{"id":8529,"date":"2022-02-01T14:21:04","date_gmt":"2022-02-01T14:21:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/02\/01\/b2b-content-in-2022-ok-so-now-what\/"},"modified":"2022-02-01T14:21:04","modified_gmt":"2022-02-01T14:21:04","slug":"b2b-content-in-2022-ok-so-now-what","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/02\/01\/b2b-content-in-2022-ok-so-now-what\/","title":{"rendered":"B2B content in 2022: OK, so now what?"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>\n
<\/p>\n

\n

What does good content look like as we approach the third year of Covid? B2B copywriter David McGuire has some thoughts.<\/h3>\n

In the next few weeks, we\u2019ll officially start the third year of the pandemic. You might think we\u2019d all know the drill by now, with a clear view of what works and what we can expect. But when was life ever that simple?<\/p>\n

The nature of work is as unpredictable and fractured now as it\u2019s ever been. And for those of us creating B2B content, that poses a challenge. If we don\u2019t even know what someone\u2019s workplace looks like \u2013 let alone how they feel about it \u2013 anymore, it\u2019s hard to craft a message that resonates.<\/p>\n

So what\u2019s really<\/em> going on? And what should we, as B2B content creators, be doing now?<\/p>\n

Mixed messages on the return to the office<\/h4>\n

While governments seem keen to fast-forward to the end of Covid, the picture in workplaces is much more uncertain.<\/p>\n

Google\u2019s billion-pound investment<\/a> in central London office space might look like a firm vote of confidence that everyone will soon be back together, working in the office. But the picture is more complicated than that: the planned refurbishment includes dedicated hybrid working facilities, and just last month the company became one of a growing number shelving their plans<\/a> for a return to the office.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just business leaders that are divided; workers are too. In the US, Morning Consult polled remote staff who would usually work from the office, and found more than half<\/a> would rather quit their job altogether than go back to their former working style.<\/p>\n

As Stanford University economics professor Nicholas Bloom puts it: \u201cThe return-to-office date has died.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the UK, it\u2019s the same story. The BBC\u2019s Worklife guide<\/a> goes so far as to say: \u201cToday, the idea that we\u2019ll all return to the office together again seems highly unrealistic.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a B2B marketer, that makes planning difficult, to say the least. Where your audience works is fundamental; it defines which channels will reach them, the role your content needs to play, and the context it faces when it arrives.<\/p>\n

Workplace uncertainty gives your content a problem<\/h4>\n

Great B2B content<\/a> meets the reader at their level, recognises their real-world pains, and speaks to their aspirations. Even before the pandemic, it was hard enough to find those insights. But right now, it\u2019s more difficult than it\u2019s ever been.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Many of us have found it tricky to sense how our own colleagues are faring, without seeing them day to day. And that\u2019s with the benefit of regular Zoom calls and team messaging apps. How much harder is it with your customers and prospects, now they\u2019re distributed across a fluctuating mix of remote and not-so-remote working?<\/p>\n

It obscures the answers to a whole host of key questions:<\/p>\n