Create B2B content your buyers will actually binge

Your buyers are consuming B2B content very differently from how they watch Netflix.

They're typically not checking out your content leisurely.

They're on a mission to advance their careers professionally.

With that said, you need to face the fact that you're not Joe Rogan.

I'm saying that a 3hr podcast is very unlikely to be valuable to your audience.

Your B2B buyers' most valuable asset is their time.

And when they're watching your free content, that is the currency they are paying you with.

So how do you ensure that you get them the most value for their time so they actually:

• Watch 100% of your video?
• Share your videos with your co-workers?
• Come back for more?

This is what you do:

1. Tell them what you're going to tell them.

When you kick off your video or your podcast, don't banter. Cut right to the chase.

Tell your audience exactly what they're going to get out of consuming your content.

iIn other words, qualify your audience as quickly as possible.

The ones you're not trying to reach? They'll bounce. And that's good.

But the ones that you are? They'll stay.

How to do this:

Look at how YouTubers start their videos (especially their tutorial videos).

"In this video, I'm going to explain..."

Don't even bother telling the audience who they are. They either don't care, or they already know.

They didn't come to the video to hear from you, per sé.

They clicked your video to get what's in it for them.

So tell them what you're going to tell them... fast!

Now for those who are thinking, "Wouldn't that sound cheesy? Would that work for B2B?", I'd just want to simply remind you that even in B2B sales/marketing, you're communicating with people, not robots.

This is about understanding how people prefer to consume content. 

And when it comes to grabbing people's attention as quickly as possible, the people you'll want to learn from are the ones who do it professionally.

Namely, YouTubers.

2. Tell them.

Alright, now that you got your audience hooked, break it down for them.

I almost always recommend breaking down your thought leadership in listicle form.

This means actually having numbered points that you plan on discussing. 

There's a reason why so much of BuzzFeed's content is formatted like, "10 date ideas that you can also bring your dog to...".

People like to know what they're committing to when it comes to consuming content.

So as you're laying out your 4 reasons why, or your 7 mistakes to avoid, break down each of those points thoroughly.

I'd even recommend doing the following:

• Add an illustration or a real-life example that proves the validity of your point.
• Use references and third-party data to back up your claim.
• Overcome objections that you could imagine your audience having to whatever your point is.
• Give them an actionable step forward.

This framework might feel a little mechanical for communicators that like to fire from the hip. Trust me, I get it. I like to ad-lib a lot with my content, too.

Just remember that your outline is meant to serve you, not the other way around. Keep your points pithy. Think of them as the contoured images in a coloring book, and then when you press record, you're just filling in the pages with color as you speak.

3. Tell them what you told them.

Let's bring it in for a landing.

Once you've given your audience the meat and potatoes of the content, simply remind them what you told them.

Recap the objective of the video/episode that you stated in the beginning. Quickly roll through all the points and the actionable steps for each point.

And when you're finally done, reconfirm to them that if they take action on those points that you mentioned, that they'll get the results they were looking for when they clicked your video.

In Conclusion

Creating B2B content doesn't need to be difficult, especially when you know what your audience actually needs.

Just give it to them!

Don't overthink it.

Don't overcook your content.

Tell them exactly what they're going to get out of it.

Deliver the value.

And get out.

If you do this, I can almost guarantee that your buyers will see you again in your next episode.

- Kap Chatfield (CEO of Rveal Media)