Key B2B Content Marketing Statistics You Need to Know in 2023

Are you looking to enhance your B2B content marketing strategy? The latest B2B content marketing statistics may provide the insights you need, but might not be on your radar yet.

Perhaps you haven't had a chance to tap into all the data available for B2B content marketing. Don't worry, your strategy is probably still doing fine without it...or is it?

In this article, we'll explore the essential 2023 B2B content marketing statistics you don't want to miss. Let's examine the data and explain it, in ways that could've useful to you.

What is B2B Content Marketing?

B2B content marketing is a strategy for creating, sharing, and promoting content that helps businesses achieve their marketing goals. 🔍

It can be used to generate leads, build relationships with customers, and drive sales.

B2B content marketing is different from consumer content marketing in a few key ways.

• B2B content is typically more technical and in-depth than consumer content.
• B2B content is often used to educate and inform customers, rather than to entertain them.
• B2B content is often used to build relationships with customers, rather than to make a direct sale.

There are many different types of B2B content that can be used to achieve marketing goals. Some common types of B2B content include:

• Blog posts
• White papers
• Ebooks
• Webinars
• Case studies
• Infographics
• Videos

No matter what type of B2B content you create, it's important to make sure that it is high-quality, relevant, and informative. Your content should also be well-targeted to your specific audience.

If you create and share high-quality B2B content, you can reach your target audience, generate leads, build relationships with customers, and drive sales.

B2B Content Marketing Statistics in 2023

For content marketing statistics, one of the most reliable sources out there for year-by-year comparison is Content Marketing Institute. The report on 2023 is based on a survey of over 2,000 B2B marketers.

According to a survey by Content Marketing Institute,

• Content marketing is considerably used in both B2B and B2C marketing. 73% of B2B marketers use content marketing while 70% of B2C do it as their overall strategy.

The report found that content marketing is an increasingly important part of B2B marketing. In 2023, 91% of B2B marketers use content marketing, up from 82% in 2022.

The report also found that content marketing is effective in generating;

• leads,
• driving sales,
• improving brand awareness,
• and building relationships with customers.

• 70% of B2B marketers say content marketing is effective in generating leads.
• 63% of B2B marketers say content marketing is effective in driving sales.
• 58% of B2B marketers say content marketing is effective in improving brand awareness.
• 55% of B2B marketers say content marketing is effective in building relationships with customers.

B2B Content Marketing and Lead Generation Facts

Good content marketing builds trust and attracts other businesses. This can lead to new business opportunities through lead generation.

86% of effective content marketers have someone overseeing their content marketing strategy. On average, businesses allocate 30% of their marketing budget to content marketing. 74% of B2B firms utilize content marketing for lead generation, while the primary goal is to enhance brand awareness (82%).

(Source:Align.me)

• 59% of B2B marketers say content marketing has helped them increase their website traffic. (Source: Content Marketing Institute)
• 57% of B2B marketers say content marketing has helped them improve their brand awareness. (Source: Content Marketing Institute)

Here are some additional statistics from 2023 on the effectiveness of B2B content marketing:

• 69% of businesses plan to increase their content marketing budgets in 2023. (Source: Semrush)
• Content marketing generates 3x more leads than traditional marketing. (Source: Content Marketing Institute)
• 71% of B2B marketers say content marketing has become more important to their organization in the last year. (Source: Content Marketing Institute)

B2B Content Marketing Statistics on Customer Relationships in 2023

B2B content marketing can help you understand your audience. When you publish regular content, you keep your brand visible to your targeted audience. This can help you stay top-of-mind when they are ready to make a purchase decision.

• 82% of B2B marketers say content marketing is an effective way to build relationships with customers. (Source: Content Marketing Institute)
• 72% of B2B buyers say they are more likely to do business with a company that provides them with valuable content. (Source: DemandGen Report)
• 60% of B2B buyers say they have purchased from a company after reading their blog. (Source: HubSpot) -
• 58% of B2B buyers say they have shared content from a company with their colleagues. (Source: DemandGen Report)
• 54% of B2B buyers say they have contacted a company after reading their content. (Source: HubSpot)

Tips and Tricks: B2B Content Marketing

To succeed in B2B content marketing, it is important to understand the target audience, create a documented strategy, provide valuable content, leverage different formats, and measure the effectiveness of your efforts.

These tips and tricks will help businesses effectively reach and connect with other businesses through their content marketing initiatives. Let's look into them in detail.

Understand Your Audience

Research and identify the specific needs, pain points, and preferences of your B2B audience.

"Seventy-one percent of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized interactions. And seventy-six percent get frustrated when this doesn’t happen."

Do your research. Before you start creating content, take some time to research your audience. What are their needs and interests? What kind of content would they find valuable?

• Talk to your customers. One of the best ways to understand your audience is to talk to them directly. Ask them what they like and don't like about your content, and what kind of content they would like to see more of.
• Use analytics. Once you start creating content, use analytics to track how people are interacting with it. This will give you valuable insights into what your audience is interested in and what they are not.

Identify your audience by asking; what, why, where, how much, and how often?

• What do they purchase from you?
• Why do they purchase it? What problem are you solving for them?
• Where did they hear your business from?
• How much do they purchase? In bulk, just one, maybe just the small package or maybe the large one? One-year subscription or monthly sub?
• How often do they purchase from your business?

Use Different Content Formats

In 2023, since content marketing is widely used by B2B and B2C businesses the competition is higher than ever.

Try and experiment with different types of content as it will give you the best content type that works for your business.

• Blog posts: 61% of B2B marketers say blog posts are their most effective content format.
• Infographics: 55% of B2B marketers use infographics in their content marketing efforts.
• eBooks: 48% of B2B marketers use eBooks in their content marketing efforts.
• White papers: 46% of B2B marketers use white papers in their content marketing efforts.
• Videos: 44% of B2B marketers use videos in their content marketing efforts.
• Podcasts: 39% of B2B marketers use podcasts in their content marketing efforts.
• Social media: 92% of B2B marketers use social media to distribute their content.
• Email: Email content is widely loved by B2B businesses, with 93% of B2B marketers using it.
• Webinars: 55% of B2B marketers use webinars in their content marketing efforts.
• Events: 56% of B2B marketers use events in their content marketing efforts.

(Source: Gitnux)

Create a Valued Experience for B2B Customers

75% of B2B buyers will choose the company that first provides them with value.

(Source: Harvard Business Review)

Only 14% of large B2B companies have a customer-centric culture. This means that the customer experience is not a top priority for most large B2B companies. Instead, these companies are more focused on their own needs and interests, rather than the needs and interests of their customers.

So how can you be a customer-centered B2B business?

By providing value to buyers, companies can position themselves as the preferred choice for buyers when they are ready to make a purchase. This is because buyers are more likely to trust and do business with companies that they perceive as being knowledgeable and helpful. 📗

There are a number of ways that companies can add value to buyers. One way is to provide helpful and informative content. Another way is to offer free trials or demos of products or services. Companies can also add value by providing excellent customer service.

By adding value to buyers, companies can create a positive impression and build trust. This can lead to increased sales and improved customer loyalty.

Here are some examples of how companies can add value to buyers:

1) Provide helpful and informative content. This could include blog posts, white papers, infographics, or even videos.🔖

The content should be relevant to the buyer's needs and interests. You should get help from your demographic. If you can answer all of the questions we provided before, then you should be able to identify the best type of content for your b2b content marketing strategy.

• 83% of B2B marketers believe that content quality is the most important factor in differentiating themselves from the competition.

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This is because content quality can help to build trust and credibility with potential customers. When customers see that a company is producing high-quality content, they are more likely to do business with that company.

• 72% of B2B marketers believe that covering untapped topics/stories is a great way to differentiate themselves from the competition.

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This is because when a company covers topics that no one else is covering, it can attract attention and generate interest.

2) Offer free trials or demos. This allows buyers to try out a product or service before they commit to buying it.

• The majority of SaaS businesses (99%) believe that a 14-day free trial is the best length of time to allow potential customers to try their product or service.

3) Provide excellent customer service. This means being responsive to buyer inquiries and resolving any issues quickly and efficiently.

• Retaining an existing customer is 5–25 times more cost-effective than acquiring a new customer. (Source: Harvard Business Review)

To acquire new customers and keep them in your customer base, you will need excellent customer service. It will make up for your products/services more improvable qualities.

2020 to 2023: B2B Content Marketing Comparision

Statistic20222023Budget63% of B2B marketers plan to spend the same or more on content marketing in 2022 as they did in 2021.57% of B2B marketers plan to increase their content marketing budget in 2023.ChannelsThe most popular content marketing channels in 2022 were blog posts, email, and social media.In 2023, video and podcasts are expected to become more popular content marketing channels.Content typesThe most popular content types in 2022 were blog posts, infographics, and white papers.In 2023, video and interactive content are expected to become more popular content types.GoalsThe most common goals for B2B content marketing in 2022 were lead generation, brand awareness, and thought leadership.In 2023, lead generation and customer retention are expected to be the most common goals for B2B content marketing.MetricsThe most common metrics used to measure the success of B2B content marketing in 2022 were website traffic, leads generated, and social media engagement.In 2023, website traffic, leads generated, and customer retention are expected to be the most common metrics used to measure the success of B2B content marketing.

Let's see how B2B content marketing grow through the years.

"61% of respondents are now publishing content multiple times per week", originally from the ContenWriters, article from 2020. Let me remind you these years were the start of the explosion of content marketing.

In 2023, there is almost no B2B company that does not use a content marketing strategy. In just 2 years value of content marketing grew rapidly.

• Mobile devices are now a major driver of online activity. Consumers are increasingly using their smartphones to shop, stream video content, and use social media.

🗂️

This trend is being driven by the increasing affordability and capabilities of mobile devices, as well as the growing demand for on-the-go access to the internet.

• Mobile ad growth is expected to slow down in 2023. In 2020, U.S. businesses spent 18.5% of their ad budgets on mobile, but this is expected to drop to 10.4% by the end of 2023.

Digital advertising spending in 2023 has grown by 13.1 percent on $602.25 billion spent in 2022.

• The projected growth for this number in 2023 is 23.3%

By 2023, video production costs are expected to account for 62% of the total marketing budget, making video one of the most popular content formats.

However, before B2B and B2C businesses were taking their chances in this new format. People did think it would be a one hit wonder for 1 or 2 years.

Now as you can see video content is widely used mostly by B2C marketers, but B2B is doing what it can with educational, training videos.

2020:

• The COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses to adapt their marketing strategies to a new reality.
• Content marketing became more important than ever as businesses looked for ways to connect with customers and prospects online.
• There was a shift towards more educational and informative content, as businesses sought to provide value to their audiences during a time of uncertainty.

2021:

• The pandemic continued, but businesses began to adapt to the new normal.
• Content marketing became more sophisticated, with businesses using a variety of channels and formats to reach their audiences.
• There was a focus on creating content that was relevant to the needs of customers and prospects, as well as content that was engaging and informative.

2022:

• The pandemic began to subside, but businesses continued to focus on content marketing as a key part of their overall marketing strategy.
• There was a focus on creating content that was personalized and relevant to the needs of individual customers and prospects.
• Businesses also began to experiment with new forms of content, such as interactive content and augmented reality.

2023:

• Content marketing is now more important than ever as businesses look to connect with customers and prospects in a crowded and noisy digital landscape.
• Businesses are using a variety of channels and formats to reach their audiences, and they are focusing on creating content that is relevant, engaging, and informative.
• Content marketing is no longer a nice-to-have, but a critical component of any successful marketing strategy.

Final Words

Business-to-business marketers focus more on personalized content as the content marketing industry grows. Before B2B content marketing was just another tool for you to reach your goal, however, now it's the undeniable next best thing digital marketing has.

It is important for people to know the statistics behind to personalize their approach, generate leads, and be up-to-date to not waste money on things that do not matter anymore.

Hope this blog answered some questions or ignites your curiosity about B2B content market and its importance. Read our other blogs to satisfy your curiosity!

B2B Content Marketing Statistics FAQ

What is B2B content marketing?

B2B content marketing is a marketing strategy that involves creating and sharing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage a target audience of businesses.

Why is B2B content marketing important?

B2B content marketing is crucial for building brand awareness, establishing expertise, nurturing customer relationships, and driving profitable actions such as lead generation and sales.

What types of content are commonly used in B2B content marketing?

Common types of content used in B2B content marketing include blog posts, whitepapers, case studies, videos, webinars, social media content, and email campaigns.

How can B2B marketers measure the success of their content marketing efforts?

B2B marketers can measure the success of their content marketing through various metrics such as website traffic, lead generation, conversion rates, engagement levels, and customer retention.

What are some tips for effective B2B content marketing?

Some tips for effective B2B content marketing include understanding your target audience, creating high-quality and relevant content, optimizing content for search engines, leveraging various content formats, promoting content through appropriate channels, and regularly analyzing and refining your content strategy.

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