Killer Content Q&A: Put Yourself In The Buyer’s Shoes

Published: November 10, 2015

Alicia Garibaldi Bio pic REGGlassdoor made a smart move by capitalizing on the popular “Dummies” series when it published Employer Branding For Dummies, Glassdoor Special Edition. The content was the top-performing E-book out of 15 E-books that the company created in 2014 and helped the employment and recruiting marketplace win a Killer Content Award that year.

In an interview with Demand Gen Report, Glassdoor’s Senior Content Marketing Manager Alicia Garibaldi discussed how the company has continued to build its library of customer-centric content.

Demand Gen Report: What’s the importance of buyer centricity, especially when it comes to content marketing strategies?

Alicia Garibaldi: When tackling B2B content, it’s important to think about the buyer first. Put yourself in their shoes. For example, what are their daily pains that your products help solve? Often content marketers can get it wrong by writing about the product first, which comes across as self-serving to buyers.

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DGR: B2B buyers are usually part of a roughly seven-person committee. How can marketers create buyer-focused content when they need to get multiple individuals on board?

Garibaldi: At Glassdoor, we appeal to a wide range of stakeholders from executive leadership, HR and PR to marketing. What has been very effective for us are campaigns that target multiple audiences. For example, we’ll distill great advice and tips from our “Top CEOs” list that other leaders can leverage.

To promote our recruiting guides, we partner with like-minded organizations to share and cross-promote content. Ultimately, it’s about creating content that addresses every potential buyer then tailoring that content to each audience. I always ask myself, “Why would they care?” Make sure your content answers that concern.

DGR: Data plays a key role in creating buyer focused content. Where can content marketers find the insight they need to create personalized content, and what should they be looking for?

Garibaldi: At Glassdoor, we gather data from a variety of channels and sources. A good place to start is with your customer base, whether consumer and business to business. We also team up with key industry analysts to co-sponsor reports and whitepapers. User data is also very insightful! When you can present data that supports why your products, services or solutions are leaders in their category, that’s the best ammunition of all.

DGR: Any tips, actionable insights or best practices you’d share with a content marketer looking to create more buyer-focused content?

Garibaldi: My best advice is to really understand your buyer. Survey your current customers or audiences similar to your target buyer, from demographics to personas. Evaluate content marketers at other companies in other verticals to see how they’re attracting buyers.

For example, I looked at a marketing automation company and saw that they had published a For Dummies book. This sparked the idea to publish one for our own audience. We now have two Glassdoor Editions of For Dummies books: Employer Branding For Dummies and Recruitment Marketing For Dummies.

This strategy has proven to be extremely effective for us. In short, always try to think of new and innovative ways to get in front of your target audience.

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