It seems as though technological upgrades are happening every week. You can’t browse news websites for too long without coming across an article mentioning the latest smartphone hardware technology, mobile operating system, analytics tool, or website plug-ins.

As a result, you might find it tempting to fall into the “toy box mentality.” That is, you tell yourself that you need this latest technology (or “toy”) in your toolbox (or “toy box”) to make your online marketing efforts more effective and/or efficient. Before you know it, you have a tool/toy box loaded with stuff and you’re not even sure what to do with all of it.

It might seem preferable to stay on the bleeding edge of the technological revolution. However, staying fixated on technology lead you away from your primary objective: content marketing.

A Means To An End

For starters, keep in mind that technology is a means to an end. It is not an end in and of itself. Technology is meant to serve business. Not the other way around.

Therefore, as someone who is practicing content marketing, it’s important to focus on what makes the effort most effective: the actual content. Without that, all the best bells and whistles that reflect that latest in technological innovations won’t matter one bit if your content isn’t compelling and shareable.

Also, keep in mind that too much technology added to a website can be counterproductive. You’ve probably visited a website or two that takes a long time to load. This is often the case because the webmaster loaded it up with Javascript code for analytics, social media integration, advertisements, and a number of other features that ostensibly makes the site “better” (from the perspective of the webmaster, of course). However, all of those widgets and gizmos can often create a user-hostile experience. The end result is people who are turned off by the website. You don’t want that.

So What’s The Solution?

The solution, even in the Information Age, is really the same as it’s always been. You should first determine how you want to promote your brand with your content and then find the right technology to facilitate that promotion.

The fact of the matter is that starting with technology, and then fitting it into your business process so that you can use “the latest tool” is working backwards. Your focus should be on the delivery of amazing content, and then locating the best tools to help you 1) produce that content more efficiently and 2) promote that content more effectively.

This means that you should really go back to Business 101. Perform market analysis. Then, determine how to reach your target market with your content. Once you have done that, do some comparative shopping to find the best tools to help you reach your market.

Technology and content certainly walk hand-in-hand, especially in this day and age. However, the focus of your efforts should be on content. Technology is just a means to promote that content and ensure that you’re producing content that enhances your brand.