A common misconception people have is that content marketing is just writing a blog post here and there. Effective B2B content marketing does include creating blog posts, but it includes various other activities. The list of activities is pretty long, but we are only going to focus on the top 5 most effective content marketing activities for business-to-business firms.
1. Blogging
Writing and sharing blog posts remains one of the top B2B content marketing activities because it can be done quickly and consistently. Sharing useful and educational information on a blog helps your business build long-term relationships with current clients and potential clients. The best part is that implementing regular blogging is easy to do, especially if you have willing contributors on your team.
2. Social Media
When people discuss their content marketing activities, they often leave out social media. While social media can be a strategy all its own, it should be intertwined with the content marketing strategy. In addition to sharing blogs, articles, and guides on social media, a B2B content marketing strategy should also include curated content from other sources and content created specifically for social media. The social specific content pieces can include updates about what is happening in your office or in the industry in general.
3. White Papers, Guides, and eBooks
B2B content marketing is an investment, not an expense, for your business. By creating white papers, guides, or eBooks, you are creating valuable educational material that reinforces the value of your services with existing clients, educates potential clients while also building trust, and provides a useful tool for your sales team to move potential clients down the sales funnel. The biggest mistake we see content marketers make is creating selling pieces, not educational pieces. While the pieces can be used in the sales process, their main focus is to educate and they should be written objectively. Check out our latest B2B Branding Guide to get an idea for creating an educational piece.
4. Press Releases
Press releases wax and wan in popularity, but they are still a key part of a B2B content marketing plan. The first problem is that many people don’t know how to position a press release as a “newsworthy” article. Newsworthy means that it’s objective, interesting, and relevant. The easiest way to position a piece of content as newsworthy is by relating it to a current event. The second problem is that businesses expect their press release to go viral. The reality is that even getting one story or share from your press release is worthwhile since it can increase traffic back to your site and improve your brand awareness.
5. Web Pages
A website should not be something you build and then never update. While the easiest way to add fresh content to your B2B website is through blog posts, you need to refresh the static web pages as well. The updates don’t need to be major. While adding a new web page is ideal, even going through and updating the content on an existing page is a great step. An easy way to add a new page is to write an Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page to your website.
There are many other activities you can include in your B2B content marketing strategy, but these five are the top ones to include. Learn more about how content marketing works for B2B firms by reading our content marketing case study.
