I once had a B2B client send me a topic to research and only one or two lines as the content brief for a project. This was, of course, after I chatted with them to discuss the purpose of the content. They gave me the "liberty" to generate and submit the content for feedback. I was faced with the big question, "WHERE DO I SOURCE UNIQUE CONTENT ON THE TOPIC?"
Writing is comprised of three stages; the research phase, the writing phase, and the editing phase. One of the arduous tasks a content writer undergoes is the research stage, and this is because the research stage determines the quality of your content. Therefore, it is salient to put your best.
Checking 4 to 5 blog posts on the first page of Google no longer cuts it. It no longer cuts it if you are looking to drive traffic to your site, or trying to drive sales to your product. Taking this path, the best you can come up with will be regurgitated content with nothing new to add to the reader and an article that gets lost in the sea of other articles.
If you want your content to stand out, it must tick the following boxes:
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Address your customer's pain point.
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Add value to your reader.
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Provide actionable solutions to your reader's problems (If you are writing MOFU and BOFU content, you must find that sweet spot where you introduce your product and yet not sound sales-y).
All of these start with your research. In this article, we will examine nine places you can source original content that addresses your audience's pain point, drives traffic, and converts. So sit up, and let's dive right in.
1. Social Media
One of the best places to discover your customer's pain points and understand their thoughts is through social media. Who are your customers? What is your Ideal Customer Persona (ICP)? Filter through social media platforms and check for whatever they say about your services. Take notes.
You can also search for and join social media groups they might have. Scroll through the group post and take note of any information that will be of value to your project. For example, if you are writing on a SAAS tool for HR, you can type "HR" on Facebook or LinkedIn, go under groups, and join.
Check out what I pulled up on LinkedIn after searching “HR” and clicked on "Groups."
Now, that's a load of information waiting to be processed. Check out these groups for information that will be useful for your content.
2. Platforms and Communities
Another way to garner information when writing for a product is to join communities of your target audience. This will be particularly useful when you are on a long-term contract with your client. Join the community, review past messages on the platform, and pay attention.
There are free platforms such as Reddit, Quora, and Slack channels where you have to pay a certain amount to gain access.
Check out the results Quora revealed when I searched “HR best practices".
There are also slack communities where you can send requests and ask questions to make your content better. Help a B2B Writer on Superpath is an example.
Using this method, you can peep into customers' pain points and find ways to address them in your content. For any platform/communities you want to join, look up how to join on a browser and the link and necessary information you need.
3. Interview Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)
This is also one of the reliable ways where you can hear from the horse's mouth. You may have limited topic knowledge, but leveraging subject matter experts will make your content unique. Interviewing internal subject matter experts from your client's side will be great. This is because they will better amplify the brand's voice; it will be up to your client to fix that. Pitch this idea to your client. Have them arrange a 15-minute google meeting with one or two internal industry experts so you can get the needed information.
However, you can also reach out to thought leaders on any social media platform where you are active. Slide into the DM with a decent request for a brief interview. Many people would be okay with a 15-minute inbox interview in exchange for a backlink and quote in your article. Here is a detailed LinkedIn post by Bani Kaur, a B2B SAAS and Fintech freelance writer, on how to interview industry experts for your content.
This will not only give your content real-world examples and actionable insights but also give it more authority.
4. Podcasts
Podcasts have to take a whole number of their own in this list because there is a ton of knowledge being dispensed on podcasts if only writers have the patience to filter through and listen to 2 or 3 relevant ones. You can hop on Spotify, search, filter, and listen to experts’ insights and takedown points. These differences make the difference between the $25 and $250 articles.
There is a ton of information on podcasts, and finding the right ones and listening to them will make a huge difference in your content quality.
5. Product Reviews
Product reviews mean everything to a B2B company. What are people saying about your product? What are the challenges they are facing? This will serve as a focus of improvement for your client. What are the features they love and hype? Check through the website's review section and take notes.
You can capitalize on that as a content writer and use it as a unique selling point when writing about the product. Capitalizing on the benefits and how a product can make a customer's life easier in your content is one thing that can drive conversions.
If you are writing a software comparison article or a listicle, you can get reviews on sites such as Capterra and G2.com. In addition to this, you should play around with the product yourself to have a first hand experience.
6. Sales Calls
According to Ludichart, the five steps of a sales call are:
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Approaching the client.
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Discovering the client's needs.
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Providing a solution.
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Closing the sales.
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Completing the sales and follow-up.
Information obtained from sales calls can be handy for writing content aimed at conversions. You get to see your customer’s pain points and the approach you need to take in addressing them in your content. It’s pure gold. Ask your client for any recorded sales calls available. If you still need to, you can schedule an interview with customer service to obtain the necessary information.
7. Watch Videos
This should be a more utilized as a source of helpful information during research for many content writers. There is a ton of helpful information on YouTube. Don't be tempted to think the same information on the SERPs is the same as YouTube videos, as you will always find a unique angle and more details in videos. If you do not watch videos for research, consider doing so henceforth.
8. Read PDFs
Do not only read blogs; read pdfs as well. PDFs provide more in-depth knowledge and analysis of your research topic. To do this, type "your topic.pdf" into google instead of only typing in your topic.
Here is what Lily Ugbaja, a Content Strategist, says about including PDFs in research.
Download two or more pdfs and scan through for in-depth information that will be of help to you.
9. Follow people on social media
This works so well for people who have a niche. Follow thought leaders in your niche on socials, especially on LinkedIn and Twitter. Most share thoughts and insights there. Save posts that you think may come in handy in future research. For example, some of the insights I used in this post were obtained from socials. You can also subscribe to the industry newsletters and get important information right into your mail.
HERE ARE 3 THINGS YOU SHOULD NOT DO IF YOU WANT TO PRODUCE QUALITY CONTENT
1. Not Going The Extra Mile:
Your research quality reflects your content's quality. In other words, quality content requires effort. It requires you to go the extra mile. There are already several contents on the topic you want to write on. What additional value will you add to yours to stand out? How do you outdo the results on the SERPs already?
To do that, you need to:
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Carry out an in-depth analysis of the first ten results on the SERPs. Are the paragraph snippets? Bullet lists? Images? Note that down, as it will be of help when you are about to write. That is Google telling you what it looks out for. Look out for the “People also asked” section to have a holistic view of how to solve your reader’s pain point too.
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Add more examples, takeaways, and actionable insights. Seemingly little details make your content rank more than others. When you make statements, always remember to back it up with “the whys and the hows”.
For example:
Statement: A lot of B2B SAAS social media pages need to be updated. The last post, in most cases, was made several months ago. B2B companies must know that customers also check their social media handles.
Go ahead and explain the why:
An up-and-running social media page with great content will:
- Put you out in front of your audience and increase your visibility.
- Display authority and position you like the thought leader that you are.
- Gives you an edge over your competitors who have neglected theirs.
- Promote your product and ultimately drive sales.
Explain the how:
Here are examples of posts you can put out on your B2B social media page:
- Memes
- Questionnaires
- Helpful tips for your target audience
- Contribute to industry trends
In situations where you cannot expatiate further, you can link a relevant article that explains further for you.
2. Boring Content:
Contrary to general opinion, the last thing B2B content writing should be is boring. When researching, also find out how to teach storytelling into your content, especially when you are writing bottom-of-the-funnel content where you tell your readers how your product can make their life easier.
Product-led storytelling is a term coined by Victor Eduoh, the lead content strategist and copywriter of VEC studio. That explains how to weave your product into your content through storytelling. Product-led storytelling makes your content engaging and drives more sales.
Here is a step-by-step guide by vec.studio on implementing product-led storytelling in your content.
3. Not Involving Your Client (enough):
During your research, ask the client to provide you resources you need. Resources include interviews with the customer service team, sales calls, and internal industry experts. In your writing, you want to amplify the brand's voice, not yours.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Here are some key takeaways from the article:
- Good content is not cheap.
- Good content requires time.
- Good content requires effort.
- To produce content that drives results, a good content strategy must be in place.
Seeing your content drive sales in thousands of dollars for your client is the goal and it is worth every effort. There is a ton of content over the internet about the topic you want to write about. You must go the extra mile if you want yours to stand out and achieve its purpose.
Here is an easy-to-follow template you can always use when researching your content.