As a B2B marketer, your ultimate goal is to drive sales and generate revenue for your business. However, to achieve this, you need to effectively communicate the value of your products or services to your target audience. That’s where B2B copywriting comes in.
With the right words and messaging, you can capture the attention of your prospects, build trust, and ultimately persuade them to take action. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the fundamentals of B2B copywriting, the latest trends and techniques, and how you can use them to boost your marketing campaigns and achieve your business goals. So, let’s dive in and discover the power of persuasive writing.
What Is B2B Copywriting?
B2B copywriting is the art and science of creating written content that persuades and motivates businesses to take action, such as purchasing a product or service, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading a white paper.
B2B copywriting targets businesses and addresses their unique needs, pain points, and objectives. Effective B2B copywriting should be informative, engaging, and persuasive, ultimately driving the business’s conversions and revenue.
Common examples of B2B copy include website copy, sales pages, email campaigns, white papers, case studies, and blog posts.
Who Creates B2B Copy?
The most prolific B2B copywriters are frequently marketers who produce tons of paper and digital content to advance their brands. This copy may appear as blog entries, e-books, social media posts, reports, newsletters, or landing pages, to name a few formats.
B2B copywriters frequently collaborate with marketing teams, but that is not all they do. For example, B2B copywriters collaborate with sales teams to create materials they can use in discussions with potential clients or with customer success teams to produce end-user paperwork.
Some UX writers collaborate with developers and designers to produce copy for applications and other online experiences. A B2B copywriter can find work wherever a company needs to reach an external audience.
Difference between B2B Copywriting and B2C Copywriting
B2B copywriting and B2C copywriting have distinct differences that set them apart.
- B2B copywriting is typically focused on selling products or services to other businesses, while B2C copywriting is focused on selling products or services directly to consumers.
- B2B copywriting tends to be more technical and complex, targeting business professionals looking for specific solutions to their problems. In contrast, B2C copywriting is often more straightforward and emotional, targeting a broader audience of consumers motivated by emotions, desires, or lifestyles.
- B2B copywriting tends to be more relationship-focused, as B2B sales often require building long-term partnerships and trust with clients. In contrast, B2C copywriting may focus more on creating short-term purchasing decisions.
The target population, the complexity of the messaging, and the overarching goals and objectives are generally where B2B and B2C copywriting vary most.
Benefits of B2B Copywriting
The demand for and efficacy of B2B copywriting are recognized across sectors, with content marketing being used by 70% of B2B marketers. It is so because companies can benefit significantly from it. Here are some of the benefits
Creates Brand Awareness
The early phases of the buyer’s journey are the focus of many B2B copies (or the top of the sales funnel, if you prefer). When prospective customers are in this stage, they realize they have a problem and are considering potential solutions.
For this phase, writers produce copy to aid brands in raising recognition among prospective customers. Writing copy for social media advertisements or SEO websites that respond to a query that users frequently enter into search engines could be one way to accomplish this (you may have caught on that this post is one of them).
It also entails writing blog posts and other types of content that promote an executive as a thought leader in their field or a brand as a reliable source of guidance. The goal is to inform readers of their issues and persuade them to learn more about a potential remedy, which could be one of the company’s products.
Examples:
- Social media posts
- Advertising strategies
- Blog posts
- For conventions, print brochures or “one-pagers.”
- SEO webpages
Generate Leads
Content aimed at prospective customers, or “leads” in marketing parlance, who are interested in a brand but are still considering their options is another type of B2B copy in high demand. This type of writing seeks to educate readers about a product while persuading them that it fits their requirements well. This content frequently consists of long-form anchor pieces, like e-books and manuals, promoted with short-form emails and e-newsletters.
Examples:
- Landing pages for products
- Email nurturing initiatives and e-newsletters.
- eBooks and manuals
Create a Stunning Customer Experience
When a customer decides to purchase, the need for compelling B2B copy doesn’t stop—in reality, it just starts. Businesses need UX authors obsessed with word choice to make their websites or software easy to use and intuitive.
B2B writers are also employed by brands to produce documentation that enables customers to comprehend and successfully use their products. For instance, companies hire technical writers to compose FAQs, user guides, and manuals in a way that is easy to find, understand and read.
Examples:
- Online file
- Copy inside of user interfaces, software, and applications.
- Guides and instruction books
- FAQs
Close Deals
By producing material that sales teams can use in conversations with potential clients, B2B copywriters also assist sales teams. Slide decks, white papers, customer success stories, or any kind of content that can help a prospect in making a final purchasing choice could be included in these resources.
This type of writing is crucial because a well-written and convincing slide deck may not permanently close a sale, but a presentation filled with mistakes can unquestionably do so. Examples:
- Success reviews from clients
- Slide shows
B2B Copywriting Strategies
- Study your audience before writing for them.
Consider yourself an archaeologist uncovering a magnificent tomb as you thoroughly investigate your target market and gather all the unique artifacts (facts and data) necessary to persuade people of the significance of your brand.
Ask yourself “W” questions to help you identify your target, such as:
- Who will gain from this information?
- Why is it important?
- What is this business about?
- Who will be reading this?
Clarity and credibility are two factors to consider as you conduct your research. Because your sources will determine your credibility, ensure your data is as accurate and pure as possible by citing reliable sources. Remember to combine client and industry insights as you incorporate data into your copy; while numbers are great, words are better.
Remember that you are writing for the individual with authority to make decisions.
- Create an Eye-Catching Title
The first opportunity to engage a lead or customer comes from the first item they see. The title is the first hint as to your article’s topic. It tells readers what to anticipate from your material. A clever headline can distinguish between an article being read and being ignored when 73% of people confess that they skim more than they read.
A headline that “hooks” readers into reading the piece increase readership. When creating a title, keep the following ideas in mind:
- Make it distinctive. Every company has a distinct voice, an approach, and a narrative.
- Concentrate on and focus on what makes yours unique.
- Utilize data and figures along with practical approaches.
- Include a problem for which your company offers a solution.
- Consider creating a unique call to action.
- Add a deadline to convey a feeling of immediacy and urgency.
- Be precise. Clearly and freely describe the services you are offering.
- Utilize the Storytelling Potential
According to Google research, 50% of B2B buyers are more likely to purchase from you if they develop an emotional bond with your business. Did you realize that one of the best ways to do that is through storytelling?
Creating a brand narrative is one of the best methods to improve customer loyalty. When composing B2B copy, storytelling enables you to show data points in a way that is more appealing to the reader.
Every business has a narrative, but making your customer the main character is frequently more successful. Utilizing a narratively framed customer testimonial, which fosters customer intimacy by creating a place for self-insertion, is one way to accomplish this.
Making room for the customer in your copy enables you to show the benefits of your brand in a way that engages with a buyer’s psychology on several levels. The many ways brands tell their stories can be explored on social media, providing excellent multimedia brand storytelling opportunities. Examine closely the narrative arc you want your lead or customer to follow because marketing is a conversation.
- Display the Advantages and Add Value
Take an objective look at your product/service and answer the question: what does it offer to the customer? When writing copy, concentrate on how your good or service helps the client, and only list all the features.
Make sure the advantages are stated plainly and upfront in your copywriting. Ideally, your advantages are alleviating customers’ problems. Does it save money and time, or is it a major hassle? Inform them about how your brand is making their lives simpler.
Value creation is the other thing you must do with your B2B advertising. How can you help your perfect client out, either by improving their situation or their business? As part of your content marketing strategy, you could create a blog post that teaches them seven methods for increasing conversions through B2B copywriting.
Look at what we accomplished there! Giving back, even in a brief Twitter post, is a fantastic way to establish your brand’s authority and trust, encouraging more companies to do business with you in the future.
Remember that prioritizing your customers is the best way to emphasize your brand’s value.
- Search Engine Optimization
Although 51% of consumers discover new goods or businesses online, it can be challenging to attract clients if no one can find you. Use SEO in your B2B marketing to increase conversion rates.
You should use industry-specific keywords to drive prospective customers to your website. You can use tools like Google Ads Keyword Planner to find the right words to attract customers. Other SEO tools can suggest words and phrases optimize your written material.
A word of caution: the days of stuffing posts with keywords are long gone, so incorporate keywords into your text naturally. Google’s algorithm penalizes those scarcely readable keyword-salad posts that offer no value to readers in search of that sweet spot of an optimized post that also provides genuine value.
Evaluate and correct
The importance of A/B testing cannot be overstated. A/B testing is the practice ground for perfecting anything that might behave contrary to your purpose. Without obtaining outside input, predicting what will work well can be challenging. Try everything, including the titles, taglines, content, and advertisements. It lets you tweak your copy and gives you audience data and metrics in complex numbers.
Only 17% of marketers use A/B testing on landing pages to increase transaction rates, so your efforts will put you ahead of the pack. Until you get it right, test, track your data, make any necessary adjustments, and test again.
What Makes A Good B2B Copy?
The characteristics of effective B2B writing are the same as those of effective writing. The finest B2B blogs are concise, convincing, and occasionally humorous. B2B readers also search for additional characteristics you might not find in, for example, a news article or a gripping book. According to an Edelman-LinkedIn study, the following are some of the top features that C-suite executives and other decision-makers want to see in thought leadership material created by other businesses:
Industry observations
According to 78 percent of decision-makers and C-level executives, the most influential thought leadership discusses challenges and trends unique to a particular sector.
Easily readable format
Decision-makers and C-suite executives favor concise material about 69 percent of the time, and 65 percent prefer it when it includes data points, charts, infographics, or other figures.
Practical suggestions that are pertinent
Sixty-three percent of C-suite executives and decision-makers look for content pertinent to the projects they are working on presently.
Even though the internet is increasingly becoming a visual medium, the ability of the right words to generate conversions still holds sway.
Remember that B2B copywriting works just as well on all social media channels, whether writing a TikTok video script, a LinkedIn blog post, or a brief Twitter teaser for your new product. The 3.6 billion social media users who are decision makers and buyers will be eager to discover and read your most recent sales copy when combined with a powerful social media management platform created for B2B marketers.
