One of the best things about B2B content marketing is that you don’t need oodles of content or to be online all the time to make a difference to the business. Even when starting out. Instead, you need some brilliant B2B content ideas and a solid content strategy.
The content strategy should come first, but I’m not covering that in this blog. You can head this way for some content strategy insight. Instead, I’m giving you a starter pack of B2B content ideas that will help your business.
B2B content ideas
There is a myth that B2B doesn’t need social media content and while you absolutely can sell without using socials (even for product businesses), you may not want to rule it out completely. There are plenty of B2B businesses nailing it on TikTok and Instagram. Personally, I wouldn’t make this my starting point – even though I’ve done so in this blog – but would look at this when I’ve got the rest of my content working.
Instead, let’s start with some of the chunkier content ideas that have more longevity.
Thought Leadership
Thought leadership content is one of the best places to start. Mostly because if you want to build up your founder status as a thought leader in your field, then it takes time and you’ll need to put lots of effort into this.
I pitched a thought leadership campaign to a brilliant service-based business owner at the end of last year. They were time-poor but only needed a couple of clients to hit their turnover goal for the year. Only, they pulled a funky face at the thought of thought leadership.
When I dug into why, it turns out they thought it was lots of posting about themselves on LinkedIn and taking a bunch of selfies. This is not thought leadership. It’s nothing more than being irritating on LinkedIn.
Instead, good thought leadership looks like sharing your unique insights into your specialist subject. It can be some big deep articles that you spend time researching and creating. It can be putting yourself forward to podcasts, speaking events, and roundtables. Or it could be posting content on LinkedIn in the right way. Or many more options.
The benefit of thought leadership is that you inevitably stand out because you are saying something that not many other people say. It doesn’t take too much content creation but instead, the right kind of good quality content.
If you are going down this route, then you need a decent strategy behind you which pulls together the B2B content you do create into a content ecosystem that puts you forward as a thought leader.
You’ll also need to combine this with the right relationship-building so that you are in front of the best people for your business.
The downside of thought leadership is that it takes time. It’s not an overnight success (but then what is?) and you need to build your reputation. Creating deep, quality articles takes time. Pitching to get on stage or the right podcast takes time. Even when you’re on a roll, you still need to do hard work to leverage it into sales. But as a B2B content idea? It’s very much worth the effort.
SEO
Some may scoff at the idea of B2B SEO but I think this is a much-overlooked area where you can get ahead. People do search for B2B products and services. While they might not buy straight away, it can be an opener for conversations and trust-building.
The best bit about SEO for B2B content is that you get to think about what is driving your customer’s needs. Okay, they might not be sitting there wanting to sift through results pages for consultant options, but they might want to know how they can change team behaviours in their company.
Hitting some key problems that your buyer in the business needs to solve so they can look good at their job can go a long way to cementing your offer as the go-to when they are ready to buy.
SEO brings the leads to you. Although, I need to warn you that SEO alone won’t do this. You need the whole content eco-system in place. This isn’t about making someone jump through seven layers of selling before they speak to you, it’s about understanding their intent when they reach your SEO content and how you can convert that into a conversation.
Remember, you’re not trying to do everything here, you’re simply getting your future customer to a point where they need to have a chat with you. SEO can help with this.
Depending on your business, you want SEO content that is for top of the funnel, where they are first discovering you, and also the bottom of the funnel where they may be deciding between you and another supplier. Each of these needs different kinds of content.
The great part about SEO for B2B is that you’re also creating lots of great content for your website. Don’t assume SEO is all about the copy (although a lot of it is), it’s also about videos, digital PR, and the technical set-up of your website.
All of this combined, will bring people to your website and help build a picture of your expertise in the area.
White papers
I love a good white paper. These are longer articles packaged up to look pretty, with helpful stats for your ideal customer. They give your website visitor something to download. A white paper also gives you something of value to share on LinkedIn or wherever you do your online networking.
The key to a good white paper is to think first about the message you want to send. What is the outcome you want your reader to take away? Usually, it’s how a particular offering you have will help them.
Then, work backwards to look at what advice they need to take action. For example, I worked with a sampling company that wanted to demonstrate how samples could be used to sell products online. The end audience – food and drinks companies – all wanted to make waves on TikTok, so the white paper became about how to leverage user-generated content on TikTok to create brand awareness.
The paper had five case studies which examined five different ways you could use TikTok. Everything was backed up with stats and eventually led back to using samples to create each campaign type.
It also had call-out boxes on how to leverage the coverage to get the most out of the investment.
The other benefit of white papers is that they can often give you an excuse to get on the phone with your potential buyers. Your white paper needs original research. Getting quotes or insights from a few key people will add depth and colour. Plus, you’re building those important relationships without selling to them.
Research studies
Much like white papers, research studies make great B2B content. In the same way, you need to think about what you want to get out of the study and what your potential customers can get out of it.
Every year, Orbit Media do a state of blogging report. Every copywriter looks forward to this report because it is full of juicy stats they can use in their content. I imagine marketing departments across the world are waiting to find out what the ideal length of blogs should be and the data on how long most writers take over them.
For Orbit Media, the report gets its brand across multiple sites and builds backlinks to the original research. This, in turn, is good for their SEO and their positioning. As an agency, being in the inboxes of most marketing managers is like sitting in front of a child with a tray of free sweets.
Research studies do take time but if you put in the effort, they are one of the best B2B content ideas for your business that will keep paying dividends for years.
Infographics
Infographics are a great way to share B2B content. These can simplify complex ideas – such as the benefits of your service – and make them easily accessible. An infographic on how your service works can tell the story far quicker than a few paragraphs. Plus, lots of us are visual learners and we read images faster than we do text.
Infographics also have multiple uses in blogs, webpages, white papers, LinkedIn posts and newsletters. Plus, they are very shareable, which helps get your company name out there.
I’ve touched on LinkedIn a couple of times but this is the place to hang out if you want to get B2B customers. LinkedIn is deserving of its own blog but for now, a few tips to get you going.
I’m not going to wheel out some rules of post types on here. Instead, start with what you’re comfortable with. Prefer writing? Create text-based posts. Not keen on posting, make sure your profile is polished up and start commenting on posts. Prefer to have private conversations? Start upping your DM game.
LinkedIn has the potential to soak up a lot of your time for little reward so use it with care. Make sure you know what you want to get out of it when you go in.
For example, do you want to build connections with a particular company? Make sure you research the person properly first and understand what you want to say to them and what action you want them to take. No one likes conversations that lead endlessly into the distance any more than they do getting a sales message first. Instead, provide value (a white paper or piece of research is good).
It is worth using all the different kinds of content on there. That means photos, videos, articles, documents and more. Just make sure that what you create has a purpose and fits in with your content eco-system.
I recommend setting up some clear content pillars or talking points first. This will help direct what you post and can help create some great B2B content ideas. Remember, when you’re selling B2B, you don’t always need loads of clients but a select few partners.
It’s also okay to share your personality. Along with your service, potential customers need to build a relationship with you. I’ve had more than one client come to me because I made them chuckle on LinkedIn. Remember, it’s not about you, it’s about them.
Personalised content
Personalised content is not sharing a bunch of selfies. It is making content specifically for key people. One of my favourite ways to do this is making a personal video to a potential client. You can do this easily on Loom or Bonjoro. It shows you care about their custom.
Having B2B content that you pull out specifically for certain people and making it personal to them should be core to your content marketing plan.
Some other ideas include sending them specific DMs or emails, creating a personalised PDF, or creating a specific thank you page. There is a lot you can do with personalised links where it automates their name and other details on the landing page.
Make people feel special and they will be happy.
Email Marketing
Your email list should be a great source of leads for your business, if you treat it right. That means nurturing leads and spotting when someone is interested. There should be two things happening within your email marketing: automation that onboard new subscribers and a regular email.
How regular you make that email is up to you. There are no rules to B2B email content but my best recommendation is to treat your email like a magazine. It’s okay to have some promo content in there but don’t make the whole newsletter about you. Instead, think about how you can support and entertain your readers. The best kind of newsletter is one that people look forward to reading.
Sending emails is only part of the email marketing story. You also need to understand how your subscribers are interacting with those emails. Got some super fans? Maybe its time to send them some personalised content.
How do you make B2B content interesting?
There is no such thing as a boring business, only boring content. If you want to make your B2B content interesting, think of ways you can use your knowledge to entertain. Have a look around at other businesses that do content well. Bonus points if they are in your field of work.
It is always about knowing your customers and understanding what they will enjoy. And if you’re still stuck, there are plenty of good ideas in this article on how to make blogs more entertaining.
How do I create a B2B content plan?
You create a B2B content plan in the same way you’d create any other content plan. Start with working from your strategy, then look at what you have to get done and what you’d like to get done. You’ll also want to consider how you’re re-purposing your content so that you get the most out of it.
I’m a bit against sharing tech advice for content planning as everyone works in a different way. I use a simple spreadsheet for most of my customers, with the odd one or two on Zoho, Trello or ClickUp.
It’s not so much about getting the right content planning system but more about getting the right habits in place so you deliver on that plan. If you need more help with a content plan, read this content planning article here.
Need help with your B2B content?
Yep, I can do that. I suggest you book Virtual Brew with me and we can have a chat about your business and what you need.