Blog Post

Hit the Target with the Smartest Digital Content for B2B Marketing

  • By Mark Baker
  • 10 Jun, 2016

In recent years, quality digital content has become the anchoring component of any successful B2B online marketing campaign.  However, businesses often neglect to research what it is that buyers actually want to see in online content. Even if your content is entertaining and well-written, if it isn't relevant or useful to your buyers, you risk wasting your time and possibly having to switch gears in the middle of a strong sales season. Eventually, you’ll also have to invest in generating content that actually resonates with your prospects. To avoid falling into this trap, focus your efforts on generating content assets, which are the select types of content that appeal most to particular demographics.

To find out what types of content buyers in your industry are looking for, consider running an email survey of prospective leads and asking what kind of content appeals to them. Once you do this, you may discover that it could be beneficial to introduce types of content that you've never used previously.

As a guide, it’s helpful to look at what other B2B companies have used successfully in their content marketing plans.


CASE STUDIES

According to Business 2 Communitycase studies were one of the top content asset choices this past year. This was based on a survey done through Starfleet Media and an extensive report compiled on B2B content marketing.

It's not hard to see why case studies were one of the top content choices of the past year. They provide concrete proof of your company's skills and experience, which is especially important to highlight when making comparisons between your company and the competition. Buyers are looking for quick and simple information that distinguishes your company as a leader in the field. Other than testimonials from past buyers, you don't have many other assets that can compellingly prove your uniqueness.

WHITE PAPERS

According to the Starfleet Media study, white papers were the second most-used content asset in 2015. Despite their reputation as being one of the less compelling online media tools, white papers are particularly appropriate as digital content when your products have especially technical features requiring thorough explanation. As opposed to bogging down your site by scattering this information across many pages, white papers represent a comprehensive source of content that prospects can download quickly, in a way that's more organized for both you and your clients.

Note that some companies format these white papers as PDF files, which are easy to download and read on both desktops and mobile devices.


BRANDED WEBINARS

Webinars represent the third most-popular content asset for this past year. Webinars can easily be recorded and placed as a video file on your homepage as either a form of branding or pure source of product information. With live streaming services growing in popularity, it's worth streaming a webinar in real-time, making prospective leads feel like they’re part of the event.

Note that for webinars, it's often a good idea to introduce your staff and let them prove their own expertise in their particular field. This is yet another way to prove that your company is a thought-leader in the industry and employs experts in a variety of sub-areas within the field.


BRANDED E-BOOKS

E-books have once again become a very popular form of digital content in B2B marketing. They serve as a powerful branding tool in that they present valuable information and product features in a format personalized with your company's brand assets.

Remember that e-books should be free. Establishing incentives to download your content is one of the initial steps in generating content that will delight prospects and convert leads.

The type of content you create can have a major effect on the outcome of your content marketing strategy, so it’s important to offer the information that buyers are looking for in the appropriate format. When executed well, you'll have a content marketing tool at your disposal with the potential to expand your company's reach well beyond your target market.

Mark Baker

Mark Baker is a natural artist. Since starting his first business hand painting graphics onto vehicles in high school, Mark gained experience in the entertainment, sports, and retail industries before founding this company in 1993. Honest and pragmatic, Mark knows that anything can be accomplished with a great communication plan and creative thinking. 

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