Content marketing has become an indispensable discipline for B2B companies. It's a formidable weapon for lead generation. To improve your strategy and boost your performance, discover the seven key trends in content marketing.
Table of Contents
- 1 - The importance of lead generation in B2B
- 2 - What are the differences between content marketing and brand content?
- 3 - The seven major trends in content marketing
1 - The importance of lead generation in B2B
Lead generation: definition
Lead generation refers to all the processes by which a company comes into contact with prospects interested in its products or services.
In other words, these prospects are not contacted by chance. They enter the sales funnel because they believe the company has the expertise to meet a specific need. This is a fundamental difference.
Every new visitor qualified through lead generation is a new sales opportunity.
VirtualExpo's marketplaces specialize in lead generation and offer a range of services to
increase your visibility online and the number of qualified inquiries you receive.
Why is it essential for companies?
So why is it essential to implement a lead generation strategy?
Unlike traditional advertising, lead generation enables you to convert a greater number of prospects into customers, while optimizing acquisition costs.
In fact, by relying on content marketing in particular, a company will be able to more easily attract potential customers who are likely to make a final purchase. To achieve this, it needs to be able to regularly produce high-quality content (blog articles, videos, podcasts, infographics, etc.).
Therefore, lead generation is completely intertwined with inbound marketing.
A few figures on lead generation
Before we look at content marketing trends, let's look at the figures.
The importance of leads for a company is undisputed. More than 9 out of 10 marketing departments say that lead generation is their main objective. In fact, 53% spend more than half of their marketing budget on perfecting this area.
A study conducted by HubSpot in Europe and North America provides more in-depth details.
The cost per lead varies between 10 and 100 euros and seems to greatly depend on the company's sector of activity. Media has the highest return on investment.
Similarly, the number of leads generated each month is strongly correlated with sales. The more successful a company's business is, the more qualified new prospects it will obtain.
Finally, inbound marketing is the lever favored by professionals. 92% of companies who use it report an increase in traffic to their website and better conversion rates.
2 - What are the differences between content marketing and brand content?
Content marketing and brand content are two concepts that are all too often confused.
Brand content in advertising aims to produce content that highlights a company's history, values and products. Branded content is fully centered around the brand.
Content marketing, on the other hand, is customer-oriented. While it also relies on the production of content, the aim of the latter is to respond to the problems of potential customers, without necessarily promoting the brand.
To do this, the company needs to understand its prospects' expectations so that it can provide them with content that adds value.
Of course, in both cases, the ultimate goal remains the sale. By offering concrete solutions to potential customers, the company gains visibility and proves its expertise on a given subject. This gives you the best chance of converting your readers into loyal customers.
Do you want to generate leads to grow your business? Let's take a look at the major trends in content marketing in 2022.
3 - The seven major trends in content marketing
1. Creating videos
The first of these trends is videos. Videos have become very popular with internet users, as they make it easier and quicker to consume content than text.
What's more, videos go viral. They are shared on various social media networks such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or LinkedIn.
There are a wide range of possibilities when it comes to video production: tutorials, blog post summaries, product or service presentations, behind-the-scenes looks at your company, and so on.
2. E-books
E-books are another content marketing trend. They're an effective strategy for driving leads into your sales funnel.
The success of an e-book depends largely on the value it brings to prospects. Everyone who reads it should find precise, concrete answers to their problems.
Unlike a blog post, an e-book allows you to tackle a subject in depth.
E-books are generally offered free of charge, in exchange for a few details such as an email address, company name, or other contact details.
3. Organizing webinars
Webinars are an important part of most content marketing strategies. They enable you to cover topics in a comprehensive way while encouraging a question-and-answer exchange with your leads.
As with e-books, webinars need to deliver value to prospects.
Otherwise, you could end up turning these potential customers away from your company due to disappointment with the content you offered.
4. Participating in real-life events
Participating in IRL (In Real-Life) events is often overlooked by marketing departments.
However, they are an excellent way to break down boundaries between the physical and digital worlds. Trade shows, for example, are the ideal place to meet your leads and better understand their needs.
These valuable exchanges will enable you to fuel your content marketing strategy over the long term.
5. Designing guides
Guides and white papers are halfway between blog posts and e-books.
It's vital to include them in your content marketing to capture leads, as they offer several advantages.
Firstly, they'll help you improve your SEO and appear in Google's top search results.
Secondly, they will increase your visibility and demonstrate your in-depth knowledge of the market.
6. Case studies
Case studies play an important role in lead generation. When it comes to social proof, it's hard to beat case studies that are able to show how a product or service has helped a customer fulfill a need.
7. Custom graphics and illustrations
The latest trend in content marketing is graphic design.
To gain more impact, it's crucial to pay particular attention to this. Avoid generic illustrations offered by image banks as much as you can.
In your blog posts, videos, or e-books, opt for customized designs to win the admiration of your visitors and increase their engagement tenfold.
