Abigail Moses, Founder of Ivy Marketing, has given our readers her insight into content marketing for 2017. In an interview, exclusively with Business News Wales, She shares her knowledge and tips on how to make content marketing work for your business.

Can you give the readers a little background into yourself and your role within Ivy Marketing   

We are a content marketing start-up working from our offices in the heart of Cardiff. While a Writer and Digital Marketer at heart, my role with the agency very much focuses on business development, building relationships with local businesses to help devise tailored content marketing strategies for our much-valued clients.

What are your plans for the next five years?  

With Ivy Marketing only in its infancy, our plans are centred on growing all aspects of the business, adding to the list of the amazing Welsh firms we already produce content for. The main objective for the coming year is to really focus on the marketing of our own business, celebrating the various services our team of digital marketers can deliver. In addition to Blogging and Web Copy, we also specialise in Social Media, Digital PR and Creative services.

Is there anything you would change about your career so far?

Setting up Ivy Marketing in the Summer of 2016, I have had a pretty colourful 6 months, experiencing all the glories and headaches of start-up life. From welcoming new clients and employees to moving into our offices in the city centre, on reflection, the only thing I would change is not doing it sooner.

What do you think the most important quality for success in business is?

With Ivy Marketing coming under the ‘Communications’ umbrella, I would have to say forming great relationships, whether that be with employees, clients or affiliates. As a business, our ethos is to work in an honest, transparent fashion, enabling Ivy Marketing to work as an extension of our clients’ marketing teams.  By doing so, this has only given way to more informed, creative campaigns that gain traction and deliver on those all-important KPIs.

What are your 3 tips for success?

Do what you love – Having worked in various areas of marketing, I always knew that content was where I excelled and was most passionate about. Centring each and every day around the subject, I get to do what I love, putting my heart and soul into every campaign that leaves the Ivy Marketing offices.

Surround yourself with like-minded characters – Whether it be employees, clients or business partners, unity is key. Unity brings positivity and positivity only breeds positivity.

Thrive under pressure – While something that only came with experience with regards to my career, I am a huge believer in channelling pressure. With content marketing, time plays a pivotal role, with our team needing to work to deadlines in order to maximise exposure of campaigns. At Ivy, we believe that pressured situations are simply opportunities to shine, learn and develop as professionals.

Why is it so important for Welsh firms to invest in content marketing?

As a top-ranking priority for marketers, creating high-quality content is simply a must in modern-day business, with the list of benefits outweighing any other form of marketing. These include:

Brand awareness – Producing content provides businesses with material that audiences can share on various platforms, giving way to heightened levels of brand awareness.

SEO – Content provides internet users with a reason to click a link and go to your website, influencing increased traffic numbers, improved bounce rates and higher ranking for relevant search terms.

Cost effective marketing – Costing 62% less that traditional marketing methods and generating 3 times more leads, content marketing is a much more effective way to spend your company’s marketing budget.

Engagement levels – While a homepage will give you a company’s elevator pitch, through consistent content, readers are able to engage with the business and the brand values on a more regular basis, allowing them to identify with the brand and fully understand the product/service.

Thought leadership – Through content companies/individuals can position themselves as thought-leaders within their space.

Are their any innovations within your sector that should be adopted by the wider Welsh business community?

With Cardiff being the UK’s fastest growing digital economy outside London, it is safe to say that Cardiff has already adopted many digital marketing innovations, with content marketing being a huge focus for most, especially within the Welsh start-up community. Our role at Ivy Marketing is to help Welsh businesses stay ahead of competitors through the creation of a holistic content marketing strategy, needing to dispel of sporadic approaches.

Do you think Brexit will have an impact on your industry?

While not expecting any direct impact from Brexit, indirectly; maybe so. Working with clients in the construction and finance spaces, the impact clients experience may trickle down. However, with the subject matter being one that all businesses have been passionate to cover and explore, the subject of Brexit has brought a lot of business our way and we hope through the use of content marketing, we can help minimise negative impacts of Brexit.

What do you think Wales’ strengths are as a place to do business? 

With Cardiff evolving into a start-up capital, there is no better place to do business in our opinion. From a new influx of government funding and supports schemes to innovative networking organisations such as Introbiz, the opportunities for businesses to get to market are endless.

In addition to start-up support, our forever-growing innovations to connect with London is another attractive quality. Just this week we saw the announcement of ‘Wales Week in London’, an initiative that will encourage strong London-Wales business affiliations. Through such strategies, Welsh businesses continue to exist as attractive options for inward investment.

For more details on Ivy Marketing and their services, visit Ivymarketing.uk