Content Is Not King: The New Approach To Content Marketing

Inbound

January 6, 2025

Content Is Not King: The New Approach To Content Marketing

At INBOUND 2024, Neil Patel, digital marketing expert and co-founder of NP Digital, challenged one of the industry's longest standing ideas at INBOUND 2024: Content is no longer king.

It's a bold statement, especially since Bill Gates coined the phrase back in 1996. But let's face it: with 4.6 billion pieces of content published every single day, the content game has changed and what used to work, isn't as effective today.

But, before you delete your blog, hear Patel out. His insights and data show that there's plenty of opportunity for businesses ready to adapt. Here's how.

IS CONTENT STILL KING?

Yes and no. Content itself is still valuable, but creating content just for the sake of it, is not going to generate the same level of results as in the past. "Content marketing is changing... More content doesn't mean more results," Patel shared on the INBOUND main stage. The traditional approach of churning out high volumes of content isn't cutting it anymore, and according to Patel's research, 94.29% of web pages get zero search traffic.

So, what's changed? The world of content has become incredibly saturated, especially now that AI has entered the chat. While some of these tools (looking at you, ChatGPT and Claude) make it easier and faster than ever to produce content at scale, they've also contributed to a flood of generic material that fails to engage audiences or drive meaningful results.

THE NEW RULES OF CONTENT MARKETING

If you entered 2024 thinking AI was going to be the silver bullet to your content production needs, it’s time to revisit that strategy: human-written content generates 5.4x more traffic than AI-generated content over a five-month period. What stands out in particular? New, fresh content written for human engagement.

If you can't create content that talks about something new it usually doesn't do well. We're in a place on the Internet where it's saturated.

The key is focusing on fresh perspectives and original insights rather than regurgitating existing content. How should you adjust your content playbook? Patel outlined a practical framework for content marketers:

Test new ideas and content concepts on X first.
Repurpose winning content into short-form videos for TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram reels (tip: focus on low-fi content over highly produced material).
Create long-form content based on proven winners (think long-form blog posts, white papers, etc).
Convert successful blog posts into webinars and lead magnets.

Each step builds on the previous one, making your content creation process smarter, more efficient, and better aligned with today's content demands.

HOW TO STAY RELEVANT AND DRIVE CONTENT RESULTS IN 2025 AND BEYOND

"SEO isn't search engine optimization—it's now called search everywhere optimization," Patel noted, pointing to how search behavior has evolved across platforms. With longer, more conversational search queries on the rise (thanks in part to AI), the way we think about content marketing needs to change.

Here's what to keep in mind:

Quality over quantity, always: Instead of flooding your channels with daily content, focus on creating pieces that offer real value and original insights. Patel’s data shows that thoughtful, human-written content generates over 5x more traffic than AI-generated alternatives.
Think "search everywhere": Your audience isn’t just Googling anymore. They're searching on LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, and AI platforms. To stay visible, your content strategy needs to span all areas where your audience is actively looking for answers.
Keep content fresh and updated: The best-performing websites spend nearly 70% of their time updating existing content rather than creating new pieces. Why? Because current, relevant content consistently outperforms older material, no matter how strong it was when first published.
Prioritize authentic engagement over follower counts: “Followers don't matter anymore,” Patel emphasized. What matters is genuine engagement. A smaller, highly engaged audience will drive better results than a large, passive following.
Go long on keywords: While short keywords might drive more traffic, Patel's research shows that longer, more specific keyword phrases (think 7+ words) actually drive the majority of revenue. In other words, focus on attracting the right traffic, not just more traffic.

At a time when everyone's trying to game the algorithm, there's never been a better time to stand out by simply being helpful, authentic, and human.

TAKEAWAYS

The phrase "content is king" may be fading, but that doesn't mean content marketing is over. It just means we need to be smarter about how we create and distribute content. As Patel emphasized, "The goal isn't to drown them in keywords, the goal is to give them the answer as quick as possible."

Content success in 2025 comes down to a human approach that prioritizes genuine connection, authentic insights, and efficient content distribution. Don't just focus on creating more, create better.

Ready to change up your content marketing strategy? Watch Neil Patel’s full session here for all of his insights and data-backed research.