BY Kathy Crosett
If there’s one thing B2B buyers want, it’s information. They need to fully understand their options before they make a decision. That means they will pay attention to your client’s content marketing resources.
Understanding the B2B Buying Process
Purchasing a service or product for a business can have a long lead time. The 2024 State of B2B Content Consumption and Demand Report, produced by NetLine, sheds light on this process.
Up to 35% of B2B buyers take a year to decide what to buy. During that time, decision-makers study the ways to solve their specific problem.
They review available options. They talk with trusted experts and with their current suppliers.
For a large investment, these buyers will assemble a team. Each team member will review content and recommend the best course of action from their perspective.
The Value of Content
These buyers do not want to be overwhelmed by hard-to-understand content. They also hesitate to give up their contact information because they fear being relentlessly targeted by sales professionals.
But some content marketing resources prove hard to resist. In our B2B BuyerSCAN survey, decision-makers said they would provide contact information to obtain:
- Insights on the use of how a product/service would solve their problem 37%
- How-to tips 29%
- Position paper or e‑book 10%
Similarly, the NetLine study revealed that over half of c‑suite decision-makers prefer e‑books or tips and tricks guides.
These findings make sense. C‑suiters are busy people. They consume a ton of content. Getting lost in the weeds is typically not their strategy.
Timing The Follow-Up
Your clients invest time and money into creating the best content marketing resources. It’s exciting when a prospect accesses that content. They’ve officially entered the purchase funnel.
Before your clients take any action, they should think of the buying process from the prospect’s perspective. The NetLine study results show that a consumption gap exists. After downloading information, prospects will not view it right away.
In fact, in the past year, the gap between downloading and consuming information averaged over 30 hours. That’s more than one day.
Researchers also measured a 56% “increase in on-demand webinar consumption.” This trend suggests that C‑level decision-makers want to move at their own speed. They have many emergencies to tend to on a daily basis.
When it’s convenient for them, they will check out the downloaded content. So your client must be patient.
35% of decision-makers in our B2B BuyerSCAN study said that being repeatedly pushed to make a decision is a turnoff. If a seller reaches out too soon or too often, they could be pushing away the prospect.
Which Industries Download Content
Are some industries more receptive to downloading content? The NetLine research shows that the most active verticals include:
- Information technology
- Education
- Manufacturing
If your clients are targeting prospects in these industries, they may experience solid demand for high-quality content marketing resources.
Should your client target specific types of employees with specific content. The data shows an interesting trend. The closer a company is to making a purchase, the more likely it is that the C‑level employees are involved.
Keep in mind, employees in sales and human resources are among the “mostly likely associated with an immediate buying decision.”
Personalizing B2B Content
Personalizing your client’s content marketing resources can also make a difference in swaying decision-makers. The 2024 dentsu B2B Superpowers Index reveals that today’s B2B buyers pay attention to what matter to them. These buyers are increasingly interested in whether a solution is good for society and if they can learn new skills.
Effective B2B Ads
Remind your clients that content marketing resources do not stand alone. B2B decision-makers are human. They will notice advertising that contains elements not usually seen in the B2B ecosystem.
Encourage your clients to supplement marketing resources by injecting humor, music and color into their advertising. And those are details you should be able to help with.
Photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels.