Why Your Current B2B Marketing Strategy Isn't Good Enough

*Disclaimer: Your target audience may or may not support your crowdsurfing attempts.

When we search Google, there's a method to our madness: we choose keywords that answer our questions. Sounds simple, right?

Users search for keyword → websites use keyword → users search for keyword.  Chicken or egg?   

Marketers use that simple equation to optimize all aspects of their marketing. However, "what" we search for is only a fraction of the equation. You also need to know the who and why.

That's the trick to a successful marketing strategy: figuring out who your audience is, why they click on a search result, why they consume one type of content over another. If you want to win their traffic, your content needs to match up with their intent.

A successful B2B marketing strategy considers the shallow "what," and then hones in on the more valuable "who" and "why." 

The "Who" & "Why" of Your B2B Marketing Strategy

Who Is Your Ideal Audience?

Do NOT focus on demographics when you think about your audience. That barely scratches the surface. You need to dig deeper. Create a buyer persona based on their archetype.

1. Stereotype: a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person
2. Archetype: a very typical example of a certain person

Effective audience targeting is based on archetypes, not stereotypes. There are three issues with stereotypes:

1. "Widely held" - Your audience is unique to you, and will probably not conform to widely held assumptions.
2. "Fixed" - Your audience's needs and motivations can evolve over time. Your idea of them must be flexible.
3. "Oversimplified" - Effective targeting requires detail. Ultimately, you should feel like you know your audience archetype personally. When writing content, it should feel like a conversation between you and this person.

Stereotyping forces your audience into groups they might not actually belong to. Archetyping elevates them as individuals.

Why Are They Searching?

Now that you know your audience, you need to know their motivations. Focus on:

1. Queries - What keywords do they choose? (Probably different from the ones you'd choose.)
2. Drivers - Why are they choosing those keywords? Why would they click on one search result over another?
3. Pathway - What does their search progression look like? How do they get from one keyword to the next?
4. Expectations - When they use a keyword, what information do they expect to find? 
5. Intent - What is the ultimate answer they're looking for? What are they hoping to gain from this search?

What question did they ask? → Why did they ask that question?

(Remember: The obvious answer may not be the best answer.)

Your customers are the best source of information about their search habits. Straight from the horse's mouth and all. That way, you know your intel is correct. When in doubt, use your ideal customers' information to guide content creation and targeting.

The Short Version:

Do This

1. Identify your ideal customer archetype
2. Learn about their search habits and motivations
3. Use keywords that match their queries
4. Produce content (message & format) that matches the intent of the query
5. Get Found Online

Get This

1. More online visibility
2. Optimized marketing strategy
3. Improved ROI

Related: 11 Awesome Buyer Persona Statistics

Related: Inbound Marketing Is Tied to Higher ROI