In today’s increasingly digital world, more and more B2B businesses are embracing the power of blogging strategy for their content marketing efforts. Whether you are a small startup or a large corporation, B2B blogging can be an effective way to reach your target audience and promote your business.
The potential benefits of B2B blogging are numerous. A strategically optimized B2B blog can help you:
- increase brand awareness and visibility,
- drive more qualified leads,
- establish thought leadership,
- improve customer engagement,
- and more.
But is blogging really worthwhile for most B2B businesses? (Spoiler alert: Yes, it is!)
In this article, we will explore the value of blogging for B2B businesses and discuss some of the key considerations when creating a successful B2B blog.
What is B2B Blogging?
Blogging as a form of content marketing can benefit almost any business – B2B or B2C. So while the focus of this article is on B2B blogging, much of what is discussed here is also relevant to B2C blogging.
B2B blogging is essentially a more targeted form of B2C blogging. It’s the process of publishing long-form content regularly on a website to inform and engage an audience related to your B2B business. It can include a mix of product reviews, testimonials, expert advice, industry news, scientific studies, and more.
One of the most valuable aspects of B2B blogging is that it is more than just product promotion. It’s a form of content marketing that focuses on educating and informing your customer base on who you are as a brand, in addition to what you do. It’s a channel through which you can engage with your customers, build trust, and drive more leads, as it reaches your target audience on a different level.
Benefits of B2B Blogging
B2B blogging provides a wide range of benefits, from increasing brand awareness and visibility, to driving more qualified leads, and more. Let’s explore these benefits in more detail.
Increase Brand Awareness and Visibility
One of the main benefits of B2B blogging is that it can help you increase brand awareness and visibility. By curating informative content that on topics that are relevant to your target audience, you will get your brand and website in front of people who are likely interested in doing business with your brand.
Drive More Qualified Leads
A B2B blog can help you generate more leads, provided it is written in a way that appeals to your target audience. Your blog content should be valuable, educational, and actionable, and should include an email collection strategy so that you can continue to market to this engaged audience.
The more your readers benefit from your blog posts, the more likely they are to opt in to additional contacts from your brand–and eventually make a purchase after following your email marketing funnels.
Establish Thought Leadership
Another benefit of B2B blogging is that it can help establish your brand as thought leaders in your industry. By consistently publishing curated, relevant, and informative content on your blog, you are positioning your business as an authority in your industry. This builds confidence and contributes to brand trust and visibility.
Improve Customer Engagement
B2B blogging can also help you gauge and improve customer engagement, which is crucial to lead generation. The more engaged your readers are, the more likely they are to make a purchase.
You can also utilize blog content to determine what subjects your audience is most interested in, and which topics convert the best.
Key Considerations for B2B Blogs
There are many factors you should consider when creating a B2B blog, including your target audience, content strategy, and platform, to name a few. Let’s explore some of the key considerations for B2B blogging.
Target Audience
First and foremost, you need to identify your target audience profile. What are their pain points? What types of problems do they face? What are their interests? These are all important questions to consider when identifying your target audience.
Once you’ve identified your target audience, you can create content that is tailored to their needs, and solves their problems.
Content Strategy
Another important consideration when creating a B2B blog is your content strategy. How often will you publish content? What type of content will you publish? How will you promote your blog? Make sure you have resources allocated to effective content strategy, production, and analysis.
If you don’t have adequate internal resources to manage your B2B blog, consider working with a firm like Markacy to help.
Blogging Platform
An important consideration when creating a B2B blog is choosing a platform. There are many options when it comes to blogging platforms, but the most common platforms in our experience are WordPress and Shopify.
B2B Blogging Best Practices
As with any marketing or business project, it is important to follow established best practices. If you want to see results from your blog right away, following these B2B blogging best practices is vital.
Create Content that Appeals to Your Target Audience
One of the most important B2B blogging best practices is creating content that actually appeals to your target audience. Conduct market research and SEO keyword analysis to help ensure that your blog posts solve your readers’ problems and help them achieve their goals. Your blog posts should also be written for your audience, not for you or your company.
Publish High-Quality Content Regularly and Consistently
It’s also important for B2B blogs to publish high-quality content regularly. You don’t want to publish content only once a year or once a month. You want to publish content on a regular monthly schedule so that your readers receive a consistent flow of content, and to signal to Google algorithms that your blog is an active and relevant source of information. Make sure that you properly cite sources, including links to trusted data resources.
Create SEO Optimized Content
Another important B2B blogging best practice is to create SEO-friendly content. This means you should base your content around SEO keywords relevant to your audience. Determine the best target keywords through keyword research tools like Ahrefs or SEMRush.
B2B Blogging Tools and Resources
There are plenty of helpful tools and resources available when creating a B2B blog. Some of the most useful B2B blogging tools include content creation tools, blog hosting tools, and etc. While this is not an exhaustive list, we are sharing some of our favorite B2B blogging tools and resources.
Content Creation Tools
- AI writing software, like WriteSonic or ChatGPT
- SEO Content Programs, like Surfer SEO
- Any document platform, such as Google Docs or Microsoft Word
Blog Hosting Tools
- Blog hosting platforms, including BlueHost or Hostinger
- Content management systems, such as WordPress, Shopify or Kajabi
SEO Research + Performance Analytics
- Google Analytics
- Google Search Console
- Ahrefs
- SEMRush
- Moz
- Screaming Frog
Tips for B2B Blogging Success
Now that you know what B2B blogging is, the benefits, and how to create a successful blog, it’s time to put your knowledge into practice. To get the most out of your B2B blog, you need to make sure you follow these tips for success.
Create Compelling Content
The most important tip for B2B blogging success is to create compelling content–not just a keyword-stuffed jumble of buzzwords. Your blog posts should be well-written, relevant, and educational. They should also be written in a way that appeals to your readers.
To facilitate this, it is helpful to find your brand voice. What does your blog sound like? How do you want your readers to feel after reading your content?
Share Your Content
Another important tip for B2B blogging success is to share your blog content across email and social media platforms. Create posts promoting your blog articles on social media channels like LinkedIn, Meta and Twitter, and consider sharing your posts to industry publications.
How to Measure the Success of Your B2B Blog
Now that you know what makes a successful B2B blog and have some tips for success, it’s time to put your knowledge into practice. To measure the success of your B2B blog, you need to follow these steps.
Track Your Metrics
First, you need to track your metrics. What metrics do you need to track? Some of the most important ones include page views, engagement rate, time on site, email opt-in conversions, and number of returning visitors.
Analyze the Data
Once you’ve tracked your metrics, it’s time to analyze the data. Look for patterns in your blog performance and identify any areas that need improvement. This will help you refine your B2B blogging strategy and create content that resonates with readers.
Engage with Your Audience
Finally, it’s important to engage with your audience. Ask questions in the comments section of your blog posts and respond to comments in a timely fashion; and invite comments via email, or invite subscribers to answer questions in a poll. This will help build relationships with readers and encourage them to come back for more content in the future.
B2B Blogging: A Valuable + Effective Platform for B2B Businesses
When created with a robust SEO strategy and curated content, blogging is a very valuable and effective tool for B2B businesses. By following these tips for success, you can create a long-form content marketing platform that will reach a targeted, highly engaged audience with great conversion potential.
In today’s on-demand, tech-first economy, it’s more important than ever to engage with your customers. No matter what type of B2B product or service your brand offers, blogging is an excellent way to build trust, educate your audience, and create a community centered on your brand’s interests.
Ready to get started with B2B blogging, or take your existing B2B blog to the next level of success? Markacy can help.
Contact us to get started with our industry experts today. You can reach us via our contact form, or email our co-founders, Tucker Matheson and Chris Jones.
