10 Tips to Make Boring B2B Content Interesting

How exactly are you supposed to make derivatives sound fascinating? Or make iron & steel news go viral? You dream of hearing the words 'funny' and 'compelling' said about your blog post but in the end you've got to talk about a software that exists to increase operational efficiency! Let's face it - maybe you will never have thousands upon thousands of social media followers on your company pages. Those dreams of going viral will have to be hugged tight, put on a raft and gently pushed out to sea. But here's the thing - B2B content can definitely be made interesting - the point to note is that it must be interesting for the intended audience!

It is absolutely essential to have a good understanding of the target audience. Start with building buyer personas - listen to them, know their goals, challenges, pain points and how your B2B product can resolve their challenges. What are the information sources they trust? What does their day look like? How do they arrive at the decision to buy your solution? From listening flows understanding. Use this information to create content that is relevant to your target audience.  

Here are 10 tips to make your B2B content look like a million bucks:

Make the content relevant - Ask your sales and client services teams for the questions they face most frequently from prospects and clients. Write content that addresses those questions

Use Humor - especially the self-depreciating kind. It makes for far more interesting content and a brand that doesn't take itself too seriously appeals more to people

Don't use unnecessary jargon - Even for a technical product, the content is being consumed by humans and design it as such. Don't fill it with unnecessary jargon to impress your audience. Make the writing style simple as far as possible

Use different content formats - Employ a mix of videos, blogs, webinars, case studies, interviews, white papers etc. in your editorial calendar instead of churning out the same content type every time

Be topical - Stay on top of industry news and updates and create timely content, it always performs better

Create bite-size content - Make sure your content mix includes some bite-size content pieces such as infographics, quizzes, and surveys. These are highly shareable, often interactive, quick to consume and get much higher conversion rates.

Don't just write about yourself - This may seem obvious but it's amazing how many B2B companies still push out content that is only about their own services, updates, launches and events. Even when writing a product factsheet, remember this: Focus on benefits more than features

Have an opinion - Be opinionated. Don't be afraid to take a stand, even if it is sometimes controversial. If you are trying to please all parties all the time, it makes for very bland content and one that does not work.

Add screenshots and videos - Adding product screenshots, images and videos helps your prospects get a better understanding of your

solution. It also makes the content easier to read by breaking up long text passages

Have a personality - Think about your brand personality and create a distinctive voice when writing content. Stay consistent with this voice or writing style. Reflect the brand personality in other ways like posting behind-the-scenes videos, and having blog authors instead of a nameless, faceless company blog

And Now For Some Inspiration.....

Here are a few real-life examples of B2B companies that are doing content right. I could even come close to using the words compelling or funny....

1. Sungard - Sungard is an IT services company that provides cloud, application management, IT consulting and other really exciting stuff. (Not). But they are a shining example of how to make content interesting.

Sample some blog headlines:- What do peanut butter cups and two IT industry leaders have in common?- Taming the dark side of Hybrid IT- Unexpected costs can give you a cloud hangover- The best way to improve your IT Disaster Recovery Plan: Hire a mom!

2. Monument Wealth Management - This is a financial advisory firm and boy does it stand out! Just look at their homepage

Here is a glimpse into their weekly commentaries:

- Does a bear whit in the soods?- Peace out, 2015- "Gee, Mr.Spicoli, I don't know."- So there is the Greece thing.....

This post was originally published on www.ideaswalla.com

To get help with your content marketing, contact us at swati@ideaswalla.com