It doesn’t take a genius to understand that marketing is a little more complex these days. Your marketing program should be full of a lot of moving parts, built on the idea that marketing is now a two-way street.

Gone are the days of the one-way shouting match to get your audience’s attention.

So too are the days of having only one channel you use to reach your audience. You cannot afford to be strictly radio, print or social. A strong marketing mix integrates multiple channels and bring your audience into a place where you deliver them value.

Yeah, your job is not finished after you grab someone’s attention. You must follow that with content, in the right context, that delivers some type of value. This is the core of content marketing.

Below are six essential keys to making content marketing work for you.

“It’s Not Me, It’s You”

The key to any good piece of content marketing is the absence of a blatant sales pitch. Your audience does not click your link so that they can be sold. They seek to come away with knowledge or entertainment that makes that click worthwhile.

Take time to understand your industry from a buyer’s standpoint. What are the pain points they are experiencing? How can you deliver value to your buyer BEFORE you ever ask them buy to something? Can you give them a tip or technique that will benefit them immediately? Can you serve up some valuable entertainment that will build report?

To use two clichés in one swoop, “Give the people what they want” and “Always leave them wanting more.”

Content is Not Easy, or Free

Creating content is a science and it will take time. You need to either set aside time to create and write the content yourself, or partner with an agency that can quickly pick up your industry and your voice.

Not only do you need strong content, it needs to be organized in the way your audience likes to consume it, have the associated graphics or video to drive the message home, and have the tools on the back-end to monitor how your audience is using it.

Content is More Than Words

It used to be that video or infographics would be the added extra to an in-depth article. Now they are the featured element. Roughly 80 percent of all new content going up on the Web has some type of video component tied to it. Image driven apps like Instagram and Snapchat are thriving over the struggling text-based Twitter.

You need to take time to pair your message with graphics and videos that will be memorable for your audience. Don’t make your audience read paragraph after paragraph of content if you can sum it up in a quick 30 second video.

Mobile Matters

Your audience won’t be reading or watching your content from their desktops. It’s more likely they will be reading it on the go, from their mobile device. Anything you create, and everywhere you intend to display it, need to be mobile friendly.

Have a great video that won’t play on a mobile device? Don’t be on your audience bookmarking that website so they can watch it at a later date. Your opportunity was just lost.

Attention is Getting Shorter

Content marketing is not new, and it has led to one of the sharpest declines in attention spans across all demographics. We are barraged with content, from every angle, on a daily basis. For content to get noticed, it must stand out. Graphics and short headlines are ideal to draw your audience in, but the battle is not won after just one click.

Is your content short and organized for quick-reading? If not, you are going to turn away your audience quickly. When we clicked on your link, we didn’t sign up for a 20 minute read. We want 5-6 bullet points, bolded headlines, and simple organization that allows us to skim quickly.

If something catches our eye, only then will we read further.

You Cannot Afford to Sit This Out

Consumers are trained to spot marketing and don’t want to feel sold. While you continue to message with your, “Buy now!” or “Sale!” mentality, your competitor will come along and deliver them true value. The company who can deliver value first will win the relationship.

Content marketing is not going anywhere. It’s time for organizations to stop shying away from it and embrace this resource. With a little effort, you will draw in a larger audience and can fuel your social media, email, website or SEO strategy.