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Provide Educational Info to Build Trust with Prospects

Guest post by: Jess Wells

Article Overview: Cisco Innovators Forum guest blogger Susan Fantle finds that most B2B products have higher prices and a longer decision-making period (buy cycle), and there are often multiple titles involved in making purchasing decisions. So trying to sell a product during the first contact is not practical or effective. That's why content was born. Offering content typically communicates a message like "if you're having this problem in your business, here is a report that will tell you how your peers have solved this problem." The “report” is the content and it's a successful tactic for business marketers.

Provide Educational Info to Build Trust with Prospects

According to Innovators Forum guest blogger Susan Fantle, along with today's many discussions about social media, there is a lot of talk about “content” and the critical role it plays in B2B marketing. Content is FREE information that business marketers offer to prospective customers to generate qualified leads that can,hopefully, be turned into future sales.

Most B2B products have higher prices and a longer decision-making period (buy cycle), and there are often multiple titles involved in making purchasing decisions. So trying to sell a product during the first contact is not practical or effective. That's why content was born. Offering content typically communicates a message like "if you're having this problem in your business, here is a report that will tell you how your peers have solved this problem." The “report” is the content and it's a successful tactic for business marketers.

It's important, however, that marketers make sure the content they are offering has real value to the prospect asking for it. To have value to the reader, content should include one or more of this type of useful information:

• A better understanding of the causes of a specific business problem
• Some best practices for solving a specific business problem
• What peers or experts are saying about the problem
• Some kind of self-assessment of how the prospect's company is handling a specific problem
• Industry advances being made to make solving the problem easier

Informational content should not sell the company's product or service directly (there can be a sales story and secondary offer at the end of the content), but it should educate the reader and position the company offering it as a trusted resource.

So how do marketers make sure the content they are offering has value? Here are four tips on how to do it:

1. Provide content information that matches the specific needs of each pipeline lead.
   
   Send a short survey to your pipeline asking them to identify their three biggest challenges. Then target the content you are offering them (white paper, checklist, guide, Webinar, self-assessment) to the issues they have identified.
2. Create content that has how-to take-aways that can be implemented without buying your product or service.
   
   For example, if you offer corporate training, include some usable tips and techniques that have value without contracting for your training services. That approach positions your company as a trusted "thought leader" and shows that you truly care about helping your prospects solve their problem -- not just selling them training services.
3. Offer a mix of some content that is available without registration and some that is not.
   
   By not requiring registration for content, your company instantly positions itself as a valuable resource. With no registration, B2B marketers can boost the number of downloads of their content to expose their brand to a larger audience of potentially qualified leads. However, a B2B marketer's ultimate goal is generating qualified leads that can be nurtured and turned into sales. To do this, one must require registration for access to the more in-depth content or informational offers being made.
4. Provide content that satisfies the focus of each decision-maker and influencer in prospect companies.
   
   Need the approval of the CFO? Provide content that positions the financial benefits of the company's product or service. Do the same for the CEO, user, department manager, HR person or whatever titles have influence on -- or decision-making power over -- the purchase.

Content is not designed to directly sell products or services. It is designed to educate prospects on how their peers are handling similar challenges and subtly edge them along toward choosing the marketing company's product or service.

The use of content generates leads, builds trust and ultimately makes sales.

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Article Tags: bestpractices, businessadvice, Cisco, entrepreneurs, innovatorsforum, marketing



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