Engaging a business
audience of One
Driving customer engagement with today’s
business community

A brave new business world
It’s difficult to imagine any landscape that’s changed more than
B2B in the last five years. Social platforms. Mobile connectivity.
Niche business media. Content as a sales source. Targeting
businesspeople as people.
In the pages that follow, the OgilvyOne thought-leaders
examine each of these game-changers and outline how you,
as a business-to-business leader in your industry, cannot just
survive, but must thrive.
3

Contents
Businesspeople are people too
Rob Morrison, Creative Director, OgilvyOne
7
How to deliver successful B2B leads via LinkedIn
Curtis Tracey, Neo@Ogilvy
11
Digital B2B – reaching a niche audience
Curtis Tracey, Neo@Ogilvy
15
B2B mobile marketing – three myths debunked
Emily Kelley, OgilvyOne
19
Social media ‘barely negligible’ as a sales lead:
you’re missing the point
Roger Christie, Social@Ogilvy
21
B2B guide to social media
Roger Christie, Social@Ogilvy
25
The seven steps to building a B2B content machine
Gordon McNenney, DT
27
5

Businesspeople are people too
Appeared in Encore/Mumbrella
Rob Morrison, Creative Director, OgilvyOne
First a confession: As a fresh-faced junior copywriter I once put a B2B concept in
front of my Creative Director which included a briefcase. It may even have had a
balding man wearing glasses dressed in a business suit. Yep, I played to the clichés.
I was young. And I was dumb.
The reality is that B2B customers come in as many shapes and sizes and colours
and genders as B2C customers. Why? Because they are the same people. Not
similar people. EXACTLY the same people.
Businesspeople go home. They have lives. They have things they love, things
they hate and things they’re ambivalent about. In short, they’re consumers too.
Other people say B2B decisions are strictly rational. That emotion has less
influence over choosing Brand A over Brand B. These people are called idiots.
Of course emotion is a key driver. There is nothing more emotional in your life
than your career. It affects everything. Make a poor decision at work and that
decision can follow you forever – ask Julian Assange or Nick Leeson.
When I first started in marketing there was a well-known expression: “No-one
ever got fired for buying IBM.” It doesn’t get more emotion-driven than that.
So how do we rediscover the humanity in B2B communications? I’ve written
five rules of emotional business.
Rule 1: People have egos
Businesspeople love to feel special. Give them something they can’t get anywhere
else. Talk to them in a way that’s sympathetic to their trials and torments.
One of my favourite pieces of communication of all time was sent to media
buyers from a Swedish newspaper group. They found the birth announcement
of each member of their target audience and sent it to them in a frame with a
line that simply said, “The First Media Choice”
.
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Rule 2: People prefer being shown
There’s a reason Tom Cruise shouts “Show me the money” and not “Tell me
about the money.” As a rule, demonstration ideas are always hardworking.
They engage your audience in a way that simply talking about your benefits
never will.
What do I mean by demonstration ideas? For example, there was a solar
energy report in Austria which was printed with solar-sensitive ink. You
could only read it in bright sunshine.
Rule 3: People like surprises
Businesspeople are acutely aware of what’s going on in their marketplace.
They know their customers and their competitors intimately – because there’s
comparatively few of them. So you need to work hard to surprise them.
But if you can, the results will follow.
DHL recently sent a wall calendar to customers where each page was split
either side of midnight – because that’s their working day.
Rule 4: People crave understanding
This is not a new technique. In the 1960s David Ogilvy talked about
getting the reader nodding. We now have more research, more insight,
more information than ever before. So let’s use it. Let’s demonstrate that we
understand our business audience’s pain points.
My favourite example of this is from the UK where a software company
sent a letter to IT managers printed on a dust cloth. The message was
“With our new security tools it may be a while between trips to the server
room.” What a brilliant demonstration that you understand them.
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Rule 5: People love being engaged
We live in a social age. Real time. Instant feedback. Shared content. In
the B2C world there are lots of examples of marketers using this to their
advantage. But there are far fewer examples in B2B. Why? Businesspeople
are just as likely to get involved if it’s something they believe in, or can help
them to be successful.
One of the few examples of this is the American Express ‘Small Business
Saturday’ program. Spotting that small businesses were struggling, Amex
declared a single day for residents of the US to ‘shop small’. The small
businesses themselves did all the heavy lifting, using everything from posters
and balloons to social media and content assets. It was helping their business,
so they got engaged.
Still reading?
If you’re still reading, then hopefully I’ve adhered to at least a few of these
B2B rules. Were you surprised? Understood? Engaged? I’ve clearly shown
you what I mean. I may even have pandered to your ego – unless you’re a
briefcase-carrying, grey-haired suit wearer (sorry about that).
All of which hopefully makes this article a clear piece of business
communication. And treats you as a person too.
9

How to deliver successful B2B
leads via LinkedIn
Appeared in B&T
Curtis Tracey, Neo@Ogilvy
Want to deliver a lead-generating campaign with content that the audience will
demand? Of course you do. It’s every marketer’s dream for their customer to
demand a conversation.
Social networks provide the platform for brands to build one-on-one
relationships. For a professional audience, no-one does it better than LinkedIn.
Here are three ways to use LinkedIn as a media provider and a social platform:
1. Building brand awareness to a niche audience
LinkedIn is unrivalled by its competitors in the B2B landscape for targeting.
No other channel can offer its level of granular audience targeting for display.
When running either display or InMail, businesses need to ensure they
understand what will be delivered. For large business solutions, it’s unrealistic
to expect identified prospects.
Advertising objectives should be set for awareness.
Cathay Pacific, for instance, employed a creative way of using LinkedIn’s
audience information. To help promote business travel from the US to Asia,
Cathay Pacific used LinkedIn targeting to segment the audience that belonged
to groups related to business travel in Asia. Display and poll ads were used,
targeting this specific audience. They achieved 97 recommendations on their
product page and 1,324 responses from business travellers.
For selling larger business solutions, LinkedIn presents other lead-generating
tactics that are unique to their platform.
2. LinkedIn Groups: building brand influence
The majority of companies have created a LinkedIn group. In some cases,
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companies will have 20 or more groups, each with only 10 members.
This becomes confusing for an audience interested in a specific topic.
Companies need to be smarter when creating groups, and if it’s not providing
value, take it down.
A group is a useful tool for influencers within your organisation to build
relationships with potential customers and for your sales team to gather
audience insights. Over time, groups have the potential to grow into important
tools that will establish your brand in the market as a thought leader.
To create a successful group, you need support within three areas of expertise:
Social marketer: He/she will put together a recommendation for community
management and resources for managing the group. If no resources are set
aside for social, it will be difficult to harness a productive discussion. Group
members will not stay without relevant and consistent interactions.
Media strategist: This is where your audience is going to come from. Don’t
expect your group to grow organically. To drive audience, you can run highly
targeted group promotion ads throughout LinkedIn. Without it you might
struggle to increase numbers and have an engaging conversation.
Content marketer: Some organisations have employed content marketers,
but if you do not have one, reach out to your agency for help. Content is
the staple of your group and it’s important to ensure that your influencers
are posting relevant and consistent content. Content is key to maintaining
and growing a successful group, therefore invest in resources for content
management.
IBM has recently created a group within its growth markets. Smarter Cities
Connect is an award-winning example of how best to use this environment.
Smarter Cities Connect developed into an always-on platform allowing
IBM’s sales and marketing team to gain insights from a very specific and
engaged audience. It also allowed them to invite these civic leaders to events
for face-to-face engagement. In just one year, the group grew to more than
12,000 civic leaders.
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3. SlideShare: A new environment for content distribution
SlideShare is a competitive platform for business decision-makers to discover
information about products/services and industry information.
SlideShare Ads are the first lead-generation offering from LinkedIn. The ads
promote your content through display media. This promotion can only use
PPT content, whereas SlideShare can host video and PDF, but this will soon
change as the technology develops. This is currently being tested in the US
but is available in the Australian market.
Remember what your core objectives are for your investment with LinkedIn.
If you want to help build awareness with a niche audience, LinkedIn is a great
environment to run your digital advertising. But if your expectations are lead
generation and sales enablement, then look to LinkedIn’s social capabilities.
After all, LinkedIn is one of the strongest social networks in the world.
13

Digital B2B
– reaching a niche audience
Appeared in Marketing Magazine
Curtis Tracey, Neo@Ogilvy
In a business-to-business environment, making use of reporting analytics is
a complicated process, writes Curtis Tracey, but the marketing and business
opportunities cannot be ignored.
There’s no doubt that the amount of data collected each year is growing
exponentially. It provides new opportunities – with web analytic tools – to
enrich digital advertising and increase the intelligence of each campaign.
Data can be used in myriad ways to discover the most effective methods to
convert your key audiences. But each opportunity presents new challenges.
One of the biggest for marketers always has been and always will be
accountability and ROI. Now more than ever it’s imperative to have an
ROI model in place that will help optimise digital and traditional media,
aiming for consistent quarter-on-quarter growth.
Furthermore, strong reporting metrics are key to proving digital marketing
success. It provides a true understanding of performance and how additional
business revenue has been achieved.
This is especially true for those working within a B2B context. As a B2B
marketer, it is crucial to ensure that the opportunity of ‘big data’ and the
benefits it creates for business are fully embraced. Marketers must make
fundamental changes to the way they have operated in order to take advantage
of the new media landscape.
There is now the opportunity to share and communicate with potential
consumers in environments where they are most receptive. Together with the
correct content strategy, this presents a chance to allow data and analytics to
drive performance and ensure content is cleverly targeted to the right place
at the right time. Additionally, the evolution of mobile is changing the way
potential consumers are undertaking business research, therefore presenting
huge opportunity for agencies and brands alike.
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The challenge
In Australia there are limited amounts of digital opportunities available to
B2B marketers. With limited targets it becomes imperative to ensure the right
environment is chosen to drive the most revenue for business. For example,
a particular publication may appear to be the most credible and have the
strongest reach. But, in fact, the people engaging with the content in that
particular environment may not be looking to make a purchase decision
at that stage.
Volume does not always mean quality. Therefore, using an intelligent trial
strategy will help identify which environment works best for a particular
brand or product.
When a digital advertisement produces an efficient cost per lead, a decision
to invest more in that channel can be made. However, first we need to consider
this: are the leads coming through driving business revenue or are the leads
going nowhere? Some publications will generate a higher cost per lead, but
if the potential customer is of higher quality it will result in an increase in
revenue. Some channels are excellent for driving volume, but their audience
may not be the right one for driving revenue. The only method to truly
report on lead generation is through use of a data analytic tool that can
connect the initial touch point with the consumer and track them through
a complicated journey.
To be able to prove ROI is the first step in developing a true digital
performance campaign.
Addressing the challenge
As a general rule, true reporting is more difficult with B2B clients. It is a more
complicated process to have a seamless reporting analysis, not to mention
receiving feedback from sales representatives. This is usually due to the
complexity of the user journey through to purchase.
With large-scale products and services valued at $100,000 and over, the
conversion process is most likely going to be taken offline. It may take more
than a month to convert the opportunity. Once the conversation is moved
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offline, there are several steps that need to be in place to report accurately. This
opportunity can start from something as simple as a click, following through
to a one-on-one conversation with a sales representative.
If the proper reporting is not in place, the marketing investment in digital
(along with other channels) will become a leaky bucket. You may be mining
for leads, but there will be little understanding of which channels are driving
the business objectives.
ROI models are unique to every business. Experience has shown that by
allowing a small amount of resources to set up an ROI model, it will yield
efficiencies within three months and ROI will increase through optimisations.
Staying up to date with methods of how potential clients are consuming media
and doing research is paramount. Mobiles and tablets are rapidly becoming
one of the fastest growing sources for business solution research for C-suite
clients. Solutions are now available for lead generation across mobile devices
as well as effective geo-location targeting.
Three must-dos in data for B2B marketers
1. Embrace data. There are many business analytics tools in the market
available to help optimise and analyse data. The right solution can vary
depending on the company’s product and the complexity of the customer
journey. Remember, data is your friend. It will result in more effective use of
marketing budgets and, over time, a stronger ROI.
2. Mobile and tablet. As trends quickly shift and smartphone and tablet
technologies rapidly change, it’s important to recognise the marketing value
and opportunities these devices present. Importantly, there are also additional
opportunities offered in mobile for B2B campaigns. ‘Click to call’ functionality
gives potential consumers the opportunity to have a one-on-one conversation
directly. Further, without a mobile-friendly site, a user’s first experience with
your brand could potentially be ruined.
3. Reporting and analytics. In order to use digital media to its full potential,
a strong reporting offering is a must. Any digital execution needs to be able to
provide an ROI for the business. Once a reporting process is in place, proving
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the effectiveness of digital as a channel is easy. Ultimately, this provides a
more successful B2B campaign and drives stronger ROI business results.
The traditional way to market to a B2B audience is rapidly changing. With
the evolution of data and analytics there is an opportunity to evolve digital
marketing to reach audiences in places and environments that were previously
not considered.
Business results are the most important metric, so don’t be afraid to prove
yourself with your investment.
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B2B mobile marketing
– three myths debunked
Appeared in B&T
Emily Kelley, OgilvyOne
B2B customers get a bad rap. They are thought to have distinctly inhuman
behaviours that the typical fun-loving marketer doesn’t quite comprehend.
And most agency types will push the B2B briefs to the backburner, choosing
to focus their efforts on the seemingly more exciting consumer briefs.
But why this trepidation when it comes to marketing to B2B customers?
There are a number of misconceptions about B2B customers; they’re behind
the times, they’re safe, they don’t like creative creative.
These misconceptions are having a detrimental impact on the effectiveness
of B2B marketing campaigns, particularly as communication platforms and
customer behaviour evolves. And nowhere is this more evident than in mobile
marketing activity.
So what are these misconceptions about the elusive B2B customers and their
mobile behaviour that are holding marketers and advertisers back?
Myth 1: B2B customers are laggards – we’ve got plenty of time to optimise
our communications activity for mobile.
Reality: Your email and web metrics have been inexplicably on the decline,
despite what should be an obvious negative correlation between your
customers’ mobile usage and campaign performance. The majority of the
B2B audience is relying solely on their mobiles to view emails while they’re on
the go; they’re adopting mobile search at a rate much faster than the uptake
seen for desktop searches; and they’re visiting your website from their mobile
devices at a surprisingly rapid growth rate. If you haven’t already started
improving your customers’ journey from mobile devices, then now is the time
to get started.
Myth 2: B2B customers don’t consume content like consumers – after all, they
are making serious decisions about serious matters and therefore our content
needs to be weighty and serious.
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Reality: Your customers do leave their offices. But, like you, they don’t always
leave their work behind. So they are continuing to think, plan and be inspired
about work – even when they’re not at their desks. Time-pressed, they’re often
consuming business-related content while they’re away from the office, and
this content is increasingly being consumed from mobile devices. And you
know how you don’t sit down after dinner to read a lengthy PDF from your
tablet while you’re watching The Voice? Neither do B2B customers.
So consider rich, engaging content formats that may distract your audience
from Ricky Martin.
Myth 3: B2B customers progress from research to buying in a completely
linear fashion.
Reality: Er, no. And once you add mobile to the mix, the journey
becomes even more convoluted. It also becomes much more difficult to
control. Retargeting becomes next to impossible. An email scanned from a
mobile handset rarely gets followed up when the customer is back at his or
her desk. However, if managed correctly, the customer journey aided by
mobile is arguably faster. Mobile behaviour is generally more action-oriented.
If there are tactics in place to effectively manage customer progression
from mobile devices we can capitalise on a customer’s specific need.
For example, mobile-friendly emails with clear CTAs, click-to-call SEM,
and mobile-optimised websites improve the customer experience and
allow them to take an action immediately.
If you haven’t put a plan in place for optimising your marketing for mobile
devices, you need to stop making assumptions about your audience and start
looking at your communications’ performance. More than likely, you’re seeing
a sharp decline in metrics. In order to capitalise on the evolving customer
behaviour, it is critical to act now.
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Social media ‘barely negligible’
as a sales lead: you’re missing
the point
Appeared in Marketing Magazine
Roger Christie, Social@Ogilvy
Not long ago, a research report from Forrester made headlines when it
claimed that less than 1% of online transactions reviewed in the study could
be traced to a specific social media post. Despite all the hype, the report
concluded, social media was failing to generate any results, and businesses
were being lured by the bright lights and shiny new platforms only to end
up empty-handed.
So I suppose I should pack up my things and leave my pass and snake oil
certificate with reception?
Well, maybe not just yet.
As my colleagues in the US have identified, there is much more to social
media than getting people to click through to buy from a single post. As
they correctly identified, the report from Forrester was based on 30 days
worth of data – not much when you consider that 2.5 quintillion (two and
a half billion billion, or 25 followed by 17 zeros) bytes of data are created every
day – which presents two problems in my eyes, and two core principles behind
business success in social media that this report fails to address.
Firstly, social media is not a 30-day campaign, or a 60-day one for that matter.
Social media requires a long-term view and commitment to develop tangible
results. There is no switch to flick which will lead to instant business success.
Unfortunately it’s not just Forrester that is critical of the short-term pipeline
issue around social media, with many Australian businesses adopting the
perception that a Facebook page will result in increased revenue. Why?
Will having a website without a clear strategy and mapped user journey
lead more people to buy your product?
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We need to move our thinking away from ‘what can I get from social media?’
to ‘what potential can I unlock by integrating social media as part of my
broader communications and business activities?’ And we are starting to
mature in our approach. This attitude is beginning to shift, with marketers
locally beginning to understand the importance of developing a relationship
before earning the opportunity to sell to customers. In fact, a recent report
from iStrategy revealed almost 50% of marketers have ‘engagement only
targets’ for social media, while one in five had already implemented ROI
targets for their businesses. For me, this indicates that marketers are still
struggling to pin down the exact measures for their social media activities,
but it also suggests there is work to be done in developing a clear
understanding of customers’ needs and how to use social media channels
to engage them.
For Aveeno Australia, the brand was looking to drive awareness of a new
product launch while also activating brand ambassadors and driving
word-of-mouth around its product suite. It understood its customers and
prospective customers, knowing there was a disconnect between awareness
and consideration. However, once the product was tested, customers were
convinced and converted to using the product. Based on this insight, Aveeno
developed a campaign targeting Facebook users to drive consideration and
purchase, seeing a 7% increase in sales as a result of the campaign. While
the sales increase was welcomed, the CRM benefits of capturing an audience
of potential advocates to engage with around future product launches and
brand activities was a valuable secondary outcome.
Secondly, social media requires investment in building and nurturing
relationships, understanding stakeholder needs and meeting them wherever
possible. You may not produce an instant sale or conversion, but you will
develop stronger ties to those with whom you will do future business, both
in the B2C and B2B environments. Social media provides the opportunity
for businesses to connect with people where previously impossible. While
your enewsletter or direct mailer may not make it past the trash, engaging
in conversation with your target audience via a LinkedIn group affords you
the opportunity to showcase expertise and value with an audience where
no formal working relationships previously existed.
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One of the best examples of this investment in relationships comes from
American Express who, through their OPEN Forum online community,
provide a unique value proposition to small businesses online. Rather than
trying to generate immediate sales, Amex has developed a collaborative forum
offering advice and insight to SMBs, providing them with the tools and
expertise to do their jobs more effectively. Far from being a one-trick pony,
this community engages influencers, showcases real business success stories,
ties in offline campaigns (like the Small Business Saturday movement), and
ultimately directs users to Amex products and experts for conversion.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a comprehensive social media listening
and monitoring process ticking away in the background as well. This
concerted effort to have a conversation with stakeholders rather than push
product ensures Amex better understands their needs and provides an
enhanced service as a result.
Ultimately, if the only value social media provides for business is driving less
than 1% of sales, I expect corporate investment will rapidly taper off, and
companies like LinkedIn and Facebook should probably start jettisoning
stock immediately. But if businesses use social media channels to develop a
clear understanding of (and engagement with) their customers, choose the
environments or platforms they are active in, communicate via compelling
and engaging content, and create a sound social strategy based on listening
to customer needs and wants, there is no reason why they can’t drive not only
sales but valuable, lasting business relationships.
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B2B Guide to social media
Appeared in B&T
Roger Christie, Social@Ogilvy
It genuinely surprises me to see there are still some that seem to believe that
investing in social media is risky business. Why would a company not want
to know exactly what customers think of their brand and products?
Being able to reach into the minds of your customers is no longer a mere
figment of marketers’ imaginations. It’s a reality. As is the ability to learn what
your competitors are up to in real time and understand market reactions.
Social media listening provides businesses with the opportunity to identify
where your customers are talking, engage them in conversation, and – when
the time is right – convert ‘prospects’ to ‘advocates’
.
Despite this fast-changing digital world, what doesn’t change is a client’s
expectation that ROI must be achieved, no matter the marketing discipline
or methodology. Fortunately, social media provides opportunities for B2B
marketers to measure referral traffic, net new customer opportunities and
brand share of voice through accurate reporting.
Earlier on in the digital era, businesses rubbed their hands over the reach their
corporate websites would afford, and other one-to-many communications
models. All of a sudden, businesses could sculpt their online presence as
desired – a relatively cost-effective way to engage customers en masse, rather
than seeking one-on-one engagement via ‘physical’ marketing collateral.
The appeal of the early one-to-many communications model – for example,
corporate websites – was obvious. It was as a cost-effective way to engage
customers. Then they realised – although websites made it easy to speak to
customers, it was impossible to engage them. That’s now changed.
Although capturing online intelligence isn’t always the most straightforward
process, our experience shows there are a few basic steps every B2B
practitioner can take to ensure social media success.
1. Do your groundwork before digging the trench Don’t tack a
‘social media execution’ onto the end of other business and marketing
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communications activities. Before B2B marketers jump into social media,
they should first ask themselves: What do I want to accomplish? Is it
filling a new business pipeline, developing and showcasing industry
expertise, or uncovering customer insights? A recent report cited 69%
of B2B marketers are ignoring social media feedback from their customers.
If you’re not tapping into the insights already available to you, you’re
missing a vital opportunity.
2. ‘Likes’ are not the be-all and end-all B2B Social media marketing isn’t
a popularity contest. If all you want are ‘likes’ spend $20,000 on Facebook
,
advertising and drive people to your page. If you want genuine business
results, develop a deeper understanding of the customer and what they
want or need from your business. Listen to their needs and build relevance
in their eyes. The days of accumulating mere ‘likes’ and ‘fans’ are dead,
as enormous communities of online stakeholders are valueless without
engagement and insight.
3. Data is the new addiction Love your data – collect it, analyse it, act on
it and optimise insights learned from it. Research from Penton Marketing
Services showed 26% of B2B marketers don’t know how to measure their
social media success, but a rigorous measurement process ensures that
you uncover business results.
If you’re keen to have your CEO understand the benefits of social media, make
sure you evaluate your social media activities and bring measurable results
to the boardroom table. If you aren’t measuring what you’re doing (in terms
of business impact, not fan counts and ‘likes’!) and learning from your successes
(and failures), don’t expect social media to be taken seriously by the C-suite.
Social media marketing was once considered a fad, but doubters are now
eating crow pie. The 2013 SIIA Marketing Industry Report showed that
over 98% of US companies reported that they are at least dabbling in social
media marketing. It is now clear to see that social media has grown from
niche to norm, and it’s here to stay.
Now, B2B marketers must gear up to move past prejudices and seize the
potential of social media to drive business impact.
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The seven steps to building a
B2B content machine
Appeared in Marketing Magazine
Gordon McNenney, DT
In a world where every brand has a digital soapbox, it’s what you say that
draws a crowd. But filling a digital content pipeline is a big shift for marketers
more used to finessing brand campaigns. That’s why the challenges most
frequently cited by B2B marketers using content channels like blogs and
YouTube are ‘producing enough content’ and ‘producing engaging content’
.
B2B marketers need more brand stories, ideas, research, analysis and case
studies, and they need to share them with more audiences in more ways.
In short, they need ‘an insight creation and delivery machine’
.
Here are seven steps B2B marketers can take to get their ‘insight machines’
up and running, and keep them running smoothly:
1. Start with clearly defined audiences and objectives
Content marketing is a long-term proposition. It’s difficult to sustain
content initiatives if you can’t measure progress towards objectives. By
getting senior-level agreement on what you will achieve, you’re more likely
to get buy-in for most complex initiatives such as ebooks that can deliver
significant long-term value.
Unlike paid advertising, there is no ‘guaranteed’ audience for your own
content. Before commencing any content marketing program, consider how
you will attract and retain your target audiences, and make sure your tactics
align with audience preferences.
2. Think about what your audiences are searching for
Your ‘insight machine’ needs to be highly tuned to audience interests, since
you want them to find your content even if they’re not searching for you.
What influences their success? What problems are they trying to solve?
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At DT/Ogilvy, our data team works with clients to do ‘consumer intent
modelling’ Using a range of data, from internal site searches to social
.
media trends, they identify key customer interests. It’s big data thinking
on a manageable scale.
B2B content marketers also need to spend time talking to team members in
sales, customer service and product development. Create customer personas
and use them in content brainstorm sessions. It’s good to put a face on your
target audiences when you’re judging whether ideas will be relevant to them.
What’s more, the more you understand your audiences, the more you can
customise their experiences. Content marketing and content management
are rapidly merging. You’re not building websites anymore. You’re building
the right experience for the right person at the right time.
3. Identify and recognise your organisation’s content heroes
Every company is full of great content ideas, but you only need a small group
of people to make them happen. As a B2B content marketer, it’s up to you
to find and nurture your content champions. These are the people who are
naturally inclined to take on content development tasks and can commit to
writing blog articles, appearing in videos, creating case studies, and so on.
Your core team of content developers should reflect your full organisation’s
expertise. You may find the best content ideas originate from product teams.
Look for writers and social media enthusiasts, and team members with
expertise in photography and video.
Work with managers to include content development in these team members’
job descriptions. Give your ‘content heroes’ access to support from your
marketing team, as well as from your advertising and digital agency partners.
Clearly define responsibilities and commitments as part of your content
marketing calendar. Celebrate their achievements in annual reviews and staff
meetings. Their successes will attract up-and-coming contributors, and build
content marketing enthusiasm company-wide.
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4. Give content marketers the freedom to fail
David Ogilvy famously said, “You can’t bore people into buying your product.
You can only interest them into it.” When you ask a team of content marketers
to ‘produce engaging content’ you may get some ideas from left field. Embrace
them. Some of the best ideas I’ve seen started as jokes. No-one took them
seriously, until we agreed, ‘Hey, why not?’
Even for the most conservative B2B companies, being boring is never ‘on
brand’ Be willing to walk away from ideas that aren’t working, but be fun and
.
courageous. Let your content marketing objectives be what defines success.
5. Get top people involved from day one
Your company’s leaders are likely to be your best salespeople. When you take
away all the marketing filters, their insights are content gold. No-one can write
or speak about your products and services more authoritatively, and they get
a lot of practice doing it. They’re already giving presentations, fronting the
media and telling the story of your company, and its products and services.
Find out when the presentation is happening and have a camera in the back
of the room. Ask them to turn their last company-wide email into a blog post.
Repurposing is essential when executive time is scarce.
When an organisation’s leaders create a culture of transparency, they’ll be building
the most important foundation for content marketing initiatives. Their active
participation will create a virtuous circle of customer and internal engagement
that drives and maintains the momentum of content marketing success.
6. Court external influencers
Content marketing depends on social amplification: its impact grows
exponentially when influencers from outside your organisation are involved.
Leslie Reiser, IBM’s program director for digital marketing worldwide,
describes this as a highlight of IBM’s content marketing approach: “Instead
of working within a siloed, pure marketing discipline area, we have amassed
a group of influencers. They include our business partners, IT analysts and
independent bloggers, many of whom are compensated for their unique
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point of view and perspective on a particular area. We work in concert across
all these various constituencies in IBM to form (essentially) a very robust
influencer ecosystem.”
Reiser’s approach is moving content marketing in new directions that blend
earned and paid media, as well as public relations. By giving influential
content developers privileged access to your company’s people, information
and events, you can massively increase your ‘content machine’s’ reach. In B2B
content marketing, where audiences are often smaller and more time pressed,
external influencers are likely to drive your greatest reach.
7. Continually measure results – and build quickly on successes
B2B content marketers need to be not only more entrepreneurial with
planning, development and distribution, but they also need to be more
rigorous with measurement. When a content marketing tactic works well,
the results appear quickly in your analytics data. As any Hollywood producer
will tell you, your ‘hits’ won’t happen often, so when you have one, run with
it. Turn a single content initiative into a series. Create a video interview based
on a successful blog article. Turn a one-page report into a white paper or
an ebook. Prime your ‘insight creation and distribution machine’ with your
successes to build a critical mass of influencers, subscribers, fans and followers.
In B2B content marketing, customer engagement is the primary driver of ROI,
so you’ve got to listen to them closely. Make customer insight the ultimate
driver of your content marketing ‘insight machine’.
© OgilvyOne 2013
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Don’t count the ones you reach.
Reach the ones who count.
Contact Sally Kissane or Michelle Holland
+61 2 9268 1633