How to Create an Engaging B2B Blog

Written by Kimmi Sanderson

As a bioprocess business, you may be wondering why you need to run a blog. Blogging in a B2B world is different than a B2C one. In B2B, you don’t want your customers to make a one-time purchase, but rather, you want to develop a longer-lasting relationship. In order to do so, your customers will want to know more about you and your company. An engaging blog provides them with the information necessary to trust you.

But again, why a blog and not just an in-depth “About Us” page?

In short, it shows off your expertise and increases your Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Why are these important?

Most web browser algorithms prioritize websites that publish content regularly, and blogging is a good way to do that.

When your website gets more traffic, you raise awareness and get more leads. The more visitors your website gets, the more people hear about your company. To increase website traffic, you need more content for viewers to engage with. Most web browser algorithms prioritize websites that publish content regularly, and blogging is a good way to do that.

Instead of simply viewing the “About Us” page or scrolling through your “Services” page, a blog gives viewers long-form content to engage with. They learn more about your company values, areas of expertise, and your services. Armed with information about your company, your audience will build trust with you and want to work with you.

You want to inspire, educate, and engage your readers. If you can manage all three in one blog post, then your readers will understand how you are a thought leader and expert in your field. They will trust you (and your business) and consider you a serious contender for their needs. Your blog will have sufficiently proven to them that you are knowledgeable, articulate, and capable.

Hopefully, by now you know why a blog is an important asset for your company. Now let’s get into how to optimize your blog for successful engagement.

What Goes In A Blog?

A good blog will need three things: a headline, keywords, and a Call to Action (CTA). Ideally, your headline and CTA both include keywords to contribute to your website’s SEO. However, you want to be careful not to make it too salesy. If your readers think you’re only trying to sell something, they won’t be inclined to read the rest of your blog. Instead, you want to word it in a way that explains how you can help them with their problem.

Keywords are important, but you don’t want to choose the top 10 keywords that pop into your mind. Instead, pick one primary keyword and make it as specific as you can. If your blog post is about viral vectors for gene therapy to combat a cancer indication, then “viral vectors” isn’t going to be your keyword. Instead, it may be “adenovirus vectors for cancer therapy”.

Essentially, you want a very specific phrase that sums up what your blog is about. Your key phrase will be used in your opening paragraph, your tags, and potentially even the headline. This way, Google will know what your blog is about and send relevant traffic your way.

Your headline should include some part of your key phrase, if not all of it. You want to inform your readers what the following blog is about. Keep it short, informative, and interesting. Avoid any sales terms and take the opportunity to be creative! Your headline will be the first thing readers see. For more headline tips, check out our email marketing blog here.

The Call to Action is ultimately what you want to encourage your readers to do. What action do you want your audience to take after reading your blog? Do you want them to subscribe to your email list? Research your products? Download your whitepaper? Whatever your answer to this question is, that’s going to be the main topic of that blog post.

Picking a topic can often be the hardest part. Let’s say your company supplies downstream processing products for recombinant protein purification. A blog about “overcoming bottlenecks in commercial-scale protein purification” is a good place to start. But remember, while you want to write about your company’s products and services, the blog shouldn’t be an overt advertisement. Make sure to keep your audience in mind. Who is your target demographic? What do they want to know? What are their pain points? Find out what is interesting to them. A process development scientist is going to have different pain points and interests compared to a VP of Manufacturing. Speak your audience’s language and lead them to your novel solution to their issues.

At the same time, you want to represent your company. Other potential topics of interest are what your company is interested in and what your values are. While your product quality or service performance remains paramount, more and more buyers today want to be “proud” to work with their supplier as society-at-large becomes more socially aware. For example, if your company donates to a charity every year, a blog about what that charity supports will show your readers what your company values besides sales.

Your blog should address all these topics, but remember, it doesn’t have to be all at once. Running a blog requires consistency for success. Spread your topics out into different blogs so you can post consistently. To increase engagement, we recommend posting two to four times a month. However, if this sounds like too much, then find a pattern that works for you. If you can find time to post at least one blog a month, then do that. Drive traffic to your new posts through professional social media. Consistency is key and your readers will appreciate that you stick to a schedule.

Writing the Blog

Your blog isn’t going to be like writing a college essay. You don’t need MLA citations or to reach a certain word count. Blogging allows for a certain level of relaxation when writing. However, here are some rules to keep in mind when writing your blog:

Cite your sources.

This can be done by either linking to a page where you are finding your research via hyperlink where the data is mentioned (i.e. According to the CDC, you have a 1 in 500,000 chance of being struck by lightning.) The other option is simply to link all your sources at the end of the blog as a form of a Works Cited section. Another thing to keep in mind about your sources is that you want to keep them relevant and recent. Keep your blog focused on your topic and cite sources no older than five years at a maximum, especially for scientific-related content. Ideally, you want data that is from within the last year to ensure that you are presenting current and accurate data to your readers.

Double-check your grammar.

Generally, APA format is used within the sciences, but again, a blog allows for more lax rules. Don’t be afraid to check a writing style guide if you aren’t sure about something. It’s better to double-check than to post your blog and find out the next day that you misused a semicolon.

Be engaging.

Try not to bore your readers with too many technical terms and data. Use them when necessary but keep it to a certain level. Inform, don’t bombard. Your blog shouldn’t feel like an academic journal or data report that they have to power through. Knowing what topics interest your audience will help keep them engaged.

Adjust the length.

You want to write more than a tweet but less than a book. While a word count between 1,500 and 2,000 is a good idea, know that it can vary. Some topics provide a multitude of information, making it easy to write 2,000 words about it. Longer blogs are a good opportunity to showcase your expertise and thought leadership through thoughtful writing and analysis. Other topics may only result in 800 words. If that’s the case, then that’s fine! It’s better to be short and concise than to drag it out and end up being redundant or wordy. Your readers will thank you for it.

Follow this guide and you should have a successful blog up and running in no time. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t see results immediately. Just be patient and keep writing.

Need help getting your blog going? Still have questions? Contact our digital marketing experts at Hapatune and see how we can drive up your website engagement.