Creating and sharing B2B content is one of the best ways to promote and grow your business.
It helps you connect with your audience, show your personality and position yourself as industry experts – all things that humanise your brand and build trust with your ideal customers.
You want engaging B2B content that showcases who you are, what you do and why people should buy from you.
But how do you do that?
Here are 8 helpful tips to get you well on your way to content marketing success…
1. Identify your audience
Before you write anything, you need to establish who you want to attract with your content. Once you have a clear understanding of who you’re writing for, it makes creating content so much easier.
Think about:
- Who your target audience is
- What they want to know
- How you will reach them
- What challenges they face
- What solutions you offer to help.
2. Establish your brand voice
Your brand voice represents your business’s personality and values. From the types of words you use to your written tone, your brand voice plays a big part in how you want your business to be seen.
Think about your target audience and how you want to be perceived when deciding your brand voice. Whether it’s is friendly yet professional, authoritative or quirky, the key is to keep it consistent across the board.
3. Create a content strategy
Like increasing brand awareness, creating content requires careful strategy.
It’s about keeping in mind what content will help your ideal customer and what you can do to inspire them to take action that benefits your business.
Build a B2B content strategy that outlines:
- What business goals you want to achieve
- The type of content you will create
- What channels you will publish on
- Who’s responsible for creating and managing your content
- How you will measure the results of your content.
4. Have a plan
Be sure to plan your B2B content because creating off-the-cuff content is stressful and time consuming.
The key is to set yourself realistic goals. Be honest, how much content can you realistically create? How about two socials a week and one blog a month?
Plan the topics ahead of time and set yourself a deadline for writing your content in good time. There’s no better feeling than having your socials and blogs planned out for the week or month ahead.
Find out how you can easily create a 12-week B2B content plan in six simple steps here.
5. Post blogs
There are so many benefits to regularly posting blogs on your website.
Not only does it increase your website traffic, but it also helps boost your Google ranking, establishes you as an industry expert and showcases your company’s personality to build trust.
When writing your blogs, always keep in mind who you’ve identified as your ideal customers. What challenges and questions do they have and how can address them in your content? Also remember your brand voice to keep your content consistent.
6. Use social media
An active social media presence is a must for promoting your business. As with all B2B content, having a plan is key.
Try to have at least two posts a week planned, so you know you always have something going out, and then slot in timely, relevant posts when inspiration strikes. For instance, a relevant business update, a blog or an industry-related news story to share.
Be sure to include an image with each post (check out Canva to create on-brand graphics for free), along with a call to action like:
- Read our latest blog today
- Visit our website to find out more
- Let us know in the comments below
- Contact us today
- Sign up to our newsletter.
Want inspiration on what to post on social media? Read my blog – 21 Engaging Content Ideas for B2B Social Media Posts.
7. Send email newsletters
Showing up in your customers’ inbox is a great way to keep in touch and keep them updated with what’s new in your business and industry.
Plan a weekly, monthly or quarterly newsletter to send to your email list. Include things that let readers know more about your company, such as your company story and values, and a ‘meet the team’ section focusing on a different staff member each time.
Reminding people to sign up to your newsletters – and what they can expect to receive from you – is something you can post on social media too!
8. Create videos
Your B2B content doesn’t always have to be written. How about creating short videos to post online?
I know what you’re thinking – video marketing sounds pricey. But your videos don’t have to be polished and professionally created. Using a phone or webcam and a basic script, you can create personable, authentic videos to engage your audience and humanise your brand.
Here’s a few video content ideas to get you started:
- Share a big announcement
- A Q&A with one of your experts
- Summarise one of your blogs
- Answer a question you always get
- Provide helpful tips and advice.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Don’t let thinking that you’re not a good writer put you off writing B2B content: People appreciate authenticity. I’m not saying publish content that’s riddled with spelling mistakes and grammatical errors, but conversational, informal writing is much more common these days and more engaging.
Adopt effective habits and stick to them: The time it takes to write content can be off-putting. If you get into the habit of blocking out time in the week or month to plan and create content, it will be less stressful in the long run.
Hire a professional: If creating B2B content is proving too difficult, you can always hire a professional copywriter who will go through your goals, listen to your ideas, offer their own ideas and write the content for you. Not only is this a time saver but they can offer an objective, expert pair of eyes.
And, remember, you won’t see results overnight: It can be disheartening when the ‘likes’ don’t instantly start rolling in. It takes time to build up a presence on social media and boost your Google ranking through content. Keep at it and you’ll soon see the benefits content has on growing your brand.
Need help creating B2B content to promote your business? Contact me today to book your free 15-minute discovery call.