Better B2B Content: Developing Customer-Centric Content Live Web Clinic
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The document focuses on developing customer-centric content in B2B marketing, emphasizing the importance of creating content that is aligned with customer needs and decision-making processes. It provides practical strategies, such as starting with lightweight content, making it easily findable, and measuring performance to enhance engagement. Additionally, real-life examples from various companies highlight successful approaches to content marketing.
Better B2B Content: Developing Customer-Centric Content Live Web Clinic
- 1. Developing Customer-Centric Content: A Better B2B Marketing Clinic To make today’s session more practical we are looking at real-life examples from people in this session. If you are interested in participating in the next clinic or having an offline conversation about your content, contact me at nolin@brainrider.com
- 2. You Are Here Better Content is… • Driven by objectives • Customer-focused • Demonstrates subject matter expertise • Supports your programs • Measurable performance
- 3. Better content is not about you.
- 4. Customers Want Content That Helps Them Solve Problems…
- 5. …Aligned To Their Decision Making If your Define The Evaluate Negotiate customer wants to: Problem Alternatives & Commit They are Education Solution Credentials & looking & Thought & Product Decision for: Leadership Suitability Support • Need & Gap • How to buy Connect • Trends & Assessments • Credentials With Statistics • Solution • Real case-use Them By • News & Analyst comparisons studies Sharing coverage Subject • Implementation • ROI/TCO Matter • Benchmarks plans • How to build Expertise • 101 Education • Product their business roadmaps case
- 6. Checklist For Better Content Be Customer- Focused Start with Light Content Make It Findable Measure What Works
- 9. 2. Start With Light Content Light Content • Leverage “as-is” • Already approved content • Lower cost • Repurpose • Less effort existing content • Faster to produce • Use light formats • More to measure • Curate and share 3rd party content
- 10. Leverage As-Is Content Existing Brochure 4 Pages of Relevant & Valuable Subject Matter Expertise • Resource Center • Slideshare • LinkedIn
- 11. Repurpose Existing Content Asset/Topic Category Format SOURCE ASSET: Mobile Resource Management Solutions: DS_MRM_SolutionsBro_FINAL.pdf Managing mobile resources (MRM): 5 Route 1-page pitfalls operators face planning, Planning download tracking, routing, & dispatching mobile Brochure resources Routing, dispatch, & mobile tracking Route Checklist Repurposed software: What to look for in an MRM Planning solution Into 6 Light Mobile Resource Management: 8 Performance Resource Content benefits of a comprehensive planning, Management post tracking, routing, & dispatching Assets solution SaaS MRM: The Advantages To A Performance Resource Software as a Service Approach for Management post operations & logistics specialists Logistics and supply chain Performance Blog post management: update on mobile Management technology Logistics software: how to integrate the Performance 1-page power of real-time planning and Management download wireless mobile technology
- 12. Curate & Share 3rd Party Content Deploy and Measure Engagement Extract & Track Monitor & Cull
- 13. 3. Make It Findable Use Keywords In Your Title Describe why it’s worth reading Use images and graphics for key concepts Headers & lists make your copy easy to scan “What Next” CYOA Links
- 14. 4. Measure What Works Pageviews Avg. Time on Site Pages per visit Gated Downloads Identify Better Performing Content For Your Programs
- 15. Content Engagement Techniques Proprietary Content Sales tool High Value Content Ask for additional profile info Medium Value Content Complete a short form Low Value Content Open Access (tracked if possible)
- 16. Better Content Clinic Be Customer- Focused Start with Light Content Make It Findable Measure What Works
- 17. Clinic: Atlona.com Value prop: digital audio & video connectivity solutions. Target: Consumer/end-user, professional installers, and commercial solutions • Lots of “About Us” content • Good Support, Product Help, and Case Study content • Develop more expertise-based resources for each audience • Centralize and share content assets throughout the site & social media • Host downloadable files as Content on Pardot so you can track engagement • Gate higher value resources behind individual forms to capture depth of engagement & progressively capture info • Cross-promote between resources
- 18. Clinic: outsystems.com Value prop: Help IT departments deliver custom applications that their business users need. Target: IT managers CIOs, Application Managers. • Rich resource center, but hidden • Organize Resources into customer- relevant categories • Repurpose heavy content into light assets • Host downloadable files as Content on Pardot so you can track engagement • Gate higher value resources behind individual forms to capture depth of engagement & progressively capture info • Cross-promote between resources
- 19. Clinic: NTObjectives.com Value prop: Solve application security challenges. Target: IT security professionals (software, SaaS and services) • Rich resource center (research) & blog • Great content sharing via social media • Blog should be integrated into site for SEO and cross-linking • Organize Resources and blog posts into customer-relevant categories • Host downloadable files as Content on Pardot so you can track engagement • Gate higher value resources behind individual forms to capture depth of engagement & progressively capture info • Cross-promote between resources
- 20. Clinic: CLCLodging.com Value prop: Leverage the purchasing power of 11 million room nights a year to bring low rates to companies of all sizes. Target: President, CFO, Travel Planners & Ops Managers, Purchasing & Supply Managers, Independent Travelers and Owner-Operators • All top level content is “About You” • Good collection of case studies, could be more customer needs oriented • Would like to see more needs-based content (efficiency, service levels, etc.) • Host downloadable files as Content on Pardot so you can track engagement • Gate higher value resources behind individual forms to capture depth of engagement & progressively capture info • Cross-promote between resources
- 21. Clinic: paymetric.com Value prop: Eliminate the challenges of accepting electronic payments in your enterprise systems and applications. Target: -- • Rich resource center • Great merchandising of resources throughout site – homepage, sidebars • Forms are intimidating – collect data more gradually if possible • Re-purpose heavy content assets into light, easy-to-find formats • Organize Resources and blog posts into customer-relevant categories • Host downloadable files as Content on Pardot so you can track engagement • Cross-promote between resources
- 22. Clinic: IVCi.com Value prop: Help organizations collaborate more effectively. Target: -- • Lots of great customer-centric blog posts, videos,curated 3rd party content • Good job sharing on social media • Needs-based content disconnected from main website – negative impact on findability & decentralized web presence • Look for hot topics in your light content as opportunities to create higher value, heavier content assets • Organize Resources and blog posts into customer-relevant categories • Host downloadable files as Content on Pardot so you can track engagement
- 23. Resources For Better B2B Marketing Go to brainrider.com/nolin for a Better B2B Marketing Checklist and enter to win a Better B2B Marketing Audit For more information: @Brainrider www.linkedin.com/company/brainrider Resources: brainrider.info Articles: blog.brainrider.com
Editor's Notes
- #2: Before I start I want to understand your needs in interests in the room. Who in the room is regularly creating content?Who has enough content to fuel your marketing programs?What are some of the content challenges you are facing?Today’s session takes what we do with clients over a 12 week engagement and distills it into some practical advice for you.To make the session even more practical we will take a look at some real life examples and with you help demonstrate how to get to better content.
- #3: Let’s define better
- #4: You are already very good at talking about yourself with credentials, product info, about us.To double check just look at your site navigation. It likely includes “our products”, “our services”, “about us”, “our news”.And customers appreciate it because you are a pretty cute kid.But as we talked about last year at elevate 2010 it is not just about you, it is about what your customers want.Think of the cocktail party guest who only talks about himself. He is never that interesting!
- #5: Practical content, described in their words, and useful information as they go through the stages in their decision making process.
- #6: Aligned to the stages in their decision making process from defining the problem or opportunity, to evaluating alternatives, to negotiating and committing to a decision.
- #7: We have 4 better content practices we want to share today.
- #8: Being customer-focused takes discipline.We recommend using a simple framework like this one to get there.Who is your target audience?What are their needs & pains?Which needs & pains can you help with?Group into 4-6 categories to organize and guide your contentUse those categories to categorize your resource center and blog
- #9: Being customer-focused takes discipline.We recommend using a simple framework like this one to get there.Who is your target audience?What are their needs & pains?Which needs & pains can you help with?Group into 4-6 categories to organize and guide your contentUse those categories to categorize your resource center and blog
- #10: Light content is a terrific way to initially populate a resource center and to keep it fresh.
- #11: Developed for one purpose –sales collateral – but also valuable in other channels
- #12: Extract individual topics as separate content assets. More focused content makes it more findable, relevant, and useful.When was the last time your read a 12 page white paper from start to finish. Real customer behaviour skims documents looking for the subject they are interested in.Publish your repurposed content in light formats like posts, checklists, 1-pagers.
- #13: Curation gives several advantages.Sharing 3rd party heavy content delivers value and often extends a brand halo to your resource center.Light 3rd party content allows you to rapidly test topics and keywords.
- #14: You have invested in developing your content.Make sure it is easily findable
- #15: Measure contentfindability and engagement to identify content gaps and opportunities.
- #17: Be customer focused1. Using customer language to describe your content2. Using customer needs and pains to organize your content3. Don’t only organize by format. Your customer is not looking for a PDF they are looking for the answer to their need-are you using a content strategy-not using customer needs and pains to organize your content see resource categories and blog categories-build category pagesFindable1. Content merchanzing on key pages (home page, resource center home page, blog, and sidebars)2. Titles, descriptions, and For More Information-place links to most valuable resources on home page-make sure your carousel is SEO friendly (not flash)Light formats1. Break up your heavy content to expose valuable single topics-put “as is” content and blog posts into resource centerMeasuring results and planning -aks yourself if you are featuring content that is working