two of them, access to media has skyrocketed, as well as the speed at which that media can be found.
2. "Branded Content" — Australian for "Success"
A May report by Polar found that Australians spend significantly more time consuming branded content than other nationals. In fact, Australian audiences spend almost twice as much time with this type of content as the rest of world.
Much of this can be attributed to large-scale publishers with skin in the game. For instance, major Australian newspapers saw digital revenue rise 18.9 percent in 2015. And publishing arms like Pacific+ have long seen success as editorial planners, producers, and distributors. In many ways, companies like this birthed modern content marketing. Mind you, they needed a little help from the digital sector to truly take off.
3. Mobile, Mate
While papers and broadcasts still have a prominent place in the Australian home, digital content engines are driving a mobile revolution. In the past few years, the Guardian, Mail Online, BuzzFeed, and the Hu ffington Post have all released Australian versions of their popular platforms. As a result, 59 percent of Australians have begun using their phones to access news content, a number that outpaces most comparable countries.
At the heart of this trend is the advantage in online reach that digitally born players hold over traditional news organizations. The former possesses a 67 percent reach, compared to the 37 percent stake held by newspapers, a not-so-understated advantage.
Yet for all of this growth, only 28 percent of Australians say their content efforts are effective. In general, Australia's Seven West Media boss Tim Worner says, "The Australian industry is dangerously obsessed with 'new versus effective.'"
No matter the continent, this speaks to a truth of content marketing: Strategy breeds good works. Much like a crocodile boomerang, if you throw it out, it will certainly come back around to bite you.
OK, I'm done.
Kangaroo.
Learn more about building and executing a successful content marketing strategy with our free 4-step guide below:
