Why Websites Don’t Give B2B Buyers What They Need

CHECKLIST: How to Give B2B Buyers the Information They Need to Buy From You

Why are most B2B websites not set up well for buyers?

Most B2B companies put considerable effort into producing and categorizing appropriate content in the correct formats and presenting it in a user-friendly manner that meets the expectations of B2B buyers.

So why, then, are most B2B websites not set up well for buyers?

Ask yourself this question before continuing to read…

QUESTION: How much of your best content around specific buyer roles, problems they have, solutions needed, or industry topics are scattered across various pages, blog posts, podcasts, press releases, case studies, testimonials, eBooks, and more?

This article outlines the prerequisites for content creation and organization to meet buyers’ expectations. Additionally, you’ll find a checklist that will aid you in evaluating and organizing your content.

Your Website is the Most Important Resource Tool

Before delving into the specifics of setting up content according to the preferences of B2B buyers, it is crucial to comprehend the purpose and type of content required, as well as the function your company’s website serves in the decision-making process of B2B buyers.

B2B buyers are 57% – 70% through their buying research before contacting sales.
In B2B, content outweighs both sales presentation and timeliness as customer-buying factors. – McKinsey
55% of buyers said they now rely more on content to research and make purchasing decisions than they did a year ago.

According to a recent study, the amount of content and source of content all point to a supplier’s website as the top priority:

The average B2B buyer’s journey involves consuming 13 pieces of content on average.
Of these 13 pieces of content, eight are vendor-created pieces (62%), and five (38%) are from third parties.
The buying process takes, on average, two to six weeks and involves three to four internal decision-makers (this alludes to the importance of creating highly shareable content).
The top sources of content are:
- The vendor website — 70%
- Internet search — 67%
- Social media — 53%
- Sent to me via email — 41%
- Word of mouth — 33%
At every stage of the purchase process, the vendor’s website is an important source of content.

This article presents a comprehensive overview of buyers’ preferences regarding the organization of content, the essential content required at each stage of the buyer’s journey, and a checklist of recommended content to consider.

What Type of Content Format Do Buyers Want By Stage of the Buyer’s Journey?

Since B2B buyers are 57%-70% through their buying research before contacting sales, it makes sense that the most popular content formats have the highest engagement in the early and mid-stages of the buyer’s journey.

Below are findings from a recent report about B2B buyers on the importance of different content formats by buying stage, plus the factors that made the content more memorable and useful. These findings help establish goals for what should drive content execution.

For early-stage research, the most popular content formats are:

Infographics (62%)
Blogs (58%)
Podcasts (56%)

Mid-stage research was more focused on the following:

Assessments/Comparisons (49%)
Webinars (48%)
Case studies (44%)

For late-stage research, buyers reported these content formats as most useful:

User reviews (29%)
Third-party analyst reports (29%)
ROI calculators (26%)

Gartner speaks to the importance of providing a lot of high-quality content that maps to the buying process as a crucial part of sales enablement.

What Content Stimulates Sales Calls and Buyer Group Sharing?

The factors that make content memorable for B2B buyers and what most often prompts them to take a sales call are:

51% emphasized the significance of utilizing data and research to substantiate the content’s assertions.
41% highlighted the importance of having research-based content.

Another common theme was the desire to share the content with their buying team. Nearly half (49%) of respondents said the content must tell a strong story that resonates with their buying committee, and 41% said the content should be packed with shareable stats and quick-hitting insights.

A key takeaway is that when B2B buyers conduct research for a purchasing decision, they select research/survey reports as the most valuable content source.

When asked about the key drivers for sharing content, respondents said it is important that the content:

Includes relevant/shareable links that can be shared immediately (48%)
Is packed with shareable stats and quick-hitting insights (42%)
Tells a strong story that resonates with the buying committee (41%)
Is ungated and easy to share with colleagues (37%)
Will influence peers/other internal stakeholders on the buying team (34%)

B2B buyers also suggested curbing sales messages (39%), creating shorter content (37%), and not overloading content with text (36%). However, they did want more insights from industry thought leaders and analysts (30%).

How B2B Websites Should Be Organized

Below is the B2B buyer’s reflection on how content should be organized on the websites of the companies they are considering for purchase:

By issue/pain point (52%)
By topic (51%)
By industry/vertical (46%)
By business role (42%)

Think of these four ways to organize content on your website at trailheads that designate different content pathways that your B2B buyers can navigate.

Is your website organized with these four content trailheads?

Revolutionize your website’s organization by implementing content pathways that encompass these buyer-preferred organizational approaches. By doing so, your company can provide an effortless and streamlined research and evaluation process for potential buyers—instead of creating an industry-leading bounce rate.

Does your website currently provide custom landing pages that align with the four unique organizational methods listed above, granting swift access to relevant content resources for each stage of the purchasing process? Don’t allow your best content to be lost within the chaos of scattered blog posts, podcasts, case studies, testimonials, eBooks, features, and solution pages. Instead, utilize these landing pages to create clear and concise content pathways that cater to the specific needs and desires of your B2B buyers.

Content Pathway Checklist

Instead of starting from the point of what you have in terms of content, begin with the list below, the research above, and what content you want to ensure that you are providing buyers. Make sure to use on-page navigation for extending content pathways from the landing pages that match up with the four content organizational approaches that buyers desire.

Content Pathway Checklist Options:

Awards
Blogs/Articles
Case Studies
Demos
eBooks
Checklists
Comparisons
Courses
Events
FAQs
Features
Infographics
Integrations
Links
Lists
KPIs
One-Sheets
Reviews
Research
Press Releases
Reports
ROI Calculators
Presentations
Surveys/Reports
Testimonials
Third-Party Content
Videos
Webinars
White Papers
Workflows

Conclusion

Creating content that truly meets the needs of your target audience is no easy feat. All too often, we fall into the trap of producing content that is easy to churn out, rather than focusing on what is truly necessary and striving for the highest quality standards. This is particularly true regarding case studies, where we may be tempted to produce content based on what’s readily available rather than what is actually needed based on the preferences of our buyers. At stake are your potential buyer’s consideration and lost sales.

In order to truly meet the expectations of B2B buyers, we need to approach content creation from a different angle. Rather than simply producing more of the same, we must first identify what is truly needed, evaluate the quality of our existing content, and create a prioritized list of what needs to be produced next. This requires a laser focus on meeting the specific needs and use cases of our target personas. So let’s start thinking outside the box and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in content creation.

Next Steps

To learn more about how to create highly successful, revenue-producing content marketing and sales enablement strategies based on industry best practices from leading B2B CMOs, CLICK HERE to schedule a 20-minute strategy session.

ELEVATING CONTENT MARKETING STANDARDS RAISES A CRUCIAL QUESTION:
Why shouldn’t the very act of creating thought leadership content also spark new conversations with in-pipeline deals, top prospects, and high-priority customers for revenue expansion? Or serve as the cornerstone for learning and applying voice-of-customer strategies? That’s the power of ABM Podcasting—engaging B2B buyers and customers in meaningful conversations that uncover essential go-to-market insights, support long sales cycles, reinforce your market perspective, build peer-level trust, and dismantle objections that kill deals.

Steven MacDonald

Steven MacDonald is the founder of Content Strategies, CEO of a MarTech SaaS Company, fractional CMO consulting with leading B2B companies and former Director of Strategy and Client Service at top ten digital marketing agencies.

Follow Steve on LinkedIn.

Steven MacDonald

Follow Steve on LinkedIn.