In a marketplace where no one wants to be sold to, content must serve buyers’ needs in the vein of help and servitude rather than pushing and selling. Even more importantly, content must serve buyers at the right time in their journey.
To actually achieve this, B2B marketing professionals must expertly understand buyer needs and answer them across the different stages. And sales professionals must be enabled to not only best modify and use this content — but to engage it at key moments in the buyer’s journey.
With these following five key types of content, guide your marketing and sales professionals to Seek to Serve, Not to Sell®.
MAKE CONTENT THAT SERVES EVERY TARGET BUYER NEED
(1) Forward-Thinking Content That Challenges the Status Quo
When target buyers are unaware they even have a need to solve, your organization can position itself as a forward-thinking advisor. Early-stage content should challenge the status quo, keep a pulse on industry opportunities and threats, and present new ideas and data. Spark their future plans and needs — and position your organization as the innovative and expert solution provider that can see these ideas through.
According to a McKinsey Global Innovation Survey, 84% of executives agree that innovation is important to growth strategy. And in a Sales Mastery study, buyers indicated that they would speak to sellers sooner about new insights and ways to gain competitive advantage.
(2) Differentiating Content That Sets You Apart
Market oversaturation continues to cause struggles for B2B organizations trying to stand out in the eyes of their target buyers. And if you are not setting yourself apart, you might actually be making a business case that sells for your competition.
Content that highlights your differentiated value proposition is paramount in helping a buyer distinguish what makes your solution different (and better) than your competition’s. Do not mistake “features” for “differentiators” either. Four key attributes that help you distinguish your business and its solutions include (1) its uniqueness, (2) its specific value, (3) its proof and (4) its memorability.
(3) Buyer-Committee Serving Content
Today’s buying committees involve upwards of six to 10 decision-makers. And according to a Gartner study, 75% of B2B buyers consider their last purchase difficult or complex. Help your contact internally sell your solution by equipping them with essential content and tools to address every committee member’s concerns and needs, such as FAQs, solution one-pagers and client value stories. If you do this, you will ease an increasingly complicated buying journey and keep any deals from being stalled or disregarded by the greater whole.
(4) Shows, Not Tell Content
Forrester discovered that, unsurprisingly, 71% of B2B buyers found use cases and client success stories to be the most credible selling content. Yet 78% of buyers complained that salespeople fail to share relevant client examples.
Testimonials and client quotes, case studies, solution reviews and more offer a real-world peek at your solution in action. This proof helps alleviate concerns and objections, while helping buyers visualize how the solution can apply to their business — and what outcomes they might achieve.
(5) Cross-Solving Content
One of the most-effective paths to sustainable revenue performance is account expansion. Once you have landed a buyer, your organization must not forget to create content for this buyer segment. In the vein of a trusted advisor, share ways to help sharpen your buyer’s competitive advantage. Provide insight and education around your complementary solutions and the even greater value your organization can share. If you do so in a Seek to Serve, Not to Sell® spirit, you will find all the more success in growing your existing accounts.
LAY A VITAL FOUNDATION OF VALUE WITH YOUR SELLING CONTENT
When you manage to connect to prospective buyers with content that helps them through their specific stage in the buying journey, you are not tossed aside as another sales-focused organization. You prove your deep understanding of the buyer and their situation at key moments of need. You lay the groundwork for building a relationship based on value and trust.
As your content leads buyers along their journey, be aware of these five common issues that threaten to derail your deal — and how to overcome them — with our expert eBook.