Distribute your B2B content for maximum impact

Even the best, smartest, most-optimised content is worthless without a content amplification strategy

You'd be forgiven for thinking that content creation is the major challenge, and obviously, it's important to be producing really kick-ass content that sets you above your competitors. However it's not the only challenge; you can have the most awesome content in the tech industry, but it won't do you much good if no one knows about it.

That's why you need a comprehensive distribution strategy in place. You won't increase your reach without one. You need to get your content out there, where your target audience can't help but notice it. A distribution strategy allows you to identify and target specific audiences with your content. By focusing your efforts on the channels and platforms where your audience is most active, you can improve engagement and increase the chances of conversion. Let's dive into the key elements of creating an amplification strategy.

1: Understanding your target audience

The better you know your audience, the more you can tailor your content to their specific interests and needs, which will help improve the ROI of your content marketing efforts. You also need to know them to identify the channels and platforms where they are most active, and don’t underestimate how much these can vary for different audiences.

By focusing your content distribution efforts on the right channels, you can increase the chances of reaching your target audience and generating engagement. So the first thing to do is ask yourself: where do your key personas engage, and how do they research and digest information?

2: Distributing and promoting your content - know your channels

August 6, 1991. That's when physicist Tim Berners-Lee created the first website. Now, there are over 1.88 billion of them. And there's been similarly sharp increases in other distribution channels such as social media and paid advertising. That's why it's essential to have a good understanding of what channels are available. You need to know how they help attract your ideal customer persona - and there are more distribution channels now than ever before. At a basic level, you can break them down into three categories:

1. Owned channels - these are the ones you own and control, such as your website, blogs and social media
2. Earned channels - this is where public relations and influencer marketing come in. These are shared channels where third parties promote your content. These range from general channels like mainstream media through to highly specific technical and industry media.
3. Paid channels - exactly what they sound like; advertising and sponsored content. Pay-per-click (PPC), paid social advertisements, and paid influencer content. Again this can range from Google products to social media ads to trade media channels.

Of course, you need to keep a constant eye on how well your distribution strategy is working. It's important to measure and analyse your results, and you can do this by reviewing Google Analytics, social media dashboards and blog performance. You should do this regularly, so you know what numbers to beat the following week or month.

3: Build a distribution plan

You need to know when and where your target audience hangs out. They may range across multiple channels, and you can identify them by checking out how much similar content is available in the distribution channels of your competitors. The main ones for B2B tech businesses to consider are Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. For example, a SaaS company that provides B2B attribution services will easily identify LinkedIn as a viable distribution channel since it's popular with similar brands who rely on it to attract their target audience.

Now, you can build your distribution plan based on that information. Send articles to your email list, schedule social media posts, repurpose your content, answer your audiences’ questions and, if budget allows, pay to promote.

4: Execute with marketing tech
Any B2B tech business needs to be a publisher of content in its own right, so you need to understand the power of automation when it comes to marketing - if you rely on doing it all manually, you'll not only waste time but struggle to measure the impact. Social media, email marketing, ad campaigns - can all be automated. Check out this blog for all the details on how to automate your marketing efforts.

5: Analyse results, and repurpose what works

We touched on this in point #2. You need to identify what's working and what isn't, and what channels are really performing for your target personas. When a content piece performs well, look for ways to leverage it. If you've written a blog that's proven popular, revisit it with updated statistics and information, or come at it from another angle. If a case study has generated a lot of hits, provide an update on how your client is doing, with a CTA back to the original piece. Identify key points from an eBook or white paper, and flesh them out into a blog. There are many ways to repurpose content that performs well - don't let it go to waste.

SaaS company PTminder are a great example of the power of getting your channels right for content amplification. They grew traffic and leads with a smart strategy that switched from relying on paid media channels to a broader mix of distribution tactics.

With the right content amplification strategy in place, you'll ensure your content is reaching the right audience at the right time. A well-executed strategy will help build brand awareness, generate leads, retain customers, improve SEO, and increase social media engagement.