Category: Writing tips

General

Better B2B content: lessons from a comedian

Photo by Kevin Snow on Unsplash

I’m a firm believer in looking outside my industry for B2B content inspiration, ideas and lessons.

An interview with comedian James Acaster proved unexpectedly valuable in how to create better B2B content.

It was The Comedians Comedian podcast, which is funny but also quite a geeky unpicking of comedians’ careers and processes.

So here are four B2B content-related takeaways from the interview to help improve what you write:

🤣 Earlier in his career, James Acaster was a support act, and he explained how he learned different things from the contrasting styles of each comedian he worked with.

B2B content lesson: Learn from different writers and different types of content. Comedians, for example, can teach you a lot about pace and storytelling structure.

🤪 James Acaster has learned (the hard way) that adapting his material to the audience is important.

What material will go down well with a room full of stag and hen parties is different from what will go down well with a room full of comedy connoisseurs.

B2B content lesson: Understand who you are creating the content for and adapt your approach.

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General

6 tips for creating B2B content which connects and engages

A B2B content strategy can build brand visibility, but what does the tone and style of your content say about your brand? 

Is it a conversation starter? Is it relatable? Does it make you approachable?  

Business is forged on connections, and content can be the start of a relationship with a potential client, customer or collaborator. 

There is a misconception that ‘sounding professional’ means stripping out the human and personality and making content sound a certain way (corporate).

However, the tone of content contributes to how a brand is perceived; being easy to read, approachable, and relatable is simply more engaging. 

Content that sounds like it’s written by a human for another human is still professional. 

Here are some ways to make your content sound less corporate and more approachable:

1. Jargon and technical language

Never assume people understand technical language and jargon; you don’t want to alienate readers because they don’t understand what you mean.

You don’t want your content to be a slog; what impression does that leave? At its worst, jargon can come across as intimidating, arrogant or a cover for something. 

Clear and easy to understand is more engaging and cleverer.

2. Conversational language

Don’t substitute everyday words for something fancier: Facilitate/help, commence/start, utilise/use, etc. Use the terminology your audience uses (that’s what they will use in Google searches). 

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Uncategorised

Writing LinkedIn posts: 3 different styles of opening lines

Photo by Nik Shuliahin 💛💙 on Unsplash

The first two lines of your LinkedIn post are critical for stopping the scroll and drawing readers in.

If it’s boring and doesn’t grab attention or intrigue, people will scroll on by.

There are many ways to write an attention-grabbing opening line on a LinkedIn post. Here are three examples using this post I wrote about the dangers of relying too heavily on one social platform.

1. My original opening line

What would you do if you couldn’t post to one or more of your social media platforms?

It happened to me recently.

I started with a question that would (hopefully) give pause for thought and intrigue – ‘What would I do?’ ‘How does my strategy compare?’ etc.

Followed by the start of a personal anecdote to add to the intrigue and make it relatable.

2. Less direct/conversational

I could have gone for something that didn’t involve ‘you’, which I know makes some B2B content creators a bit itchy because it’s more conversational and direct:

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Uncategorised

Adding value to B2B business news updates on LinkedIn

Photo by Greg Bulla on Unsplash

LinkedIn recently changed its algorithm to shift the balance from ‘clickbait’ content to more meaningful posts.

This article gives a good explanation, but to boil it down, it seems the algorithm is looking for relevancy and meaning through knowledge and advice.

Now you should never write purely for the algorithm (that way, madness lies). But this change is a good reminder to ensure your content, whether on LinkedIn or elsewhere, offers value to your target audience.

If you use LinkedIn to post news and business updates, it’s an opportunity to enhance those stories to make them stand out.

Here are some value-add ideas using B2B built environment businesses as the reference point:

Leasing deal announcement

Content value-add ideas:

  • What does the deal say about current market conditions?
  • If it fits or bucks a particular occupier trend
  • Anything you learned working on the deal or any surprises

Development milestones (planning, topping out, completion etc)

Content value-add ideas:

  • Talk about what the particular milestone means
  • How does this development fit into the broader market/what does it represent
  • Any lessons learned from the process so far
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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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