14 Proven B2B Marketing Strategies For Business Growth

As a B2B marketer, you understand the value of your marketing efforts. You know that making the right decisions and developing processes for lead generation can help you reach business growth goals. But to actually get started, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all the strategies out there.

That’s why we’ve pulled together this list of 14 proven strategies that you can start putting into place for marketing success in your business.

1) Develop a content strategy

If you don’t have a plan in place for generating B2B leads through content marketing, it’s time to figure out how you’re going to make it happen. When executed correctly, a strong content marketing strategy has the potential to deliver steady revenue streams and nurture future sales opportunities. But if done without an end goal in mind or an understanding of what works and what doesn’t work, all of your efforts will be lost on dead ends. So take some time to understand where your target prospects are looking for information and which channels they prefer when receiving content — then develop a plan that integrates all aspects of your overall marketing strategy.

2) Invest in lead generation training

Marketing automation is quickly becoming the standard when it comes to generating B2B leads. For this reason, it’s important that everyone in your organization understands their role in the process — from marketing and sales teams to customer service agents. That’s why many organizations are investing in lead generation training programs. These types of initiatives not only help to improve efficiency and marketing ROI, but they also enable teams throughout your company to respond more quickly and accurately.

3) Develop a lead nurturing strategy

There’s a big difference between a cold lead and what you should aim for: a hot prospect that’s eager to work with you. The first one has no idea who you are and has probably never interacted with your business before. The second is a happy customer that wants to learn more about what you offer — but may not be ready to buy just yet. In order to build relationships with hot leads, it’s important for B2B marketers to develop a lead nurturing strategy . This will help them understand who is on the other side, what they want to see in content, and how to guide them along the path toward becoming a customer.

4) Embrace content upgrades

If you aren’t familiar with this latest marketing trend, it’s time to get up to speed. Content upgrades are small pieces of bonus content that B2B marketers offer to website visitors in exchange for their contact information. It’s a win-win situation, since prospects are able to download the additional content that they want without leaving your site or signing up for an email list first. And because it’s exclusive content, there’s no chance it will be shared elsewhere — which means you won’t have to battle other marketers for the attention of your prospects.

5) Prioritize mobile marketing

A recent survey by Ascend2 found that more than 90 percent of B2B marketers are already using content marketing as part of their lead generation strategies. But mobile content is on the rise, so it’s important to prioritize this type of strategy for generating leads if you aren’t already. In fact, more than half of marketers say that mobile marketing has increased their lead generation success rates.

6) Focus on your buyer personas

In order to achieve better results from your B2B content marketing efforts, there’s a simple strategy to implement: Develop a detailed understanding of the people you’re trying to reach. The more you know about your target prospects, the more effective you’ll be with developing content that appeals to them. And if you are already doing this, make sure that all of your content aligns with what your buyer personas need and want.

7) Be patient

B2B marketing is a long-term play — so it’s important that you don’t get discouraged if your content isn’t immediately generating results. Instead, view each piece as a foundation for future campaigns and relationships, and continue to build on these assets over time.

8) Track everything

You can’t judge the success of your business blogging efforts or optimize content upgrades if you aren’t tracking what’s working best. For this reason, every B2B marketer should be implementing some type of lead attribution platform to track content performance — and how everything fits into the bigger picture.

9) Promote social sharing

Lack of engagement is one of the biggest reasons why marketers give up on their blog efforts after just six months. But there are several strategies you can employ to encourage social sharing and generate more leads from your content. One is to include call-to-action buttons that link to bee venom for sale landing pages with offers that are related to the topic of your most popular posts. Or, focus on creating shareable visual assets like infographics and custom images .

10) Be a storyteller

If you want to attract highly-qualified leads that are looking for a business like yours, you have to stand out from the competition. And one of the best ways to do this is by establishing yourself as a thought leader in your industry by using content marketing strategies that focus on storytelling . In other words, don’t just tell prospects how your product or service can benefit them — showcase how their lives will be better if they do business with you.

11) Leverage online reviews

If your business is new, getting online reviews might seem like an impossible task. But according to research from BrightLocal , nine out of 10 consumers say that they trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. And nearly three-quarters of consumers say that positive reviews make them trust a local business more.

12) Create content for both buyers and non-buyers

Not all B2B leads are ready to buy at the time they first connect with your business — so it’s important to create assets that appeal to both types of prospects. For example, you might offer a checklist of things to consider when evaluating a business like yours, or create an informative webinar that explains common concerns and how best to address them.

13) Make your blog easy to read

A recent survey by MarketingProfs found that one-third of marketers rarely (if ever) update their company blogs — and 63 percent never change their blog’s design. That being said, it’s important to keep your blog updated with new content that readers will find useful — but just as important is making sure that the site itself is easy on the eyes.

14) Don’t be afraid of paid ads

Despite all of the negative press around ad blockers, sponsored social posts are actually 30 times more likely to be found engaging compared to organic posts, according to a recent study by TrackMaven . While they may not be the best way to go after cold leads, B2B marketers should definitely consider advertising on social media channels like LinkedIn and Twitter , which both allow you to target very specific audiences.