FIR B2B #2: Does Content Marketing Raise the Bar for All Marketers?

FIR B2BPaul Gillin and Allan Schoenberg host the FIR B2B podcast. Discussion topics in this show:

The theme of this week’s show is content marketing, and we open with the results of a new study from AdAge that finds three-quarters of B2B marketers plan to increase content spending in 2014. At the same time, more than 64% of respondents plan to raise email marketing budgets, nearly as many said they would up investments in online video, and 58% said the same for social media. Are marketers spreading themselves too thin?

They may not have much choice. Content marketing is continually raising the stakes of the quantity and variety of content that organizations must produce to be heard above the competitive noise. Marketers need to differentiate not only with the subject of content they produce but also with platforms and media. It’s not surprising that media spending plans are growing almost across the board.

Want more proof that B2B and B2C marketing aren’t the same? Econsultancy recently asked marketers in both sectors what are the most exciting opportunities for 2014 . The answers differed sharply, with B2B marketers favoring content marketing and B2Cs liking mobile.

Which doesn’t mean mobile advertising isn’t relevant to B2B as well. Emarketer also reports that new research from the Interactive Advertising Bureau and Ovum found that marketers are overwhelmingly satisfied with mobile advertising. Our hosts wonder what opportunities exist there for B2B?

Ann HandleyThis week’s special guest is Ann Handley, founder of MarketingProfs and a thought leader in B2B content marketing. She believes content marketing and native advertising present new opportunities to B2B marketers to raise their profiles but they also present new challenges to produce differentiated and remarkable content. Ultimately, customers will benefit, Ann believes. She cites several examples of outstanding B2B content marketing efforts she’s encountered.

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About Your Hosts

Paul GillinPaul Gillin is a veteran technology journalist and a thought leader in new media. Since 2005, he has advised marketers and business executives on strategies to optimize their use of social media and online channels to reach buyers cost-effectively. He is the author or co-author of five books, including Social Marketing to the Business Customer (2011), the first book devoted entirely to B2B social media marketing. He is also a social media trainer and coach at Profitecture, a training firm for B2B companies and their channel partners.

Allan SchoenbergAllan Schoenberg is based in London and responsible for managing the international media relations, issues management and brand communications for CME Group, the world’s leading and most diverse financial marketplace. He was instrumental in launching the company’s social media activity in 2007 and continues to lead its social strategy and online community engagement. He has more than 20 years of experience in B2B communications, including his work for Accenture, Edelman Worldwide and Fleishman Hillard.

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FIR B2B is brought to you with Lawrence Ragan Communications,serving communicators worldwide for 35 years. Information: www.ragan.com.

Posted by Paul Gillin on 02/04 at 10:57 AM

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