I’ve been delivering, Marketing, and selling professional services for over 30 years.

As a CPA turned software developer turned marketing consultant, I’ve had the opportunity to see how content marketing has evolved (and how it’s stayed the same) regarding selling B2B services.

Content Marketing Gaps and Frustrations

During that time, I’ve noticed several gaps between what B2B service businesses need in terms of marketing vs. what most agencies provide.

Gap #1 Most agencies don’t understand selling professional services.

It’s difficult to create effective content marketing for B2B services. Most of what they sell is intangible. Contracts involve tens or hundreds of thousands (sometimes millions) of dollars. Sales cycles are longer and more complex. More people are involved in the decision-making process. The pain of switching to a different Solution is real.

Unlike product or SaaS business, there is no free demo or trial. Your content has to build trust and demonstrate your strategic approach is the right choice to solve their problem.

Prospects will often follow your content for months or years before seeking your help.

Gap #2 Most freelancers and agencies can’t deliver advanced-level content.

Most of our clients are experts in their field. They are typically selling to experienced buyers who are often experts themselves. Buyers with advanced questions and experience with other solutions they’ve found to be lacking.

For example (drawn from our clients)

• Sales trainers who sell sales, management, and customer service training to CEOs and sales managers of large, established companies.
• Commercial floor care contractors selling maintenance and repair services to property and facility managers with decades of experience managing multiple commercial properties.
• Agile/Lean Process consultants selling organizational change management to Fortune 500 companies.

Advanced buyers will not be impressed by, nor interested in, beginner-level content.

But when agencies and in-house teams outsource content creation to freelance writers with minimal subject matter expertise, that’s what they get.

These writers “research” via Google searches to find arguments others in the marketplace are already making.

NOTE: This is precisely what AI writing tools do – search the internet and rewrite what they find. They just do it a lot faster.

Pre-made content libraries are another source of ineffective content marketing.

We often see this content sold to professionals in the accounting and insurance industries. The content not only lacks depth but the exact same content gets published multiple times by different businesses.

While conducting research for a client, we found one such article published word-for-word by more than 25 firms. Not the best way to stand out in a crowded marketplace.

Shallow, beginner-level content doesn’t address the questions and pain points that expert buyers like the ones mentioned above are looking to solve.

Effective content marketing requires advanced-level content for advanced customers.

Gap #3 Most content marketing agencies focus on the wrong results.

Most content Marketing Agencies Focus on outputs or deliverables like blog posts or social posts per month.

A few focus on increasing traffic – the number of visitors to your website or social profiles.

But CEO and sales team leaders are accountable to sales and leads. They need leads, meetings, and sales.

Unfortunately, most content marketing is sales-adverse, bordering on sales-phobic. Somewhere along the line, content marketers forgot that the goal of content, even SEO content, is to drive sales.

Good content marketing can drive sales without being pushy or obnoxious.

Gap #4 Most agencies focus solely on SEO or “branding” content

Authority-building SEO content that drives inbound leads is important, but it’s not the only type of content needed to drive B2B sales.

Effective content is needed before, during, and after the sales meeting. Good content marketing supports the basic blocking and tackling activities that drive sales – including direct outreach, lead nurturing, sales presentations, increasing client retention, and orchestrating referrals.

When B2B service businesses rely on multiple agencies or freelancers to provide the content they need, they waste time repeatedly explaining their business, editing content, and coordinating efforts between vendors.

We create sales-focused content marketing solutions to fix these gaps.

Having experienced the frustrations these gaps cause firsthand and through the eyes of my clients (before working with me), I set out to address them.

Solution 1: Focusing exclusively on Sales-Focused Marketing Content for B2B Services

Based on over 30 years of experience, we focus exclusively on sales-focused content for B2B services. We invest heavily in training to keep up to date with best practices and constantly work on applying “what’s working now” to B2B service marketing.

Solution 2: Great Content Marketing Starts with Great Research

Rather than conducting “Google research,” we conduct interviews with the experts in your company. We combine your in-house expertise with our marketing and writing skills to create original content that is both informative and persuasive.

Solution 3. Focus on the Right Results

True strategic partners share common goals. We don’t believe content marketers should be held accountable to a different set of success metrics than those buying their services.

We realize that almost every agency out there talks about aligning with your business goals. But with us, it doesn’t stop there. We want to be accountable for results. We report regularly on results and discuss opportunities for improvement. We’ll even help you set up systems to track your content marketing results.

Solution 4: Message First. Content Format Second.

When it comes to content marketing, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Complex sales to savvy buyers require the support of sales-focused content in various formats throughout the sales cycle.

Content formats change and evolve over time. What doesn’t change is the need for clear messaging that communicates your positioning, along with the benefits and value propositions your services offer, in a way that educates and encourages prospects to take the next step.

We focus on creating the right message first and then pick the best content formats to communicate that message.

If You Are Interested in Working With Us, Here’s What To Do Next

If any of what you’ve read above resonates with you, the best next step is to have an honest, no-pressure conversation about your business, your goals, and how we may be able to help.

Or if you’re not ready, you can learn more about our services here.

You can read more details about our service and the price point on our work with us page.