B2B Content Marketing Strategy Tips
Many B2Bs are making the structural, staffing, and departmental changes to include content marketing into their overarching marketing strategy, and it’s paying off. According to a recent study by the Content Marketing Institute, 89% of B2Bs are currently using content marketing, and nearly all of them reportedly saw some level of success from their efforts.
Of those B2Bs that incorporated content, 75% of them saw at least moderate success, with 19% reporting that their efforts were “very successful” and 3% reaping the benefits of an “extremely successful” approach.
So, how do you join that 19% or, even better, that 3%?
Here are 10 methods, tactics, and mantras that can help you take your B2B content to the next level, all that we use with our SCORE SEO-Driven Content Marketing service.
1. Make It a Priority
A few years ago, it may have been acceptable to treat content marketing as a side effort in your grand plan. That time has passed. Today, content needs to become a priority, and it needs to be curated, distributed and maintained with quality and consistency in mind.
2. Dedicate the Resources
From an operational standpoint, the need for quality and consistent content translates into a need for human and financial capital. Make sure there is room in your budget to hire employees with serious content creation skills (i.e., trained writers with marketing skills) or an agency to stand with you as you strategize, create, and distribute content.
3. Mix It Up
Different members of your audience will respond to different types of content. It’s easy to assume content is simply blogs and articles, but the true meaning of content marketing extends beyond that and includes videos, infographics, educational resource centers, etc. Make it a point to “mix it up” a bit, incorporating different types of content to increase the likelihood that it will appeal to multiple members of your audience.
4. Determine your Voice
In content marketing, what you say is just as important as how you say it. Your voice, or everything from the words you choose to the punctuation you employ, establish the way audience members view your brand. Your content may deviate based on type, but there should be a unifying voice that defines your brand.
5. Start with the Problem
Life is a series of problems and solutions, and many of those solutions are found online. Broken appliance? Watch a how-to. Hungry? Find a recipe on Pinterest. Looking for some investment advice? Take a quiz to find out what investment profile is best for you. Think about the problems your products/services solve and identify how that relates to the content your audience is seeking.
6. Don’t Neglect Your Core Content
It’s important to create new content, but your core content, or the information on static product pages, About pages, etc., is also vital to your overall brand perception. If you want your audience to take your new content seriously, you’ll need to have quality core content to set the stage.
7. Spread Knowledge
For B2Bs, proving credibility is half the battle. To successfully woo customers, your brand needs to become synonymous with knowledge. Utilize in-house experts (or call upon outside experts), create informative web and blog content, issues some how-to videos, and prove that your knowledgeable about your products, your customer’s problems, and their industry needs. This will inevitably cultivate long-lasting relationships.
8. Go Social
What good is great content if no one is reading it? Get your content in front of relevant eyes by leveraging your social media accounts. Determine what social sites dominate your space (LinkedIn is a big one for B2B, but you may even find industry-specific niche networking sites), and then create a plan to distribute your content on that there.
9. Ask Employees to Help
Social networking sites are, as the aforementioned suggests, necessary to distribute content, and who better to share the word than those who spend their time and energy making your brand the best. Consider ways to enticing employees to optimize their professional networking profiles and share your content. As an added bonus, helping your employees create professional profiles can increase your brand credibility by making positive associations.
10. Build Relationships with Influencers
Building on social distribution, the next logical move would be to turn to influencers or the “social heavy hitters” of the online world. They have a significant amount of followers, and their followers listen to what they have to say (learn more on Influencer marketing here). When they share your content, your content reaches more people and gains a stronger sense of credibility.
B2Bs that leverage quality content can see significant results. Not happy with your current campaign? Need to establish some general criteria? Take the time to evaluate your current efforts and incorporate these tips into your strategy, and you’ll join that 75% of B2Bs that are reaping the positive rewards.
