The SaaS Content Marketing Playbook to help you create greater B2B B2B marketing

Many SaaS (software as a service) firms focus on speedy success. We've all been taught to think about the immediate, like more subscribers as well as faster sales. And for certain companies...sheer quantities! Volume was king (yes it was just like content).

However, the landscape has changed. SaaS companies face smaller budgets and an unstable market in which any effort is viewed as a success. In other words, B2B marketers can do better by using smaller budgets. The volume plays don'ta sustainable, intent-driven marketing plan make.

A better way to approach SaaS Content Marketing. In this blog we'll talk about the issues with content marketing as well as learn from the experience of real marketers who have tried and proved new channels and techniques that you will be able to adopt and apply.

A B2B Content Marketer's Playbook

1.     What's old in SaaS Content Marketing
2.     The most effective channels to use for SaaS marketing and content
3.     SaaS Content Marketing examples to take a lesson from
4.     Video content marketing to B2B SaaS
5.     Content strategy recommendations for SaaS firms
6.     Ending the process

What's the issue with SaaS Content Marketing?

Let's look at some of the most abused media marketing techniques that we wouldn't recommend.

Cold outbound emails that have no content to support them.

For those who aren't familiar of the concept A cold pitch typically sent as an outreach email that has no additional material or content worth offering. The receiver doesn't understand what the purpose is or what to do or what to do, and they've not been provided with any incentive to consider your service or product.

This may have been effective at a time when consumers were more open to marketing messages that constantly enticed to purchase however they're not getting the results now. Nowadays, customers are being bombarded with such emails, which is why the majority of them don't care because they aren't providing any genuine benefit or information about the product will do for customers.

Phil Strazzulla, the founder of SelectSoftware Reviews, a website designed to assist HR departments find and choose the best SaaS platforms. He agrees with:

"The most efficient strategy for 2023 is cold outbound mailing with no assistance. Everyone receives plenty of messages from people we've never met due to programs like Outreach, Apollo, and SalesLoft that make it easy to automate and expand outbound marketing email campaigns."

The author also stated "Marketing teams need to pair this approach with brand advertisements targeted at similar audience profiles including calling strategies, as well as postal campaigns in offline mode if the budget supports it."

Content that is generic and does not target a specific audience

There's a tendency to think that the same information will appeal to everyone in your audience, but this isn't true. Each group will have its own needs, so you should tailor your content to satisfy and possibly exceed their needs.

B2B clients want to understand how they can use your service or product in order to satisfy their needs. They're looking for evidence of how it is effective, however they require tips about how they can make it work more efficiently.

One of the best examples is HubSpot. The HubSpot blog HubSpot blog is a great resource for content that solve many of the problems that plague the people they target, which are digital marketers, salespeople and experts in customer support.

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The long form content is only for the enjoyment of it.

Content that is long-form won't disappear in the near future However, it's rarely a standout in the eyes of consumers who have many things to complete and aren't as busy. Unfortunately, a lot of B2B firms create similar guides, and so gated deals and nurture sequences don't have the same impact they did in the past.

The same is true in more extensive documents, such as white papers or research reports. They can be hard to comprehend because they're extremely technical, and are only interesting to a select few prospects. Case studies that are long, while valuable social proof can be difficult to get viewers' interest. Do you really want to be seen as a separate option on the marketing professional's screen?

If you've invested money in long-form written content think about packaging it in short videos to make it easier for people to consume and distribute.

In this instance an example, the agency for content marketing Omniscient Digital has video clips on their case study an addition to their regularly written cases. It's a great way to showcase the results without requiring folks to go through the whole article in order to view it (which majority of us do).

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Imitating invisible rivals

This scenario is quite common: a company creates blogs and then copies their competitors' blog posts in a series of posts one after the other. This is an extremely popular SEO tactic and most common for companies that offer software to other businesses because these companies often view other SaaS firms as competition even though they're in different market segments and markets.

Yash Chavan, the founder of the SaaS-based company for Influencer marketing Saral believes of replicating other companies and blogs isn't an effective strategy. Chavan suggests:

"Understand that each product's marketing markets, products, and market are different... therefore various things are effective for every product. Make use of your strengths to the maximum. If, for instance, your product has the ability to obtain new data (e.g. surveys tool) and then you can use that results to come up with original content. If the item you're selling involves inviting other people to buy it, take advantage of referrals to help you sell your product. Don't try what marketing blogs recommend to you. you do you!"

The most efficient channels for SaaS content marketing

The most effective channels to reach your customers depend on your preferences for your target audience and pain points, but there are four channels that could work and are employed for SaaS content marketing that include video!

1. SEO and evergreen content

Some examples of content that are evergreen comprise:

• Content from the product
• Guides to how-to
• Industry-leading practices
• Customer success stories and testimonials

If you want your evergreen content to be search engine friendly, you must enhance the visibility of your content on search engines by making use of engines such as Google as well as YouTube. This means establishing backlinks (links to other websites) and writing engaging text as well as including terms in your description and content to enhance its relevance to the search engines.

2. Email

Email marketing is among the oldest techniques of marketing content, and remains among the most effective. Like we mentioned above, strategies for marketing via email have been modified as time passes (bye cold pitching, bye) Yet, this method remains a powerful option for SaaS marketers.

As you create pertinent content to meet the needs of all phases of the customer's lifecycleincluding nurturing your blog's readers to onboarding and informing new customers with video and reminding them about expiration dates, or offering upgrade discounts, emails allow you to send your messages specifically to segments of users.

Email also provides a unique one-on-one experience between you and your prospects or customers...something SEO and social media lacks.

This example from Zoom showcases the ways SaaS businesses can take advantage of emails for upgrade as well as renewals.

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3. Event (IRL and virtual)

Events for networking in person such as the conferences, meetings, and seminars while not being as popular during the epidemic, are coming back since people are craving social gatherings and live events.

Events can help you establish relationships with customers and prospects, gain fresh insights into the market, verify new product or brand ideas and make connections with potential partners, influencers and experts from the industry.

4. Social media

• Utilize your company's Facebook Page or Twitter profile to communicate crucial information to your targeted public. The people who are following your company's brand on social media are opting to trust you and may make purchases from your business sometime in the near future.
• Share the content (videos!) by customers who use the service or product you offer. The genuine content created by users can make users have a greater sense of connection to the company and are eager to find out more about it.
• Connect with those who leave comments on posts or ask questions via social media platforms. It is possible to respond via directly messaging to establish stronger relationships with customers you may be interested in.
• Do not forget to mention influencers as well as the industry's top experts! Reach out to them on the social networks, and ask them for their permission to impart their knowledge with other people by writing blog posts, making videos, writing blog posts, or even participating in an gathering.

SaaS Content Marketing examples for you to learn from

HubSpot

Hubspot has been publishing blog posts since 2014 it has grown into one of the biggest story-telling success stories in marketing through content.

The blog of the company is utilized by the company to produce content that will attract customers and also to offer value to existing customers. The marketing blog serves as an excellent resource on topics such as marketing automation, social media marketing. blogging, as well as other topics.

What makes HubSpot different is the fact that it utilizes diverse kinds of formats.

In this case, HubSpot uses a mixture of HubSpot Ultimate Guides, Podcasts along with videos embedded in blog posts, giving readers the option of choosing.

HubSpot Academy is another crucial element of HubSpot's approach for content. The online academy provides quick lessons on everything from the basics of marketing concepts like getting leads via social media or designing an email drip system up to more advanced certificates like the Certified Inbound Marketing certification.

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What is it that makes it work?

• A focus on helping customers solve the real issues
• Diverse types of content attracts a variety of audiences and expands the range of interests
• A genuine voice that doesn't attempt to try too difficult to appear funny or clever.

Microsoft

With its Office 365 blog, Microsoft has created a website with valuable content that helps customers understand their choices and use scenarios . The blog also provides users with tips regarding how to make the most value for their subscriptions.

Microsoft has also done an outstanding job with its Microsoft 365 University website. It was created as an online community designed for children and teachers. It let them know more information about Microsoft 365 products and services.

In addition, they provide an online course " Create Your First App," where students can learn to create apps with Visual Studio Code and Azure DevOps Services.

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Why it works:

Microsoft concentrated on developing an eBook or a video-based program that could live for 18 months while letting customers go through the material in their own time. This approach eliminates the need to constantly create new content , allowing Microsoft to concentrate on satisfying customer needs.

Adobe

Adobe has launched CMO.com, a publication/magazine that offers worth to its readers by providing content that addresses the top issues facing digital managers. The magazine includes articles written by experts within the field, and also perspectives of Adobe on technology, product and business developments.

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It's an excellent example of the ways SaaS businesses can utilize content marketing to build and nurture customer relationships that will result in higher sales.

What is the reason it works?

The reason it works is because the content of CMO is non-product-specific, which means they aren't focusing on their business's products and services. Their content is focused on challenges, trends and opportunities for avoiding technological disruptions that disrupt the digital world.

SARAL

SARAL is an influential marketing platform which brings together influencers and brands. Their blog provides valuable information regarding the specifics of marketing with influencers. It's and not only for marketing the products, but also to assist the customers (marketers) create successful campaigns.

The CEO of the business doesn't only write blog posts, but also promotes his two main ideas across fifty social media channels every week and thus reaches a wider population.

What's the reason why that it is effective?

Yash Chavan the co-founder of Saral and CEO, is adamant that shifting the focus of his business by publishing two blogs each week to spreading two concepts across 50 channels on social media had a significant impact on the method of marketing through media.

Chavan ran an experiment, which showed that the traffic on his site declined by 35% following his content distribution stopped during the course of a month. Chavan also suggests the new SaaS marketing and founders to produce high-value content instead of tons of lower-value material and distribute the content as widely as possible.

Marketing content using video B2B SaaS

Marketing via video content is an effective tool that is beneficial for B2B and B2C firms. That said, the content produced by you might not fulfill the requirements for B2B or B2C (i.e. educational or. engage).

Actually, HubSpot Blog Research discovered 15 percent of B2B marketers consider establishing thought leadership a primary purpose of their video marketing plans compared to only 9 percent of B2C marketers.

These are just a few more ways in which B2B SaaS businesses make use of video content more than B2C businesses:

• Explainer videos
• Product demos
• Live streamed events
• Videos of the product
• Behind-the-scenes videos
• Our customers' testimonials as well as personal tales

If you're an B2C firm, the approach to social media may differ in comparison to a B2B SaaS company. This type of business is more dependent on TikTok and Instagram and LinkedIn, while those who are B2B will likely use Twitter and LinkedIn more frequently.

This is because these channels are better suited to the customers they serve: B2C brands want to communicate directly with their customers, whereas B2B SaaS firms seek to engage with professionals in the industry with lengthy sales cycles as well as bigger decision makers.

Strategies for content SaaS companies

Let's talk about some content strategy strategies for SaaS marketing professionals for 2023.

Get to know more about the people you are targeting

When you're writing content, you must know who you're talking to and what they're looking for from your business. For this, you must conduct market research and speak with potential customers or users of your product or service. Learn what kind of information they are looking for as well as the method they consume it , whether in videos, audio or texts.

Develop personas that are reflective of the preferences of your viewers as well as needs. You can use these personas to assist you in developing the design, structure and layout of your information.

The process of conducting feedback surveys is another way to learn more about your target audience. Feedback surveys are useful as they allow you to collect the opinions and thoughts of real customers to help shape the future of products and services.

Pro Tip:Look at Google Trends to find keywords relevant to your field and this will help you decide what topics you'll discuss on your blog or in posts on social media.

Updating what you have

For SaaS companies, regularly the process of updating your content is an excellent option for keeping your valuable content readily accessible.

If you are publishing written or videos, you should be aware the time it is that your content goes live and track its usage and impact. Each quarter, you should check your library and spot any declines in user involvement and prioritize those sources for updates. When your service develops and expands, it's important to ensure your library corresponds to the appropriate features and imagery.

Also, you can make changes to the material you've created before by adding fresh content and information. It will be more relevant to those who have looked for similar information before but didn't get the info they were looking for in your site.

Prioritize distribution

If you do not have an approach to disseminating your information, it'll not get noticed by those who need it most. It's crucial to know what areas your customers are using online for example, blog posts, Facebook sites or chat forums- after which you can come up with strategies to interact with them on those platforms.

Know which metrics matter for you.

It is important to understand the metrics that matter to you, as well as how to measure them.

It is possible that your aim is to increase brand recognition and to provide value to users who come to your website as well as to improve retention. Content marketing is a great way to achieve those goals -- especially in the event that you follow a carefully-planned strategy and produce top-quality material that can resonate with the target market.

If your aim is to increase leads the content you create for marketing be focused on the bottom of the funnel (BOFU) information that includes specific information about products and lets you know an opportunity to convert (e.g. demo request or sign-ups for free trials). Additionally, you can enhance your content strategy with advertisements that are paid to bring additional users to these pages in addition to helping you create leads that are qualified.

Produce unique, data-driven content

Data-driven content is an excellent way of sharing new insights with your audience. This is also an excellent method to distinguish yourself against your competitors.

SaaS companies have an advantage in this field because they are able to access an abundance of data about their potential customers as well as their current customers. With this information they can develop information that directly addresses their needs and aids them in solving their problems.

SaaS marketer and co-founder of AdEspresso Massimo Chieruzzi believes that artificial intelligence-based writing tools will soon commoditize the production of content. In many cases, the output quality of these software instruments can be higher than that of most copywriters. The only way to compete with the AI is to make original and original content.

"Quality can be a lot of things. It may be thought leadership featuring a distinctive (and certainly not controversial) perspective on the industry. Also, it could be the writing of informative content by using SaaS internal database systems . "

Massimo says that when working at AdEspresso the company first invested into writing articles that analysed the billions of dollars of Facebook Ads managed through the platform. The strategy worked in developing a brand image that earned trust, as well as returning visitors, and attracting many backlinks.

The wrapping up

2023 will focus on offering your prospects and customers interesting and distinctive content in multiple formats--including, particularly, video. SaaS customers have a busy schedule and need content with longevity and an unique view.

Videos are a way to promote your brand and allow your brand to be distinguished from your competitors. But remember -- if you provide targeted, personal information that gives someone the real worth and value, you'll have the ability to beat the competition in advertising through content.

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