B2B marketers in great numbers have jumped on the content marketing bandwagon and embraced the idea that marketing needs to be more like media. As documented in last year's MarketingProfs and Junta42 study , "producing engaging content" tops the list of challenges for content marketing; "producing enough content" is second. What kinds of content should you actually create? Publishers focus on the business side of media; editors are the ones that worry every day about content, tone, and reader/listener/viewer engagement.). Who's In, Who's Out. MORE >>

Strategic Alignment: The best programs are tightly wired into the company's growth strategy and priorities to make sure they focus on developing the references and success story content that matter most to the rest of marketing and sales. Team Integration: Reference programs rely heavily on support from other groups to identify the right customers, document the right information, and make the best use of the resulting references and content. Tracking and reporting on reference activity and content usage. Great products may sell themselves based on features or price. MORE >>

Most important, the content and events that she saw from marketing were simply too generic. It's an obvious point, but how often do we produce marketing content, organize events, and build sales tools without being grounded in those direct relationships? I was interviewing a Key Account Manager for a large tech firm the other day, and was struck by her comment that she wanted the firm's marketing people to be much closer to her customer. This is a large global account we're talking about, with a big account team and numerous multi-million dollar deals worldwide. That's a no-no. MORE >>

Consistently creating engaging content is one of those programmatic challenges that strikes fear in the hearts of many B2B marketers looking to take more advantage of social media. As  Chris Iafella  reminded us in a post on  content curation for pharma  the other day, though, creating fresh original content is not the only way to provide value to the customers and others with whom you're trying to connect. . Indeed, there are four levels of content sharing that B2B marketers should include in their social media mix. Four Levels of Content Sharing. MORE >>

The fast-growing provider of "inbound marketing" tools promotes the concept relentlessly with a daily dose of useful content for marketers on how to build awareness and generate leads through search engine marketing and social media. It's better to have a consistent flow of thought leadership content on the same basic subject than not, but if there is not a compelling and differentiated point of view to drive a sustained and integrated program, you stand little chance of framing the debate. Politicians understand this the best. It's critical with B2B marketing, too. Delivered." MORE >>