Is "attraction marketing" the best way to find new clients?

With the rise of content marketing, attraction strategies are very popular

... writing articles, posting on social media, conducting webinars, redesigning websites ...

But, are these activities the best way for consultants to find significant new business?

Let's get some perspective. Without looking too hard I was able to find:

1. Research that shows - when they've a problem - around 80% of clients still turn to their network for referrals, or to consultants they already know.
2. A "consulting guru" - advocating attraction strategies - who admits their most lucrative projects can all be traced back to just a few personal connections.
3. A content marketing consultancy that confesses to winning 70% of new business via existing contacts, not from attracted leads.

What's going on here?

Don't take my word for it. Do a rough-cut assessment of your experiences by tracing your top ten new business wins back to their source. This list might help: [44 Ways consultants develop business..]

If you're like most boutique consultancy firms your most significant new business comes via word of mouth and your network. And yet you probably don't have an active referral and network expansion system in place ... preferring instead to rely on the acclaimed attraction strategies ... which aren't producing the results you're looking for.

Why is that?

Let me know your thoughts.