Didn’t make it to Content Marketing World? Don’t worry. This article contains my top five takeaways for B2B marketers.
Wow!
Content Marketing World was amazing. The Content Marketing Institute outdid itself with this fantastic event.
A special highlight was a private concert by the Barenaked Ladies – one of my favourite bands of all time. Content Marketing World marked the fifth time I’ve seen them live. They even performed a hilarious song about content marketing. Here it is:
I also learned how world-class B2B marketers are rocking their content. Here are five key takeaways from the sessions that I attended:
1. Be honest.
When it comes to B2B marketing, honesty is the new black.
Doug Kessler from Velocity Partners said that being honest about your weaknesses can help you attract your ideal customers. He shared this example from the Hans Brinkler Budget Hotel in Amsterdam:
By being honest about its downfalls, the hotel won’t attract people who expect better amenities. As a B2B marketer, you can also go out of your way to alienate poor prospects. This will save your sales team the effort of following up with bad leads. It will also reduce your customer complaints.
You’ll build trust with your ideal customers when you’re honest about who your product is for, what it can do, and what it can’t do. Doug stated that customers will be more likely to believe the rest of your marketing if they see that you’re honest about your flaws.
2. Focus on quantity and quality.
I’ve always preached that your content’s quality should be more important than its quantity. After all, you don’t want to publish garbage just for the sake of publishing.
However, quantity also matters.
Several of the speakers at Content Marketing World talked about the importance of producing a lot of content. The 2015 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends report also stated that 70% of B2B marketers are producing more content than they did one year ago.
The more content you produce, the more leads you will attract. Publishing consistently can improve your Google rankings, bring more visitors to your website and get you more social shares.
However, I still hold firm that your content must be high quality and resonate with your target audience. With proper planning, you can achieve a balance between quality and quantity.
3. Become a master at repurposing content.
Repurposing your content is a great way to publish more often and reach a wider audience – without doubling your efforts.
Amy Higgins from Zendesk held an excellent session on repurposing your content. She recommended thinking of your content like a galaxy. Start by creating a major piece of content, such as an ebook or essential guide. This will act as your “sun”, and all your other content will orbit around it.
From there, repurpose your “sun” into smaller pieces of content, such as smaller ebooks, SlideShare presentations, blog posts, infographics and social posts. Starting with a large piece of content and breaking it down can make it easy for you to fill your editorial calendar. It also focuses all of your content on one key message.
4. Set goals.
It’s a fact: content marketers who write down their goals get better results. According to the 2015 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends report, marketers who document their content marketing strategy are more successful than those who don’t.
In his power blogging session, Rick Short from Indium Corporation recommended posting your goals in your employees’ offices. This will help them stay on task.
Rick also recommended thinking about the root of your goal. For example, you may focus your efforts on increasing your website traffic. But do you really want a bunch of random people coming to your site? Instead, think of your key goals, such as generating high-quality sales leads, and work on bringing the right traffic to your site.
5. Keep it simple.
According to Michael Brenner of Newscred, content marketing doesn’t need to be hard or expensive.
Content marketing is about answering all of your customers’ questions. Most of these questions come from early-stage leads. However, many B2B marketers focus on producing content for late-stage leads.
Find all of the questions that your customers have across each stage of your sales cycle. Then, answer them in your content. This will help your prospects make informed buying decisions. It will also give you an advantage over your competitors.
3 Ways to Apply This Information Now
- Download the Content Repurposing Worksheet to plan how you will multiply the value of all your content.
- Read “5 Big Lessons B2B Marketers Can Learn from Content Entrepreneurs” to learn how to take your content marketing to new heights.
- Click to share this article on LinkedIn. Sharing quality content increases your visibility and credibility with your existing contacts, creating conversations and potentially new business.