When was the last time you bought something right after seeing it? That’s rare. Modern customers now spend a considerable amount of time doing research usually by reading reviews, asking friends, and searching the web. This process is known as the buyer’s journey and it applies to B2B customers as well.

Good digital marketers leverage this opportunity to pull prospects/leads down the B2B content marketing funnel to convert them later down the journey and yield maximum results.

Here’s the three basic steps in a buyer’s journey:

1. Build awareness for your product or service. As B2B buyers discover it, they determine if it aligns with their business objectives.
2. Research is the next step. Buyers try to understand the product and industry, as well as compare your product to the competition, to see if it is the best fit for their company.
3. Close the sale. After researching and reading reviews, customers narrow down their list to their top choices that align with their business objectives or solve their issues. As a digital marketer, it is your job to make it to that list.

It’s your B2B marketing team’s job to consistently deliver compelling and relevant content throughout these steps of the buyer’s journey. Delivering the right content at each stage of the marketing funnel can be tricky.

Here’s some best practices:

Optimize Content for a B2B Marketing Funnel

Stage 1: Build Awareness

The first stage is about building awareness. The buyer has a problem and is looking for solutions. You need to deliver high-level educational and compelling content that lead consumers to your solution.

Buyers and businesses will have unique needs and varying perspectives on how those can be fulfilled. Some are not even sure they need a solution or even have a problem. You need to make them realize what they are missing and position your product well.

At this point in the buyer’s journey, avoid “hard selling.” You could end up annoying them and pushing them away.

The best type of content to use at this stage includes:

• Blog posts
• Infographics
• Social media posts
• Short videos
• Ebooks
• Whitepapers
• Guests posts

Stage 2: Research and Evaluate Your Product

At this stage, a prospective lead understands their problem and shows interest in your solution. You need to help them evaluate your market value. Position your solution as the right solution and highlight your advantages over your competitors.

It is also crucial to remove prospects that aren’t a good fit for your product. Do not waste your time and resources on leads that will never convert.

The best type of content to use at this stage includes:

• Case studies
• Whitepapers
• Retargeting ads
• Podcasts
• Emails
• Templates
• Checklists
• Guides
• Long-form videos
• Webinars 

The evaluation stage may require consistent following up to avoid losing your prospects. Hence, sales email and marketing plays a major role in nurturing leads and keeping them engaged.

Remember to keep the tone of your content education-focused. Push your customers to help them view their problems in a new way. You should highlight your product as a good solution to their problem over the competition, but don’t overdo it. There is a fine line between being sales-focused and an outright hard seller.

Stage 3: Close the Sale

When a lead reaches the bottom of the funnel, it means they are ready to buy. But that does not necessarily mean they are ready to buy your product. 

In most cases, leads reach the bottom of the funnel with a few other options on their final list. If you have done a good job of convincing them in the middle of the funnel, they will just need a final push and the deal is yours.

The best content format to use at this stage includes:

• Trials and demos
• Reviews and testimonials
• Case studies
• Professional consultations 
• Events and trade shows

With a B2B content marketing funnel, you can touch all of the points in the buyer’s journey. You need to keep your prospects engaged to improve your chances of converting them into sales.

To learn more about the B2B content marketing funnel, check out the infographic by UTM.io.