People want content. Brands are committed to delivering it. However, 58% of B2B marketers still believe they are ineffective at content marketing. Why? Because content marketing needs to meet brand, lead-gen and customer acquisition goals. How? By practicing active rather than passive content marketing. This slide deck covers: - The current state of content marketing - Active vs passive content marketing - A/B testing "framing content" for higher conversions - The fair exchange of content - How to capitalize on blogs, white papers, webinar & blogs for lead generation & brand building Plus, 9 creative tactics for driving more leads from your content marketing.

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What's Inside?
• The current state of content marketing
• Active vs passive content marketing
• A/B testing "framing content" for higher conversions
• The fair exchange of content
• How to capitalize on blogs, white papers, webinar & blogs
for lead generation & brand building
• 9 Ways to turn content into conversions
• Lots of examples!

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the current state of
content marketing

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93% of B2B companies use content marketing.

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On average, 30% of B2B marketing budgets allocated to
content marketing.

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58% of B2B marketers plan to increase their content
budget in the next 12 months.

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Brand awareness, customer acquisition & lead-gen cited
as top content marketing goals.

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42% of B2B marketers believe they are effective at content
marketing.

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the problem?

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42%
58%
58% are still ineffective

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why?

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Create amazing
content
Distribute
amazing content
???
Brand, leads & sales.
What happens next?
some content
marketing
programs look
like this….

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content
marketing is
huge.
content
marketing
needs goals.
key takeaways

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Answering the "what happens
next"? question is the difference
between passive and active
content marketing

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passive active
Allows visitor to choose their own
next step
Gives the visitor a next step
Builds brand awareness & thought
leadership
Deepens brand engagement &
participation, provides measurable
results
Generates website traffic Generates leads & sales
"Publish-and-pray"
Tests & optimizes "framing
content" to increase conversions
Passive vs Active Content Marketing
Read more: Passive vs Active Content Marketing

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passive active
Allows visitor to choose their own
next step
Gives the visitor a next step
Builds brand awareness & thought
leadership
Deepens brand engagement &
participation, provides measurable
results
Generates website traffic Generates leads & sales
"Publish-and-pray"
Tests & optimizes "framing
content" to increase conversions
Passive vs Active Content Marketing

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Think of "framing content" as the merchandising of the content

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Landing Page Framing Content
Microsite format
provides easily
digestible
information
"Our Promise To
You" builds trust &
credibility
Student video
testimonial provides
excellent social
proof
Supporting
content
focuses on
benefits,
not features

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A/B Testing Framing Content
Headline
Imagery
Copy
Video/
testimonial
Form copy
Trust
assurances
Navigation
& additional
content

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The perception of what's required
can never be greater than the
perception of what's offered

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the fair exchange of content
the perceived value of the content is
proportional to the effort require to acquire it
16-page white paper 5 field form

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conversion-focused content marketing fails
when the fair exchange is imbalanced
Product guide
Should
be left
'ungated'

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To Gate or Not to Gate?
Maybe
Blog
Checklist
Tip Sheet
Case Study
Brochure
Data Sheet
Live Demo
Live Webinar
Research
Report
Coupon
eBook
White Paper
Webinar Playback
Recorded Demo
yes no

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3 rules of effective
gating

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Rule #1: Differentiate gated content visually
Gated asset is
visually prioritized
over ungated assets
Ungated assets are
consistent in design,
placement & style

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Rule #2: 'Feature' gated content
Gated content is
visually separated
from ungated content
Categorized as
'Featured Resources'

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Rule #3: A/B Test landing page framing content for higher conversions
Test framing content in various
page layouts — form on
bottom, form on right, etc.
Test
presentation of
e-book, white
paper or guide
Test social
sharing elements

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9 ways to turn
content into
conversions

29. 1. Up sell on your blog
Objective: Lead-gen

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Rule #1: Related content must be highly relevant
Highly
relevant to
blog post
Highly
valuable offer
Low barrier
to entry

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Rule #2: Use framing content for relevance
Highly
relevant to
blog post
Great use of
framing
content
Benefit-
driven offer,
clear call-to-
action

32. 2. Offer nurture subscription on your blog
Objective: Lead-gen

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Rule #1: Provide highly valuable incentives
Consistency in baking "theme"
from blog post to offer
"Exclusive"
membership
offer (free!)
Coupons and
free samples
are highly
valuable
incentives

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Rule #2: Offer more great content — more than the blog
Copy clearly
outlines
breadth of
content
Clear
headline
Concise call-
to-action

35. 3. Cross sell
Objective: Lead-gen

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Rule #1: Make the CTA highly actionable
ebrochure
landing page

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Rule #2: Continue to offer & engage
landing page
white paper
infographic
landing page

38. 4. Provide a white paper teaser
Objective: Reach + Lead-gen

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Rule #1: Make the extract meaty enough to create desire for
additional content
Up sell to "bonus
content" (.pdf file)
Allows for easy
sharing & social
distribution
"Top 10" format
extremely popular
and easy to digest

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Rule #2: Try tabbed or microsite format
Tabbed, interactive
content is highly
effective at engaging
visitors to explore
Up sell to 'Get
Quotes' from landing
page
.pdf version available for
download

41. 5. Add CTAs into your infographics
Objective: Reach & Lead-gen

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Rule #1: Offer must be complimentary
infographic
landing page

43. 6. Allow for easy "sharing" of infographics
Objective: Reach

44. Social sharing

45. 7. Try a webinar trailer
Objective: Reach + Lead-gen

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Tip: Extract reel trailer of key moments — elicit desire
landing page
webinar trailer
free trial sign up

47. Gate or Ungated Playback
Gates can work…

48. 8. Use slides as bait
Objective: Reach + Lead-gen

49. Tip: Embed "sneak peek" of webinar slides — engage &
convert

50. 9. Use slide decks to generate leads
Objective: Reach + Lead-gen

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Rule #1: Offers within slide decks must be highly relevant &
valuable
landing pageslide deck cross-sells white paper

52. Bonus! 1-2-3 Punch
Webinar, slide deck & infographic
Rule #2: Keep same
topic, but market for
distinct purposes
virality
lead-gen
virality & lead gen

53. Bonus! 1-2-3 Punch
White paper, free trial & infographic

54. Rule #1: Use your landing page to
present multiple offers
landing page
infographic
free trial
offer
report
offer

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9 ways to turn content into conversions
1. Up sell on your blog
2. Offer complimentary nurture subscription on your blog
3. Cross sell
4. Try a white paper teaser
5. Add a subscription call-to-action to infographics
6. Allow for easy sharing of infographics
7. Try a webinar trailer as lead-gen bait
8. Use slides as lead-gen bait
9. Use slide decks to capture leads
Read the full article: 9 Ways to Drive More Leads from Your Content Marketing

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Two additional resources...
Get the idea book
Get the infographic

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Thank you!
@ioninteractive
info@ioninteractive.com