Lead Generation is Top Priority for 60% of Marketers

According to new research from MarketingSherpa, 60% of B2B marketers revealed that lead generation is their top priority, converting leads into customers trailed closely behind with 57%.With the average cost per lead increasing and marketers competing for buyer attention, traditional lead generation tactics are no longer enough. Business-to-business (B2B) companies are looking to content marketing to boost their lead generation efforts.

“Informative, non-promotional content in the form of webinars, white papers, videos, blogs and peer recommendations on social networks and forums can attract prospects,” said eMarketer’s Lauren Fisher, author of the new report, “B2B Lead Generation: Using Content to Acquire Customers.” “It can also be used to build and maintain ongoing relationships with potential buyers—a must for remaining top of mind throughout the purchase process.”

So what kinds of content are marketers using to power their activities throughout the marketing and sales process? According to a study from Focus Research, marketers are leveraging a number of content types, and while the value of different content types varies between B2B and B2B companies, it seems both B2Bs and B2Cs agree that blog posts are on top.

It’s hard to disagree: content is the best fuel for a successful overall marketing strategy from beginning to end. Whether you use it to attract prospects to your business initially, convert visitors into leads, or nurture those leads into qualified customers, there’s no denying the versatility of using content to achieve various business goals.

How are your content creation efforts faring? Are you effectively using content throughout your entire sales cycle? Are you missing out on opportunities to leverage various types of content to achieve different goals?