Recent research from the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council has found that most B2B buyers see online content as a valuable resource when it comes to finding out more about services and products.

The study, which was carried out in April and released earlier this month, is called ‘Better Lead Yield in the Content Marketing Field’. It was based on an internet survey which questioned more than 400 B2B decision makers, 87% of whom said the content they find online has either a moderate or major impact on the vendors they choose.

The CMO Council’s executive director, Donovan Neale-May, spoke about the results, saying:

“Most companies spend at least 25% of their marketing budgets on content creation and distribution on digital channels. Our focus [with the CMO Council study] was to see how effective is that spend, to what degree are companies producing content that is meaningful and useful to buyers, and what are the nuances around how people are utilizing and sharing that content with their peers.”

The study also went into further detail, revealing that online communities and professional associations are the most influential of content sources (cited by 47%). A close 46% cited industry trade groups and organisations, 41% said trade publications as well as seminars and workshops, and 35% mentioned trade shows.

Neale-May went on to point out the clear pattern of people wanting peer-based content – especially places where business owners can get advice and feedback on their own work from those with similar interests.

Many small businesses choose to provide subject-specific news content on a regular basis to ensure they remain in the minds of potential clients. With something genuinely useful available, members of the target audience are more likely to come back to the site in the future.

Graeme Parton

Graeme has experience creating content for online sources and for the radio, and at university he studied Multimedia Journalism.