Content infobesity … what is it? If you’ve ever had to absorb a lot of information within a short space of time, you’ll know how difficult it can be. In fact, the side effects can be really quite nasty. From migraines and fatigue to muscle aches and the inability to sleep, being overwhelmed with statistics, graphs, opinions, ideas and trends can be somewhat of a challenging experience. The point is, the information is probably really great but you just can’t take it all in. You’re full and there’s no space for any more.

So then, can your brand survive the age of content infobesity?

Content Infobesity: Know the Statistics

Content infobesity can be a real problem.

[bctt tweet=”There are 500 million tweets per day and about 200 billion tweets per year.” username=”_contentworks”]

So, it’s hard to enjoy silence even in a room which is, well, silent. And that’s just from one social media portal.

Facebook is no quieter.

[bctt tweet=”Every 60 seconds, 510 comments are posted, 293 statuses are updated” username=”_contentworks”]

Plus of course 136,000 photos are uploaded – with companies actively engaging in rampant social media activity. The stats are staggering, but there’s more. Almost 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube every single day with 300 hours of video content being uploaded every minute.

As for Instagram, 95 million photos and videos are shared daily with over 40 billion pieces of content being uploaded since its 2010 launch.

If your mind is already frantically trying to process the above information – that’s part of the infobesity crisis. We never get time to rest and with the marketing world saturated with images, content and data how is it ever possible to get noticed?

Well, firstly it’s important to address the issue of infobesity head on.

Content Infobesity: To Be Forearmed Is To Be Forewarned

Knowing what you’re dealing with can help solve many different problems – and there are two main issues when it comes to infobesity: dealing with a continuous bombardment of information as a company and ensuring you stand out from the crowd.

Continuous bombardment

With so much information flying at you from all directions, it can easy to lose focus. In fact, the continuous battle to understand new trends and stay relevant can lead to:

• Extreme time wasting – did you know the typical entrepreneur checks their email account up to 100 times a day – even when using the bathroom?
• Serious procrastination – “Oh look, the office really needs a good clean.”
• A lack of confidence
• Attention deficit characteristics
• Poor decision making
• Financial losses
• Losing sight of what’s important and what’s not
• Staff dissatisfaction
• Mixed marketing messaged and PR rhetoric
• A loss of engagement thanks to Facebook’s selective new algorithm

So, what’s the solution?

Have a filter

Well firstly it’s important to realise that not all information that comes your way is relevant. As a company you simply can’t use all the tips and techniques that are being recommended by ‘top entrepreneurs’. So, you must filter out what you need from what you do not. Don’t be afraid to block certain email addresses or direct messages to your spam filter. Only arrange meetings with clients that can benefit you – and bookmark your favourite sites for future reference rather than having to scan through endless material repetitively.

Hold onto stats

Having excessive amounts of information swirling around in your head is no good for your health – so record your stats and data in an organised and easily-accessible way. This might be on an Excel spreadsheet or an old-fashioned notebook – whatever does the trick. While you can’t ignore key insights, you can source facts from reliable places and not be confused by outside information that could throw your project or business mission off track.

Set goals

If you know exactly what you want to achieve, you’re more likely to look for the information you want and not go off on a tangent. Set and monitor all KPIs and ensure all research is relevant to your goals. Again, don’t hold back when it comes to deleting nonsense or time consuming emails. If you’ve got a mountain to climb, take it step by step. Don’t try and leap to the summit right away as you’re likely to get lost.

Standing out from the crowd

A content marketing overload can potentially put your company out of business.

Think about it; if you’re the only coffee shop in town, you can do things your own way at your own pace – without worrying about the competition. But, if another 25 coffee shops open up in the same town, you suddenly have to go head-to-head with Mr. Cappuccino down the road who is offering a super-duper-creamilicious hot chocolate at a ridiculously cheap price – and that’s not all.

If each and every one of those coffee shops nails their content strategy and ramps up their marketing efforts, you might float into the background on a sea of whipped hazelnut foam. Why? Well, because it’s hard to get lost amid a mass of promotional material.

So how can you overcome the competition and survive a content infobesity attack?

With effective content marketing, that’s what.

Here are some useful content marketing tips

• Promote your USPs and don’t be afraid to get creative
• Streamline your marketing materials and PR activity to avoid confusion
• Optimise your website and ensure your SEO strategies are up-to-date
• Focus on local SEO if you have a business that could benefit from local customers
• Get active on social media and build up a loyal fan-base
• Embrace target marketing by utilising analytics and statistics
• Connect with your customers through the art of storytelling

Surviving content infobesity isn’t easy – but it is perfectly possible. Contact the Contentworks team today for help and advice with your content marketing strategy