How do you Prioritize Content Marketing in B2B?

I recently read an article that outlined some important considerations for leveraging your company's content for marketing purposes. My favorite highlights from the article are quoted below.

It can be extremely difficult not only to produce a good quantity of unique and valuable content but also to match it up to the right stage in the buying cycle. This is even more difficult for companies that have a lot of solutions, like Perficient does, or who want to target that content by industry, geography or other data points.

We break our content down into several types:

• Website Copy
• Blog Articles: We have four active blogs with over 30 people blogging on behalf of the company right now.
• Twitter & other social media content (Example: @Perficient)
• Whitepapers
• Webinars: both video replays and slide shows
• Video Content: in the form of tutorials, demos, interviews, panels, speakers, events, and more.
• Solution Sheets 
• Case Studies
• Podcasts / Audio Files
• Email Newsletters

It has been an ongoing effort to tag all of this content to appropriate solution-based categories and or target market segments in order to promote and leverage them in the right way for lead generation purposes. More importantly, in our industry, insights and techniques can become outdated very quickly, so keeping on top of these assets and updating them frequently is very important. 

Some of my goals as a B2B marketer involve taking this list of assets and doing just what the article referenced emphasizes is so important:

1. Make all unique content easily sharable - across social networks and via email.
2. Evolve the content experience from A) providing insightful value to the reader - to B) demonstrating the wealth of thought leadership at my firm - to C) solving a business need. 

If you work in B2B, what types of content are you prioritizing in your marketing efforts? Are you trying anything different from my list above? 

Highlights from "B2B Social Media and Content Marketing in the Sales Funnel." by Jeffrey Cohen:

Social media has expanded both the need and the reach of content.

One of the strengths of social media is to drive awareness of a company, product or service. Many B2B marketers set up Twitter accounts and Facebook Pages to promote product launches, trade show events and other company-centric ideas.

Content generated leads can be tracked in a company’s CRM system, along with the description of the content that drove the lead.

As buyers move into the consideration phase, they are looking for more than just product information. They are looking for solutions to business problems.

Customers are doing more online research before purchase than ever before, and are further in the buying cycle before they ever have a conversation with a salesperson. This makes it vitally important to have consumable content, easily available and shareable, to keep a company’s products relevant and appearing in search results.

According to a study by strategy consulting firm AMR International, the first and third priorities for B2B online marketers are lead generation (38%) and awareness (28%).

While the second priority in this survey was customer retention, an important online tactic, there is no mention of middle of the funnel marketing.

B2B marketers need to respond to the changing online environment and changing needs of prospects to make more information available on social platforms and in shareable formats

All social content needs to be created with two thoughts in mind. Does this show a prospect how their business need can be solved, and would they be willing to share this with other connections online?

4 Must-Attend STL Marketing Events in the Next 30 days - #SMCSTL

Note: I edited this post to "4 Must-Attend STL Marketing Events in the Next 30 Days" instead of "3" because somehow I thought the highly anticipated "State of Online Influence" event was next month, but in fact, it's next week, April 28th at Soulard Preservation Hall! 

---

As an involved and active board member for the Social Media Club and the Business Marketing Association in Saint Louis, I am very interested in local marketing events. My employer, Perficient, a national IT consulting firm based in Saint Louis, also hosts local events from time to time, and the one we have going on this week is a short breakfast seminar on how to make your website more user-friendly and sales-oriented. 

Additionally, tomorrow night, Social Media Club is bringing two renowned social media thought leaders and authors into town to give what's sure to be a priceless, entertaining and thought-provoking presentation at Lumiere Place (which guarantees a night of fun anyway).


Here's a rundown of three events going on over the next month that I deem a "can't miss". 
If you're attending any of these, let me know, and I look forward to seeing you!

Websites Speak Louder Than Words, from Perficient


What: A breakfast networking event and presentation about creating dynamic Web experiences with Microsoft SharePoint

When: Thursday, April 21st, 8:00 a.m - 11:35 a.m.

Where: Microsoft North Central District Offices, 3 City Place Dr., Suite 1100, St. Louis, MO 63141 

Why: Brad Nunnally (@bnunnally) is a local UX guru, and he'll be presenting alongside Aaron Sloman (@aaronjsloman) of Perficient. Aaron was a lead architect in Microsoft’s eBusiness team, building some of the largest eCommerce sites and customer portal properties on the Microsoft technologies.

Register / More Info

Follow Perficient's Saint Louis team on Twitter: @Perficient_STL

Social Media Club STL Presents: The Now Revolution Book Tour

What: Networking party, presentation and discussion from two nationally renowned social media thought leaders.

When: Thursday, April 21, 6 pm - 9 pm

Where: Lumière Theatre, 999 N. Second St. , Saint Louis, MO 63102

Why: Learn to take advantage of seven major shifts - from culture to process - that savvy companies of today need to adapt and thrive in a social business world. Amber Naslund (@AmberCadabra) and Jay Baer (@jaybaer) will explain these shifts with examples, useful tips, and actionable implementation advice, and they'll also talk about their book, The Now Revolution. This presentation (and the book) is appropriate for both social media professionals and executives, if there were ever an event to bring your boss to this would definitely be it.

Register / More Info

Also, follow the Twitter hash tag #SMCSTL before, during and after the event to get the scoop on what attendees are learning and observing.

Huge thanks to Armstrong Teasdale, Standing Partnership and Lumiere Place, without whom this event wouldn't be happening!

The State of Online Influence

What: The presentation features a panel discussion with St. Louis’ top online influencers and keynote speakers Matt Ridings from Tech Guerilla and Tom Webster from Edison Research.

When: April 28th, 3:00 - 8:00 pm

Where: Soulard Preservation Hall, 1921 South 9th Street, Saint Louis, MO 63104


Why: It's all about Saint Louis influential online marketers and influentials. How could you miss that? For the 2nd year in a row, Infuz is releasing its annual STL Index report on the state of social media activity in Saint Louis, and in conjunction they're offering a fantastic panel of speakers and excellent networking.

Register / More Info

Follow hashtag #STLi

What's Branding Got to Do With It? Solutia's Case Study and the Importance of Branding for the B-to-B Enterprise

What: BMA St. Louis May Marketing Masters Luncheon and Presentation

When: Thursday, May 12th, 11:30 am - 1pm

Where: Spazio, 12031 Lackland Rd, St. Louis, MO

Why: Strong brands, supported by proper mission, vision, values and positioning are nearly a mandate for some B-to-B companies that want to ensure that their suppliers have standards that match their own. 

Emily Bealke Parenteau, Director, Planning & Coordination at St. Louis-based Solutia, will talk about the re-branding of Corporate Solutia from brand research to new logo development to global launch. Mark Vogel, Senior Partner at Avant Marketing Group, will explain the importance of brand management in the b-to-b environment, but will explain its proven process of brand development and its proprietary “Living the Brand” training that focuses on making all employees in your organization true brand fanatics. 

Register / More Info

Follow BMA Saint Louis on Twitter: @BMAStLouis

Guy Kawasaki's new book...Keyword: Enchantment

Last night, I began reading Guy Kawasaki's new book, Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds and Actions . I was pretty impressed with what I learned in a short period of time. The book is chock-full of great tips for pushing forward your ideas and your projects socially. Whether you're an entrepreneur or just want to learn how to become more effective as a marketer with either your company's message or your own personal objectives, I think you'll benefit from this book. In one chapter, Guy talks about having a good handshake (dry, cool, firm grip and soft skin while looking directly in their eyes and smiling genuinely), and he emphasizes the impact one can have in interpersonal relationships by consistently making --not faking-- a true smile, and speaking in active voice, not passive.

Media mogul Richard Branson put it best when he said,

Guy's book captures the importance - and the art - of believing in an idea that delivers something entirely unique to the customer. The power of a really good idea to transform the marketplace and individual customer experiences is huge, and this book offers a wealth of insights to help businesses and entrepreneurs tap into that potential. -Sir Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group "

Until midnight tonight, when you buy Enhancement, you can get a copy of his previous book, Reality Check, for free.

If you know anyone who might like this deal, please point them to:

https://alltop.wufoo.com/forms/early-enchanter-offer/

Guy says: Sorry but I can only make this offer for copies bought from U. S. retailers, and we can only ship the Reality Check to U. S. addresses.

I decided to write this blog post about the book because I know so many marketers, small business owners and leaders who already like Guy for what they know abut him but might not have been given that tipping point reason to buy his latest book. Here's my vote: I think you should read it, and let me know what your greatest takeaway is!

Paid Advertising Less Effective in 2011

I thought this article had some fascinating stats regarding methods of online advertising and which ones can be more effective in driving clicks to your site. However, paid advertising can still drive brand impression benefits for you. Take a look at how social media has increased as a traffic driver.

Amplify’d from www.b2bbloggers.com

Trends And Strategies To Market Your Website In 2011

61% of adults say they still find websites using natural search results

The next biggest traffic driver is referrals

Paid advertising is now the least effective method of driving traffic to a website

The effectiveness of paid search advertising has dropped by 10% since only two years ago.

A mere 3% of surveyed adults say they visit websites from paid advertisements.

Social media marketing has been holding steady as a major traffic driver.  16% of adult internet users find websites through social media profiles and links.

20% of users who view a paid advertisement online choose to search for that website’s organic results before visiting the website.

Your paid ads aren’t worthless just because other forms of marketing are taking center stage.  Consider that your paid ads can offer you real-time analytic information along with their functionality as ads.  This analytic data is useful for improving all aspects of your campaign.

mpressions matter.  Just because your ads don’t seem to be driving clicks directly doesn’t mean they aren’t adding to the overall awareness of your brand.  Remember that many users now view search results after viewing an ad and then navigate to a website – focusing on multiple aspects of your campaign can help target these users.

Mobile marketing is of growing importance.  1 in 3 internet users under the age of 18 browse the internet at least once a week on their mobile phones.  Target these users to increase your success.

In Conclusion:  Additional Tips for Success Read more at www.b2bbloggers.com

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/btg27

Conversion Conference West 2011: Come See Me Present!

I'll be on a social media panel in San Francisco in less than 2 weeks at Conversion Conference West. I recently blogged about it.

I am very excited to hopefully meet Bryan Eisenberg (@TheGrok) and also Michael Summers (@ez2use) - both exceptional authors in the digital marketing space.

Here's the news release that the conference organizers put out recently, picked up by www.digitaljournal.com

Conversion Conference Keynotes Reveal Secrets to Delivering Revenue from Website Visitors, San Francisco, March 14-15, 2011

Conversion Conference, focused exclusively on increasing website conversion rates, is a must-attend event featuring keynotes by industry experts Tim Ash, Author, Landing Page Optimization (and Conversion Conference Chair), Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Author, Call to Action, and Always Be Testing, Michael Summers, Co-author, Creating Websites that Work and Andrés Amézquita, V.P. of e-commerce at Mattel Inc. Attendees also have access to a special guest keynote from Thomas Davenport, Author, Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning.

eet the leaders in the field and hear live landing page critiques, 20 educational sessions, 4 keynotes, book signings and have roundtable lunches with the speakers whose strategies and tactics are presented in practical how-to sessions, case studies and actionab

Meet the leaders in the field and hear live landing page critiques, 20 educational sessions, 4 keynotes, book signings and have roundtable lunches with the speakers whose strategies and tactics are presented in practical how-to sessions, case studies and actionable takeaways.

“Realizing the already-existing value from website visits is a board-room imperative when corporations have spent millions on driving traffic to their websites," says conference founder Tim Ash. "Conversion Conference’s expert speaker roster delivers the tools and expertise to their interactive teams.”

Other notable Conversion Conference speakers include: Mani Iyer (Kwanzoo), Patrick Bultema (CodeBaby), David Szetela (Clix Marketing), Erin Eschen (Perficient), Justin Rondeau (TemplateZone), Ole Bahlmann (SoundCloud Ltd), Raquel Hirsch (WiderFunnel), Steen Rasmussen (IIH Nordic), Howard Kaplan (Future Now), Lance Loveday (Closed Loop Marketing), Aaron Kahlow (Online Marketing Summit), John Cecil (Innovate Media), Todd Barrs (Webroot Software), Bob Garcia (Optimize), Khalid Saleh (Invesp), Rob Snell (Gun Dog Supply), Joanna Lord (SEOmoz.org), Darrell Benatar (UserTesting.com), Charles Nicholls (SeeWhy), Scott Brinker (Ion Interactive), Seth Berman (Blue Shield of California), James Niehaus (Symantec), Andrés Amézquita (Mattel Inc.), Joe Weller (RealNetworks), Justin Davis (Madera Labs), Pete Olson (Amadesa), Amy Africa (Eight by Eight), Chris Goward (WiderFunnel), Paras Chopra (Wingify), Eric J. Hansen (SiteSpect), David Rodnitzky (PPC Associates), David Szetela (Clix Marketing), Susan Weinschenk (Human Factors Int'l), Andre Morys (Web Arts AG), Byron White (Idealaunch.com) and Jeanne Hopkins (HubSpot). Read more at www.digitaljournal.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bsncn

I "Like" Your Brand; Now Let's Make a Deal

"Coupons! We want coupons!"

Small businesses, merchants, website owners - anybody with something to SELL - are you listening? Your customers want to connect with you on Facebook, but primarily because they're looking for a deal - a discount, a coupon, a freebie. Give them what they want, and they'll keep coming back, right?

This online survey by Ad Age/Ipsos Observer of 1,000 US adults and their digital media habits indicates that if you have something to sell to the average US adult, you need to be on Facebook. In fact, it wouldn't hurt for you to give some location based services a try, such as one of my favorites, Foursquare. Try offering coupons exclusively for fans of your Facebook page, and monitor your brand's mentions across social profiles to ensure a positive experience and speedy response and resolution of issues.

Amplify’d from adage.com

41% of respondents said they want to receive communications from marketers on Facebook -- more than double any other digital platform. One in three said it was their "preferred" platform

42% want better customer service, 28% sought branded games and only 22% care about customer news.

Nearly three-quarters of Facebook users have "liked" at least one brand on the platform and more than a third of users have liked six or more.

Coupons were also the main driver listed for users of location-based check-in services such as Foursquare, Gowalla, Facebook Places and others.

are driven by the game-like aspects

Some 40% said they use the services to keep track of friends or let friends know where they are and 15% are driven by the game-like aspects of earning rewards like Foursquare's badges

There are 241 million residents aged 10 and older in the U.S. and 149 million Facebook accounts, which are only open to those 13 and older. When you consider that the latest Pew data shows 79% of adults have internet access, you start getting to a point where saying "Everyone who is online is on Facebook" isn't that far off. Read more at adage.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bs8h7

Social Media Marketing for Conversion at "Conversion Conference 2011"

I am super psyched to be presenting once again at Conversion Conference West, 2011 in San Francisco. This conference starts on Monday, March 14th (agenda) and goes 2 days. I will be on a panel at 4:00 on Tuesday, March 15th (agenda):

Panel Discussion: Social Media Micro-conversions (S20)
David Szetela, Clix Marketing
Erin Eschen, Perficient
Justin Rondeau, TemplateZone
Ole Bahlmann, SoundCloud Ltd
Having a Facebook fan page and a Twitter profile are not enough. This panel of social media experts will teach you how effective conversation tactics can be measured by micro-conversions. Learn how to leverage the concept of the Viral Loop to develop leads that turn into new customers. Get the latest information on building and managing campaigns on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Yelp and how to elevate your social media efforts from basic brand building to sales & lead conversion.

I have often spoken of social media marketing as bringing, among other things, two very distinct opportunities to a business:

1. Building brand awareness, brand equity, reputation and reach -- all part of the same bucket of building your brand, as most people call it. Social media gives you an additional medium for messaging who you are and what you can do for your target market. It's a medium for finding and connecting with prospects, customers and advocates and building conversation and interest in your brand, your products and what you're all about.
2. Driving leads and sales. There is a big difference between A) someone who now knows your brand name or company, how you are positioned in your marketplace and what you sell (#1 above) and B) someone who is a hand-raiser - someone who says, "I not only know what you do and that you compete with X company, and that you sell Y products, but hey -- I'm interested in talking with you more about your products and seeing if I may want to buy them."

I believe that both #1 and #2 can be built via social media marketing investments. And getting more hand-raisers should lead to more leads and ultimately more sales in the long run.

Many social media strategists and also skeptics alike are publicly voicing doubt over social media's ability to convert. But I believe there's evidence to the contrary. And that's what I'll be speaking about. Join me at Conversion Conference West 2011 in beautiful San Francisco by the Bay!

Tim Ash of SiteTuners is the inspiring and fearless leader of this conference, and I'm excited to see that Aaron Kahlow of Online Marketing Summit series will also be speaking.
Lastly, the online advertising and e-commmerce guru with one of my favorite accents, Rob Snell of Gun Dog Supply and author of Starting a Yahoo Business For Dummies will also be presenting on Day 2.

Last year, I spoke about conversion in social media when the conference was held in San Jose.

Why Twitter is Your Path to Making New Friends

Biz Stone tweeted this article today and I found it to be an articulate explanation of why Twitter is so great for meeting new people of similar interests, while Facebook is all about connecting with, as Mark Zuckerberg has frequently said, "friends you already have."

Amplify’d from www.economist.com

Despite—and perhaps because of—the trivial and by necessity shortened discourse on Twitter, several friendships have blossomed, recently confirmed in person. That description may sound a bit bloodless, but Babbage turns his steely eye upon his own soul and motives, not just those of others.

Twitter enables the sort of chitchat impossible among strangers on email or instant messaging, and outside the scope of Facebook. Facebook's boss, Mark Zuckerberg, often describes his service as a way to connect with friends you already have. Facebook creates circles upon circles of acquaintance, but most conversation is among those already known to each other.

Twitter, however, is a different beast. The asymmetry of follower and followee creates a different rhythm, allowing the possibility of falling into conversation with an unknown someone without invading his or her space. It is a simple matter to ignore or block those who you find uninteresting. And people you know and trust outside the electronic realm lead you to their friends, colleagues and family. Likewise, you may be on the receiving end of tendrils of acquaintance. The shared set of relationships and communication among those you know vets new people for you and you for them. Read more at www.economist.com

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/aq2dv

IBM's Social Business Jam: Sharing social business insights online

I'm participating in IBM's Social Business Jam today on behalf of Perficient. It's an online event where many people working in social business come together and share ideas, insights, opinions and experiences. Here is IBM's description of it:

Connect and share your insights with thousands of subject matter experts from other companies, industry analysts and thought leaders in the area of Social Business. The Jam will continue for 72+ hours (ending Thursday, 11 February at 12:00PM Eastern Standard Time), so you can come and go as your schedule allows.

This Jam will provide valuable insights relevant to many roles including those in marketing, operations, human resources, IT and line of business executives. We encourage you to invite others from your organization and your network to join us. They can register at http://ibm.co/joinsbjam.

Today, one of the most active threads has been the one started by Lauren Walker of IBM asking the question: "Can you measure the ROI of social media?"

"How are companies assigning value to their social media activities? What is the measurement of "successful" social media for business?" she asked.

In a reply to one of the respondents, Lauren later referenced the ROI Pyramid put together by an Altimeter study here.

I thought I'd share my reply to Lauren's question and see what you all think?

Lauren, I did see that Altimeter report. I ended up copying a bunch of the slides and blogging about it recently: Three Goals of Corporate Social Media Strategy in 201

Thank you for sharing them here and commenting on the possibility of gauging ROI.

I believe it is very much possible to at least work toward tracking and measuring as many quantifiable metrics related to social media marketing and social business operations, and then using those to at least directionally understand if improvement (in internal collaboration efficiency, or in brand visibility) is happening, even if you can't gauge a true ROI from those metrics (i.e. actual conversions or sales).
With some types of businesses (Dell, for example, using Twitter to drive sales) it is providing a measurable and obvious ROI.

Regardless of whether you're selling actual products and can measure direct ROI or your sales cycle is 9 months long and you just won't know for a while how it pays off, do what you can to measure every metric possible and use smart tools to track progress.

From my experience, It's still worth playing in the space, understanding it and doing your best.

Most Consumers Prefer Traditional Contact with Brands over Social Media

Found this article today summarizing a report by Razorfish about how people interact with brands and what they are looking for in that brand interaction related to:

- Control

- Value

- Trust

- Efficiency

- Consistency

- Relevance



The report found that most consumers prefer traditional methods of connecting with brands, such as email or word-of-mouth over using Twitter of Facebook. This doesn't surprise me as Twitter & Facebook are much newer than email, however, it's worth a reminder to all marketers as we continue to evaluate the amount of time & effort we invest across channels and methods of connecting with our target market.



Here's a summary of the findings:

Amplify’d from www.mediapost.com

Most people still prefer to connect with brands through more traditional methods, such as email, company Web sites or word-of-mouth.

The goal was to look at customer-relationship management more from a consumer's standpoint than a marketer's to understand how people choose to interact with brands.

That's among the key findings from a new report from Razorfish titled "Liminal"

both the hipster who DMs a company on Twitter and a boomer who sends a letter in the mail both ultimately want the same thing. Thus, companies should worry less about building out numerous channels and touchpoints and more about ensuring each customer interaction communicates value," advised Razorfish.

Among the six qualities that define engagement -- feeling valued, trust, efficiency, consistency, relevance and control -- control ranked as the least significant among consumers. "Apparently, the consumer does not need to be in as much control as we thought, seeing other things as far more important," stated the report. Read more at www.mediapost.com

 

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/e0oQDf