1.Why A Blog?Kate Wiltzer

2. Why InboundMarketing &What is a blog? B2B trendsContentMarketing is key in this area 3. Wikipedia Definition:a personal journal published on the World WideWeb consisting of discrete entries ("posts")WHAT IS typically displayed in reverse chronological orderso the most recent post appears first. Blogs areA BLOG? usually the work of a singleindividual, occasionally of a small group, andoften are themed on a single subject. 4. A community formed around acommon interest A two-way communicationvehicle (interactive)WHAT IS Allows the company to beA BLOG? thought leaders A way to promote, share, learn,engage with CONTENT on aregular basis, remain top-of-mind 5. WHAT IS RELATIONSHIPA BLOG? BUILDER 6. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)-blogging helps you rank in searchengines and get found when peopleWHAT IS search for industry-specific productsA BLOG? or services. Thus, enabling you toattract organic traffic and familiarizepeople with your business. 7. Frequency Matters: Research shows thatbusinesses that blog 16 to 20 times per monthget over two times more traffic than those thatWHAT IS blog fewer than four times per month.Keyword Posts: What is the most importantsearch engine keyword on your website? TakeA BLOG? that keyword, and write a blog post about it.This helps drive search engine traffic. Optimization: Use titles that incorporateindustry keywords that people enter in searchengines as they conduct research. 8. Not getting as muchB2BexposureTRENDS Not generating as many leadsSound familiar? 9. How often does one proceed to aB2Bpurchase decision with blogging research? Research shows 71% sayTRENDS that blogs affect their purchasing decisions either somewhat or very much. 10. Blogs mostvaluable!B2BTRENDS 11. Discovery if you want to be found by your potential customers and prospects when theyre looking,B2B Know: who your audience members areTRENDS what kinds of things they are reading what information they are looking for where they are looking for it 12. Why InboundInbound Marketing is a marketing strategy that focuses on getting found by customers. InboundMarketing is marketers earn their way in in contrast to key in this outbound marketers that have to buy, beg, or areabug their way in(Not good relationship building). 13. Why InboundThe change from outbound to inbound has shifted because of consumer behavior. People wantMarketing is control- they are now more than ever in control of key in this what information they want to receive and how, areainstead of the company being in control. 14. Why Inbound 84% of 24-35 year olds have left a website because of irrelevant information or advertisingMarketing is 200 million Americans have registered their key in this phones on FTCs the Do-Not-Call list area 91% of email users have unsubscribed to company emails that they opted into previously 86% of people skip television ads 44% of direct mail is never opened 15. Why InboundFundamental shifts in marketing are changing as the internet continues to revolutionize how weMarketing is find, buy, sell and interact with brands and their key in this products and services. It is time we shift to areaproviding added value and earning customer loyalty to build strong relationships. 16. Why InboundThe B2B Buying Cycle in 2012Marketing is While there are many variations of the B2B key in this buying cycle, we describe the B2B buying cycle areaas having six primary stages. 17. Why InboundMarketing is key in this area 18. Content Should Solve Problems in the Early Stages In the early Problem Identification and Criteria Creation stages, your potential customers are educating themselves by:Why Inbound Reading blog postsMarketing is Downloading general whitepapers Following influencers and subject matter experts key in this in social media area Visiting industry forums Asking questions on Quora Subscribing to industry newsletters Searching with broader, problem-oriented terms 19. Content in this stage needs to be: more general and very focused on your targetmarkets problem or goal. Dont talk about your product and services. PeopleWhy Inbound already know youre trying to sell something.Marketing is Blog posts are ideal for this early stage content. They should be less than key in this a thousand words, casual in tone yet informative. Again, no need to explicitly sell your product. Put yourself in your customers shoes and talk areaabout how to solve the core problems your product offers. Another great technique is to curate content from other sources. For example when you see interesting articles and other content that might help educate your community, share it. Tweet it. Link to it on the blog. Making us thought leaders & an information source. 20. Content Should Get Specific in the Later Buying Cycle Stages In the Search and Evaluation stages your potential customers are narrowing down their choices by: Watching vendor videos Downloading more technical whitepapers and product specsWhy Inbound Attending webinars Seeking product reviewsMarketing is Searching by using more detailed, long tail and-vendor key in this specific terms Joining vendor communities to discuss your products area Participating in demos and free trials While you should never abandon your core problem-solving focus, understand that buyers have already answered many of their basic questions and are now forming a solution. Vendor specific information and technical discussions are usually welcome in these later stages. Videos are always good to communicate large amounts of detailed information quickly. 21. Why InboundMarketing is key in this area 22. Why InboundMost effective Inbound Marketing tactics:Marketing is Content Marketing key in this Social Media Participation area 23. Why InboundMarketing is key in this area 24. Why InboundContent Marketing: Blogs/VlogsMarketing is Photos key in this White Papers area Infographics Videos Podcasts ebooks 25. Why InboundMarketing is key in this area 26. Why InboundContent Marketing: When interesting, useful, educational contentMarketing is is combined with a strong presence in social key in this media, its usefulness can increase areasubstantially. As content is shared and spread through social networks- the reach of the content grows virally. Content is then picked up and syndicated from site to site. 27. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix Step 1: Conduct Buyer Research To build the Buyer/Content Matrix, in-depth, ongoing buyer research such as Win/Loss interviews and informational interviews.Next Steps The goal is to understand your 1 or 2 key buyers extremely well including their buying process and concerns at each sales stage. The more deeply you understand their questions and concerns, the more on target your content will be. 28. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix Consider these questions when researching buyers: What circumstances will cause them to look for a solution like yours? What will drive them to change the status quo? What information do they need to adequately scope and define their problem? What information do they need about possible solutions? How important are peer recommendations? When do theyNext Steps usually utilize peer recommendations in the sales cycle? How do they research solutions? What resources do they typically use? How much is at stake for the buyer? Is this a major purchasing decision? Who else is involved in the sales cycle, and what are their information needs? What is the typical buying cycle length? 29. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix Sales team a huge involvement with this exercise:Next Steps Are there questions you regularly get from buyers indicating a need for additional content? When do prospects ask these questions early in the sales cycle or later? What existing content seems to work well? What doesnt work so well? 30. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix Step 2: Map Buyers Information Needs to Sales Stages Based on knowledge gathered during buyer research, map your buyers information needs to each salesNext Steps stage. Put yourself in their shoes and list their concerns. No more than two buyers in the Buyer/Content Matrix; as it quickly becomes complex and requires building more buyer-focused content than most companies can resource. 31. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix Step 3: Define Content Goals Define your contents high-level goals for addressing buyers questions. What information do they need in the AwarenessNext Stepsstage when theyre still defining and understandingtheir challenge? What do they need in the Evaluation stage whentheyve defined objectives and are starting tocreate a short list of vendors? 32. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix Step 4: Build a Content Path List specific content ideas for each sales stage that address the buyers questions and satisfy the content goals. Focus on content that is high-value,Next Steps educational, and helpful. Mix up content formats such as written documents, video, interactive applications, and webinars. A variety of formats keeps your content interesting, and it addresses different learning styles. 33. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix As you develop content ideas, build a path of content touch points that guides buyers from one sales stage to the next. Thinking like a teacher creating a lesson plan - what do your buyers want to learn, and what can you create that helps?Next Steps For instance, if you plan to create a product launch evaluators guide for the Scoping stage, think about the next logical piece of content. Perhaps a video of a customer explaining why your solution is a good fit for their environment? Or a multimedia tool that asks buyers questions about their needs and makes helpful recommendations? Or an ROI white paper illustrating various solutions in your product category? 34. Building the Buyer/Content Matrix One application of content touch points is creating aNext Steps lead nurturing campaign to educate buyers in different buying stages. They sign up on the blog to receive specific information geared towards their interests! This is a great low-pressure, high-value method to educate buyers. 35. Lets work together &Start Building the B2B Blog Community! Given the changing sales process and our buyers desire to research and self-educate for a longer period in the sales cycle, we need to embrace that shift and provide buyers with the content they want and need. Deeply understanding buyers is the first step.Conclusion Capturing that essential information in the Buyer/Content Matrix helps us create high-value content that really addresses our buyers information needs. And thats a key step to building relationships and helping buyers know, like, and trust you. Making you the Thought Leader & Building Relationships!