In B2B marketing, it’s vital that your audience clearly understands what your brand offers to build trust throughout the 18-month buyer journey. Making sure your copy throughout your website, collateral, and deliverables focuses on the right things is one of the key pillars of this.
Research and insights buyers are faced with a multitude of companies offering services and products. Standing out and truly differentiating your brand is difficult - a consistent brand identity and brand voice that resonates with your audience is the place to start.
You may be writing copy that you think is important, but do your readers find this content truly valuable and comprehensive? How can you make sure that the content you are writing is truly landing with them?
Here are six ways to help you focus your copy on the right things:
1. Understand Your Audience
Who are you trying to reach? Identify your insights buyer personas you plan to target and get a deep understanding of their objectives, challenges and pain points. This will help you create content that addresses their unique needs and interests.
Develop detailed profiles based on your audience's identities, experiences, challenges, and goals, and use these profiles to create content related to their interests, pain points, and daily challenges. Solve a problem they are likely to bump into. Help them get something done they may struggle with. Offer a helpful list of tools and resources to learn more. Knowing your audience well will help you tailor your message effectively, use the right jargon, and talk knowledgeably about their problems.
2. Focus on Outcomes
No one cares about another “number one best in the market AI-powered platform for anyone and everyone”. Avoid buzzwords, hyperboles, and talking too much about product specs or details of your service upfront.
There is a time and place for this but it’s worthwhile to always lead with the outcomes of working with you or using your product. Remember the first iPod? Steve Jobs didn’t talk about the amount of storage or battery life the iPod had - he talked about having “20,000 songs in your pocket”, which is the outcome of buying the product.
3. Get Clear on Your Message
What’s the purpose of your copy? Do you want to inform/educate your audience, promote an offering, or generate brand awareness and trust? Most copy ideally strives to achieve for all these goals.
A compelling headline/title is the first step - keep it concise and straightforward, and lead with action verbs. In your main copy, demonstrate your expertise without pitching and prioritize showcasing your competence while addressing practical needs for decision-making to communicate the value of your products or services.
4. Stay in Touch with the Market
Staying informed about industry trends and competitor strategies is important to ensure that your content remains current and relevant and addresses the evolving needs of your business audience.
Conducting keyword and market research using tools like Google Analytics and SEMrush helps you identify critical terms and topics that your audience is actively searching for – allowing you to optimize your content to reach and engage the right prospects.
5. Maintain a Strong Brand Voice
Maintaining a consistent brand voice plays a key role in connecting with audiences over the long term. Check your brand book (or if you don’t have set brand guidelines, consult your marketing leaders/CEO) and agree whether or not you want to sound:
- Formal vs Casual
- Funny vs Serious
- Prudent vs Bold
Adjust your tone to fit the preferences of different buyer personas to ensure your message resonates. Keep your messaging consistent across platforms to strengthen your brand identity and build trust!
6. Use Clear and Simple Language
The best-written content is easily understood by readers, and it inspires meaningful discussion and ideas. You can discuss niche topics and share subject-matter expertise in your field, striking the right balance between informative, comprehensive, and accessible content.
Avoid excessive jargon (and if you do use it, explain what words mean), and opt for clear, concise language that your buyer personas can understand. Being concise and straightforward helps maintain clarity and ensures your message is effectively conveyed.
A Final Note
Creating compelling copy is both an art and a science. Get clear on who your audience is, focus on outcomes, stay in touch with your market, and maintain a strong, clear, and concise brand voice.
Check out our Content Writing Workshop if you want to dive deeper into copywriting!