If you’re like the 81% of B2B companies today who include blogging as a content marketing tactic, you may wonder if you’re executing it effectively. It is entirely possible to post regularly for years with no appreciable results. Writing B2B content takes not only time, but strategy and skill.
I have seen blogging evolve since it first went from a hobby to a legitimate marketing strategy. In order to see true business growth from blogging, a company must approach it the same way they do other marketing efforts – with a strong understanding of the buyer’s journey, backed by data. Below are the most important – though not the only – considerations for an effective business blog.
1. Provide Value
Above all, your content must provide value for the reader. Infuse your article with the right mix of educational content, and industry expertise, that they can’t get elsewhere. Draw upon your internal subject matter experts to share new insights. Then, back up the information with data. Graphs and statistics reinforce your credibility and help the reader quickly grasp, and remember, your key points.
2. Address Common Pain Points
Effective inbound marketing requires that you know what challenges your audience faces each day. B2B clients will lose interest if you talk only about your products and services all the time. Instead, offer a unique perspective on the issues they encounter. For ideas, use tools like Google Search Console to see what people are searching for, and craft ideas around the questions you find there.
3. Link to Supporting Information
Backing up your information with authoritative sources boosts your credibility to both humans and search engines. These could be external sources or your own, internal, content. Lead the reader to previous blog posts or pillar pages to keep them on your site longer. Over time, remember to revisit older posts and link them to newer ones.
4. Avoid “Keyword-Stuffing”
Gone are the days of including your keywords in every other sentence of your post. Today, your SEO efforts should be invisible. Research long-tail keywords relevant to your industry and include a mix of branded, and non-branded, keywords that flow naturally. It helps to start by identifying your keywords before you choose blog post topics, not the other way around.
5. Make it Skimmable
Although long-form content seems to be having a moment, you might find that short posts perform better with your audience. More important than word count, however, the reader should be able to skim your article to find exactly what they want. Use numbered lists, bullets or other visually distinct formats. In addition, minimize industry jargon and long, complex sentences. Make the experience easy on your readers.
6. Lead Them to the Next Step of Their Journey
The ultimate goal of B2B content marketing is to convert visitors to customers, so point them in the right direction. Conclude each post with a clear call to action, such as to buy a product or contact the sales team. Think about the reader’s current position in the marketing funnel, then lead them a little further through it.
Content marketing takes time to yield results, so measurement will be ongoing. Still, without quality content that your audience wants to read you will spin your wheels. Developing strong B2B blog content requires effort, and a little patience, but it can pay off with loyal customers and plenty of web traffic.
Kevin Hourigan is the President and CEO of Bayshore Solutions. For more than 24 years, his company has provided clients with digital solutions that grow their businesses. To contact Kevin, please email [email protected].
