Is Content Marketing a form of Advertising?

No, it's not!

 "A type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services." A definition by Google 
A definition by CMI - Content Marketing Institute defines a bit deeper than Google’s - it doesn’t differentiate between top funnel to lower funnel content, and it adds one very valuable word – "distribution".

"Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action."


 The question we have got to ask ourselves is: What is distribution? or What is Content Distribution?
There are three ways content can be distributed.

  1. Owned media – sending an email out to your list (through own channels like blogs, website, email and print issues where customers with self-interest had made a move.
  2. Earned media – pitching journalists or influencers to cover content (through Social Media, Word of Mouth, Customer Reviews, news coverage, research) 
  3. Paid media – doing native advertising to amplify content (any form of distribution where its a monetary transaction.)
These medium are very important aspects of content distribution which forms a basis of content marketing strategy which cannot be replicated with other. It is slow and growth-oriented thus results in customer stickiness and loyalty. 

Content Marketing is not advertising because it is aimed at delivering a holistic viewpoint over any topic but advertising talks about a particular brand, particular, advantages it gives and with a niche category of differentiation.

Example, a real estate company creating awareness about the govt policies is content marketing but the same company creating awareness regarding its own product is advertising. 

Thus, content creation, distribution, and marketing are whole together with a different story than advertising like the Pacific and Atlantic ocean in the Gulf of Alaska.

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