21st Century's Strategy for B2B Content Marketing

 

A documented content marketing plan is always better than a case-by-case approach. 41% of the best B2B performers have a documented strategy by 2020. Of those with a documented plan, 69 percent have been successful, and that number has grown over the years. For digital content, it’s important to get the basics right - before you start the content creation process, make sure you follow SEO best practices. Search engine algorithms are regularly updated to get more accurate results, and taking care of all your content ensures that your content succeeds in its design. Your content strategy will not work well online until the search engine optimization process is incorporated into all the content formats you create. Social media algorithms favor visual content, use it to better promote your content. Good strategies have common features, as described below.

Who are you talking to?

The first step in formulating a strategy is to find out who finds your product or service most useful. It’s not as simple as saying that you are targeting a specific area. You need to create a detailed person with a background, likes, interests, life goals, and annual income. Remember that the buyer’s personality differs from the target audience because it goes from a detailed profile of the ideal customer to your larger target audience. You can go a step further and divide this personality into different types of buyers. Just as the journey of B2B buyers is not always linear, the B2B customer base is often different. Here, you can narrow down your people and identify what can help your business grow best and target them one after the other.

Set goals

You can only create a comprehensive B2B content strategy by defining one ultimate goal. Each stage of a buyer’s trip has a specific goal to achieve and step-by-step KPIs. This is especially important when creating content for the intended phase of a buyer’s trip. When a potential customer types a search term into Google, he or she wants an exact answer. Sometimes they are looking for a website, sometimes it is just information, and the purpose may also be to buy something. Instead of trying to figure out the search term you use, try to understand why finding the answer is important to their business. Make sure there is no speculation involved in this process, and sometimes you can understand this by simply asking your audience through a survey or inquiry. Obtaining first-hand information from the public can make a significant contribution to creating accurate KPIs. It also helps to develop an appropriate brand voice that resonates with your audience and helps create content that is truly engaging.

Learn from your peers

The content marketing landscape has become so full of space that there are more than enough mistakes to learn if you keep your eyes open. There are also many successful content marketing campaigns that have used unique approaches to reach customers. Watching competitors doesn’t mean you have to emulate their approach. You can use it as an opportunity to differentiate yourself. Evaluate the maturity of your content marketing - whether it’s in the early stages of process development, measuring success data is gradually evolving, or is it a full-scale scalable business strategy.

Use Apt distribution channels

Make sure the medium used to convey your brand messages matches your brand image and voice. Marshall McLuhan was a communications theorist who said the media is a message, and this remains true.

The distribution channel you choose to communicate with customers affects how the message is received. Being on different platforms is a good idea, but choose wisely when, where and how you interact with customers on these platforms. The messages need to be consistent so that customers associate credibility with your brand. This strategy can also have a positive impact on the life cycle value of each customer.

Content created by B2B users

Current times may be the best time to try user-generated content (UGC) in your business. Most social interaction takes place through technology, so the potential is great. There are great examples of content marketing like how IBM made it work for them, so why can’t you?

Promoting value-added content

LinkedIn is without a doubt the primary place to advertise B2B content. It remains at the top of the list as the primary social media channel. Using their sponsored messages for native advertising can work wonders for your business if it is targeted to the right stakeholders. However, as a marketer, you can also use social media experimentally.

Confirmation of social media content

Digital content marketing involves several platforms, and when used properly, you can use social platforms to evaluate the effectiveness of content. Ever since it was almost impossible to view social media content organically on Facebook, Twitter allows the modern marketer to check if it is possible to engage the target audience with a particular topic using social media engagement metrics.

Instagram previews

You can even use Instagram to reveal new content to followers through the story. Because this feature is embedded in the app, your content is assured of visibility. The basic principle of the B2B content you share is that it must be useful to the viewer and Instagram stories can help you evaluate this usefulness. Instagram is also a viable forum to get your personal audience through Ask Me (AMA) experiences. If you get enough engagement in the latest white post or blog post, chances are AMA will help you generate more referrals for your business.

Content distribution strategy

Once you’ve created all of this valuable content, syndication is an effective way to get more impressions for your blog post. In addition to expanding your coverage, you’ll get byproducts of spreading brand awareness and adding sales tips to the funnel. If you start the regular content distribution process, you can build a solid online presence on platforms other than your website and social channels. In turn, you can drive traffic to your website by using CTA appropriately by creating a strategic loop.