Category: Radix Podcast

Podcast 84: how to manage a creative B2B content team

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s Good Copy, Bad Copy, we’re talking about all the challenges that come with managing a creative team – both in B2B marketing, and outside of it.

Creativity is a difficult thing to handle. As this episode’s guest co-host, Velocity Partners’ Harry Kapur, puts it: “It’s not a tube you can squeeze, and magic comes out. Creativity is insane. Creativity is chaos.” (Can you tell he writes for a living?)

So how can you help your team focus all that weird craziness into creating fantastic, engaging content – while still ensuring they keep to a tight B2B brief?

To find out, we wanted to see how people in other walks of life address a similar problem. So we were thrilled when world-class orchestral conductor Alice Farnham, Artistic Director of women conductors with the Royal Philharmonic Society and Ireland’s National Concert Hall, said yes, of course she’d like a chat about B2B marketing.

How does a top conductor manage creativity?

As it turns out, conducting orchestras is surprisingly similar to answering a B2B brief. Both involve sharp deadlines, collaborating with immensely talented people, and confidence in your decisions. Sadly, in marketing, there are far fewer violins.

Here are some of the top insights Alice shared, that we can apply to making content for B2B:

  • Getting communication right is critical. And sometimes, that means knowing when to shut up. Lead by example, and gain authority through enthusiasm.
  • Give your players (or in our case, writers) a clear box to break out of. Too much creative freedom can be counterproductive. Instead, provide structure (or rules for them to break). You’ll channel creativity towards a more specific goal, and the end result is likely to be a lot more focused.
  • Be very clear in what you are telling your team. For Alice, this is all about the power of gesture – every movement of her hand has to convey information. For B2B marketing leaders, it’s about not people-pleasing. If something is wrong with a brief or piece of copy, tell them exactly why.
  • Respect and communication go both ways. Giving all your writers a voice, and the confidence to speak up about a gap in a brief or bad piece of content, will only improve the team’s creativity (and standards).

Take a listen to the podcast for even more insights into Alice’s world. Plus, you’ll get to hear David and Harry’s thoughts on managing creativity in a B2B environment.

Here’s what you’ll find in Episode 84… 

01.11 – Why B2B tech marketing is the best (and worst) job to have during the apocalypse

05:16 – Top conductor Alice Farnham talks about leading creative people

27.51 – Back to B2B: Harry and David find a tonne of parallels between conducting and marketing

46.43 – Harry’s top tips for getting more from creative talent

Send us your feedback, thoughts, or a baton for David…

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (if you’ve been writing too much recently, send us a voice memo).

How to listen 

Credits 

Alice Farnham, thank you so much for sharing your time, wit and wisdom with us. Not to mention all your insights into the wonderful world of conducting.

And a big thank-you also to this week’s co-host, Harry Kapur. Your enthusiasm (and experience) is unmatched; we hope you’ll be joining us again soon.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

Podcast 83: Lean-Agile B2B Content

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s Good Copy, Bad Copy, we’re talking about Agile and Lean-Agile processes, and whether B2B content producers can learn something from software development and engineering.

David’s joined (virtually, of course) by a very special guest co-host: our former host Emily King, now Content Coordinator at Bluefruit Software. She shares her wealth of experience on adapting Lean-Agile processes for B2B content, and tells us how you can create more meaningful copy with less waste.

We also interview Bluefruit’s UX design expert Dan Goodwin on the role of the user in content creation. He reveals how personas can be used more ways than you think,  shares his tips on bringing customers into the creation process, and gives us some really clever ways to get to know your audience when you can’t actually talk to them (which, sadly, is a common obstacle to B2B content).

So, what is Lean-Agile B2B content?

Put simply, it’s content created with maximum collaboration, communication and flexibility. We’ve put together some basic guidelines:

  • It doesn’t mean you do everything; you shouldn’t start until you and your client have a clear idea of what they need and who it’s for. If it’s a drive-by content request, push back. Ask: “is that genuinely what you need?” (Emily told us there’s no room for subservience in true collaboration. Put that foot down.)
  • Once you have that understanding, start small. Think “minimum viable product” – a phrase you’ll become extremely familiar with. Break the project down into smaller parts, get them out, test them, gather evidence and build out from there.
  • Most importantly, keep communication open, stay responsive. Regular reflection from everyone, especially stakeholders, gives you a clear direction on what needs to change and what is going well. Then you can quickly problem solve any issues, together.
  • Bonus hint: Emails can be miscommunication minefield. Picking up the phone is often a safer, more personal option.

To reduce content waste, add value for the audience

In theory, by starting small, and being clear about objectives, you won’t waste time or money throwing yourself into big complex campaigns that are later scrapped by indecisive stakeholders. Plus, with frequent communication and reflection, you can make sure you’re always on track – so there’s no falling down expensive rabbit holes.

But Dan points out that user-centred development takes things to another level. At its best, Lean-Agile is about focusing on content that meet the real needs of the people you want to read it – and the more you can learn about their context, the more likely you are to create something that gets read and shared.

But how do you get all that information? Dan’s suggestions include:

  • If you can, ask your clients (d’oh)
  • If you can’t, find the people in your organisation who talk to customers most, whether that’s sales, account managers or field staff
  • Get the whole team on board with what you need to know, and they’ll bring you helpful insights from their own customer conversations
  • Go where your users go – whether that’s the right conferences, the right online forums, or even just the right LinkedIn pages

In Episode 83, you’ll hear…

0.55 – The Return of the King: Emily tells us what she does as Bluefruit’s Content Coordinator

4.36 – What ‘Agile’ and ‘Lean-Agile’ really mean for B2B content marketing, and how you can adopt them

19.56 – How to bring users into content creation: an interview with UX Designer Dan Goodwin

39.55 – Emily’s tips for getting more information from subject matter experts

Read more about Lean-Agile, user-centred B2B marketing content

Resources Emily and Dan mentioned in this episode include:

Send us your thoughts, criticism, spare toilet roll and flour (please)@

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected]

How to listen…

Credits

Thank you to Emily and Dan from Bluefruit Software for sharing your time and expertise. You can find Dan on twitter @bouncingdan and on LinkedIn. And if you haven’t heard Emily’s podcast Nerds Assemble, you really should give it a listen.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

Podcast 82: B2B copywriting v technology

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s episode of Good Copy, Bad Copy (recorded in a simpler time, while the world was still relatively normal), we’re talking about the technology that’s changing how we write – from the digital tools at your disposal, to the AI writing bots taking over the boring bits of your job.

David interviews Parry Malm, digital anarchist and CEO of Phrasee, a London-based software company that develops AI for marketing. He asks: “Can your AI really write better copy than I can?”

Turns out, it can. And surprisingly, that’s actually a very good thing.

You’ll learn how AI could make your writing more effective, why you won’t be able to spot AI copy – and that you don’t need to worry about technology stealing your job. (At least, not yet.)

And if you want to hear more from Parry, take a gander at his Twitter. It’s great lockdown fuel.

Can anything beat Fiona’s trusty notepad and pen?

Although some of us are steadfastly loyal to old-school writing methods, there’s a whole world of helpful digital tools that can improve your copy. Radix copywriter and content lead Katy Eddy joins David and Fiona to give us some top tips, including:

  • Word macros – handy little Word add-ons that highlight your bad habits as you go (shoutout to Lorraine at Lighthouse Proofreading for introducing us to them; you’ll find more detail in her super-helpful blog post)
  • Evernote – for keeping even the biggest projects organised (without thousands of scraps of paper)
  • ABBYY – the mighty Rose Newell introduced us to this screenshot reader, which solves feedback-on-a-jpeg headaches
  • Otter.ai – this time-synced transcription service isn’t all that accurate yet, but it’s really handy for diving back into long client calls

Just don’t talk to us about Grammarly. Suffice to say, we’re not convinced yet.

The Anonymous Five: Chief Technology Officer

Our secret guest this month is a Chief Technology Officer from a digital development company.

We asked them a bunch of stuff they couldn’t answer in public… so you can find out the real difference between a CTO and a CIO, what tech marketing made them cringe, and how their crappiest day would play out.

And *spoiler alert* when we asked: “What was the last piece of tech content that you actually paid any attention to?” they answered the Stack Overflow yearly developer survey. You’ll need to listen to find out why.

The end of an era

Sadly, this month’s podcast is the last to be co-hosted by our founder, Fiona Campbell-Howes. After seven years and 82 episodes, she’s hanging up the microphone and moving on to a new (and suitably chair-filled) chapter.

Thank you for everything, Fiona, and we’ll try not to stuff things up in your absence.

Want to skip to the highlights?

1:00 – Fiona talks about chairs

4:10 – The tools that can make your writing better

17:00 – Rise of the AI writing bots: David interviews Parry Malm

30:00 – Is Grammarly ever helpful? The team weigh in

33:50 – The Anonymous Five: Chief Technology Officer

38:28 – Fiona’s greatest hits, and final adieu

Send us your thoughts, feedback, and crazy lockdown stories

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (send us a voice memo from your bunker). 

How to listen

Credits

Big thanks to Parry Malm for sharing his AI expertise (and reassurances) with us. You can learn more about Phrasee here.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

 

Please stay safe and well. We’d really like to see you back here next month.

Podcast 81: how to make B2B content readable

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s Good Copy, Bad Copy, we’re talking about readability in B2B content with Professor Chris Trudeau. He’s a plain language expert, and a known destroyer of waffle (plus he’s marvellous on Twitter).  

We all overcomplicate our writing sometimes. You might be trying to hide the fact that you don’t know the subject well, or maybe you’re a little too keen to show off your fantastic writing skills. Either way, Professor Trudeau’s studies The Public Speaks and The Public Speaks, Again prove something important: the harder you try to impress, the less anyone likes your copy.

This episode, David talks to Prof Trudeau to find out why readability is so important. They discuss the impact it has on your reader and how to stop clear content sounding ‘dumbed down’.  

Meanwhile, in the studio, our founder Fiona Campbell-Howes enjoys a heated debate with consultant writer George Reith, about the merits (or otherwise) of readability algorithms. You’ll hear:

  • Why clearer content works https://radix-communications.com/readability-in-b2b-content-flesch-kincaid-grade-score/
  • Ways to measure readability
  • How to write readable copy that isn’t simplistic

Plus, we get to introduce you to our brand-new feature…  

The Anonymous Five 

Nope, it’s not a new Enid Blyton spin-off. 

Our content obstacles research found that too many marketers are prevented from finding out what their customers really think. And not knowing what your audience cares about can really impact your content. 

So, each episode we’re going to pick a popular B2B persona and find a real decision maker with that title. Then, we’re asking them five big questions you won’t find anywhere else. And, it’s completely anonymous – so their answers can be brutally honest. 

This month, we talked to a Chief People Officer at a British digital retailer. You’ll find out what they think about the ‘war for talent’, what cringeworthy marketing content looks like, and whether millennials really are changing the workplace.

Here’s what you’ll find in Episode 81… 

1.26 – What our new ‘Consultant Writers’ actually do  

3.45 – Why the response to our ‘Barriers to B2B Content’ research was so important 

5.49 – That readability interview with Professor Chris Trudeau

22.20 – The team discuss readable copy and “B2B buffet content”

26.45 – Readability scoring systems: some that help, and some that hinder 

41.39 – The Anonymous Five: Chief People Officer 

Send us your thoughts, questions, junk mail and first-borns… 

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (if you want extra credit, send us a voice memo). 

How to listen 

Credits 

Thanks, Professor Chris Trudeau, for your time and insights (not to mention all the times we’ve been able to cite your research in training and client meetings).

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

Podcast 80: Survey results special – barriers to effective B2B content

Posted on by The Radix Team

This episode of Good Copy, Bad Copy is a bit special. It reveals the results of our survey into B2B content problems, and it’s also peppered with insights from some stalwarts of B2B marketing. As a result, it’s a little longer than normal, but we promise it’s worth your time.

At the end of last year, we conducted our first survey of B2B marketers and content creators to uncover the Barriers to Great B2B Content. More than 105 of them took part, representing every part of the industry.

(You can see the resulting research report for yourself, here.)

The survey unearthed some surprising findings – not least that nobody said they’re proud of all their content. Clearly, there are significant roadblocks preventing people from doing their best work, so we dug into the details to see what we could learn.

Crucially, we found these barriers aren’t just an annoyance for marketers. They can also significantly restrict content performance – reducing brand awareness and stifling business results.

The survey also revealed that:

  • Just 14% of respondents say that everyone in their organisation agrees on what good content looks like
  • 81% of B2B marketers have to fight to publish their best work
  • Stakeholder interference and changing priorities can reduce content satisfaction by more than 25%
  • Only 44% agree that the best content gets the best results

In this episode of Good Copy, Bad Copy, David and Fiona examine the survey results in more detail, and unpack the six big content obstacles experienced by at least 75% of B2B marketers.

Listen now, and you’ll also hear what four top marketers think you can do to overcome these barriers, including:

What you’ll find in this episode…

03:17 – An overview of the key survey results, including David and Fiona’s top takes

05:58 – Anonymous comments about nightmare stakeholders

07:19 – Maureen Blandford on inter-department issues and challenging cultures

21:12 – Doug Kessler says stakeholder alignment is your most important job

33:49 – Shaema Shazleen Katib brings a data-backed view on which content works

47:44 – Mat Harper talks about making space for creativity in a large tech enterprise

Tell us what you think of the results (or use us for content-related counselling)

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or send an email (better still, a short voice memo) to [email protected].

How to listen

Credits and resources

We released this report in a free webinar. If you like, you can watch it on demand.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash

Podcast 79: The Best B2B Content of 2019

Posted on by Katy Eddy

Welcome to the second annual Best of B2B Content awards, as nominated and voted for by you, our esteemed audience of B2B marketers, copywriters, and everyone else who has found their way into listening to Good Copy, Bad Copy.

We’ve put together a rundown of the 17 nominations, and now we’ve had a chance to collect and count all your votes, it’s time to announce the winner.

We’ve a lot of traditions in the Radix office, particularly when it comes to the festive portion of the year. Our tree is always topped with a slightly unnerving fairy with John’s face. Matt always provides enough chocolate and sweets to give us all month-long headaches. I attempt to sew a piece of festive clothing before our end-of-year dinner (this year, I failed miserably).

The question is, how many times do you have to do something before it becomes a tradition? I’m hoping it’s two, because otherwise both my dressmaking and this awards event don’t count. Yet.

So, in this soon-to-be-traditional finale, David and Fiona run down the list of your top 12 examples of content from the last year of the decade (yikes), including your 2019 Best of B2B Content winner.

You won’t get any spoilers from me – I’ll just say congratulations to all the finalists:

  • ABC News Story Lab
  • Adobe
  • The Center for Advanced Defense Studies
  • Danfoss Cooling
  • dotdigital
  • DXC
  • Hectare Agritech
  • Korn Ferry
  • Linode
  • MarketingProfs
  • Microsoft
  • NTT
  • Rockwool
  • Sophos
  • The Marketing Practice
  • Turtl
  • Wait, What? and Quartz

Want to find out who won? You’ll need to listen.

In this special countdown episode, you’ll find…

2:10 – A brief yet heartfelt apology for our broken email address

2:40 – The nominations that – sadly – didn’t make it into the top 12

4:41 – The countdown begins

24:18 – Time for the top three

28:40 – Fanfare… the winner is revealed

32:38 – A sneak preview of January’s edition, where we’ll be discussing the results of our recent survey into what gets in the way of great B2B content

Send us your thoughts, podcast-related feelings, or righteous indignation

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected]. (Bonus points from David if you share a voice memo.)

How to listen

Credits and resources

Thanks so much to everyone who sent us a nomination or audio: André Spiteri, Angela Cattin, Giles Shorthouse, Heather Barnett, Jon Lonsdale, Karla Rivershaw, Kerry O’Shea Gorgone, Lasse Lund, Maureen Blandford, Paul Hewerdine, and more. You rock our world.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

Podcast 78: Maths for B2B marketers

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s Good Copy, Bad Copy, we’re talking about… maths. Yes, maths. The bane of my life as a student and, to this day, a subject I remain bewildered by.

Judging from Fiona and David’s discussion, I’m not alone. B2B (and B2C) writers have often had a difficult – no, abusive – relationship with maths or, more specifically, statistics. And while many marketers are guilty of mixing up percentage points with percentages, we must take responsibility for the accuracy of the numbers in our copy.

That’s why we invited the award-winning maths resource designer, writer and podcaster Lucy Rycroft-Smith of Cambridge University, to talk us through the fundamentals of statistics for marketing copy – and put an end to some common mathematical misconceptions in the process.

As Fiona rightly points out, “our job is to communicate clearly and accurately, and if we aren’t sure ourselves, we can’t do that job properly”. So, get ready for some truth bombs – and possibly the toughest maths test you’ve taken since you last wore a school uniform. We promise, it’ll be fun!

Vote for the best B2B content of 2019…

It’s finally time to vote for the best B2B content of 2019.

We’ve compiled a shortlist of content based on your nominations. Head here to explore the nominees, and choose your winner using the Typeform at the bottom of the page (don’t forget to hit the enter button at the end to submit your vote).

It’s a diverse list of bold, original and inspiring content – and a wonderful opportunity for us to spotlight some of B2B’s greatest content creators. So, get stuck in.

CAST YOUR VOTE

In Episode 78, you’ll find…

3:25 – Why writers need to get comfortable with numbers

8:09 – ‘Why is maths so scary?’ with special guest, Lucy Rycroft-Smith

14:30 – Why we shouldn’t think about maths as ‘right’ or ‘wrong’

17:14 – What is “mathwashing”, and why should marketers avoid it?

21:00 – How percentages can mislead our readers (and complicate our copy)

28:00 – Lucy’s special three-part percentage challenge

Read more about maths for B2B marketing…

Resources Lucy mentioned in this episode include:

Send us your praise, criticism, Christmas cards, favourite cracker jokes…

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (if you really want to make David’s day, send us a voice memo).

How to listen…

Credits

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash

Podcast 77: B2B content formats – copywriters v the PDF

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s Good Copy, Bad Copy, we’re talking about B2B content formats with a whole bunch of marvellous guests.

Lorraine Williams from Lighthouse Proofreading shares tips to help you check a PDF properly, while Nick Mason and Karla Rivershaw from Turtl put forward a convincing case for the format’s indefinite retirement. Contrarian as it may sound, they provide a convincing (and cathartic) argument.

(While you’re listening, be sure to check out Turtl’s apocalyptic ‘Kill the PDF’ campaign story.)

Also, David returns after hosting this year’s Copywriting Conference with a ton of great tips shared by copywriters throughout the day. (Hello to Mel, Ashley, Rohan, Melissa, Paul, Jason Isaacs, and Sam!) We’re not sure how he managed to snag so many of you to talk at such a busy event, so thanks for giving the charmer your time.

Nominate your favourite B2B content of 2019

Our rundown of the best of B2B content is back. And this year, we’re casting our net even wider.

So, if a piece of B2B marketing has impressed you this year, now’s your chance to give it props. It could be a social post, a blog, a white paper or even multi-media – whatever the format, let us know.

To nominate a piece of content, you can either open our nifty Typeform (remember to hit “submit” at the end)… or better yet, record a quick voice memo on your phone, and email it to [email protected].

And don’t forget to tell us your name, and where you work, so we can give you a shout out.

One checklist to rule them all…

86% of B2B content creators say people in their organisation can’t agree on what good content even looks like. If that sounds familiar, our webinar on 15 content checks is for you.

It’d be nice to interact with you directly as a podcast listener, but spaces are limited, so please register before you miss out.

In Episode 77, you’ll find…

1:25 – How to share your favourite B2B content of 2019

3:24 – “What did the PDF do to you?” interview with Nick Mason and Karla Rivershaw

9:45 – Our take on the PDF debate and writing for new B2B content formats

15:33 – How to proof a PDF: interview with Lorraine Williams

29:55 – How do copywriters find the PDF proofing process?

31:10 – Attendee tips from the Copywriting Conference 2019

Send us your praise, criticism, ideas, jokes, pets…

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (if you really want to make David’s day, send us a voice memo).

How to listen

Credits

Big thanks to Lorraine, Nick, and Karla for their time. And to everybody who David teased tips out of at this year’s Copywriting Conference.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash

Podcast 76: what makes bad B2B content?

Posted on by The Radix Team

In this month’s Good Copy, Bad Copy, we’re talking about the obstacles that stop good B2B marketers making good B2B content.

It’s easy to come up with glib answers like “just be braver”, but in the real world the reasons B2B marketers can’t do the work they’d like to are often very real. We dig in to the issues… and try to find some solutions.

Also, Harry Kapur, who’s Head of Writing at the all-conquering Velocity Partners, gives us a sneak preview of his Copywriting Conference keynote on the importance of “Skin in the Game”.

A chance to vent about your B2B content frustrations

We really, really want your input on this issue – so please visit our survey on obstacles to good B2B content:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/B2B-Content 

…and share the link widely among other B2B marketing folk you know. The more answers we get, the more representative the results will be.

In Episode 76, you’ll find…

1:47 – Harry Kapur introduces the idea of “skin in the game”

7:20 – The best kind of research to add authority to your content

10:20 – Being honest with your client when they’re not as good as they think they are

19:18 – Why tight deadlines undermine authentic B2B content

21:43 – How podcasts can help you understand your reader’s mindset and language

24:20 – Are we having a crisis of faith in B2B content marketing?

28:20 – What stops marketers creating the content they really want?

31:35 – How to stop stakeholders overcomplicating content for the sake of it

Send us your praise, criticism, ideas, jokes, pets…

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (if you really want to fill us with joy, send us a voice memo).

How to listen

Credits

Thanks to Harry for his time, and for the sneak preview into his CopyCon talk. If you want to hear more (and assuming you’re not going to Harry’s talk in Copenhagen), you’ll find he’s excellent value on Twitter.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

Podcast 75: B2B copywriters v AI – what does the future really hold?

Posted on by The Radix Team

Increasingly, there’s evidence AI copy generation platforms can outperform human copywriters for basic tasks like writing digital ad copy and email subject lines.

So does that mean it’s only a matter of time until computers are writing all the content, and copywriters are out of a job?

Not necessarily.

In this episode of “Good Copy, Bad Copy”, we talk with with AI copy expert Dr Andrew Bredenkamp, of Acrolinx. And we find out:

  • How AI will change the nature of copywriting work
  • What algorithms can do, and what they can’t
  • Why AI may expand the number of people writing content
  • Which skills writers will need to learn next
  • How the traditional writers may soon adopt a consultative, editorial role

So it’s not the end just yet. But we’re on the verge of a good deal of change. It’s an exciting time.

Want to be on the next “Good Copy, Bad Copy”?

Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or [email protected] (if you really want to make us happy, send us a voice memo).

How to listen

Credits

Thanks to Andrew for his time, openness, and expertise regarding what AI can and can’t do. If you’d like to know more about his work, take a peek at the Acrolinx content governance solution.

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.