From the “godfather of content marketing”―this completely revised and expanded edition brings marketers fully up to date on the newest content marketing methods and tools, including Web3

When Epic Content Marketing was first published eight years ago, content marketing was just starting to pick up speed in the marketing world. Now, this approach―which includes everything from blogging to YouTube videos to social media―is the core of most organizations’ marketing plans.

Fully revised and updated, this new edition walks you through the process of developing stories that inform and entertain and compel customers to act, without actually telling them to. In addition to covering all the important social media platforms that have arisen over the past eight years and introducing the “creator economy,” it shows how to update existing content and make new content that performs in strategic ways. Updates include:

• New content models, structures, and opportunities
• Content entrepreneurship, content mergers and acquisitions
• Subscriptions and audience building
• Team structure, importance of community, DAOs, and creator networks
• Content options, NFTs, and discord servers
• Making data-driven decisions to optimize content performance

Distributed the right way at the right time, epic content is the best way to truly capture the hearts and minds of customers. It's how to position your business as a trusted expert in its industry. It's what customers share and talk about. This updated edition of the trusted guide provides everything you need to succeed in the new world of content marketing.

Contents

PART I Content Marketing—There and Back Again . . . and Again

CHAPTER 1 What Is Content Marketing?

CHAPTER 2 The History of Content Marketing

CHAPTER 3 Why Content Marketing?

CHAPTER 4 The Business Case for Content Marketing

CHAPTER 5 Content Marketing: Interviews with Top Players

PART II Defining Your Content Niche and Strategy

CHAPTER 6 The Six Principles of Epic Content Marketing

CHAPTER 7 Content Is the Asset; Subscription Is the Goal

CHAPTER 8 The Audience Persona

CHAPTER 9 Defining the Engagement Cycle

CHAPTER 10 Becoming the Leading Source for Your Customers

CHAPTER 11 The Content Marketing Mission Statement

PART III Managing the Content Process

CHAPTER 12 Building Your Editorial Calendar

CHAPTER 13 Managing the Content Creation Process

CHAPTER 14 Content Types

CHAPTER 15 Finding Your Content Assets

CHAPTER 16 The Content Platform

CHAPTER 17 The Content Channel Plan in Action

PART IV Making Content Work

CHAPTER 18 Rented Land for Content Marketing

CHAPTER 19 Alternative Content Promotion Techniques

CHAPTER 20 Measuring the Impact of Your Content Marketing

CHAPTER 21 Using Data to Optimize Content Performance

CHAPTER 22 Al and ML in Epic Content Marketing

CHAPTER 22 Al and ML in Epic Content Marketing

CHAPTER 23 The Creator Economy

CHAPTER 24 The Importance of Community and Superfans

CHAPTER 25 Selling Your Content Company

CHAPTER 26 Buying a Media Company and Audience

PART V Web3

CHAPTER 27 WTH Is Web3?

CHAPTER 28 Social Tokens, NFTs, and the Metaverse

PART VI What’s Next?

CHAPTER 29 The Future of Content Marketing

CHAPTER 30 The Evolution of Your Epic Story

“There's a reason some of the best companies in the world have used content marketing as a critical component of their growth. It provides long-term leverage. This is the definitive guide to doing content marketing well—and making it epic.”

—Dharmesh Shah, Cofounder and CTO, HubSpot

"Strategy, operations, tactics, inspiration: It's all here, packaged for you as your guide to a modern content marketing age."  

—Ann Handley, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Everybody Writes

“Intelligent, clear, and comprehensive. Pulizzi and Piper's monumental contribution to the modern marketing landscape cannot be missed. The 2nd edition of Epic Content Marketing is the only book every content creator must read and then read again.”

—Andrew Davis, global keynote speaker and bestselling author

“Organizations that educate and inform instead of interrupt and sell attract interested people and grow business! Joe and Brian show you how to implement the ideas of content marketing so you can build passionate fans too.”

—David Meerman Scott, bestselling author of 12 books, including Fanocracy and The New Rules of Marketing & PR

“This book is a fantastic resource for content marketers of all levels. Whether you’re just getting started or super advanced, it is useful, helpful and relevant. Joe and Brian do a phenomenal job of capturing what makes content marketing a foundational discipline in any modern marketing mix.” 

—Amanda Todorovich, Executive Director, Content Marketing, Cleveland Clinic

“The quintessential guide to content marketing strategy, operations, and success. Every business needs content marketing--thus every business person needs this new edition of Epic Content Marketing.”

—Jay Baer, New York Times bestselling author

“If there was ever a textbook for the practice of content marketing, Epic Content Marketing is it.”

—David Siegel, CEO Meetup and author of Decide & Conquer

"An easy-to-digest blueprint for what you must know about content marketing. Not only does it clearly lay out what actions to take today, but it also gives us a roadmap into the future of content marketing." 

—A. Lee Judge, Founder of Content Monsta

"Joe and Brian just put a new shine on a classic marketing text! Essential for any marketing library."

—Mark Schaefer, author of Marketing Rebellion

"Packed with useful resources and real-life examples, this is a must-read for every marketing team. Joe and Brian break down not only how to effectively create and execute a content marketing strategy, but also why it works. You will be inspired and motivated to take your marketing efforts to the next level."

—Ruth Carter, content marketing speaker, author, entrepreneur, and attorney

“It’s rare that a business book balances both the rebellious spirit, and real-world practicality of what it’s like to be a modern marketing professional.”

—Robert Rose, the leading global advisor for content marketing

“The newly revised version of Epic Content Marketing has what every content marketing chef wants and needs: more, better, newer recipes. In the second edition, you'll get a ton of new recipes and ideas for improving your content marketing in useful, compact ways - just like a real cookbook.”

—Christopher Penn, Chief Data Scientist, Trust Insights

About the Author

Joe Pulizzi is the founder of multiple startups, including the content creator education site The Tilt, and the bestselling author of several books. Always ahead of the content marketing curve, he first used the term in 2001, then launched the Content Marketing Institute and Content Marketing World. In 2014, Pulizzi received the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Content Council. He has two weekly podcasts―the motivational Content Inc. and the content news and analysis show This Old Marketing―and his foundation, The Orange Effect, delivers speech therapy and technology services to over 200 children in 34 states.

Brian Piper is Director of Content Strategy and Assessment for the University of Rochester. An SEO practitioner and web content developer since 1996, he helps large institutions, like Xerox, Harris, Carestream, and Volvo, build their audiences and brand awareness. Piper has presented at national and international events, including Content Marketing World, ContentTECH, PRSA Icon, Content Ed, HighEdWeb and EduWeb.