Many small businesses are stuck in a business-to-business (B2B) sales rut.
They’ve built their business over the years with a variety of tried and true sales strategies, but they’re finding it increasingly difficult to drum up or land new business.
Well, it doesn’t have to be that way. With a blog on your small business web site, you can reach out to prospects with relevant information when they’re ready for it.
Prospects Control the B2B Sales Process
The content you create for your blog is an essential part of what is known as your company’s digital marketing. Other examples of digital marketing content can be a Facebook update, a YouTube video or a new page on your website. The more content you generate, the larger your company’s “digital footprint”.
The larger your digital footprint, the more traffic your site receives – and the more B2B leads in your pipeline.
Nowadays, a blog is vitally important for a small business to show they’re active and thriving.
But it’s more than that: a great small business blog is more effective at nurturing leads than traditional sales tactics.
A study by the Kellogg School of Management found that a blog – in tandem with other digital marketing efforts – results in more leads and closed deals than in-person meetings. That’s not to say that in-person interaction is no longer worthwhile, it’s just that prospects now use the internet to learn about their problems and to find people who can help them. They want to figure out things on their own, at their own pace, then reach out when they’re ready.
A blog allows B2B prospects to feel like they’re in control.
Great B2B Content, Great B2B Leads
The secret to getting folks interested in your blog is pretty simple: great content attracts great leads.
The trick is figuring out how to make great content.
That’s where a solid content strategy comes in. You want to think about what makes your prospects tick and what pain points they have in common. Then you can generate content to address that pain.
The role of great B2B content is to educate and inform, not sell.
There are dozens of ways you can present the information, from short how-to posts to infographics to e-book downloads – and your blog can be used to promote them all. What your blog should focus on is providing helpful information, wherever your prospect is at on their problem-solving quest.
The common thread throughout all your posts is your ability to position your company as thought leaders. Your expertise should position you as an authority in your niche without being overly salesy.
How to Get Started B2Blogging
If your website is on WordPress, getting started is easy. If not, you should consider moving your site to WordPress as it’s the most popular platform for creating modern websites.
Beyond that, you need to accomplish a few things to get your B2B blog off the ground:
#1 Get Started
Sure, your goal is to create great content, but you need to learn how to walk before you can win a race. Start with the goal of generating one blog post a month. If you don’t know what to write about, do a little bit of research. Read what the leaders in your niche are writing on their blogs and try to do as good or better. After a few months, go for two posts a month. Then weekly. And if you’re up for it, try a couple of posts a week. Remember: the more content you generate, the more traffic you’ll get to your site.
#2 Get Better
Over time you’ll pick up skills, confidence and insights. Your blog will naturally start to gain momentum and you’ll be signaling to Google and Bing that you’re generating content in your niche. This is when you can really start to connect with your prospects with the exact information they’re looking for – and, of course, positioning your company as experts in your niche.
#3 Get Crazy
Explore ways to present information: videos, infographics or slideshares each have different ways to engage users. YouTube is the second-most visited site for a reason: people love being entertained. If you have basic video skills and can make even a mildly entertaining video, you’ll be way ahead of your competiton.
In addition to YouTube, explore free sites that can help you generate infographics and slide presentations to keep things fresh for you and your prospects.
#4 Get Strategic
As your blogging and content gen skills become more effective, you’ll need to pick up strategy skills. You’ll need to figure out how to get noticed by your ideal customers. This involves getting savvy about Search Engine Optimization (SEO), promoting your content through social media and continually refining your content so that your prospects don’t even notice your helpfulness is all part of your B2B content marketing plan.
By consistently posting helpful information, you can revitalize your sales efforts and drive revenue to new heights.
Let Rushminute Help
There’s a lot that goes into creating and maintaining all of your digital properties. We know. We’ve helped dozens of clients in the U.S. strengthen their brands with website makeovers, social media management and digital marketing. If you’re in the process of updating your site or need a “go to web guy” to help you manage your digital properties, Rushminute can help. Contact Rushminute or schedule a virtual cup of coffee and we’ll talk about your vision and how a great website can help you achieve your business goals.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Robbie Moore is the founder of Rushminute, a digital marketing agency in Lincoln, Nebraska. With 20+ years of experience in digital marketing, Robbie has worked with dozens of companies and organizations, large and small, around the globe. He also writes extensively about design, development, and business in general.
