Week 3: Types of content (wtf should I be creating and how?)

This is part of a series where I share everything I know about how to nail inbound, outbound, and community building if you're a B2B startup (because I drank a lot of coffee one day and thought this would be a good idea).

If you're keen (or skeptical!), more here on?my background and the structure of what I'm going to cover?over the next few weeks. TL;DR - I've done it multiple times successfully so you'd be silly not to trust me ;)

In Week 2 I covered, Figuring out your content goals. This is a crucial first step before you launch that webinar or release that blog post or whatever. ??

This week we will talk about the different types of content, how much effort each type takes, different ways of producing content, and what type of content is right for what purpose. LESSSSGO! ?? ??

Different types of content

First things first -- your content should be created with a clear purpose in mind. Is it to generate brand new leads, is it to engage those existing at the top of your funnel (sales enablement basically), is it to increase brand value, or is it to get a viral engagement going? If you don't know, figure it out here and only then come back here. No, seriously!

Types of content

Snack-able content (easy to consume, fun, compelling) ??

This style is great if you're looking to generate new leads and want to increase top of funnel.

• Short surveys – Simply drafted surveys have shockingly high ROI. Why? People love sharing their opinions. You just need to ensure that the questions truly hit a nerve.
• Infographics or other content visualisations – Works very well since it’s visual, easily digestible, and quick to consume. You can create this either with industry data, or with data you collect from your survey.
• Listicles – Hate it or love it, those damn buzzfeed style listicles do REALLY well even in the B2B context

Deep content (detailed, incredibly useful, time consuming) ??

This style is great if your product is complex and if your user base values knowledge sharing or deep interaction. Word of caution: this type of content is resource intensive to produce, so make sure there's good reason to do it, as well as a really aggressive strategy for timely follow-up with those that have interacted with it.

• Whitepapers or reports – 3-4 pager short ones (OR) 15-pg. elaborate ones, depending on scope and context
• Diagnostic reports or calculators – interactive with scorecards for the reader to fill; finished with recommendations throughout the report
• Webinars – a bit of a faff but when done with the right partners and co-panellists, works amazingly well! (more on collabs in the section below)

Brand status and signalling content (fancy, signals access, looks sharp & cool) ???

• Executive Q&A – nothing signals "access" better than getting someone important on the record to share their thoughts
• Customer testimonials – again, huge social validation and trust when a customer is willing to vouch for you
• Guest appearances on other platforms that raise your brand value – Press interviews, podcast appearance with someone that actually matters, conference panels
• Explainer videos – These are SO INCREDIBLE for lead gen, but even even sales enablement especially if your product is complex

Consistent content (regular, builds trust over time, predictable, gives you a reason to interact more frequently, helps with SEO) ??

This is the hardest to do as well as measure, but has massive long-term benefits when done right. Consistency is key. For a very long time it can feel like the needle is not moving at all, and all of a sudden there will be huge tangible benefits. The really important thing is to ensure that you have sufficient resources and the right resource is allocated to the right job.

• Podcasts – More popular than ever before, can work really well depending on style and content. However, it is very hard to be consistent (I should know I've done two 20-episode podcasts before listened to by 20k people!) and so make sure that whoever is doing is accountable for it and actually enjoys it!
• Blog posts – These are relatively lower effort than podcasts and can really help with building brand presence and SEO. But again, ensure consistency.
• Newsletters – I might be biased here, but this is highly valuable when you an do it right. Communicate to your audience what cadence you'll be running this at, and because it involves an "opt-in" you know that these are people that are TRULY interested.
• Social media – Memes, GIFs, cheeky statements and musings don't only belong to the world of B2C anymore. If your buyer spends a considerable amount of time online, giving your social media page a bit more personality is a great idea! Again, it's resource intensive so think about whether you're ready for it or not.

What are the ways to create content?

Ok, so you've decided what sort of content(s) makes sense for you. But how do you create? There's a whole range depending on how much control you want, and resources you have.

• Completely in-house with an in-house copywriter
• Outsourced to a writer but fully scoped, branded, managed and controlled in-house
• In collaboration with a partner (co-branded). This is usually great if you want increased brand value from this partnership, or actual content from them (eg. running a survey on someone else's database)
• Completely outsourced to a third-party (you lose complete control of the messaging and branding so make sure the SOP is clear and well communicated)

Homework:

1. Write down what sorts of content will make most sense for your audience
2. Write down which specific end goal(s) they align with
3. Write down how you will produce it

Next week, I will talk about - "How to generate inbound leads through your content":

• Various platforms you can partner with for distribution
• Social media and paid search
• Multichannel approach through repurposed content
• Gated vs un-gated content

In the subsequent weeks: How to maintain a content bank, how to measure the true cost of acquiring a lead, how sales can ensure marketings' efforts aren't in vain

Have you found this useful? I want to know. Slide into my DMs if commenting isn't your jam. ???

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If you've made it this far, thank you for reading. I am excited to share more over the weeks! If you have thoughts and experiences in content, I want to hear them.

If you run a tech company or are a marketer at one, and you'd like exposure to 1.2mn tech execs and enthusiasts, check out the?TLDR newsletter?and hit me up if you'd like to partner or feature. We've got a pretty dope and engaged community!