B2B Marketing Archives - Online Marketing Blog

How B2B Marketers Can Win at Search with Best Answer Content

Nick Nelson on Feb 21st, 2019 B2B Marketing, Search Marketing, SEO

Marketers are engaged in a continuous battle to gain an edge when it comes to SEO, seeking those crucial advantages provided by top visibility where customers are looking. Multiple disciplines from technical SEO to creative content can be leveraged to win the search marketing game. At TopRank Marketing, we believe the best answer to this quandary is… well, to be the Best Answer.

To simplify and clarify, it might be helpful to take a step back.

In October of 2000, Larry Page laid out his ambitious vision for Google, a company he’d founded along with Sergey Brin just two years earlier.

Page foresaw his creation as “the ultimate search engine that would understand everything on the Web. It would understand exactly what you wanted, and it would give you the right thing.”

How B2B Marketers Can Win at Search with Best Answer Content

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B2B Brands Go Bold: 7 Great Examples of Interactive B2B Content

Joshua Nite on Feb 20th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Online Marketing

If you’re not convinced that interactive content in the B2B space can work: Well, first check out these interactive content stats.

If you’re still on the fence, here’s an object lesson from a master of audience engagement:

Freddie plays that 100,000-person crowd like an instrument. You can feel the energy, even through a tiny YouTube window.

When you invite your audience to be part of the show, the results can be magical.

Now, odds are your brand can’t match the raw charisma of Freddie Mercury in tight jeans. But you can still get your audience cheering with interactive B2B content.

Here are a few great examples to light your creative fires and open your B2B minds to the possibilities of interactive.

B2B Brands Go Bold: 7 Great Examples of Interactive B2B Content

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Why Always-On Is Always Better for Driving B2B Influencer Marketing Success

Caitlin Burgess on Feb 19th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

Show of hands: How many of us brush our teeth at least twice a day? All of us? Great.

Now, a follow up question: Why?

The reasons are numerous, right? We care about maintaining our hygiene on a daily basis. We want to keep our smiles bright. We need to defend against offensive bad breath. We want to ensure the long-term health of our teeth, gums, and mouths. And, mostly, we want to successfully avoid pricey and painful dental work now and in the future.

via GIPHY

The moral here? With consistency and commitment we reap both short- and long-term benefits—and avoid a whole lot of pain. And the same is true when it comes to B2B influencer marketing.

Why Always-On Is Always Better for Driving B2B Influencer Marketing Success

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Break Free of Boring B2B with Interactive Influencer Content

Lee Odden on Feb 18th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

Click Here to see the Break Free from Boring B2B Guide in Full Screen Mode

B2B doesn’t need to mean “boring to boring” and yet much of business marketing has earned its reputation. In a world of information overload, buyers expect engaging content from sources they can trust.

So what’s the solution for marketers that want to break free of boring B2B marketing?

Since 81% of marketers agree that interactive content grabs attention more effectively than static content (CMI) and 70% say interactive content is effective at converting site visitors (ion interactive), B2B marketers need move away from simply educating and to start creating content experiences that allow customers to engage.

Break Free of Boring B2B with Interactive Influencer Content

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Lovestruck: Why We’ve Fallen in Love with B2B Content Marketing

Anne Leuman on Feb 14th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

Once upon a time, in a land of rainbows, butterflies, and evil content overload, a gripping love story is unfolding.

But this love affair isn’t what you’d expect — it’s no “Romeo and Juliet” or “Sleepless in Seattle.”

Rather, it’s an unlikely courtship with a bond sealed by three little words: Business-to-Business.

That’s right. We’ve said. The secret’s out. For the last decade, we’ve been head-over-heels in love with B2B content marketing.

We know what you’re thinking. B2B can’t hold a candle to B2C. B2B is boring. B2B lacks sex appeal. But you don’t know B2B like we do—she’s a knockout and a showstopper.

via GIPHY

What’s so darn attractive about B2B content marketing? Let us remind you of all there is to fall in love with.

Lovestruck: Why We’ve Fallen in Love with B2B Content Marketing

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10 Memorable Marketer Moods, Memed

Joshua Nite on Feb 13th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

As a content marketer, I’m always looking for more effective and efficient ways to communicate. I love the way communication is evolving online (with the exception of, say, YouTube comments).

Think about it: A hundred years ago, it was much harder to convey a mood in text.

You could trail off (…)
You could ask questions (?)
You could shout (!!)

And that’s about it.

Emoticons opened up the possibilities a bit, with “slight smile :),” “big smile :D,” and “guy wearing sunglasses sticking his tongue out 8P.” Emojis added even more nuance.

Now, though, we have the ability to embed images and GIFs in our blog posts, emails, and messages. We can convey extremely specific moods, thoughts, and insights with a single image. Like, for example, the feeling when you’re wearing socks and step in something wet:

10 Memorable Marketer Moods, Memed

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Tip of the Iceberg: A Story of Trust in Marketing as Told by Statistics

Nick Nelson on Feb 12th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

“Step up on the railing. Hold on, hold on. Keep your eyes closed.”

Jack is holding Rose around her waist, cautiously lifting her up to the Titanic’s bow.

“Do you trust me?”

He was a stranger up until days earlier, but still, her response is almost instantaneous.

“I trust you.”

Moments later, Rose opens her eyes and she’s flying, arms outstretched as the mighty liner propels her forward. She and Jack hold hands; they kiss. Celine Dion’s music wafts in the background. Teenage boys in the theater start gagging, while romantic types swoon.

There’s a good chance you lived through this very experience. James Cameron’s 1997 cinematic landmark Titanic was an unprecedented hit, holding the title as highest-grossing film of all time for 14 years. The scene described above is perhaps its most famous — the linchpin in a love story sparked by deep, genuine trust that materialized almost out nowhere.

Tip of the Iceberg: A Story of Trust in Marketing as Told by Statistics

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5 Time-Saving Tips to Overclock Your B2B Marketing Efficiency

Lane Ellis on Feb 7th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

Gigahertz Overclocking Gauge Image

Is saving time important for a B2B marketer?

Your answer is likely an unequivocal yes. But saving time by upping efficiency isn’t just a one-and-done step. It should be an ongoing, living and breathing process that changes and improves over your marketing career. And that means you should be taking time to review and audit your processes to uncover opportunities for improvement.

In my 35-plus years working in online communications, I’ve come to learn several efficiency-boosting methods. So, here are five of my personal time-saving tips to overclock, fine-tune, and crank up your B2B marketing efficiency.

Why B2B Marketing Efficiency Matters

Saving a few minutes here and there throughout the day may not seem all that important — or worth devoting much effort to achieve. But keep in mind that saving two minutes each day equates to eight and a half hours over a standard business year. That’s valuable time that can be used for countless other activities.

5 Time-Saving Tips to Overclock Your B2B Marketing Efficiency

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Embracing Interactive Content: 19 Statistics Every B2B Marketer Needs to Know

Anne Leuman on Feb 4th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, Interactive Marketing

Modern B2B content marketing evolved out of the opportunity to provide buyers with the information they seek at every stage of their customer journey. But in an increasingly crowded content landscape and as consumer preferences and technology evolve, it’s no longer enough to just inform buyers.

Today and beyond, to connect on an intellectual and emotional level with their audience, B2B marketers need to provide engaging content experiences. And that’s precisely were interactive content can play a massive, highly-effective role.

Not sold on the potential of interactive content for B2B? Let’s look at some of the research and commentary from several sources, including:

Embracing Interactive Content: 19 Statistics Every B2B Marketer Needs to Know

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5 Examples of B2B Influencer Marketing to Inspire You in 2019

Lee Odden on Jan 29th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Influencer Marketing

B2B brands don’t have it easy when trying to attract, engage and persuade today’s increasingly distracted and distrustful buyers. Many are experimenting with influencer marketing but results without an informed plan can be a mixed bag. Trust me, I know.

We’ve been experimenting heavily with B2B influencer marketing for over 6 years, partnering with hundreds of B2B influencers and B2B brands of all sizes while also learning a lesson or two.

Fast forward to today and we understand that for successful influencer marketing in the B2B world. Relationships are key, right along with shared values and some robust validation when it comes to topical relevance, ability to create and engage on-topic with an interested community.

5 Examples of B2B Influencer Marketing to Inspire You in 2019

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A Simple Three-Point Checklist for Documenting Your B2B Content Strategy Right Now

Nick Nelson on Jan 28th, 2019 B2B Marketing, Content Marketing

On the first day of 2019, I laid out a series of New Year’s resolutions for content marketers. At the top of the list was creating a documented content strategy.

Maybe you came across the post. Maybe you nodded your head while reading that particular item and said, “Yup, I’m gonna do that.” But most likely, you still haven’t yet. I’m not trying to be presumptive, just speaking in probabilities: research tells us that documenting a content strategy has been the subject of pervasive and perpetual procrastination across our field for some time.

What gives? Why do we keep putting it off?

“Usually procrastination happens because the task seems too difficult,” according to psychiatrist A. Chris Heath, MD (via PsyCom). Makes sense, based on my personal experience.

A Simple Three-Point Checklist for Documenting Your B2B Content Strategy Right Now

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