
Do you read adverts? What about advertorials and promoted content? How about an article that helped you solve a problem or from which you learned something?
It is getting increasingly hard to sell to people. Ads are a turn-off, and content that whiffs of marketing can quickly lose the attention of a target audience and potentially damage the author’s credibility.
The problem with content marketing is it’s a long game. Building brand awareness, trust, and respect takes time and patience. It’s a subtle, slow-burn sell by positive association.
And that can be hard for those in the business used to ‘closing the deal’. Is it selling if it hasn’t got a direct sell or direct references to products and services?
The answer is yes, but measuring the results of content marketing can be tricky.
What good content market is
Good content marketing is at the top of the sales funnel. It’s about building a relationship and trust with potential clients, demonstrating your expertise and experience by offering something useful and valuable to them without seeking anything in return.
Put yourself in your potential client’s shoes for a moment:
💻 What can your content give them without you getting anything in return?
💻 Will they learn or discover something
💻 Will it make them think about something afresh?
💻 Will it change their mind on a familiar topic?
Continue reading “B2B content marketing: Selling without the sell”