Narrow is the New Wide for B2B Marketing Content

Sometimes marketing communications make people feel like they're getting deluged by a fire hose. Marketers cram all these big ideas into one white paper or article trying to cover as much as possible in their effort to gain the attention of prospects.

It's the equivalent of saying,

"Hey, we're not really sure what you need, but in case this one BIG point doesn't get you, how about all these other ideas?"

Stop it.

Your prospects can't take it. When you leverage a fire hose mentality you overwhelm them.

Lead nurturing during a complex buying process is about reeling out small, potent, viable and strategic ideas in a way that helps your prospects embrace them. Once they've attached to one great idea, they'll more easily (and eagerly) dig into the next meaty topic you cover.

And here's the great part. Nurturing with one idea at a time allows you to measure more precisely for interest levels. If you cram a bunch of ideas into one piece of content, how the heck do you expect to know just what it was that caught your prospect's attention?

Which type of content allows you to learn more through prospect behavior?

A. A white paper that sets up a problem you know your prospects are grappling with and then talks about every feature of the solution that can be thrown at solving the problem.

B. A series of articles about the problem with each one focused on helping the prospect by answering a question they may have about solving it.

If you use the white paper example, all you know is that they may have the problem. If you use the article series, you've got the possibility of learning which questions and concerns may be more important. You've also got the chance to see how interested they are in solving it. In other words, how high a priority that problem is for them. If they read the whole series, that tells you something different than if they read 3 out of 5 articles in the series. 

Even if it's 3 articles, you now know which three questions the prospect was interested in and can tailor nurturing touches that dive deeper into those subjects to see if you can gain a higher level of engagement.

Take a look at the prospects who read those three articles. Are they in similar roles, industries or company sizes? Are they influencers or decision makers? You may be able to spot trends that help you get very targeted in how you interact with specific segments. Basing segmentation on expressed interest can give your marketing more traction.

B2B marketers need to take a more customer-focused approach. This is really hard to do if you can't pinpoint a specific issue or interest that your prospect will actively engage in dialogue about.

Just because you think an issue is important, doesn't mean they do. By breaking your content down into smaller ideas, you can explore them in greater depth. Instead of glossing over ideas because you need to cram them all into one content asset, you can take your time and be thoughtful about the expertise and insights you share. You can also learn if a question you think is important, isn't even on their radar.

Go look at your web analytics and see how long people spend on specific web pages. Let's say it's 1.56 minutes. Can they actually read the content on that page in that length of time? Attention spans are shorter. People want to get the information they need and get out. They're busy.

Providing a valuable exchange for their attention is the end goal. When you do that, your prospects respond with interest. Plus, shorter and targeted is likely easier for them to digest. That's because you can take a complex issue and break it into simple parts. As you expand the conversation with additional pieces, the parts weave together to make solving that complex issue an option that's appealing because you've become someone they've relied on over time.

A complex sale doesn't happen with one white paper download. Or even with just a series of articles. But, the more often you have interactions with your prospects that they see as helpful, the higher your credibility and value as a trusted resource.

Comments

[Michael Webb]

Ardath,

This is a great message. It strikes me that this is the same problem amateur public speakers have (salespeople included) when they are creating a presentation: they try to cram in too much information.

It is a hard lesson to learn for many. Do you know why people have such trouble with it?

Michael Webb
www.salesperformance.com

[Britton Manasco]

This is very interesting: Cast a wider net with narrower, more focused content.

But I'm curious: How does this change the way we distribute/present the content? Would we continue to drive people to landing pages/registration pages for brief, focused "articles"? (If that's the case, it's probably important to ensure they don't have to fill out the form every time.)Or is it simply better to distribute/present the series on a blog and in newsletters? Or all the above and more? Any thoughts on the implications for distribution/presentation?

One good thing: you'll have more targeted and compelling content to promote, distribute and present.

[Ardath Albee]

Hi Michael,

I'm not sure about people in general, but my finding with B2B marketers is that they want everyone to learn how wonderful their product is all at once. They're afraid if they leave something out they'll either take a chance on missing what catches someone's attention or that their product won't be as impressive as a competitor's offering.

When I explain the concept of unfolding the story over time, they begin to understand how powerful it can be to keep increasing the value their prospects and customers can harness to drive success. And all those value perceptions get related back to your company. Seems to me that building a thoughtful relationship over time has a much better outcome than trying for the big bang in one shot.

What do you think?

Hi Britton,

I think all of your ideas have merit. One thing that can be very powerful is asking prospect and/or customers to opt in for a series of topical content. When they do that, you know they're interested in something specific vs. just reading your content for general information. So that would take care of your "fill out the form" issue. Which is a good issue to raise.

Forms are gates that don't always allow for the best results. I find it more effective to have a strategy for how and when you choose to use them.

As for presentation/delivery ideas, here are a couple:

What if you could provide an article along with a SlideShare presentation that shows your idea visually in like 12 slides?

How about a 2-3 minute podcast that accompanies a narrow article to transition that idea into the next step. Perhaps present your reader with the answer to a question that may arise after they've read the article?

I think the best way to think about narrow is to thing about it as a stepping stone concept. You ask for a small increment of time, share something valuable and lead into the next idea.

This kind of approach can keep an active dialogue going for quite some time. And, if you use marketing automation systems you can track behavior and response as you go.

So the point is then to drive pipeline progression with each successive story.

Does that help?

Thanks to both Michael and Britton for jumping into the subject! Great questions.

Ardath