By now, it’s clear that content is crucial to modern marketing: firms can make meaningful connections with prospects by delivering valuable and relevant information in compelling, engaging, and even entertaining communications. This is true for all B2B businesses, though effective content marketing doesn’t look the same in each industry.
In B2B technology, firms are often challenged with translating complex technical features into benefits that customers can understand and embrace. Not surprising then that content marketing has taken off in popularity as a marketing tool. In fact, according to the Content Marketing Institute’s 2014 B2B Tech Content Marketing report, 75% of the most effective tech marketers have a documented content strategy.
So what works in B2B technology? CMI’s report offers a lot of valuable insight. We were particularly interested to learn that technology marketers say webinars and videos are the most effective content formats they use. This makes sense, since these mediums are best suited for elucidating a complex offering or insight. Video in particular is an ideal vessel for B2B tech content: as a highly adaptable and shareable medium, it can be engaging, cost-effective, and informative to a wide-range of audiences.
While helpful in the sales process, the fact is that video client testimonials and case studies have become ubiquitous in B2B tech. They are must-haves for prospective customers, but they don’t necessarily make a brand or product stand out in a meaningful way.
Successful and memorable videos are those that align with the company’s brand and core value proposition while creating indelible moments that inspire and stick with audiences. Focusing on these types of emotionally-compelling stories often means producing a smaller number of videos. However, since they aren’t tied to a specific product or feature, these videos are evergreen and can often resonate with multiple audiences – both internal and external.
In today’s marketing landscape, content is the new creative, offering the opportunity to differentiate, make prospects smarter, and build meaningful connections. As video continues to rise in popularity (especially online), B2B tech brands will need to identify new ways to connect with audiences through the medium – developing and deploying video content that is unique and credible coming from them.
The CMI report covers a lot of content marketing ground – marketers’ goals, projected budgets, challenges – and B2B tech marketers will surely find value in its statistics.
In this post, we examine the second principle of branding technology firms (the first focused on an important distinction: simplification vs. dumbing down), adapted from our chapter on building long-term value in a system-update world in the Brand Challenge.
What’s the difference between return on investment (ROI) and return on emotion (ROE…
In this post, we examine the third principle of branding technology firms, in our on-going series adapted from our chapter on building long-term value in a system-update world in the Brand Challenge.
The proliferation of all things digital has transformed technology from a nice-to-have to a must-have for consumers…
Across all technology segments, commoditization of products seems to happen faster than ever. Large and renowned firms are encountering new contenders – companies that are younger, smaller, and nimbler – who can create very similar and much cheaper products. As these products become somewhat interchangeable, the market demands more sophistication – and firms need to look towards creating…