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December 11, 2024

Strategy
B2B Marketing: Getting Back to Basics in 2025

B2B marketing has been overrun by technology, making it easy to forget about the underlying basics. As we look forward to 2025, this post helps you take stock and start the new year strong [...]

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November 13, 2024

Customer Focus & Content
B2B Buyers are Getting Increasingly Personal—How Should Your Business Respond?

A recent survey found that B2B buying decisions are increasingly influenced by personal factors. This post explores how your business should respond [...]

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October 9, 2024

Customer Focus & Content
Essential Tips for Marketing New Solutions to B2B Buyers

Selling new ideas to B2B buyers is hard. In this post we discuss 10 tips for tackling this daunting challenge [...]

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September 4, 2024

Customer Focus & Content
Should B2B Marketing Focus on Individuals, Committees, or Accounts?

Over time, your B2B marketing should focus mostly on buying committees rather than individuals or accounts. This post explains why, and how your marketing will get there [...]

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August 7, 2024

Development & Delivery
A 3x3 Approach to Ranking B2B Prospects Based on Knowledge and Receptivity

This post explains how to prioritize and approach prospects based on their pre-existing knowledge and receptivity to new information [...]

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July 3, 2024

Strategy
Should B2B Content Marketers Imitate, Emulate, or Originate?

Resource-strapped B2B marketers are often tempted to imitate their competitors' ideas. This post explores whether that's a good idea and when it might or might not work [...]

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June 5, 2024

Strategy
Building a High-Impact Marketing Technology Stack for a Growth Stage B2B Business

Modern marketing demands a tech solution but the choices can be overwhelming. This post discusses 10 important tools to select and the need for strategic technology investment [...]

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May 8, 2024

Customer Focus & Content
Does Extreme B2B Content Marketing Work?

Extreme headlines and images can grab eyeballs but do they lead to audience engagement? This post explores the pros and cons of extreme B2B content [...]

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April 17, 2024

Evaluation & Evolution
Evaluating and Evolving—Getting the Most Bang for Your B2B Content Marketing Buck

B2B businesses with active content marketing programs must regularly evaluate their effectiveness and evolve their strategy. This post explains why and what steps to follow [...]

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April 10, 2024

Strategy
Marketing Your B2B Startup: Creating Engagement Without a Track Record

Marketing a new B2B solution without case histories or testimonials is difficult but not impossible. This post provides helpful tips on ways to get started [...]

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April 3, 2024

Branding
How to Tune-up Your B2B Brand—A 13-Step Guide

Every B2B company's brand needs updating or replacing over time. This guide will help you think it through and navigate the process efficiently [...]

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March 27, 2024

Strategy
The Top 5 Questions B2B Leaders Ask About Content Marketing

When B2B leaders pay attention to content marketing, the conversation usually follows a predictable path. This post addresses some common questions and underlying beliefs [...]

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March 20, 2024

Development & Delivery
Goldisocks and the Three Bloggers (A Tale for B2B Marketers)

Fairy tales convey important ideas in simple, memorable ways. Here's a reworking of one such classic, with some marketing lessons about writing blog posts [...]

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March 13, 2024

Customer Focus & Content
3 Questions B2B Content Should Answer at Each Stage of the Buyer's Journey

Successful B2B content answers a minimum set of questions at each stage in the buyer's journey. This post explains why and provides prompts on what content to create [...]

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March 6, 2024

Development & Delivery
A B2B Marketer's Guide to Selecting the Right Format for Your Content

Crafting strong messages isn't enough. To achieve B2B content marketing success also requires using the right format. This post explores options and how to choose [...]

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February 28, 2024

Miscellaneous
The Importance of Community Building to Achieving B2B Growth

Online community building is an important strategy for creating a sense of purpose in the workplace. This post explores how to harness communities to drive growth [...]

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February 21, 2024

Strategy
Our 8 Favorite Tactics for B2B Content Marketing

We regularly get asked "what's working" in B2B content marketing. There's no single answer, but this post provides some solid starting points [...]

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February 14, 2024

Development & Delivery
7 Ways to Tell a B2B Buyer That You're Lazy

Failing to properly edit and review your content can make it seem lazy and low quality. This post reviews 7 traps and how to avoid them [...]

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February 7, 2024

Strategy
Strategic Staffing for Content Success—When and Who to Hire for B2B Content Marketing

Effective B2B content marketing requires a strong team—but what roles should you hire and when? This post offers guidance on building up your team [...]

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January 31, 2024

Budgets & Financial Impact
Cheap, Quick, and Easy—3 Red Flags for B2B Content Marketing

Social media hucksters make impossible promises about cheap, quick, and easy marketing. This post explains their fallacy and how to avoid the CQE trap [...]

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January 24, 2024

Development & Delivery
8 Lessons From Homebuilding You Should Apply to Your Website

Building an effective website is a lot like building a welcoming and functional home. This post describes 8 homebuilding lessons to apply when building a website [...]

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January 17, 2024

Strategy
Investors Are a Lot Like Buyers: Effective Content Marketing Can Help You Raise

Potential investors answer similar questions to B2B buyers, so effective content marketing can play an important role when you set out to raise investment [...]

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January 10, 2024

Customer Focus & Content
The Hard Part About Starting Something New (or Why New Year's Resolutions Usually Fail)

The hard part of getting a B2B buyer to try something new is convincing them to let go of the status quo. This post explores content marketing for the awareness stage of the buyer's journey [...]

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December 20, 2023

Miscellaneous
The Framework Blog: A Year of Posts About B2B Content Marketing

A summary of the posts published on the Framework blog in 2023, organized by theme for ease of reference. Most, but not all, are about B2B content marketing [...]

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December 13, 2023

Strategy
Has AI Fundamentally Changed the B2B Buyer's Journey?

AI is impacting every walk of life—but what about the B2B buyer's journey and the content marketing that feeds it? This post explores the issues and opportunities at hand [...]

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December 6, 2023

Strategy
Five End-of-Year Fallacies a B2B Marketer Must Avoid

The end of year "push" can be a waste of time and money for B2B marketers. This post explains five mistakes to avoid and what to consider doing instead [...]

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November 29, 2023

Development & Delivery
Thanks for the Memories - Why Familiarity is Key to B2B Content Marketing

Successful B2B marketing requires showing up consistently with relevant, memorable content. This post explores why memorability is important and how to achieve it [...]

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November 15, 2023

Strategy
Marketing Your B2B Business (For M&A, Not Product Sales)

B2B marketing has a bigger role to play than just generating new revenue. This post explores how marketing supports enterprise value creation and communication [...]

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November 8, 2023

Strategy
8 Lessons B2B Marketing can Learn from Formula 1 Motorsport

The worlds of marketing and motorsport are both competitive and cutthroat. This post explores 8 lessons marketing can learn from the way F1 teams go about their business [...]

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November 1, 2023

Development & Delivery
Trick or Treat? Is Gated Content a Graveyard for B2B Content Marketing?

Gated content is a popular tactic for capturing leads, but it can backfire. This post explains the pros and cons, then explores 4 alternatives a B2B content marketer should consider [...]

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October 25, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
If Sex Sells, What Markets?

The axiom "sex sells" is used widely in the media industry, but it's a strategy that can backfire badly. This post explores four other axioms more likely to deliver B2B marketing success [...]

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October 18, 2023

Branding
Getting to Grips with Fonts in B2B Content Marketing

This post explains how different fonts evoke a variety of emotions in the reader, when to use different font types in your B2B content, and some key font-related terminology [...]

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October 11, 2023

Development & Delivery
Maximizing the Value of Trade Shows in Your B2B Marketing Strategy

Trade shows remain a mainstay in B2B marketing. This post reviews important considerations for delivering maximum value from your B2B trade show investment [...]

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October 4, 2023

Strategy
Nine Beliefs That Doom a Content Marketing Strategy to Failure

This post summarizes 9 unhelpful beliefs that leaders often hold, condemning their B2B content marketing strategy to failure, as well as tips for avoiding them [...]

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September 27, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
How to Produce Authentic B2B Content Using ChatGPT

To produce authentic B2B content requires taking a hybrid approach, combining human experiences, opinions, and authorship with the speed and reach of ChatGPT [...]

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September 20, 2023

Miscellaneous
Speak B2B Content Marketing Like a Native

This post provides a glossary of B2B content marketing terms, aimed at professionals who are new to content marketing but want to get involved [...]

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September 13, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
Peeling Back the Layers: The Onion Approach to B2B Content

The layers of an onion can be used as a metaphor for content themes about which a B2B company might consider writing, starting with in-house knowledge and culminating in macro topics [...]

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September 6, 2023

Development & Delivery
Why Your B2B Team is Afraid to Write Content (and How to Help Them)

People throughout B2B organizations have great content in their heads, but they're often afraid to write it down. This post explains why, and how to help them [...]

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August 30, 2023

Branding
Alpha Branding: Does a B2B Company Need a Big Personality?

A B2B brand's personality is an important ingredient in effective content marketing. This post discusses defining a B2B brand personality and how "big" it needs to be [...]

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August 23, 2023

Development & Delivery
Turning B2B Buzzwords into B2B Buzz

This post explains the significance of 10 content characteristics that are key to attracting and engaging a B2B audience, as well as tips on improving each of them in your work [...]

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August 16, 2023

Development & Delivery
Trust Economy - The Vital Role of Social Proof in B2B Marketing

B2B buyers rely on social cues when making purchasing decisions. This creates an impactful marketing opportunity when understood and pursued appropriately, as this post explains [...]

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August 9, 2023

Strategy
The Mindset Shift About B2B Buyers That Will Transform Your Outlook on Revenue

Most revenue generation happens after the initial sale, which requires thinking differently about the B2B customer lifecycle. This post explains the 4-part mindset shift that's needed [...]

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August 2, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
Most B2B Content Answers All the Wrong Questions

Many companies' content is nothing more than a digital catalog. This post explores how to deliver effective B2B content marketing that addresses prospects actual needs and wants [...]

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July 26, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
Harnessing the Power of User-Generated Content in a B2B Context

The power of user-generated content (UGC) is widely recognized in the B2C sector. This post explores how to bring its value into a B2B content marketing strategy [...]

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July 19, 2023

Strategy
The Questions We Should Be Asking About Generative AI and B2B Content Marketing

What questions should B2B content marketers be asking themselves before experimenting with generative AI technology? This post explores five areas to consider [...]

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July 12, 2023

Strategy
Futureproofing Your B2B Marketing Strategy

Marketing is constantly changing so it's important to anticipate threats and opportunities. This post describes several active trends to consider for the future of your B2B marketing strategy [...]

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July 5, 2023

Following Through
A Game of Two Halves - Conducting a Midyear Marketing Review

This post provides prompts for reflecting on first half performance and making changes for the six months ahead, helping to realign and motivate your B2B marketing team [...]

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June 28, 2023

Strategy
Demonstrating Thought Leadership as Part of a B2B Marketing Strategy

B2B thought leadership establishes credibility and trust, which leads to engagement and sales. This post explores how to make that happen and some mistakes to avoid [...]

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June 21, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
The Keys to Writing Compelling B2B Case Studies

Case studies are widely recognized as a powerful way to engage prospects. This post highlights important attributes that make a client case study compelling and believable [...]

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June 14, 2023

Branding
How to Harness the Power of Color in B2B Content Marketing

This post explains how colors to evoke predictable emotional responses in an audience and how B2B content marketers can take advantage of this instinctive response [...]

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June 7, 2023

Miscellaneous
A Short Essay in Defense of Marketing

Marketing gets a bad rap despite many opportunities to use it for good. Here, we make the case for marketing having a positive impact, while examining how it can be misused [...]

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May 31, 2023

Development & Delivery
Seven Ways to Set Your B2B Business Apart Using Content Marketing

Content marketing is a powerful tool for gaining a competitive advantage in the digital B2B landscape. This post explores 7 ways that content marketing can be utilized to drive success [...]

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May 24, 2023

Development & Delivery
An 8-Point Website Checklist for Effective B2B Content Marketing

Your company's website is important for B2B content marketing. This post provides guidance on how to design and optimize your site for maximum effectiveness [...]

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May 17, 2023

Strategy
Managing Your B2B Content Strategy While it's Under Construction

Like a transportation facility, your digital properties must function effectively even while under construction. This post shares some tips on minimizing visitor confusion and frustration [...]

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May 10, 2023

Strategy
8 Ways to Self-Destruct Your B2B Content Marketing

This post explores 8 destructive ways B2B content marketing teams undermine the hard work they've done, and how to avoid or fix them [...]

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May 3, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
The Five Percent Rule and Why it is Critical for B2B Content Marketing

Only about 1 in 20 of your target buyers is ready to purchase right now. This post explores the 5% rule, why it matters, and how to create effective content that targets your entire audience [...]

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April 26, 2023

Framework
A Bite-Sized Guide to the B2B Buyer's Journey

This post breaks the often misunderstood B2B buyer's journey into bite-sized chunks, handy tips, and readily deployed concepts [...]

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April 19, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
The Role of Blogs in B2B Content Marketing

Blogs are everywhere these days, but are they helpful and worth the effort? This post explores several important roles a blog can play in B2B content marketing [...]

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April 12, 2023

Miscellaneous
Writing Books: Why, How, and Was It Worth It?

I recently published two books on B2B content marketing. This post explains why, how, and some things I learned along the way [...]

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April 5, 2023

Customer Focus & Content
5 Prime Sources for B2B Content

Once you've selected the topics about which your company is going to publish, where do you turn for inspiration? This post explores 5 important sources to consider [...]

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March 29, 2023

Strategy
Why the Middle of B2B Content Marketing Isn't Messy or Mediocre - It's Magical

Contrary to popular opinion, the middle ground in B2B content marketing is neither messy nor mediocre. This post explores why it's magical [...]

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March 22, 2023

Strategy
Why B2B Sales Should Go All In on Content Marketing

Salespeople who are skeptical about supporting B2B content marketing efforts should get fully onboard because it is a ticket to success, not an enemy [...]

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March 15, 2023

Anchoring & Authenticity
To Be or To Do: A Question for B2B Content Marketers

Is your B2B content marketing about projecting an image of your business or helping others do something great? This post explores a question faced by many growing businesses [...]

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March 8, 2023

Framework
11 Critical Tasks Content Marketing Can Accomplish for Your B2B Business

B2B content marketing isn't just about generating sales opportunities. In this post, we explore other ways content marketing can benefit a B2B business [...]

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March 1, 2023

Framework
The Six Defining Characteristics of the B2B Content Marketing River

This post examines the characteristics of a river as a metaphor for effective B2B content marketing, showing how consistent publication is key to maximizing the impact of your content [...]

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February 22, 2023

Strategy
Five Things Smart CEOs Get Wrong About B2B Content Marketing

Content marketing is mission critical for B2B companies but many CEOs are confused about what that means and what it will take. This post addresses 5 common misconceptions [...]

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February 15, 2023

Following Through
Avoid B2B Content Marketing Hacks and Learn to Help Instead

Get-rich-quick schemes are self-defeating. Real results take time, grow slowly, and require hard work. The secret to successful B2B content marketing is being helpful [...]

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February 8, 2023

Framework
Do I Need to Follow a Process to Succeed at B2B Content Marketing?

Search and social media algorithms reward publishers that contribute on a regular basis, which means B2B content marketing success depends on having a process [...]

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February 1, 2023

Strategy
B2B Content Marketing is a Team Sport. Learn to Lead Accordingly.

Effective content marketing requires intentional, conscientious leadership at all levels in your organization. This post explores why, and how to make it happen [...]

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January 25, 2023

Anchoring & Authenticity
Six Ways to Bring Purpose and Mission into Your B2B Content

Learn how to attract customers, employees, and investors by embedding purpose and mission in your day-to-day operations and then showcasing them in action [...]

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January 18, 2023

Branding
Taking Down the Decorations - The Impact of Branding on B2B Content Marketing

B2B buyers make decisions based on emotions so the materials that evoke those emotions must be carefully branded. This post discusses 4 key elements of B2B content branding [...]

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January 11, 2023

Framework
Use a B2B Content Marketing Framework to Avoid Random Acts of Marketing

Random acts of marketing are usually a waste of time and money—especially for B2B businesses. Learn how to avoid them by following a content marketing framework [...]

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January 4, 2023

Anchoring & Authenticity
Commit to a Year of Authenticity in Your B2B Content Marketing

B2B buyers do business with brands they trust, and a primary way to build trust is by being authentic. This post discusses 5 steps to bring authenticity into your content [...]

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December 28, 2022

Miscellaneous
Reflections on a Year of B2B Content Marketing (2022)

Sharing valuable insights gained during 2022 while researching, learning, writing about, and focusing on B2B content marketing [...]

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December 21, 2022

Budgets & Financial Impact
Always Talking Money: Calculating Return on Investment for your B2B Content Marketing

Calculating return on investment for content marketing activities is important for demonstrating value-add and benchmarking your performance [...]

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December 14, 2022

Evaluation & Evolution
Developing an Add-Drop List for B2B Content Marketing in 2023

Optimize your 2023 B2B content marketing plan by strategically adding and dropping tactics, themes, and channels following these simple steps [...]

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December 7, 2022

Strategy
Can Your B2B Business Afford NOT to Invest in Content Marketing?

The story of Antonio, a B2B buyer, illustrates why content marketing should be an essential element in any B2B company's marketing [...]

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November 30, 2022

Development & Delivery
What to Do With All Those B2B Content Leftovers?

There are several ways to turn leftovers into tasty dishes. This post explores similar ways of turning leftover pieces into useful, digestible B2B content [...]

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November 23, 2022

Customer Focus & Content
How to Make Thanksgiving Part of Your Content Strategy

Content marketing should include material targeting the fifth stage of the buyer's journey, loyalty, which includes thanking customers for their business [...]

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November 16, 2022

Framework
How to Make Content Marketing Work at a Smaller B2B Business

Content marketing can—and does—work for smaller B2B businesses. Here are some tips on giving it your best shot, even with limited resources [...]

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November 9, 2022

Budgets & Financial Impact
What Should Your B2B Content Marketing Plan Include for 2023?

This post provides advice on navigating the year-end hiatus, when long-term B2B content marketing plans must be evaluated, adjusted, and defended [...]

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November 2, 2022

Customer Focus & Content
Effective B2B Content Marketing - Seeing Both the Trees and the Forest

Successful B2B content marketing requires striking a balance between detailed and high-level content. This post explains why it matters and how to make it happen [...]

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October 26, 2022

Strategy
Why B2B Content Marketing Will Continue to Grow

Despite complaints that digital channels are getting too noisy and crowded, B2B content marketing will continue to grow for years to come. This post discusses the reasons why [...]

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October 19, 2022

Customer Focus & Content
How to Use a Gap Analysis to Focus Your B2B Content Marketing Efforts

A gap analysis will help your B2B content marketing team decide what to publish as a priority to have maximum impact on helping prospects complete their buyer's journey [...]

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October 12, 2022

Strategy
Common Reasons Why B2B Content Marketing Fails and How to Avoid Them

Content marketing is critical for B2B businesses to attract prospects and grow. This post will help you recognize and avoid some of the most common content marketing pitfalls [...]

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October 5, 2022

Anchoring & Authenticity
5½ Tips for Increasing Authenticity in Your B2B Content Marketing

Exploring what is meant by authenticity in B2B content marketing and tips for maximizing it in your own content [...]

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September 28, 2022

Strategy
Debunking 10 Myths About B2B Content Marketing

This post explains and debunks 10 of the most common myths about B2B content marketing so that you can ignore them and be more successful [...]

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September 21, 2022

Following Through
Why You Should Treat Content Marketing Like Going to the Gym

Here are six reasons why you should treat developing content writing skills just like going to the gym to exercise your body and build muscles [...]

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September 14, 2022

Budgets & Financial Impact
Uncertain Times - Ways to Approach Planning for 2023

How should we go about planning for 2023 amid so much uncertainty? Start with your status quo and vision, and then construct plausible scenarios [...]

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September 7, 2022

Development & Delivery
How to Make Your Presentations and Webinars More Accessible

Quick tips on making your presentations and webinars accessible to those who have difficulty seeing, hearing, reading, or processing the information [...]

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August 31, 2022

Strategy
Does Marketing Belong in the C-Suite?

Content marketing has become mission critical for B2B businesses in the Information Age. This post makes the case for a CMO seat in the C-suite [...]

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August 24, 2022

Development & Delivery
Understanding the Difference Between Messaging and Content Marketing

What is the difference between messaging and content marketing? The two terms are frequently confused. This post explains how they differ and how they interrelate [...]

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August 17, 2022

Customer Focus & Content
Are You Into Content Marketing or Marketing Content?

Content marketing requires time and effort. Learn why you should make that investment and avoid hustlers promising rapid content-driven success [...]

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August 10, 2022

Strategy
Should a B2B CEO Champion Content Marketing?

Content marketing has become a mission-critical activity for most B2B companies. This means a B2B CEO must establish content marketing as a priority for the team [...]

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August 3, 2022

Development & Delivery
8 Reasons Why a Ghostwriter Can Outperform an In-House Blogger

Does hiring a ghostwriter produce less authentic or less effective content? Here are 8 reasons why ghostwriters can produce more effective content than your in-house team [...]

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July 27, 2022

Development & Delivery
5 Reasons to Include Traditional Channels in Your B2B Content Marketing Strategy

B2B content marketing isn't exclusively digital. Traditional channels can still be valuable. Here are 5 reasons to consider them [...]

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July 20, 2022

Customer Focus & Content
Is Your B2B Content a One Night Stand or the Start of Forever?

Writer's intent makes the difference between losing a reader and starting a relationship with them. Tips on writing with the end in mind and starting conversations that lead to revenue [...]

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July 13, 2022

Branding
Brand Guidelines - Key to Successful B2B Content Marketing

Successful B2B content marketing requires many ingredients. One that’s often overlooked is consistency of brand. This post summarizes six factors to consider [...]

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July 6, 2022

Following Through
How To Make B2B Content Marketing Part of Your Day-to-Day Business

Why B2B companies struggle to prioritize content marketing, plus a 12-point checklist for making it part of your day-to-day business [...]

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June 29, 2022

Evaluation & Evolution
6 Types of Research that Will Make Your B2B Content Marketing More Effective

In today’s B2B marketplace, content must be great if it’s going to stand out. This post explains six areas of research that are key to producing effective B2B content [...]

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