{"id":359,"date":"2012-01-09T14:36:51","date_gmt":"2012-01-09T14:36:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.write-angle.com\/thewritestuff\/?p=359"},"modified":"2012-01-09T14:36:51","modified_gmt":"2012-01-09T14:36:51","slug":"three-steps-to-great-b2b-content","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.write-angle.com\/thewritestuff\/three-steps-to-great-b2b-content\/","title":{"rendered":"Three steps to great B2B content"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Hot<\/a>
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

What is it about content, either online or off, that makes it great?<\/strong> More readable? Sometimes even viral? More specifically, how do you define these things in the B2B world?\u00a0 We asked a number of associates who are rarely at a loss for words or opinions.\u00a0 They were hard pressed to come up with a simple answer.\u00a0 Generally, their responses were variations of “I know it when I see it”.\u00a0 You know it when something grabs and keeps your attention.\u00a0 Maybe even inspires you to pass it along and share it with like-minded colleagues.<\/p>\n

Here are the must-haves as we see them<\/a>:<\/p>\n

First and foremost, it has to be reader-friendly.<\/strong> Which means more like USA Today <\/em>and less like package inserts of medical prescriptions. It also helps to use lively, vivid and engaging language. No business subject is boring by definition.\u00a0 It’s up to the content creator to find and articulate the hooks and angle(s) that make the ideas come alive and speak to readers on their terms. Hint: B2B subject matter inevitably deals with dollars-and-cents matters that matter<\/em> to business practitioners at any level.\u00a0 And the use of real-world examples is indispensable.\u00a0 Readers want to read about people just like them enduring the same challenges, frustrations and triumphs.<\/p>\n

It’s tailored to appeal to the hottest interests of people you want to reach.<\/strong> In other words, the interests that are trending from the standpoint of your customers.\u00a0 This is where much B2B content falls short due to a natural urge to tout your offerings and ideas from your<\/em> perspective rather than the audience’s. Resist this temptation because the reader’s POV is all that matters here.\u00a0 Doff your ego and don the mantle of empathy with your audience.<\/a> What’s your readers’ <\/em>most current persona<\/em>?\u00a0 What are their aspirations, concerns, fears of the moment?\u00a0 How do these values vary by customer segment?\u00a0 What is customer service saying about the latest trends based on the most recent inquiries and issues — and how can you cast the idea you want to convey in the light that best addresses them?
\n
\nIt advocates on the reader’s behalf. <\/strong> Great content reads the way the reader would have it written.\u00a0 It presents tips, guidelines, examples of do’s and don’t’s, and generally enlarges the understanding of all issues and subject matter useful to the readers’ ability to do their jobs. Ideally, it answers important questions before they even arise.\u00a0 But always from the standpoint of the reader.<\/p>\n

What is your team doing<\/strong> to create content that grabs and holds attention? <\/a> How are you reconciling your marketing content with the current “temperature” of your readership?\u00a0 Is it in or out of phase with the hot issues of the moment?\u00a0\u00a0 What are your plans in the new year for making your case studies, white papers and overall web site content more compelling and consistent with sales objectives?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is it about content, either online or off, that makes it great? More readable? Sometimes even viral? More specifically, how do you define these things in the B2B world?\u00a0 We asked a number of associates who are rarely at a loss for words or opinions.\u00a0 They were hard pressed to come up with a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,52,36,9,45,10],"tags":[14,210,26,38,48,17,212,6],"class_list":["post-359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-case-studies","category-content-marketing","category-content-strategy","category-online-content","category-outside-writers","category-website-content","tag-branding-content","tag-case-studies","tag-content-creation","tag-content-strategy-2","tag-contract-writers","tag-sales-minded-content","tag-white-papers","tag-writing-case-studies"],"yoast_head":"\nThree steps to great B2B content - The Write Stuff<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.write-angle.com\/thewritestuff\/three-steps-to-great-b2b-content\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Three steps to great B2B content - The Write Stuff\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What is it about content, either online or off, that makes it great? 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