What Does a Content Funnel Look Like for Technology Companies?

A high-quality content funnel for a B2B organization is vital for most industries. Your content strategy needs to account for several different phases of the buyer's decision process--considering that most B2B organizations have a longer sales cycle and a higher need for buyer education. The sales process for B2B companies and especially technology companies should obsess over educating buyer's throughout their decision path, especially if you’re representing or even spearheading progress in a relatively new market. 

And if your price point is high or your contract obligations for new customers are very committal, you can expect to need even more content at the consideration- and decision-stages your buyers are taking. This is especially true if your technology service requires buyers to rethink their existing legacy investments and/or significantly change up their tech stacks.

Identifying a Value Proposition for Multiple Buyers

Overall, your most important step for building a content funnel is to identify a strong value proposition. A value proposition for technology companies does not need to be catchy or clever. Instead, value should be clear and simple. It should be buyer-centric and avoid being autobiographical -- what will the buyer get out of this engagement that will benefit his or her goals and challenges? 

Keep in mind that with technology decisions in the B2B realm, there are also many stakeholders and decision-makers to win over. That means your content funnel must include pieces that attract multiple personas, often a business buyer and a technology buyer. 

For example, you should have content pieces that explain technical specifications and advantages, often including demos and tech spec sheets. But for the business buyers, you must also create sales handouts, case studies, and demonstrations that appeal to business buyers who are more concerned with business value, cost savings, company growth, and efficiencies. 

For technology companies who only focus on technology buyers (such as CIOs and IT managers), they often get far into the sales process only to see the sale fall apart when it reaches a business buyer’s desk. Speaking the language of both buyers with coordinated value propositions is critical.

See also: Defining a Value Proposition for IT Service Companies

Content for Consideration and Decision

Since many technology companies are going up against massive industry players, potentially with highly innovative solutions, you will need plenty of content in the sales stage to help ensure confidence:

• Case studies and testimonials show that your value is critical, and these pieces can build trust
• eBooks, guides, and other educational pieces help demonstrate thought leadership
• Third-party contributions to industry publications (often with bylines from your company’s leadership) will provide outside confirmation of your expertise
• Sales one-pagers and short videos can walk buyers through different value propositions and pain points and can be shared at regular intervals during the sales engagement.

Formats Needed for a Technology Content Funnel

As you may have guessed already, sales content is important but not quite enough. There are several formats of content that will help you address every stage of the buyer’s journey, including:

• Consistent published articles i.e. a blog that speaks to pain points and high-level education -- will help you bring new leads into your funnel, especially if tailored to a keyword strategy
• Conversion points to capture leads with the idea of providing value, give me information -- this can include landing pages holding content pieces like guides, infographics, fact sheets, original research.
• Nurturing content to send via email and remarketing campaigns in order to keep contact with leads as they continue exploring other options -- case studies, videos and webinars can keep these leads engaged.

Successful technology marketing requires consideration of all the points above. By defining a value proposition for multiple buyers and creating a content funnel that considers education, consideration, and competitor evaluation, you will generate tech leads and see meaningful lead generation and ROI.