By Nick Nelson

Picture this:

It’s mid-December and you’re on a road trip through Florida. A man stands on the side of the highway, holding a sign and pointing his thumb skyward. “To Jacksonville,” it reads, plainly indicating his intentions. Without a second thought, you keep driving and think of the hitch-hiker not once again.

What if the scenario instead played out like this?

It’s mid-December and you’re on a road trip through Florida. A man stands on the side of the highway, holding a sign and pointing his thumb skyward. “To Mom’s for Christmas,” it reads. Suddenly your heart swells, filled with memories of your own cherished holidays past, and somber thoughts of families around the world kept apart.

Overcome by the emotion, you press the brakes and pull over on the side of the road, waving him in. Or maybe you still decide not to let a stranger in your car, but the memory of that man and his sign sticks with you long after.

A few different word choices can make a massive difference in how your message or offer is perceived. This contrast, as depicted by a classic ad from Crispin Porter, highlights the tremendous impact of storytelling, even in its most minimal form. And it also points us toward unlocking the secrets of creating impactful B2B content experiences today.

Revealing these secrets was the subject of TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden’s recent session at Content Marketing World 2022 in Cleveland. Here’s a rundown of the recipe.

3 Secrets to Creating B2B Content Experiences that Connect

The good news is that it’s not so complicated. Mounting data surfaces three critical, and rather straightforward, priorities that must take center stage if you want your B2B content marketing programs and campaigns to thrive in the modern marketing environment.

Facts tell, stories sell

This is the core content marketing directive illustrated by our hitch-hiker sign dichotomy. B2B marketing has long been stuck in the mode of serious business: Selling with facts instead of stories. Pitching features instead of outcomes. Focusing on ourselves instead of our audience. We’re kidding ourselves if we think sales is the only side guilty of this.

There is of course a place for getting across the important details and promises of what your company provides, but in an ultra-crowded content environment (eMarketer once estimated there are 4.6 billion pieces of content created each day) you’ve got to earn the right to make buyers care, via experiences that break through.

Stanford University found that stories are 22 times more memorable than facts. Is it any wonder that, according to the latest Content Preferences Survey from Demand Gen Report, 41% of B2B buyers seek content to share that tells a strong story and will resonate with the buying committee?

Not only does using stories as the framework for your B2B content help make the substance more cohesive, memorable, …read more

Source:: Top Rank Blog