How to create more credible and engaging content for B2B audiences featuring top interactive content formats, influencer engagement best practices and case studies from TopRank Marketing. Presentation given at B2BMX 2019 by Lee Odden.

1. with Interactive Influencer Content
@LeeOdden CEO, TopRank Marketing
#B2BMX 2019

2. @leeodden#B2BMX
Thanks to Andrew &
the B2BMX Team!
2019 is my 7th Year

3. @leeodden#B2BMX
B2B Marketing is Exciting!

4. @leeodden#B2BMX
Not For Everyone

5. Only 23% of CMOs
feel they are producing the
right content and delivering it
at the right time and format.
(eMarketer)

6. @leeodden#B2BMX
Worst Offenders?

7. @leeodden#B2BMX
“Contrary to popular belief, people
do still read traditional content
forms like whitepapers, eBooks
and case studies, but first you’ll
need to pull them in with
attention-grabbing visuals that
show them what they’ll get.”
Not So Fast!
Michelle Liro @michelleliro
VP Demand Generation, PTC

8. @leeodden#B2BMX
• Quizzes & Assessments
• Product finders
• Interactive & 360 videos
• Interactive reports &
Ebooks
• Interactive infographics
• Games & Contests
• Surveys & Polls
• Tools & Calculators
B2B Doesn’t Need to Mean “Boring to Boring”

9. @leeodden#B2BMX
Challenges: Information Overload
Source: YouTube Keiichi Matsuda
Ads
Social
Email
Events
PPC
Promotions
Chat Bots
SMS
Sales Calls Retargeting

10. @leeodden#B2BMX
Challenges: Buyers Expect More. Trust Less.
81%
trust friends/family
over business
55%
don’t trust companies
they buy from
65%
don’t trust ads
Source: HubSpot Research Trust Survey

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Who Do Buyers Trust?
Marketer
Barista

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Buyers Want to Trust
78% of B2B
buyers place a
higher emphasis
on trust-
worthiness of
content source.
2018 Content Preferences Report – DGR
65% have
a higher
preference
for credible
content from
industry
influencers.
2018 Content Preferences Report

13. @leeodden#B2BMX
Let’s Give Them Trust: Credible, Engaging Content
• Relevant and useful
• Animate & Co-Create
• Credible experts
• Visually engaging
• Interactive
Source: TopRank Marketing for SAP

14. @leeodden#B2BMX
Why Interactive Content?
marketers agree that
interactive content grabs
attention more effectively than
static content (CMI)
81%
70%
say interactive content is
effective at converting
site visitors (ion interactive)

15. @leeodden#B2BMX
Why Influencer Content?
Attract Engage Convert Retain Advocate
Reach new
audiences
Inspire
advocacy
Retarget
influencer
followers
Creators
bring talent
Authenticity
& voice of
customer
Influencer &
audience
channel
match
Influencers
are trusted
Relevance
increases
action
Credibility
converts
Community
participation
Showcase
employee
influencers
Create
infotaining
utility
Showcase
customers &
success
Testimonials
Create
incentives
for referrals

16. @leeodden#B2BMX
Influence or Interactive? Why Not Both?
Working with influencers to
co-create content delivers
mutual value. When that
content is interactive, it
creates an experience that
is more engaging and
inspires action.”
Amisha Gandhi @AmishaGandhi
Vice President, Influencer Marketing
SAP Ariba
“

17. @leeodden#B2BMX
Interactive Influencer Content in Action: Prophix
Strategy: Drive awareness &
engagement for their CPM
solution with thought
leadership on the role of FP&A
driving business forward.
Solution: Original research,
FP&A influencers, interactive
content experience.

18. @leeodden#B2BMX
Campaign Content & Promotion
Research Report Topics > Campaign Content > Influencer Topics
PROMOTION:
Brand Social Channels
Social Ads
Influencer Social Promotion
Email Promotion
Organic SEO
CONTENT:
• Research Report
• Power Page
• Interactive Quiz
• Top FP&A Influencers List
• Series of 10 FP&A
Influencer Interviews
• Infographic
• SlideShare Deck of Quiz
Content
• Social Images
Source: TopRank Marketing for Prophix

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Give to Get: Create Value Before the Ask
Top performing post
of the year – 10X

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Candy Crush Inspired FP&A Quiz

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Publish Content to Blog & Slideshare

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Influencer Content Flow to Download
Beat Benchmark for
Views by 600%

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B2B Content & Influencer Marketing Pros

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Our Social Influence Team

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Top Interactive Formats

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Top Interactive Formats: Top of Funnel
1. Contests
2. Games
3. Quizzes
4. Interactive
Infographics
5. Assessments
Source: Content Marketing Institute and Ion Interactive Images: Dot.vu, CMI

27. @leeodden#B2BMX
Assessment: Citrix GoToMeeting
https://app.snapapp.com/mvp-meetings-example https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfWNwg2ZEOs

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Top Interactive Formats: Middle & End of Funnel
1. Calculators
2. Interactive White Papers
3. Interactive eBooks
4. Interactive Video
5. Wizards
6. Product Configurators
Source: Content Marketing Institute and Ion Interactive
Image: Dot.vu
Image: zoominfo

29. @leeodden#B2BMX
Interactive White Paper: NetApp
Source: ion interactive

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What’s Next in B2B Interactive Formats? VR/AR
Virtual Reality (VR) and
Augmented Reality (AR)
traffic will increase 12X
between 2017 and 2022
globally.
Cisco
Source: TopRank Marketing

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Influencer Engagement
Best Practices

32. @leeodden#B2BMX
1. Identify, Qualify, Validate
Brainstorm with
your executives,
sales & PR
Use an influencer
search engine
(BuzzSumo,
FollowerWonk)
Import to an
influencer platform
(like Traackr)
1. Review matched
influencers:
Expertise,
popularity,
publishing
2. Match your topics
with influencers
talking about them.

33. @leeodden#B2BMX
2. Nurture & Activate
Follow, interact on social
Recognize in a list, post
Invite to quote, interview
Apply as modular content
Engage in the real world
Invite as a VIP influencer
List: Tips Interview:

34. @leeodden#B2BMX
Influencer Pitch Example
• Personalize
• Establish credibility and context
• Be succinct, get to the point
• Tap into ego, aspiration
• Show how easy it is
• Illustrate substantial benefits
• Share opportunity and CTA

35. @leeodden#B2BMX
3. Co-Create
ü Match influencer channel with the ask
ü Give them the goal and control
ü Make it easy
ü Set expectations, give examples & deadline
ü Ensure compliance, employ governance
ü Organic vs. Paid – very different asks

36. @leeodden#B2BMX
Activating Co-Creation
• Show the specialness of the
opportunity
• Explain succinctly what to do
• Create sense of urgency
• Provide an example, template
and timeline
• Provide a CTA
• Offer to help

37. @leeodden#B2BMX
4. Amplify
ü Share goals, examples & resources
ü Set expectations
ü Make it easy: prewrite shares
ü Provide SEO tips, social tips
ü Inspire organic shares
ü Target with paid
ü Communicate progress
ü Always do a last call!

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Making Sharing Easy
Pre-written short messages for social shares Embed code to include ebook in a blog post

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5. Monitor, Nurture, Repurpose
5 Ways to Keep the Influencer
Love Alive
1. Monitor & engage on social
2. Connect 1 to 1 (email, phone, IRL)
3. Quote in other content
4. Share relevant brand updates
5. Engage for paid work

40. @leeodden#B2BMX
Ingredient Content Segmented & Tagged
“Your content and
stories are the only
differentiator you
have left. Hire and
invest accordingly.”
Robert Rose
“Social content is
different than
traditional content.
Today you must
create content that
educates, entertains
and empowers.”
Amy Porterfield

41. @leeodden#B2BMX
Microcontent = Ingredients for Other Content
eBook
Motion
Graphic
Newsletter
Infographic
Listicle Blog
Post

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B2B
Interactive Content
Case Studies

43. @leeodden#B2BMX
Case Study: Interactive Infographic
Philip Sheldrake - Euler Partners
Jon Miller - Engagio
Ann Handley - MarketingProfs
Dr. Konstanze Alex - Dell
Amanda Duncan - Microsoft
Amisha Gandhi - SAP
Michael Brito- Lewis
Source: Ceros for TopRank Marketing, Traackr, Altimeter
Drive Leads from Research Report
Repurpose influencer tips & stats
in an interactive infographic.

44. @leeodden#B2BMX
Stats + Influencers = Conversions
42%
Conversion Rate
6,971
Views

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Case Study: Multi-Campaign Interactive Finish
Campaign 1: Content
Planning
Survey/Report
Campaign 2: Future
Proof Content
Strategy
eBook
Campaign 3: Future
Proof Content
Planning
Video
Campaign 4:
Future Proof
Content
Measurement
eBook
Campaign 5:
The Future Proof
Guide to Content
Marketing
Interactive
Source: TopRank Marketing for DivvyHQ
Boost awareness & lead gen via 5 sequenced campaigns with a common narrative:
“Future Proof Content Marketing”. Final campaign was interactive repurposed content.
Final campaign goals: take survey, software trial

46. @leeodden#B2BMX
Case Study: Interactive Ebook
4X+
Goal Survey
Responses
4X
Goal Software
Trial Signups
Source: TopRank Marketing for DivvyHQ

47. @leeodden#B2BMX
Case Study: Interactive Voice Assistant + Microsite
https://tprk.us/financeai
Build industry credibility
and engagement on AI +
Finance with thought
leadership content.
Interactive content
features AI & Finance
Influencer insights via
audio + text navigated
by using a voice
assistant, “Penny”.

48. @leeodden#B2BMX
SEO Data Driven Content & Influencer Topics
Keywords Drive
Content Topics:
AI Finance
AI Job Security
Data Driven AI
AI Adoption
Benefits of AI
AI Solutions
ROI of AI
Investment in AI
AND Influencer
Selection:
Jack McCullough
Ben Murray
James Myers
David Talby
John Cotlhart
Daniel Newman
Oliver Christie
Christopher Penn
Source: TopRank Marketing for Prophix

49. @leeodden#B2BMX
Influencers + Interactive Results
189%
Increase in views
642%
More engagement

50. @leeodden#B2BMX

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2,000+
Views 1 Week

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Get Started with B2B Interactive Influencer Content
ü Identify a Customer Solution Topic
ü Pick Interactive Content Type, Story & CTA
ü Identify Influencers & Map to Content
ü Collect Tips, Create Experience & Promote
ü Nurture Influencers for Future Engagement

53. @leeodden#B2BMX
THANK YOU!
Lee Odden - @leeodden
lee@toprankmarketing.com
TopRankMarketing.com
B2B Influence &
Content Marketing Experts
Break Free of Boring B2B Guide
https://tprk.us/breakfreeb2bbig