B2B Marketing Blog

Elevate B2B Marketing News: B2B Pipeline Study, AI’s Rising Video Use, Google’s New Verification Tools, & What B2B Buyers Want

Lane Ellis on Mar 31st, 2023
Online Marketing News

B2B buyers want purchasing to be more social and entertaining
62 percent of B2B buyers have said that they would like more entertaining online purchasing processes, with 60 percent noting that they plan to increase their use of digital purchasing channels, while over 40 percent will abort an online buying process if it takes more than three seconds — three of numerous findings of interest to B2B marketers contained in newly-published survey data. Digital Commerce 360

B2B Sellers Should Include Financial Data In Emails, Not Sound Robotic: Study
81 percent of B2B sellers said that an understanding of a client’s financial performance is important when it comes to engaging executives, while 72 percent reported greater success when such financial data was used, according to recently-released B2B seller survey data. MediaPost

Elevate B2B Marketing News: B2B Pipeline Study, AI’s Rising Video Use, Google’s New Verification Tools, & What B2B Buyers Want

The Difference Between Zero-Party, First-Party & Third-Party Data

Katelyn Drake on Mar 29th, 2023
B2B Marketing, Online Marketing Strategy, Web Analytics

We know — and even expect — brands to understand us and offer up personalized experiences. (And at this point, isn’t it annoying when a brand obviously doesn’t “get” us?)

While we’ve seen a major shift from third-party to first-party data over the past few years, the latest trend now relies on zero-party data. And, if used correctly, it will become the most powerful source of buyer information.

Quick definitions

Before we dive much further, let’s quickly recap the different data sources:

Third-party data is obtained or purchased from an outside source. Think Apple or Facebook’s abilities to provide demographic or other interests based on information collected from those sites. The data is not exclusive to your company, meaning anyone can have access to the same data.

The Difference Between Zero-Party, First-Party & Third-Party Data

How Music Can Help Make Your B2B Content Sing

Joshua Nite on Mar 27th, 2023
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

I asked ChatGPT to write the introduction for this post. Here’s what it gave me:

In the world of B2B marketing, creating engaging and effective content is crucial for attracting and retaining customers. However, the process of brainstorming ideas and putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) can sometimes feel daunting and unproductive. That’s where music comes in. Listening to music has been shown to have a multitude of benefits for the brain, including improved mood, increased focus, and enhanced creativity. In this blog post, we’ll explore how incorporating music into your writing process can help B2B marketers produce better content and connect with their audience on a deeper level.

How Music Can Help Make Your B2B Content Sing

Elevate B2B Marketing News: CMOs Shift Priorities, Adobe’s New AI, Changing B2B Buyer Journeys, & Google Rolls Out Bard AI

Lane Ellis on Mar 24th, 2023
Online Marketing News

B2B CMOs Make Meaningful Shifts in Priorities
30 percent of B2B chief marketing officers have said that growth was tops when it comes to what they want to deliver in their role, while 21 percent pointed to better customer experiences, with 19 percent having said greater efficiency — three findings contained in newly-published B2B CMO survey data. MarketingCharts

B2B purchasing is for the young — and digital [Report]
35 percent of B2B buyers in the millennial and Generation Z demographic are say that they prefer using enterprise purchasing apps, while 24 percent of older buyers prefer inside sales reps, while dissatisfaction with vendors was also higher among younger B2B buyers — three of numerous findings of interest to B2B marketers contained in recently-released survey data. Digital Commerce 360

Elevate B2B Marketing News: CMOs Shift Priorities, Adobe’s New AI, Changing B2B Buyer Journeys, & Google Rolls Out Bard AI

Feeding Today’s Hunger For Better B2B Content Marketing Experiences

Art Allen on Mar 22nd, 2023
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

It’s a great time to be a B2B content marketer. The appetite for content marketing within B2B audiences is high, and content marketers say it remains by far the best tactic in terms of ROI.

But as content marketers we have to tread carefully: to paraphrase the old proverb, an opportunity is just a crisis waiting to happen. We need to make sure we are giving our readers what they want, because if we don’t, they’ll look elsewhere — and they might not come back.

And we don’t have to look far to know we can’t take our audiences for granted. The wild and frankly erratic moment happening in the world of social media has seen participation and engagement on social channels drop significantly. All except for TikTok, that is.

Feeding Today’s Hunger For Better B2B Content Marketing Experiences

Humanize, Organize, Strategize & Personalize: 4 Ways To Boost B2B Influencer Marketing With Generative AI

Lane Ellis on Mar 20th, 2023
B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

How can B2B brands best harness the power of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help take their influencer marketing to the next level?

At this point, it seems unlikely content that has been created with at least some AI-generated tool assistance will be shunned, making it likely that for better or worse it will soon be the rule rather than the exception — if it isn’t already.

Some organizations may put policies in place that forbid the use of generative AI, however for those that don’t there are many helpful and creative ways these tools can be harnessed to take B2B influencer marketing to the next level.

Let’s explore top ways B2B marketers can use generative AI to humanize, organize, strategize and personalize when it comes to influencer marketing.

Humanize, Organize, Strategize & Personalize: 4 Ways To Boost B2B Influencer Marketing With Generative AI

Elevate B2B Marketing News: B2B Influencer Benchmarks, Top Data Leader Priorities Report, & Microsoft’s AI Ad Insights

Lane Ellis on Mar 17th, 2023
Online Marketing News

Creative Services Professionals Are Most Concerned About AI
23 percent of marketing executives have said that they are interested in artificial intelligence (AI), with the top sectors interested in AI being software development, computer engineering, electronics, and creative services, while 12 percent of advertising executives said they are concerned about AI taking their jobs — three of several findings of interest to B2B marketers contained in newly-published survey data. MediaPost

Google rolled out new site names, favicon and sponsored label on desktop search
Search giant Google has released a search update that displays an array of additional website information within desktop search, including a secondary website name element, icon images, and more, along with more prominent advertising labels in mobile search results, Google recently announced, presenting new SEO options for B2B marketers. Search Engine Land

Elevate B2B Marketing News: B2B Influencer Benchmarks, Top Data Leader Priorities Report, & Microsoft’s AI Ad Insights

What is Search Intent and Why Is It Fundamental to SEO?

Harry Mackin on Mar 15th, 2023
B2B Marketing, SEO

When you googled “what is search intent,” you had the informational intention to seek out an answer to your question and learn more about a topic you’ve been hearing about.

As you can see, we understood that intent and wrote this blog post to answer your question. In other words: you’ve clearly come to the right place!

Search intent isn’t a “new” concept in SEO, but it is a surprisingly overlooked concept, especially in B2B. This is a problem for a couple reasons:

First and foremost, there’s the scary reason. As SEO becomes more and more competitive and third-party cookies go the way of the dinosaur, B2B businesses really have their work cut out for them if they want to stand out. Just targeting high-volume keywords isn’t going to cut it anymore; we’ll need to reach the right audience with the right message using the right keywords.

What is Search Intent and Why Is It Fundamental to SEO?

5 Steps to Building Authentic Relationships with Influencers

Alex White on Mar 13th, 2023
B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

Has there ever been a time when you were trying to work with an influencer, but found it challenging to get their attention? Having your emails go unanswered and being left unread on LinkedIn is a silent form of rejection we’ve all encountered at some point in time — it’s just inevitable. But there is a method to increasing the chances the expert you have your eye on not only replies to your messages but does plenty more — and I’m not talking about simply using money as a motivator.

1 — Don’t jump directly into their DMs

After hours of searching, you finally find an influencer who’s the perfect candidate for your campaign. Is your first thought to send them a message on social media? You’re not alone. That said, it’s important to hold off for the time being and do some homework.

5 Steps to Building Authentic Relationships with Influencers

Elevate B2B Marketing News: B2B Thought Leadership Survey, Top B2B CMO Priorities, Google’s New Trends Portal, & HubSpot Adds AI

Lane Ellis on Mar 10th, 2023
Online Marketing News

B2B Decision-Makers Value Research and Data in Thought Leadership Content
51 percent of B2B marketers have said thought leadership content that is quick and easily-absorbed provides the greatest value, with 49 percent pointing to thought leadership that references robust research with supporting data — two of several findings of interest to B2B marketers contained in recently-released survey data. MarketingCharts

“In tough times, B2B thought leadership is your key advantage.” — Alexandra Rynne of @LinkedIn Click To Tweet

B2B marketplaces refine their expansion strategies
B2B marketplaces such as Amazon Business have shifted strategies in 2023, including greater use of machine learning (ML) applications and artificial intelligence (AI), propelling the industry to annualized sales topping $25 billion, with estimates expecting continued growth that will reach $80 billion by 2025, according to newly-published report data. Digital Commerce 360

Elevate B2B Marketing News: B2B Thought Leadership Survey, Top B2B CMO Priorities, Google’s New Trends Portal, & HubSpot Adds AI

Intent-Based Strategy is the Future of SEO

Nick Nelson on Mar 9th, 2023
B2B Marketing, Enterprise SEO, Search Marketing, SEO

As any B2B company can attest, the most vexing type of problem is that which you have a solution for … you just don’t know how best to use it.

B2B marketers face monumental challenges today, aiming to increase targeted brand awareness in crowded marketplaces with tightening budgets. We’re feeling pressure to hit stricter KPIs and ambitious growth goals by increasing trust, engagement, reach, and ultimately ROI.

Meanwhile, we face all of these challenges during a period of economic uncertainty, rising digital advertising costs, and — oh yeah, the end of third-party cookies.

The good news? There’s a solution right in front of us. Optimizing for organic search is as effective as ever in the age of content proliferation and generative AI; B2B marketers just need to be more strategic and savvy in how they approach it.

Intent-Based Strategy is the Future of SEO

12 Women in B2B Marketing Worth Celebrating This (and every) Month

Katelyn Drake on Mar 8th, 2023
B2B Marketing

Historically, women have been underrepresented in the B2B marketing space, but we all know there are endless inspiring stories of female leaders driving innovation and creating revolutionary strategies.

March marks Women’s History Month, and today is International Women’s Day. This month — and every month — let’s celebrate all of the amazing women in B2B marketing who are leading the industry with boldness, bravery and innovation.

From marketing mavericks to storytellers, from unique strategic approaches to creating a brand and culture of diversity and inclusion, these executives are setting powerful examples for others – especially young professionals — to follow. Let’s take a look at just some of this remarkable talent that is pushing forward progress on behalf of businesses around the world!

12 Women in B2B Marketing Worth Celebrating This (and every) Month