Eli Schwartz is a growth advisor for top internet brands and the author of Product-Led SEO.
Bill Gates coined the phrase “content is king” in a 1996 essay explaining why Microsoft was partnering with NBC. In the piece, he predicted that content providers would be in the best position to monetize the nascent internet.
Gates’ thesis was about the high-quality, exclusive content produced by a media conglomerate. Unfortunately, without distinction, “content is king” has become a part of the modern marketing lexicon. Somehow, this idea has morphed into a call to arms to create content, disregarding any bar of quality. Marketers have fallen in line, flooding the internet with drivel.
The belief is that content will draw people in from various channels. Once they’re on a site, they’ll be trapped into buying, calling, filling out a lead, or whatever the KPI might be. This flawed thinking is endemic across all verticals. Every day, content creators are given goals that feel like directives for a warehouse worker packing boxes: “X content must be produced daily, containing Y words and Z keywords.”
This prescription-type content is not a king; it’s an indentured servant expected to work magic. Using low-quality content as a teaser to get someone to engage with your brand is like a high-end store using cheap knockoffs to entice customers in the door. It wouldn’t work offline, so why do it online?
Content should be considered with the same gravitas as a highly-paid salesperson whose performance is tracked and commissions paid accordingly. It should never be deployed and then not measured. Unlike other marketing methods, content is inherently trackable.
A good salesperson hones their approach with a specific person in mind. Content also needs to be written with the end user as the priority, and it should provide real value to that audience. That’s why I’m a believer in the power of Product-Led SEO, which requires a reader-focused mindset and attaching a clear strategy to every piece of content.
We need to move away from the idea that content is king and that creating it is an end unto itself. Content is a business tool much like any other — and when deployed effectively, it can have impressive ROI over many years. But content with no purpose will never have any return.
Content should be revered, not made to toil as an indentured servant. Because at the end of the day, content isn’t royalty — the user is.
The AI Hype Matrix maps the latest AI news stories across an unimpeachable scale of Hype (everyone is talking about this!) and Fear (will this kill my career? Will this kill EVERYONE?). Here’s this week’s rundown.
India's AI ambitions took center stage last week as the G20 Troika (India, Brazil, and South Africa) unveiled plans to leverage AI and digital infrastructure to tackle global inequality. The timing couldn't be better: Industry leaders are positioning India as the next global AI hub, citing the nation's massive data resources and track record of using technology for social good. Meanwhile, the government is getting serious about AI governance, with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology preparing voluntary ethics guidelines for AI firms.
On the ground, AI implementation is gaining momentum across sectors. The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams is embracing AI to streamline temple queues (divine intervention meets digital transformation), while the Delhi High Court issued summons to OpenAI over ANI's copyright claims — a reminder that even in the world's tech hub-to-be, AI regulation remains a hot-button issue. These developments come as AI chipmaker NVIDIA braces for what could be a $300 billion market swing after earnings, proving that when it comes to AI infrastructure, the stakes have never been higher.
Marketers’ biggest AI challenge? Originality.
If you’ve found your eyes glazing over while reading yet another AI-generated article calling our “rapidly evolving digital world” a “rich tapestry” of “disruptive innovations and paradigm shifts,” you’re not alone. A study by Semrush found that 42% of marketers cite lack of originality as a prime challenge when using AI for content creation. More than one-third (36%) also report that AI struggles to nail their brand’s specific tone of voice.
Chatting cross-functional content management with Ruth White-Cabbell
In this week's spotlight, Ruth White-Cabbell, the former head of content marketing at Snowflake, shares insights on evolving content strategies and cross-functional collaboration.
Here are a few takeaways from White-Cabbell’s conversation with Pepper:
Content marketing has shifted from SEO-focused blogging to creating valuable, customer-centric destinations. This means the metrics that matter have evolved, too, e.g., prioritizing longer viewing times over high view counts.
Content marketing teams must work across multiple functions, including product, demand generation, and sales. This collaboration ensures a holistic approach and cohesive messaging.
Use a CMS to manage the many moving pieces of content creation, from strategic planning to legal review, design, and distribution.
AI shows a lot of promise, but it still needs a human in the loop to ensure relevancy, accuracy, and brand safety.
Content marketers must be continuously upskilling to stay ahead of changing content consumption trends.
Read the full Q&A with White-Cabbell here.
Your content has something to say
Remember those robotic text-to-speech voices that made every audiobook sound like a GPS having an existential crisis? The AI audio revolution has come a long way. ElevenLabs is a voice generator that's pushing the boundaries of synthetic speech, offering realistic-sounding audio in 32 languages — complete with those subtle inflections that make us sound like, you know, actual humans.
The fine art of trendjacking
Attempting to piggyback on the latest hot new trend is a high-stakes game for brands. Get it right, and you're the talk of TikTok. Get it wrong, and you're... still the talk of the TikTok, just not in the way you’d hoped. This week's prompt helps you evaluate trending topics and craft authentic ways to join the conversation — without looking like the corporate equivalent of the Steve Buscemi "How do you do, fellow kids?" meme.
Suggested prompt text:
"Take these three current trends [list them] and generate 10 ways our brand could authentically engage with each one. For each idea:
- Rate its relevance to our brand (1-10)
- List potential risks or backlash
- Suggest specific platforms and formats
- Identify what success would look like
- Create a 'cringe test' checklist to evaluate authenticity
Analyze which approaches feel forced versus natural, and explain why. Finally, create a decision framework for evaluating future trends."