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Audience engagement

What type of B2B content performs best?

Red neon speech bubble. Inside is a white neon heart shape similar to a social medial like button and beside it is a white neon zero. So the sign indicates zero likes.
Photo by Prateek Katyal on Unsplash

Which type of B2B content performs best was something I was asked recently, I guess because I put out content in different formats (written, video, carousels/sliders).

And, I work with clients on audio and events.

But it isn’t easy to answer because content analytics are complex and vary from platform to platform.

You will never know how many people read your online article all the way through, for example.

Some people might read a bit, some might skim-read, and some might click on the page and get distracted by something else.

It’s similar to a written LinkedIn post. A post will clock up ‘impressions’, but that doesn’t tell you if people have actually what you’ve written.

Impressions are the number of feeds your post has appeared in, not engagement.

The more likes/reactions your post gets, the more impressions it will likely get, but again it doesn’t mean people have actually read it.

Reacting without reading

*Shock warning* Some people hit react without reading the post or the whole post.

Video metrics are a little clearer.

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Video

Video: Making LinkedIn enjoyable and worthwhile

A short video on making time on LinkedIn enjoyable and worthwhile

Video summary:

If using LinkedIn is a chore, it will make it harder to be consistent, and without being consistent, you won’t get the full benefit of being on the platform.

To make LinkedIn more enjoyable, work out what you want to get from it. Getting business is an obvious one, but it doesn’t have to be the only reason.

You might want to build your network, learn about a particular topic, or be part of a specific community.

Once you know what you want to get out of the platform, then you can plan what actions you need to take to deliver.

But be realistic. If you want to post more to increase visibility but find coming up with ideas and finding the time to create posts tricky, then setting a goal of posting five days a week is likely to be unachievable.

Setting realistic targets to deliver the results you want will make LinkedIn more enjoyable.

Full transcript:

Two key tips for LinkedIn: Make it enjoyable and be realistic.

Now to make LinkedIn enjoyable, it helps if you get something out of the platform.

It doesn’t have to be just about getting business; that’s an important reason to be on LinkedIn and why many people are on LinkedIn. But there are lots of other reasons to be on LinkedIn.

It might be that you want to learn more about a particular topic or you want to build your network, or you want to be part of a community and be able to talk to people doing similar things to you or in the same industry.

These are all legitimate reasons for being on LinkedIn but think about what you’d like to get from the platform. And then set a strategy for how you’re going to achieve that.

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Press releases

B2B Press releases: Your questions answered

Photo by The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash

After my last blog post covering journalists’ tips for press releases, I was approached by a PR new to the world of journalism who had some questions. So I thought I’d share my answers.

These are based on my experience as a B2B journalist in the UK; journalists in other countries may operate differently.

Do journalists read all the press releases they get?

Very unlikely. The sheer volume of press releases you receive as a journalist means it’s impractical to read every one.

I used to decide which to open based on the email’s subject line and who had sent it.

And even if I opened it, I might just read the first paragraph or give it a quick scan and not necessarily do anything with it.

The reputation PR’s build is important. Those that send irrelevant or fluffy press releases are more likely to get overlooked.

How often should you catch up with journalists?

Different journalists will have different preferences, but bare in mind journalists are incredibly time-poor, so they will look at what value they can get out of conversations.

The key is being useful. If you have great stories, interesting insight and comments, that will help build a good relationship, and they are more likely to find time to catch up.

Getting a reputation as a PR that is always ‘bugging’ journalists without a good reason won’t do you any favours.

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General

What makes a clickable headline

A piece of paper in a type writer which has the word 'news' written at the top.
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

People will decide whether to click on a story or article based on the headline.

You could write a brilliant article, blog post or press release, but if the headline doesn’t ‘sell’ the content to your target audience, it won’t matter.

Think of all the headlines you scroll past vs what you click on to read.

Headlines are so important that some national newspapers and magazines have specialist writers called sub-editors to create them.

So what makes a clickable headline?

Different styles work for different types of content, but the key is creating some intrigue or tapping into an emotion or need.

Headlines also need to give enough information so that the reader knows what they’ll get from reading on.

Here are four headline examples and a breakdown of how they work:

1. Pique interest news headline

This headline, from the North West Business Insider, tells the reader enough, so they know what the story is about but leaves out certain information to help create curiosity.

It tells the reader that it is a development deal, the size of the deal and where it is. What it doesn’t say is who was involved in the deal, the type of development and the details of the transaction.

To find that information, the reader has to click through to the story.

News headlines are a balancing act. Reveal too much, and there is no reason to click through; reveal too little, and curiosity isn’t pricked.

2. Challenge or surprise headline

Presenting a statement in a headline that is incongruous with common thinking or trend is a great way of getting people clicking to read on.

This headline on a LinkedIn article by Daniel Paulusma creates different levels of intrigue depending on your views of hybrid working.

It appears to challenge the thinking of advocates of hybrid working, potentially highlighting something they’ve missed: Am I wrong? ‘What is the evidence?’

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General

Stop the scroll: Adding value when posting about B2B events on social media

Summary of video:

A conference or panel event you attended can be a great source of social media content, but to help stop the scroll and get your audience to pay attention, add some value.

In this short video, I talk about what made me stop and read LinkedIn posts about events people in my network had been to.

All the posts added value; they didn’t merely highlight that the person had attended a particular event but talked about what they had learnt or what it was like.

Engagement – particularly comments – will give LinkedIn posts more visibility, so I finish by sharing some ideas for getting a conversation started on an event post.

Transcript of video:

Prefer to read rather than watch? Here’s a transcript:

Have you noticed any posts about events that people have been to in your LinkedIn feed in recent weeks?

I’ve noticed some great ones: great because they made me stop scrolling, great because they made me want to click through and read more, and great also because they didn’t use the word delighted, which is always a bit of a bonus.

So what was it about them that got me interested?

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