A successful approach to B2B digital marketing can be broken down into six key takeaways, revealing the unique challenges and opportunities for marketing professionals working in this space.
- B2B content marketing has not yet matured.
Many B2B companies report that they use at least some content creation, but most spend very little of their marketing budgets to do it. This should come as welcome news for marketers who are not satisfied with the level of maturity of their campaigns, as it demonstrates that while content marketing is popular in B2B it is by no means well established yet.
- Planning is the key to success.
Successful B2B content marketing campaigns have a few things in common:
- A clear understanding of what a successful strategy looks like
- A written document outlining the plan
Once you have a documented plan in place, track your results to make sure it’s working the way you want it to.
- High quality content matters.
To make your voice heard above the noise of today’s crowded online market, focus on creating high quality content that resonates with your target audience. You can improve the quality of your content by:
- Offering more data
- Backing up content with research
- Including more analysis and insight
- Toning down the sales pitch
- Good content drives leads.
With the right content, you can effectively drive more leads to your brand. Demo offers, free trials, content downloads, research reports, videos, case studies, in-depth articles, surveys and webinar registrations are consistently some of the best ways to generate motivated leads.
- Use different content for different goals.
Different content formats serve different objectives, so it is a good idea to provide some variety in your content offerings and channels. Social media, newsletters, custom infographics, videos, e-books, blogs and whitepapers are all worth considering.
- Identify and engage the right audience.
For most B2B companies, a mix of owned, paid and earned content promotion will earn the greatest return on audience targeting and engagement. Social media and email are effective in boosting your organic reach, whilst native advertising and search engine marketing are best for paid promotion.
Conclusion
Content marketing is an effective way for B2B firms to improve their reach, but it remains an emerging concept for now. To stay ahead of the trend, smart marketers would do well to document a clear strategy and diversify both their content and distribution channels to achieve the greatest returns.
