Is SEO Still Relevant for B2B Marketers?

SEO marketing is still essential for B2B marketers; In this article, we will show relevant tips and strategies for B2B professionals

By Claudio Pires
Updated on May 4, 2023
Is SEO Still Relevant for B2B Marketers?

There’s no question that getting to the top of the Google search page is an important goal for a business looking for new clients. But what if you’re a B2B business? Is it still essential, or should you focus on other marketing methods and B2B SEO? Of course, SEO marketing is still essential for B2B marketers; In this article, we will show relevant SEO tips and strategies for B2B professionals.

According to Statista, 53% of B2B marketers felt email marketing was the most effective lead generation form. Search engine marketing came in second, with only 44% of marketers believing it was the most effective lead-generation technique. Content marketing and live events came in strongly as well.

So according to your typical B2B marketers, SEO marketing is still relevant. For this reason, your traditional B2C and B2B company should still strive to improve its SERP.

Strategies & Tips SEO for B2B Marketers

According to Forrester, it is relevant and becoming even more so. In the past, many B2B marketers preferred to rely on personal interaction to generate leads. Networking events still have value, but perhaps not as much as they once did.

Why? Because 68% of B2B decision-makers prefer to do their research online without any assistance. This means that Charm is not going to carry the sale.

SEO For B2B Marketers Don’t Want to Rely on Salespeople

In fact, 60% of decision-makers won’t rely on salespeople as their primary source of information. While your sales pitch could get your company a second look, it’s not likely to be the deciding factor.

Most decision-makers will prefer to do independent research to help them decide. This has a two-fold impact on your sales strategy. Not only are the people you want to sell to go to check up on claims you make, but they’re also less likely to ask for your advice in the first place.

This requires a fundamental change in how you approach future sales, with a special focus on upping your digital marketing game.

It’s No Longer About Filling the Funnel

Let’s be fair. Here, drawing the client to your landing page is one thing; getting them to commit to buying is completely different. That makes sense because it means that the focus has shifted from the number of leads to the quality of leads.

You must nurture those leads by providing timeous information matching the client’s buying cycle stage. If they’re still in the research phase, going in with a hard sell could spook them. At this stage, it would be better to focus on thought-leadership articles.

The rest of the content you provide must be thought through similarly. That content has to be outstanding to impress tough B2B decision-makers. They’re looking at everything with a fine-tooth comb.

How to Use Content to Your Advantage

Start by rethinking the way you use the content. In the past, it was a case of “Here’s the problem, we’re the solution, and you should buy from us.” The marketing world has shifted now, though. The buyer is now the one with the power. As a result, it’s more effective to get them thinking about the solution first and then lead them to seek out your company.

That’s where thought leadership content is going to be useful. What information is your target market looking for? Why would something like the solution you offer be best for their pain points? What supportive information could you provide to help your target audience seek you out?

You don’t want to whack them over the head and tell them that your solution is best – you want them to come to that conclusion on their own. From there, getting them to make the right sales decision is a lot easier. The key is to develop sterling content that’s solution-orientated, not sales-related.

What Makes for Great Content?

Of course, this will mean putting more effort into your content. Here’s the thing, though, it will only benefit your company in the long run. Not only will carefully crafted content help win your target market over, but it will also help you score more brownie points with the search engines.

Now, granted, Google considers more than 200 factors when it determines your page’s search engine ranking, and it’s not telling us what all those factors are. But it has repeatedly told us that high-quality content is what we should be focusing on.

It’s how it determines whether the content is high-quality or not that is interesting here. We may not know exactly what the search engine’s criteria are, but we do know the most important ones.

Page Length

Firing off a 300-word blog should be the exception rather than the rule. Ask yourself how much useful information you can convey in 300 words. According to Hubspot, longer-form content typically performs better in organic searches.

The other problem with short-form content is that it won’t keep the reader on the page for long. So unless you’re writing a short introduction to a video or infographic that will keep eyes glued to the screen, try to work in longer-form content.

Bounce Rate

It’s a basic metric – if the website is relevant to the search results, visitors should stay longer. If they bounce back to the search results immediately, that’s bad news for your site. Prevent this by creating quality content that keeps them interested.

Another aspect here is ensuring the site is laid out well. People need to be able to easily scan the information on the page to check that it is what they are looking for.

Final Notes About SEO For B2B

The battle for SEO dominance is just as important to B2B marketers as it is to B2C marketers, and it’s becoming more important every day. Your best bet in the future is to create high-quality content valuable to your target market, which will cause them to seek you out. We hope this article with relevant SEO strategies and tips for B2B marketers has been of help to you!

Claudio Pires

Claudio Pires is the co-founder of Visualmodo, a renowned company in web development and design. With over 15 years of experience, Claudio has honed his skills in content creation, web development support, and senior web designer. A trilingual expert fluent in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, he brings a global perspective to his work. Beyond his professional endeavors, Claudio is an active YouTuber, sharing his insights and expertise with a broader audience. Based in Brazil, Claudio continues to push the boundaries of web design and digital content, making him a pivotal figure in the industry.