Strategy

Video: Why B2B Companies Have a Content Marketing Advantage

Nearly six years ago, Red Bull shocked the world and live-streamed daredevil Felix Baumgartner falling from space. It was an exciting time for two reasons: One, we hadn’t witnessed brands risking an involuntary manslaughter charge every day, and two, it was the moment marketers seemed to start taking “content marketing” seriously.

But that moment also had some side effects. Suddenly, every marketer wanted to “go viral,” although none of them wanted to spend more then $5,000 to do it. Marketers also came to believe that content marketing was way easier for the “exciting” B2C brands compared to the “boring” B2B companies.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

People only want to read and watch content about their passions, and those things tend to fall into two camps:

A) Content that helps people enjoy their personal passions, like sports, gaming, wellness, fitness, cooking, travel, health, and, in my case, bouncy castles and large water slides.

B) Content that makes people better at their jobs, where they spend most of their days. These people desperately need to improve if they want to retire before they’re 85 years old and Boca Raton is somewhere under the Atlantic Ocean.

If you’re a B2C brand, you’re likely playing in the first camp. And the competition for attention there is fierce. If you want to stand out, you need to drop someone from space or tell truly unique stories—like Marriott or Dollar Shave Club—to stand out.

If you’re B2B, you still need to create content that stands out, but there’s much less competition. Condé Nast isn’t about to launch a magazine to help content marketers measure ROI. Meredith won’t start a new pub to help healthcare executives navigate the complex regulatory landscape. As a B2B brand, you likely have knowledge and expertise people crave.

B2B content gets boring, however, when people make some common mistakes. To learn how to use your content marketing advantage, spare 60 seconds to watch the latest episode of Content Marketing Minute.

And if you missed the first four episodes, check them out below.

Episode 1: Setting Content Marketing Goals

Episode 2: Building Relationships With a High-Value Audience

Episode 3: Finding Your Brand Voice

Episode 4: Building a Killer Channel Strategy

Image by iStockphoto

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