5 ways to spice up your B2B content

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If you’re finding it hard to be relevant, interesting, entertaining and informative with B2B-focused communications, our guide on how to spice up your content should give you some hot ideas.

Leave all preconceived ideas of business communication behind and be prepared to start thinking a little more creatively.

Time to heat things up…

B2B doesn’t mean ‘Boring2Boring’

1. Use humourMake someone laugh and you will tune into one of the most memorable and powerful emotions a person has. Humour is an amazing communication tactic as it not only feels good – and therefore leaves a positive impression – but we tend to attach memories to highly emotive moments.

For your business this means two things:

1. Positive recognition; and 2. Long-term awareness.

Cisco’s The Perfect Gift for Valentine’s Day. Because nothing says forever like up to 6.4 terabits per second…

Cisco makes light of their not-so-romantic product offering by suggesting that it would make a perfect Valentine’s Day gift.

Obviously it wouldn’t, but this kind of ironic humour adds a really human edge to the company and is extremely memorable.

For example…

2. Embrace changeIf you keep doing the same thing over and over again and aren’t seeing results, it’s time to switch things up. Maybe you’re copying your competitors and expecting the same results they get? If you’re not seeing the return, it’s because your competitors already have it covered.

If you want to be the business that has a point of difference, you must also offer a point of difference with your content marketing tactics.

Don’t be afraid of looking like the black sheep in the industry – some things may work, some things may not. But, ultimately, you’ll never know until you stop resisting change and start experimenting with different tactics.

Limelight Networks created a “For Dummies” eBook that aimed to help businesses with their digital presence by highlighting some successes and failures.

The style of the eBook could have been considered risky, but by taking a chance and not being afraid of referring to potential clients as ‘dummies’, they captured the attention of a huge audience.

For example…

3. Use emotions, not factsAccording to the Content Marketing Institute’s chief strategist, Robert Rose, facts don’t change audience beliefs – emotions do.

If you don’t engage the emotions of your audience, you will never change their beliefs. And if you’re reading this and thinking “businesses don’t have emotions”, you need to stop thinking of your audience as a business. You’re targeting the people within the business – and they certainly do.

A wrong decision for a consumer might result in them taking a product back. A wrong decision for a business can have huge consequences and result in job losses and millions of dollars down the drain. Emotions most definitely play a role in decisions like that.

From their Internet of Customers video, to Thank You for 15 Awesome Years, Salesforce puts emotions at the front and the sales at the back. In this video they highlight their very humble beginnings and by doing so, tap into the very essence of business: the fact that ‘people like to do business with people’, be it B2B or B2C.

For example…

4. Give backGiving without asking for anything in return is the fastest way to earn respect from your audience. However, while this is certainly a content marketing tactic, it’s better to approach it as a business ethos that runs across everything you do.

To truly give back and earn the respect and loyalty of your audience you must really want to help them – for free. The most successful businesses do this with true authenticity.

Xerox partnered with Forbes to create a magazine called Chief Optimist, with a corresponding microsite. It offers business tips and advice based on profitable business ideas. The content is there to help and inspire, to give information to potential customers for free.

By doing this and capturing leads through email signups, Xerox has uncovered billions of dollars worth of potential in lead revenue.

For example…

5. Tell a storyWe’re wired to connect with stories. It’s simply part of human nature to relate to a story over a sales message. Stories connect people, fuel passion, create loyalty and are how we communicate with each other on a daily basis.

A story will trump sales messaging every single time.

Think of how you can tell the story of your business, or even your clients. What makes your business different to your competitors? What drives the motivation behind your company? What inspires you as a business owner? Knowing these things helps the audience relate to your company on a human level – in a way that demonstrates that there’s more to your company than sales and dollar signs. There’s a heart and a soul.

Deloitte Debates is a fantastic example of using content to form stories and debates and drive conversation. Not only does it pose relevant questions, but it also shows both sides of an argument and lets the user wade in on the discussion.

It’s rousing, a little controversial and a great example of content that inspires its audience.

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Think your content needs a bit more heat? Contact Cirrus Media to spice up your B2B content marketing.

02 8484 0950contentmarketing@cirrusmedia.com.au