Unlocking the power of content marketing – insights from an expert

In today's digital landscape, the mantra is clear: Content is king. But what does it really mean to harness the true potential of content marketing for your business? In this blog post we delve into the world of content marketing and how it can drive success for your company.

"Content that is not read, watched or listened to doesn't have any value at all"

To shed light on this vital subject, we turned to a seasoned marketing authority, Malin Sjöman, CEO of Crescando, a leading B2B marketing agency. With an impressive track record in B2B marketing, including extensive experience with both international enterprises and startups, Malin offers invaluable insights and expert guidance to elevate your content marketing strategies.

Malin, with the ever-evolving digital landscape, how do you see the role of content marketing in B2B businesses evolving, and what emerging trends should companies be prepared to embrace in their content strategies?

In recent years, we've witnessed a significant transformation in the B2B content marketing landscape. With the ever-increasing reliance on digital channels and the changing preferences of our target audiences, the role of content marketing has evolved to become even more integral to business success.

For example, video content is getting more important creating a more personal connection with the audience. Content distribution has evolved, encompassing social media, conversational marketing, alongside traditional SEO and activation in paid channels. And thought leadership content is now key, showcasing industry expertise and the willingness to support and guide potential customers, to build trust and credibility.

To remain competitive, B2B businesses must adapt their content strategies to align with these shifting audience preferences and market dynamics.

Following on that, how should businesses identify and target the right audience with their content? What strategies can help them create content that resonates with B2B buyers?

Make sure you understand your target audience, both in terms of companies (segments, Ideal Customer Profiles etc) and persons: buyers, users and other decisionmakers. Instead of trying to think this up, use the data you have at hand in your ERP, e-commerce, CRM and marketing automation solutions. Analyse your web traffic. And as far as possible, talk to you customers to understand what their challenges and needs are – what questions they ask and what type of support they are looking for during their customer journeys.

How important is content promotion in the overall content marketing strategy? What channels and techniques work best for promoting B2B e-commerce content? 

In a crowded media and sales landscape, it is important to make sure that your content actually reaches the audience it is developed for. Content that is not read, watched or listened to doesn’t have any value at all.

The best channels will always be the channels where your target audience is but I think any solid B2B activation strategy needs to include three components: Keyword optimization for your content – most likely complemented with paid search (SEM), email marketing and activities in social media – LinkedIn, Meta, TikTok, YouTube based on where you are most likely to find your customers (but never more channels than you can handle professionally).

Video content is gaining popularity. Do you think it's essential for B2B e-commerce sites, and how can businesses leverage video effectively to drive traffic?

I believe that video is an important component in the content mix, offering two strong benefits over written content. First, it offers a personal tough as we can showcase real people in videos in ways than written text cannot. Second, it serves as a good tool for explaining more complex concepts or products.

However, I don’t recommend replacing text with video but rather to complement it. People are different and have different preferences: some of us will always prefer a written text while others prefer to watch video!

So, content quality is crucial. How can businesses ensure their B2B e-commerce content is not only informative but also engaging and valuable to their audience?

1. Make sure that you start your content development from the customer angle and make sure you understand their needs and challenges. Talk about them – not yourself and your company! And when you do talk about your offering: make sure to focus on how you can add value.
2. Make sure to stay on message: it is easy to believe that we need to come up with new creative stories every quarter or even every month. This will only make the story-telling confusing for the people you are trying to communicate with. Instead, use your creativity to come up with new ways of sharing your message: try different formats and to share it in different channels.
3. Measure, analyze and evaluate – identify which content gets the most attention and what channels work best. Use the insights gained to enhance your strategies continually.
4. And do not produce more content than that you can be proud of the things you bring to market. It is better to have one brilliant piece of content than three pieces of junk.

Thanks Malin, as we conclude one thing remains abundantly clear: content is the keystone of success in the digital age. It's not merely a buzzword, but the fuel that powers audience engagement, trust-building, and ultimately, business growth.

Contact us if you want to talk more at curious@litium.com or reach out to Crescando at hej@crescando.se.