But it doesn’t stop there. “Content is also a valuable sales tool,” says Valerie Turgeon of Brandpoint. “While a strong sales team is essential for closing the deal, buyers are more likely to self-educate and engage with digital content before conversing with sales. According to Forrester research, 68% of B2B buyers have expressed a ‘don’t call us, we’ll call you’ preference. A content strategy will help guide your content creation and distribution efforts to get in front of buyers first and help capture leads for your sales team.”

Furthermore, having an effective content marketing strategy is one of the best ways to stand out in today’s crowded online marketplace, according to marketing specialist Isaac Justesen of Constant Content. “But consistently creating high-quality content isn’t easy,” he says. “That’s why many successful businesses outsource content creation instead.”