Joshua Nite

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

Trust Statistics for 2023 that B2B Marketers Will Love

Joshua Nite on Feb 13th, 2023
B2B Marketing

It’s almost Valentine’s Day, that commodified and commercialized celebration of the most bountiful and free resource we have.

But cynicism aside, love in all its forms is a beautiful thing worth celebrating. And one absolutely essential part of love is trust. It’s asking someone to put their trust in you and having faith you will get the same in return. That’s something no amount of flowers and chocolate can buy.

As a marketer, you want customers to fall in love with your brand. But that type of love requires trust, too. And on that point, we’ve got good news and bad news.

Edelman just published their 2023 Trust Barometer. It’s always an eye-opening read, and this year has some fascinating stats that marketers need to know.

Trust Statistics for 2023 that B2B Marketers Will Love

How Influencer Marketing Can Drive a Full Funnel Content Strategy

Joshua Nite on Jan 9th, 2023
B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

In case you’re new to the blog, our agency is pretty sold on B2B influencer marketing. Now, when we say influencer marketing, we’re not talking about tanned and toned Gen Z’ers sitting poolside, endorsing your SaaS solution. At least not for your first campaign.

No, influence in B2B is all about value and credibility:

Your brand lends credibility & new audience to influencers
Influencers lend credibility & new audience to your brand
Both audiences get trustworthy, valuable content

As our recent report shows, B2B marketers are steadily increasing their influencer marketing sophistication. But despite the progress, many still think of it as an exclusively upper-funnel tactic.

Just like content marketing, however, influencer marketing works better with a full-funnel approach.

How Influencer Marketing Can Drive a Full Funnel Content Strategy

Why Great Top-of-Funnel Content Matters for Lead Generation

Joshua Nite on Dec 19th, 2022
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

When a storm is on the horizon, everyone battens down the hatches, boards up the windows, and hunkers down to wait it out.

Right now there’s a recession on the horizon for B2B businesses, and we can see the storm preparation starting. Budgets are getting leaner, new requests met with more scrutiny, and marketers are under more pressure than ever to prove the effectiveness of their work.

This is when many marketing departments focus on lead gen, throwing everything they’ve got at the bottom of the funnel.

It’s a common response. But it’s a mistake.

Here’s why top-of-funnel marketing matters for lead generation, even if — especially if — the economic future is uncertain.

Why Great Top-of-Funnel Content Matters for Lead Generation

Take the Lead with Full-Funnel B2B Lead Gen

Joshua Nite on Dec 7th, 2022
B2B Marketing, Online Marketing Strategy

The definition of a ‘lead’ has been a point of contention for ages. Marketers feel like anyone who gives up their contact information in exchange for an asset should be considered a lead. Sales thinks the term should be restricted to people who are actually part of the decision-making process and currently in-market. The classic battle of marketing vs sales, but we are here to help connect the dots.

As businesses brace for a potential recession, marketers will increasingly be held accountable for the quality of leads we provide. We will need to get closer to the sales definition: People who are relevant, on the buying committee, and at least a few steps into their customer journey.

Take the Lead with Full-Funnel B2B Lead Gen

How to Create More Authentic Influencer-Driven Content to Attract Qualified Prospects

Joshua Nite on Nov 14th, 2022
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

When you think about who is influential in your industry, you likely think about professional influencers first. These are the consultants, public speakers and authors, the ones who give keynote speeches and have huge followings on social media.

These folks are absolutely essential as part of your influencer mix. Their reach, knowledge and professionalism are incredibly valuable.

However, you need more than just these folks for authentic and useful content. To create the kind of experience that earns the attention of qualified prospects, you need to expand your definition of what an influencer is — and what influencer content should look like.

Here’s how to optimize your influencer marketing to create authentic experiences that attract your most valuable audience.

How to Create More Authentic Influencer-Driven Content to Attract Qualified Prospects

10 Creative Horror Movies to Inspire Your B2B Marketing

Joshua Nite on Oct 31st, 2022
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, Online Marketing

We’ve been saying for years that B2B marketing should be emotional, exciting, entertaining and engaging — in short, creative. Great marketing not only wins those industry awards, it gets better results.

We’ve proven as much with the work our agency puts out. But it’s nice to get some third-party vindication. LinkedIn’s B2B Institute just published a report called “Cashing in on Creativity.” They analyzed over 1500 B2B ads and found two huge takeaways:

Only 5% of ads have highly creative messaging
This top 5% can drive a 10-20x bigger market share growth

In other words, we don’t have to measure creativity in moonbeams and rainbows. We can measure in dollars and cents.

10 Creative Horror Movies to Inspire Your B2B Marketing

20 Terrifying Marketing Jokes to Celebrate Spooky Season

Joshua Nite on Oct 17th, 2022
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, Online Marketing

I’ll admit it: I’m one of those fall-loving, Halloween-obsessed people who just can’t wait to feel that crispness in the air and break out the spooky decorations. It’s the one time of year where everyone briefly shares my interest in horror movies and scary stories.

So when asked to write another in my series of marketing jokes posts, I had to seize the opportunity to make it scary. Granted, my jokes usually provoke more groans and moans than a cemetery full of ghouls, but at least these are painful on purpose.

Read on and laugh… if you dare!

20 Terrifying Marketing Jokes for Halloween

Jokes about sea monsters don’t have super high search volume, but they do have a long tail.

20 Terrifying Marketing Jokes to Celebrate Spooky Season

5 Podcasting Trends Every B2B Marketer Should Know

Joshua Nite on Oct 3rd, 2022
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

We may have mentioned a time or two that podcasts are a great way for B2B marketers to release content. But since my first B2B podcasting post (way back in the before times of 2018, how naive we were), the landscape has changed significantly.

Part of the shift is due to the pandemic and the remote/hybrid work boom that followed. People who used to spend hours listening to podcasts on their commute suddenly found that the bedroom to home office commute required less entertainment.

But the other part is simply natural maturation and evolution over time. Podcasts are becoming even more plentiful, their creators more diverse, and the advertising more relevant.

Here are the major trends that B2B podcasters should be aware of for 2022 and beyond.

5 Podcasting Trends Every B2B Marketer Should Know

Beyond B2Sea: 5 Top Lessons B2B Marketers Can Learn from Pirate Movies

Joshua Nite on Sep 19th, 2022
B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

Avast, ye scurvy swabs! Today be Talk Like a Pirate Day, a holiday for landlubbers and seadogs alike. Ye don’t have to send cards or give gifts — just use your best nautical lingo and don’t forget the ARRRRs!

Talk Like a Pirate Day was first celebrated in 1995, but gained popularity online in the 2010s. It’s a good opportunity to be a little silly, watch some great movies, and maybe even learn a few pointers to guide your B2B marketing.

So batten the hatches, hoist up the mizzenmast, and shiver your timbers: Here are five lessons you can learn from pirate movies.

Beyond B2Sea: 5 Top Lessons B2B Marketers Can Learn from Pirate Movies

Turn Influential Fans Into Brand Ambassadors With B2B Influencer Marketing

Joshua Nite on Aug 22nd, 2022
B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

What turns an influencer into a brand ambassador?

One answer you might be hearing more often is, “A big ol’ wad of cash.”

But while it’s true that B2B influencers want to get paid (don’t we all?), there’s an enthusiasm and authenticity that money alone can’t buy. And once you have a group of true brand ambassadors on board, you’ve got something wonderful that your competition can’t duplicate.

At the heart of it, creating brand ambassadors means pulling your influencers into a purposeful community united in common interests and goals. It means making an ongoing effort to engage and delight these folks so they can engage and delight their audiences.

Turn Influential Fans Into Brand Ambassadors With B2B Influencer Marketing

How B2B Marketers Can Benefit From Working With More Diverse Influencers

Joshua Nite on Aug 1st, 2022
B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

When was the last time you saw someone in a wheelchair in your day-to-day life? Someone just going about their daily routine, who also happened to be in a wheelchair?

Now, when was the last time you saw someone in a wheelchair as a main character in a movie — a movie that wasn’t entirely about being in a wheelchair?

You can apply that same thought experiment to any type of diversity: race, gender, sexuality, body size and shape are all underrepresented in the media.

If a cisgender, heterosexual white man like me can see this lack of representation, how does it look and feel to those who are in marginalized groups? What is the entertainment industry missing out on by ignoring these voices?

How B2B Marketers Can Benefit From Working With More Diverse Influencers