Social Media Group (SMG) CEO Maggie Fox is betting on content marketing as the next big thing in the online marketing space, and has launched a division dedicated to the practice.

“People have been saying that content is king since I first launched in 2006, but it’s really coming home to roost as people recognize that in this zillion channel universe you really cannot interrupt and repeat anymore, you have to earn attention,” said Fox. “The only way you can do that is through quality content.”

Consumers have grown weary of intrusive pop-up and pre-roll ads, said Fox, placing on onus on brands and their agencies to produce what she called “relevant, valuable and remarkable information.”

The practice will only grow in importance, she said, as marketers continue to shift from “pushing” their advertising out to consumers to “pulling” them in with relevant, engaging content.

“You’ve got to give something to somebody in exchange for their attention,” she said. “We see only upside for this practice. Even with the cost of making content, it doesn’t make any sense to do display advertising.”

The new division is a formalization of work the Toronto organization has been producing for clients such as RBC Financial Group, SAP and Ford for more than two years. The launch comes amid growing awareness of the practice among clients, while SMG has also amassed a sizeable database of case studies that prove its efficacy.

“It’s putting a name to it and calling it what it is,” said Fox, citing a 45-page RBC white paper about Canadian housing markets that SMG transformed into an infographic that was placed on various social media platforms.

According to Fox, content marketing is capable of generating up to 60% higher brand recall, 100% more brand awareness and a 300% increase in purchase intent than traditional display advertising.

The practice of content marketing has already been used extensively in traditional media outlets like TV and print, but the continued emergence of social media platforms makes it a natural fit for the online space, said Fox.

Recent work conducted by SMG for U.S. financial services company CareOne generated 375 million impressions, 700,000 clicks, 6,000 content downloads and an average cost per click of 16 cents and average cost per thousand of 48 cents.

“It’s the right thing, in the right place and at the right time,” said Fox. “It’s adding value to their whole experience. We’re delivering something to someone who’s actually interested in it.”