UK brands can drive significantly better results from their content marketing campaigns with just a “small shift” in commitment levels, according to new research published by the Content Marketing Institute, which suggests an “all in” mindset is preferable for creative strategies.

The report, Content Marketing in the United Kingdom 2018: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends, shows a strong link between how much time, effort and resources brands are willing to invest in content and the success they subsequently experience through a variety of positive business outcomes, such as increased conversions and sales.

It is perhaps not surprising to see that those with a “somewhat committed” approach are failing to drive the results they need. Only 5% of this group said they had high success, which is significantly short of the 38% who said the same from the “most committed” pool of content marketers.

However, what is interesting is that it wouldn’t take a notable shift for those with a neutral outlook on content to start enjoying more success with infographics, videos, articles and other high-quality published resources. Working with a third party, such as an agency, is a simple course of action that can increase commitment and raise standards.

This is now a common trend, as most UK marketers reveal in the study that they now outsource one or more of their content marketing activities, while content creation is the single most popular activity for outsourcing. This finding suggests that more brands are using agencies to create written and visual content for corporate websites and social platforms.

Conducting data analytics and comparing metrics has traditionally been a blind spot for marketers, and this is still true to a certain extent, as 40% admit they do only a poor or fair job of ailing metrics with content marketing goals. However, 43% said they are now doing an excellent, very good or good job in this regard, which suggests there is a slow and steady improvement overall.

The Content Marketing Institute also published a five-point plan for marketers to help them emulate their highly committed counterparts. This plan includes strengthening commitment and adopting a “go hard or go home” mentality, being more tactical by using a documented strategy, being more realistic about expectations, and placing a greater focus on creative output.

“Our annual UK content marketing research shows that a small shift in commitment can make a big difference in terms of overall content marketing success,” Content Marketing Institute research director, Lisa Murton Beet, said in a statement.

She added: “The strongly committed are more likely than the ‘somewhat’ committed to have a documented strategy and are more realistic about what content marketing can achieve, among other distinguishing characteristics. Based on these insights, we recommend that companies hovering in the ‘neutral’ zone with their content marketing consider what it would take to strengthen their resolve – it might be that they need more buy-in, a better strategy, more budget, more people – and, in some cases, a simple shift in mindset.”