how business content is shared and content marketing best practices

The Leader in B2BMulti-Channel

Content MarketingReach, Technology and Expertise

How Content is Shared and Content Marketing Best Practices

The Leader in B2B Multi-Channel Content Marketing04/10/2023 2

Summary of the CMO Council’s and NetLine’s survey on “The Content Connection to Vendor Selection”

Agenda

The Leader in B2B Multi-Channel Content Marketing

CMO Council and NetLine Survey

04/10/2023 3

Completed 3/2014Surveyed 352 business buyers across 30 verticals.23% from companies over $1B in sales10% from companies between $500M and $1 billion in sales32% from companies from companies between $50M-$500M in sales 36% from companies under $50MThe goals was to better understand how content was used to make significant B2B buying decisions.

* 2014 B2B Content Marketing Trends - CMI


Content Marketing Overview

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According to the CMO Council’s recent study, 88% of business buyers say that online content has a moderate to major influence in vendor selection. What sources of B2B content are most valuable in shaping purchasing decisions?

Content is shared.o How many people share content? o How is it shared? Through “Content Sharing Circles”

The Leader in B2B Multi-Channel Content Marketing04/10/2023 5

Content Sharing Circle #1 – From the middle out – 35% of respondents

The challenge with this content sharing circle is:

How does a marketer write to grab the attention of the middle manager while still making the content relevant to the C suite and lower-level influencers?

Content Sharing Circles



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Content Sharing Circle #2 – From the bottom up – 30% of respondents


How does a marketer write content and attract influencers which give enough detail while still making it relevant to upper management?



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Content Sharing Circle #3 – From the top down – 29% of respondents


Getting the attention of the “top”.Providing links for the lower levels to see more detail.



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Content Sharing Circle #4 – Failing to share – 6% of respondents


How does a marketer reach all levels of the organization?

Content Sharing Circle Summary: A single piece of content can reach far beyond the person who downloads it.


Content Consumption Personas

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Persona #1: The Researchers – 42% of respondents

Grazers and Sharers – 32% of respondents

• They influence the evaluation stage of the buying journey

• They read research reports, technical specs and trade publishing sites.

• They have also have a greater tendency toward software demos and use cases.

Hunters and Gathers – 10% of respondents

• A rare breed of researcher whose role is to research content. They do not consume the information for their own insight.



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Persona #2: Influencers – 29% of respondents

Critical Contributors– 25% of respondents

• More strategic than researchers• Look for content based on specific time of need• Move the buying process from evaluation to purchasing• Research reports and studies are used for this group,

blogs are rarely used here.

Informed Influencers – 4% of respondents• They don’t have budget authority • Look for bite sized content• They like analyst intelligence and insights



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Persona #3: Decision Makers – 29% of respondents

Decision Drivers – 23% of respondents

• They are looking for industry trends and best practices

• They look for broader solutions• Research reports and studies are most important

Authority Leaders– 6% of respondents

• They read content but don’t research their own content

• More influenced by peers than their counterparts


Other Content Marketing Insight

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Online content has a big influence in identifying, qualifying and selecting vendors. (You knew that)There are 3 essential factors driving customers’ need to seek information:

• Learn about best practices and new developments• Discover new solutions that address a specific problem• Address a project being undertaken by the company.

The most valued content is research reports with tech spec sheets second in value.Different content works differently in different parts of the sales funnel. Research reports are more applicable to awareness while data sheets are more applicable to the purchase stage. (You knew that too)


Other Content Marketing Insight

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Your website may not be the prospect’s first research site.

• 68% of content sourcing is done through search engines and portals.

Sharing circles share content not only digitally but also in-person through meetings and presentations.Focus on the sharing circle, not the job function

• The person’s title doesn’t always equate to their purchase authority or influence

The “selling” approach is not the most effective content technique. Business buyers want to know best practices, competitive differentiation and setting the strategic agenda.

The Leader in B2BMulti-Channel

Content MarketingReach, Technology and Expertise

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