b2b

10/22/201503/26/2018

Let’s Talk About That Blog of Yours

At this point, you’re already sold on the idea of starting a blog for your business, and using it to move forward with content marketing like 81 percent of B2B organizations are currently doing.

So what’s holding you back from getting started?

You have questions. Lots of them. And so you’re dragging your feet about moving forward with the project, as you don’t want to rush into the process and risk painting your organization in the wrong light. Meanwhile, your competitors are pumping out multiple blog posts per week.

If this describes your situation, I understand what you’re going through. After all, there are a lot of things to consider when starting a blog, such as:

Tone and style: Should your blog be loose and creative, or strictly business? A blog is a direct reflection of your corporate brand, and so it’s vital that your messaging aligns with the image you are trying to create for your company. Continue reading “Let’s Talk About That Blog of Yours”

10/01/201503/26/2018

Three Quick Insights From CMI’s Latest B2B Benchmark Study

In the content marketing industry, there is no greater treasure trove of information than the Content Marketing Institute (CMI). That’s why content marketers all over the country were anxiously awaiting to dig into the 2016 benchmark studies from CMI as we head into the final quarter of 2015. As of this week, the wait is over as CMI has officially released their “B2B Content Marketing 2016 Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends – North America” study.

So, without further delay, we wanted to dive headfirst into this compilation of marketing statistics and give our readers three quick insights:

Continue reading “Three Quick Insights From CMI’s Latest B2B Benchmark Study”

09/11/201503/26/2018

Understanding a Blog’s Position in the Sales Funnel

A lot of people ask me, “should my business be blogging?”

It leads me to believe that there is still, amongst the majority of professionals—particularly at the small-to-medium sized business level—a fundamental misunderstanding as to how blogs fit into the sales funnel.

If you don’t grasp how the sales funnel works, it can be easy to dismiss a blog as a frivolous expenditure and thus, a gigantic waste of time. But rest assured, blogs have an important place in the sales process.

Here is how a blog fits into the sales funnel. Keep in mind that the sales funnel works from the top-down: Continue reading “Understanding a Blog’s Position in the Sales Funnel”

08/28/201503/26/2018

3 Unexpected Benefits From Outsourcing Content Production

You’re still trying to decide whether a content strategy vendor is right for your business. After all, partnering with any vendor is a big decision and one that requires a lot of trust.

By outsourcing either some or all of your content needs, you can spend less money on the resources required to obtain professional, compelling copy. There are also several hidden benefits to outsourcing content production that you may not be aware of.

Here are three unexpected perks of working with a content strategy vendor:

Fresh perspective about your brand: As a marketer, it’s easy to spend so much time thinking and talking about your products and services that you become bored with them.

What winds up happening is you lose the spark of interest that is needed to make your brand exciting to consumers. Continue reading “3 Unexpected Benefits From Outsourcing Content Production”

07/22/201503/26/2018

In Case You Missed It: Highlights From Today’s Content Boost Crash Course in NYC

Today the Content Boost team stormed NYU’s Kimmel Center ready to convince business leaders to say “yes” to content marketing at the third Content Boost Crash Course.

What they found, however, was that the packed room was one step ahead of the game. In fact, the audience members were ready to jump into content marketing right away.

Their enthusiasm echoed the sentiments from our Director Carrie Majewski about how popular content marketing has become. As Majewski explained during her kickoff presentation, 78 percent of CMOs think custom content is the future of marketing. Further, 86 percent of B2B and 77 percent of B2C companies now use content marketing.

“Our NYC-based Cont Continue reading “In Case You Missed It: Highlights From Today’s Content Boost Crash Course in NYC”

09/29/2014

Do You Really Read eNewsletters?

While I am a content marketer, I am also a consumer of dozens of products and services. I craft email marketing messages for clients during the day and at night filter through emails sent from retailers and services at night. So, as a consumer, I have a very important question to ask: Do you really read eNewsletters?

Continue reading “Do You Really Read eNewsletters?”

12/05/2013

Content Marketing No Longer Just a Single Slice of the Marketing Pie

If you didn’t get a chance yet to check out our latest featured article (click here!), then I’ll leave you with this: “Content marketing has reached a perfect storm. All channels – including print, digital and social are growing.”

So contends Custom Content Council’s Executive Director Lori Rosen in the council’s latest content marketing report titled “Spending Study: A Look at How Corporate America Invests in Branded Content for 2013.” As a marketer, there are some incredibly exciting statistics shared in this latest report that are sure to get you amped to head to your boss’s office to exclaim “Told you so; I knew content marketing would work!” Here’s a teaser of some of the most exciting figures:

Continue reading “Content Marketing No Longer Just a Single Slice of the Marketing Pie”

08/16/2013

When it Comes to Posting, Timing is Everything

You’ve spent all afternoon hunched over your laptop creating “the greatest blog ever written,” but suddenly you realize that it’s 5 pm. Your eager to post your blog, but you’re not sure whether or not it’s the right time. Will it get lost in the cyber shuffle overnight? Can it wait till morning?

Maintaining an accurate posting schedule and learning when your audience is tuned in is the key to engagement success. After all, what good does it do if your audience never reads your emails, tweets, posts, or blogs?

With 347 new blogs posts, 684,478 Facebook shares, 100,000 tweets, 204,166,667 emails and 3,600 Instagram photos posted every minute, it’s not easy to get noticed. However, research shows that there is a right time and a wrong time to post.

Continue reading “When it Comes to Posting, Timing is Everything”

04/19/2013

How Do I Know Which Social Media Platforms are Right for Me?

So you’ve decided to get started on building your company’s social media presence – congrats! With new social media networks popping up all the time, it can be hard to determine which you want to be part of. By knowing what the major platforms are best utilized for, you can help make the most of your resources and take a giant step forward towards reaching your customers.

Twitter tends to resonate best with a B2C audience, but it also works quite well with the B2B world. Because posts are limited to 140 characters, it lends itself well to quick bursts of thought, starting conversations, and sharing links. If you are willing to put the time into posting on Twitter daily you will likely find an audience here.

Continue reading “How Do I Know Which Social Media Platforms are Right for Me?”