Like all other industries, marketing is evolving and changing. The global pandemic has a big impact on these changes, taking away from some companies and adding to others. Research among businesses has shown that many companies played their cards right on content marketing last year and will continue to do so in 2022. In part 5 of our newsletter on behalf of Bystro, we've put together 5 tips for B2B content marketing in 2022.
Video works the most
According to the research, viewers retain 95 percent of the message when watching a video compared to just 10 percent when reading text. Video can increase brand awareness, but it can also explain how your company's products work in a very simple way. Consuming video has been more popular for several years. With the advent of the pandemic of everyone spending more time online, this trend has accelerated. Of course, the foundation of successful marketing is knowing the audience you are targeting, and not just with video. What should a video look like to engage? The recipe is seemingly simple: effects, animation, colour, a reasonable amount of text, a story that engages. Because even in B2B marketing, it's important to remember that you're targeting people.
Changing communication with the audience: empathy marketing
The days when the only goal of advertising was the hard sell are long gone. Companies invest in marketing to increase credibility and brand awareness. Communication should be responsive. If your company is doing well because of a pandemic, it doesn't necessarily mean your clients are too. So show primarily their successes that you are helping them to achieve. Incorporate empathy into your messaging, look at the world from the potential client's perspective. Every company is its employees. Not bricks. It is imperative to communicate with people. Be careful not to be unnecessarily emotional. It smacks of manipulation and discouragement. When content entertains and educates, you come across as an approachable professional.
Where to present yourself?
Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all guide on how to choose the right social network and how to communicate on it. However, it is always important to be where your target group or audience is. If your business is to have a future, it needs to reach out to the younger generation. According to surveys, people born after 1990 make decisions primarily based on their social media presence. For example, 96% of marketers use LinkedIn for their B2B content marketing. For sponsored posts, LinkedIn also comes first. Research has even confirmed that 80 percent of users of this social network drive various business decisions. But before you get into content marketing, it's a good idea to know what you want.
Outsourcing content marketing
Outsourcing in the world of marketing means that you leave some or even all of your marketing activities to a professional external company. While 55 percent of companies in the B2C sector use agencies for content marketing, the figure is as high as 84 percent in the B2B sector. Why is that? It's significantly cheaper. The work that a marketing agency does for you would be done in-house by a fairly large internal team. A team that you have to look after, pay their salaries, training and workshops. Whereas when you outsource your marketing to specialists, you start getting value for your money from the first penny you spend. The right agency will deliver you quality content and most importantly on a regular basis, which is the most important thing for content marketing. In these outsourcing firms, they already know what works and have the necessary technology, while giving you a new perspective and choosing the right way to communicate with your audience.
How to make your employees ambassadors of your company?
Employees are the foundation of any company. They are creators, problem solvers, innovators, but they can also be ambassadors. This is the path chosen by Iskraemeco, a leading company in measurement products, systems and services. Thanks to their employees on LinkedIn, they have increased brand awareness and are constantly creating a company-wide story. But how did they manage to get employees excited about this activity? The answer is simple: they showed people how important not only personal but also corporate branding is for their careers. They also recommend management involvement and prepare training and workshops for employees who join the programme. The company currently has nearly 60,000 followers and 500 employees on its LinkedIn profile.
And if you need help with content marketing for your brand, don't hesitate to contact us.
