Podcast 72: stop telling B2B marketers to be “brave”

Break time is over: “Good Copy, Bad Copy” is back. This month we discuss the idea that B2B marketers need to be braver with their content – joined by B2B marketing all-star Maureen Blandford.

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“B2B marketers need to be braver.”

It’s a statement we hear pretty often, not least from Martech brands and content marketing experts. But in reality, creating stand-out B2B content is rarely as easy as just doing something brave (though there are a few risks you should definitely take).

B2B marketers are often restricted by arcane guidelines, conservative stakeholders, interfering bosses, and time-sucking tech. And when you’re struggling with all that, getting blamed for lacklustre content feels frankly a trifle unfair.

It’s a frustration that’s been on our minds for a while, so we knew it needed to be discussed on the podcast. And who better to weigh in on the subject than B2B marketing colossus Maureen Blandford – VP of marketing for the event fundraising tech firm Givesmart.

Bravery is not the answer

Most B2B content is a bit rubbish. (OK, as writers of B2B content, it’s a bit rich for us to make this claim. But it’s true, and Maureen agreed.)

The solution isn’t to start getting riskier with content willy-nilly, or to make radical changes in the type of content you produce. Instead, Maureen gave us two key tips that most B2B marketers actually can do:

1. Get out there with your salespeople

Go into the field with your salespeople and interact with the customers you’re writing for. Even if it’s just listening to their phone calls.

“Generally, what resonates with targets is their own words. Particularly in a complex sale, I need marketing to behave in the way great sales people do. Bubble up pain points, ask the customer questions.” – Maureen Blandford

2. Talk to your peers

Maureen says B2B marketers are fed the idea that they have a horrible gap in their strategies, and buying the right technology or visiting the right conference will fix this. It won’t.

Instead, talk to your peers in similar industries and see how they’re approaching their B2B content. Building informal relationships is the easiest way to get genuine value into content as you begin to understand what customers care about.

Listen to find out more

You’ll find plenty more practical tips in the podcast, as we discuss:

  • What’s stopping B2B marketers from creating their best content
  • What needs to change before marketers can become ‘braver’
  • What B2B marketers can do in the meantime to make their content better

(And you’ll hear Maureen get a tad sweary as she calls out the Martech brands and content experts behind all this drama.)

Want some great content tips? Join our webinar!

Conveniently, our first ever webinar tackles just this topic.

“Five terrifying risks you should definitely take with your B2B content” will be on Wednesday 5th June, at 4pm UK time (11am ET).

This has now finished.

(Spoiler: we won’t be telling you to be braver. Just sharing some sensible, calculated risks that make a difference.)

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

What do you think… is Maureen on the money with her criticism? Contact us through @radixcom on Twitter or podcast@radix-communications.com (the best thing you can do is send us a voice memo).

How to listen

Credits

Podcast editing and music by Bang and Smash.

Want to hear more from Maureen? Follow her on Twitter, and head over to the Givesmart website to see all the great work she does.

Ben C

Ben was our first recruit through the Radix internship programme, impressing us so much we couldn’t let him go. He’s now one of our most flexible writers, delivering sharp and effective B2B content and demand gen copy on topics including AI, analytics delivery, digital platforms, and many more.

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