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B2B Small Business Content Marketing: 2013 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America
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FOREWORD
Hello Content Marketers!
Welcome to B2B Small Business Content Marketing: 2013 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends—North America.
When we recently surveyed 1,416 business-to-business (B2B) marketers from North America,* we found some key differences between B2B small business marketers (10-99 employees) and their B2B enterprise peers (1,000+ employees). For example, B2B small marketers:
Use an average of 12 content marketing tactics, whereas their enterprise peers use 16 Rate social media (other than blogs) as the content marketing tactic they use most often, whereas their enterprise peers use video most often Agree with their enterprise peers that in-person events are the most effective content marketing tactic, but have more confidence in books and blogs than those peers do Use an average of five social media platforms, whereas their enterprise peers use four Outsource content creation much less frequently than their enterprise peers do.
Plus, more B2B small business marketers (57%) than enterprise marketers (46%) are planning to increase their content marketing budgets over the next 12 months.
Of course there are similarities, too. For instance, both B2B small business and enterprise marketers have a ways to go in terms of content marketing effectiveness: Just over 30% of both groups rate their organizations as effective at content marketing.
Here we take a closer look at how B2B small business marketers approach content marketing. We think you’ll find the results interesting.
On with the content marketing revolution…
Joe PulizziFounderContent Marketing Institute
*See page 19 for study demographics.
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2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America:Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
94% of B2B small business marketers use content marketing.
OVERVIEW
Percentage of B2B Small Business Marketers Using Content Marketing
94%
use contentmarketing
6%
do notuse contentmarketing
4
B2B small business marketers use an average of 12 content marketing tactics.
CONTENT MARKETING BY TACTIC
Number of Tactics B2B Small Business Marketers Use
12%7%
23%23%
27%
0 10 20 30 40
6%
20+ Tactics
16-19 Tactics
13-15 Tactics
10-12 Tactics
5-9 Tactics
1-4 Tactics Average: 12
B2B small business marketers use an average of 12 content marketing tactics, whereas their B2B enterprise peers use 16.
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America:Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
CONTENT MARKETING BY TACTIC
Vide
os
Content Marketing Usage Among B2B Small Business Marketers
(by Tactic)
0
20
40
60
80
100
eNew
slette
rs
Artic
les o
n You
r Web
site
Blog
s
Case
Stud
ies
Web
inar
s/W
ebca
sts
Whi
te Pa
pers
Info
grap
hics
Bran
ded C
onte
nt To
ols
Rese
arch
Rep
orts
Book
s
Micr
osite
s
Prin
t Mag
azin
es
eBoo
ks
Mobi
le C
onte
nt
Virtu
al C
onfe
renc
es
Mobi
le Ap
ps
Digi
tal M
agaz
ines
Annu
al R
epor
ts Ga
mes
/Gam
ificat
ion
Socia
l Med
ia—
Othe
r tha
n Blo
gs
86%
82%81%
In-p
erso
n Eve
nts
75%
69%
76%
64%
73%71%
60%
42%
36%33%
39%
28%31% 29%
24% 23%27%
22%
22%
22%
Licen
sed/
Synd
icate
d Con
tent
15%20% 10%
Artic
les o
n Oth
er W
ebsit
es
Prin
t New
slette
rs
Podc
asts
B2B small business marketers use social media (other than blogs) the most, whereas their B2B enterprise peers use videos the most (87%).
B2B enterprise marketers use all of these tactics with greater frequency than their B2B small business peers do, with one exception: B2B small business marketers use blogs more frequently (76% vs. 70%).
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TACTIC EFFECTIVENESS
Like their B2B enterprise peers (71%), B2B small business marketers consider in- personeventstobethemosteffective content marketing tactic.
B2B small business marketers and their enterprise peers rate most items here similarlyintermsofeffectiveness,withtwo exceptions: Small business marketers have moreconfidenceinbooks(55%vs.35%)and blogs (60% vs. 46%) than their enterprise peers do.
Confidence GapEffectiveness Ratings of Tactics Among
B2B Small Business Marketers
64%62%60%
57%56%56%56%55%53%53%
36%38%
40%43%44%44%44%45%47%47%
Believe It’s Effective Believe It’s Less Effective
100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
In-person Events
Case Studies
Blogs
eNewsletters
Videos
Research Reports
Webinars/Webcasts
Books
White Papers
eBooks
52% 48%Microsites
51% 49%Articles on Other Websites
50% 50%Articles on Your Website
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE
83%
81%
80%
62%
24%
17%
40%
27%
5%
YouTube
SlideShare
Vimeo
11%StumbleUpon
10%Flickr
9%
8%
Google+
3%Other
Foursquare
8%Tumblr
Quora
Percentage of B2B Small Business MarketersWho Use Various Social Media Platforms
to Distribute Content
0 20 40 60 80 100
B2B small business marketers use an averageoffivesocialmediaplatforms, whereas their B2B enterprise peers use an average of four.
B2B small business marketers mostoftenuseLinkedIn,Twitter,and Facebook, whereas their B2B enterprise peersmostoftenuseFacebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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B2B small business marketers cite brand awareness as their top goal for content marketing.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS
Brand awareness is the top goal for both B2B small business marketers and their B2B enterprise peers.
Organizational Goals for Content Marketing(B2B Small Businesses)
82%78%
74%69%
67%66%
63%49%
47%
Brand Awareness
Customer Acquisition
Lead Generation
Customer Retention/LoyaltyThought Leadership
Website Traffic
Engagement
Lead Management/NurturingSales
100 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 1002013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America:
Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
MEASUREMENT CRITERIA
Like their B2B enterprise peers (64%), B2B small business marketers most oftenusewebsitetraffictomeasure content marketing success.
B2B small business marketers most often use website traffic to measure content marketing success.
Measurement Criteria forContent Marketing Success
(B2B Small Businesses)62%
53%48%48%
47%44%
44%41%
38%27%
24%22%
15%5%
100 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Website Traffic
Sales Lead Quality
Sales Lead Quantity
Social Media Sharing
SEO Ranking
Direct Sales
Qualitative Feedback from Customers
Time Spent on Website
Inbound Links
Benchmark Li� of Company Awareness
Increased Customer Loyalty
Benchmark Li� of Product/Service AwarenessCross-sellingCost Savings
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BUDGET
57% of B2B small business marketers plan to increase their content marketing budget over the next 12 months.
57%ofB2Bsmallbusinessmarketers plan to increase the amount they allocate to content marketing, compared with 46% of their B2B enterprise peers.
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
Content Marketing Spending Among B2B Small Business Marketers
(Over Next 12 Months)
9%Significantly
Increase
32%Remain the
Same
48%Increase
Decrease2%
Unsure10%
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BUDGET
B2B small business marketers allocate 31% of their budget to content marketing, whereas their B2B enterprise peers allocate 24%.
On average, B2B small business marketers allocate 31% of their marketing budget to content marketing.
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
Percentage of Marketing Budget Spent on Content Marketing
(B2B Small Businesses)0%
9%
11%
16%
17%
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
100%
75-99%
10-24%
13%5-9%
12%
3%
1-4%
16% Average: 31%Did Not Answer/Unsure
0%
50-74%
25-49%
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INSOURCING VS. OUTSOURCING
B2B small business marketers outsource content creation less frequently (39%) than their B2B enterprisepeers(65%)do.
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
Insourcing vs. Outsourcing of Content Creation
(B2B Small Businesses)
57%3%
39%
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
In-House Only
Outsourced Only
Both
39% of B2B small business marketers outsource content creation.
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SEGMENTATION
90% of B2B small business marketers tailor their content in at least one way, compared with 92% of their B2B enterprise peers.
How B2B Small Business MarketersTailor Content
53%43%
61%
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Company Characteristics
Personalized Content Preferences
9%None
4%Other
Profile of Individual Decision Makers
21%Stage in the Buying Cycle
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
Nearly all B2B small business marketers segment their content.
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CONTENT MARKETING CHALLENGES
B2B small business marketers are more challenged with producing enough content than their B2B enterprisepeersare(64%vs.53%); however, they are less challenged in all others areas shown here, especially with lack of integration acrossmarketing(23%vs.58%)and lackofbuy-in/vision(25%vs.38%).
Producing enough content is the top challenge faced by B2B small business marketers.
Challenges that B2B Small Business Content Marketers Face
64%54%
13%
Producing the Kind of Content that Engages
Producing Enough Content
38%
23%
29%
Lack of Budget
33%
Finding Trained Content Marketing Professionals
25%
Inability to Measure Content Effectiveness
100 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Producing a Variety of Content 43%
Lack of Integration Across Marketing
Lack of Knowledge, Training, and Resources
Lack of Buy-in/Vision
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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CONTENT MARKETING CHALLENGES
B2B small business marketers cite producing enough content as their biggest challenge, whereas their B2B enterprise peers cite producing the kind of content that engages.
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
Biggest Content Marketing Challengefor B2B Small Business Marketers
26%21%
2%
Producing the Kind of Content that Engages
Producing Enough Content
10%
3%
6%Lack of Buy-in/Vision
Finding Trained Content Marketing Professionals
6%
100 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Lack of Budget 13%
Producing a Variety of Content
3%Lack of Integration Across Marketing
Inability to Measure Content Effectiveness
Lack of Knowledge, Training, and Resources
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OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS
B2B small business marketers and their B2B enterprise peers rate their organizations similarly in terms of content marketing effectiveness,withjust32%of enterprise marketers rating their organizationsa5or4.
Just 34% of B2B small business marketers believe they are effective at content marketing.
How B2B Small Business Marketers Rate the Effectiveness of Their Organization’s
Use of Content Marketing
5%29%
44%17%
3%
Very Effective
Not At All Effective
100 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
54321
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS
Profile of a best-in-class B2B small business marketer.
Comparison of Most Effective B2B Small Business Content Marketerswith Least Effective B2B Small Business Content Marketers
Percentage of marketing budget allocated to content marketing
Average number of tactics used
Average number of social platforms used
Plan to increase content marketingspend over the next year
Tailor content to profile of decision maker
Challenged with producing engaging content
Challenged with producing enough content
Most Effective Overall/Average Least Effective
46% 31% 14%
14 12 96 5 3
60% 57% 46%
73% 60% 43%
41% 54% 65%
60% 63% 68%
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS
The most effective B2B small business marketers, when compared with their less effective B2B small business peers:
Allocate a greater percentage of their marketing budget to content marketing
Use more content marketing tactics
Use more social media platforms to deliver content
Tailorcontenttospecificprofiles/personasmuchmorefrequently
Are far less challenged with producing engaging content
Are less challenged with producing enough content
Profile of a best-in-class B2B small business marketer.
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DEMOGRAPHICS
B2B Small Business Content Marketing: 2013 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends—North America was produced by Content Marketing Institute and sponsored by Outbrain.
This report is based on the responses of 398 small business (10-99 employees) and 216 enterprise (1,000+ employees) marketers, who were part of a larger business-to-business (B2B) North America survey, B2B Content Marketing: 2013 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends—North America.
The electronic survey was mailed to a sample of B2B marketers from among subscribers of MarketingProfs and Content Marketing Institute in August 2012. A total of 1,416 B2B marketers from North America responded, representing a full range of industries (advertising/marketing, software, consulting, manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and others), functional areas, and company sizes.
Industry Classification, B2B Small Business
Healthcare/Medical/Pharmaceutical
Business Services (Other)
ConsultingInternet/Online Services
Manufacturing
Publishing/Media
Other24%
17%
24%So�ware Design/
Development/Distribution
Advertising/Marketing
7%7%6%5%
5%5%
Industry Classification, B2B Enterprise
ManufacturingOther
So�ware Design/Development/Distribution
Healthcare/Medical/Pharmaceutical
Advertising/Marketing
Banking/Accounting/Financial
Computer & Peripheral Equipment
Business Services (Other)
Insurance
Publishing/Media
Telecommunications
16%23%
16%9%
7%6%6%5%
4%4%4%
Job Title/Function, B2B Small Business
Sales/Business Management
Content Creation/Management
7%
6%
Marketing/Advertising/Communications/PR
43%Corporate
Management/Owner
22%
GeneralManagement
9%
7%Marketing
Administration/Support
Other6% Job Title/Function, B2B Enterprise
Marketing/Advertising/Communications/PR
62%Marketing Administration/Support
9%
Content Creation/Management
9%
GeneralManagement
Other
6%
5%
Sales/Business Management
Corporate Management/Owner
Consulting
4%
2%2%
Sales Administration/Support
2%
2013 B2B Small Business Content Marketing Trends—North America: Content Marketing Institute/Outbrain
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About the Content Marketing Institute:The Content Marketing Institute (CMI) is the leading global content marketing education and training organization. CMI teaches enterprise brands how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multi-channel storytelling. CMI’s Content Marketing World event is the largest content marketing-focused event. CMI also produces the quarterly magazine Chief Content Officer, and provides strategic consulting and content marketing research for some of the best-known brands in the world. Get more content marketing resources at ContentMarketingInstitute.com. CMI is a divisionofZSquaredMedia,a2012Inc.500company.
About Outbrain:Outbrain,theleadingcontentdiscoveryplatform,isonamissiontohelpreadersfindthemostinterestingcontent online, while giving publishers and brands the ability to reach a highly engaged audience.
Using personalized links, Outbrain recommends content across a network of more than 300 premium publishers, including CNN, Fox News, Hearst, Rolling Stone, US Weekly, and Mashable. Links to content on a publisher’s own site increase stickiness, while links to high-quality third-party content increase site trafficandgeneraterevenue.
Outbrainiscurrentlyinstalledonmorethan100,000sitesandgeneratesmorethan85billionrecommendations per month.
View additional content marketing research at the CMI website.
For more insights on content marketing for small businesses, register for the
Content Marketing World Small Biz Summit being held
September 12, 2013.
