How to Create a Content Marketing Strategy for B2B

Content marketing includes all the actions that involve the creation and distribution of content. When we talk about content marketing for B2B we are referring in particular to all those contents that serve to bring traffic, generate leads and increase sales of a B2B company.

While blog posts are one of the most obvious examples, there is much more to content marketing than that, and we will delve deeper into this with specific examples in this article.

What is the difference between B2B and B2C Content Marketing?

Before we dive into the details of how to set up a strategy, it is important to know that there are some substantial differences in creating content for a B2B company and a B2C company. These differences concern three main areas:

• audience;
• contents distribution;
• formats to choose.

In the B2B field, the study of the target audience is more complex because it must take into account the customer journey and the level of awareness of different stakeholders of a company.

It goes without saying that the strategy to be used is completely different compared to the B2C area in which you address the end customer.

This happens for several reasons:

• the target is different;
• the public has different goals and is looking for different content that meets these goals;
• the goal of a B2B company is different from that of a B2C company.

In this image we have grouped the main differences.

To better understand what you should focus on when designing a content strategy for a B2B company, let’s look at the steps to lay the foundation.

The Basics of Creating a B2B Content Marketing Strategy

A well-structured content marketing strategy helps build brand awareness, generate leads, and increase sales. In fact, 49% of marketing teams use content marketing to increase sales. (Source: Report Content Marketing Institute)

How to build a strategy that works?

We must first start by understanding these aspects:

• content distribution channels are different and for each one the content must be structured appropriately;
• There are different types of content including blog posts, ebooks, and videos;
• when choosing the channel and the type of content you have to keep in mind the target and the phases of the messy middle;
• It’s important to have an action plan for creating and publishing content.

Let’s go step by step and look at these phases in detail.

Choose the right channel to distribute content

It is not enough to create great content if you do not know how to get it to the public. For this reason, it is important to focus on the distribution channels to use when defining the strategy.

We can identify the channels into three main groups:

• Proprietary channels, these are all those over which we have full control in terms of content production. These channels are essentially free.
• Mentions, this group is a middle ground between the previous channels. We do not have control over these channels, but we should not ignore their existence.
• Paid channels, this includes advertising content.

In this image you can see examples for each type of channel.

Finding the best format

Choosing the type of content is a fundamental step in content marketing. This step becomes even more complex in the case of a B2B strategy.

In this case, in addition to considering that each type of content must also be thought for the channel on which it will be distributed, there is a further consideration to make. When we create content, whether it is a blog post or a report, we must be aware of the phases of the customer journey.

This means that before a content strategy, it would be appropriate to do an analysis of the purchasing path in order to create the best content for each phase.

In the following image we have collected some examples of content types that best adapt to the phases of the messy middle.

At Visilay we rely on detailed analyses of the target’s purchasing journey to formulate SEO strategies and plan content creation for B2B companies.

Indeed, we must not forget that the audience is not only varied, but that each lead may find itself in a different phase of the messy middle.

• In the awareness stage, you begin to recognize that you have a need;
• In consideration, you are looking for solutions to the problem that has been identified;
• In the conversion stage, you compare alternatives or begin to try different solutions to arrive at a purchase decision.

Taking into account the stages of the purchasing journey, it is therefore possible to establish the most effective type of content.

To give you some concrete examples, let’s see which types of content have the greatest impact, according to the “State of Content Marketing” report conducted by Semrush.

In the image above we can see the most effective types of content, led by video content. Of course, when planning a strategy, you then have to make specific considerations based on the reference sector.

Make a roadmap for content creation and distribution

Another important step for an effective content marketing strategy is to put it all together.

It is not enough to identify the channels to use for distribution and the most suitable type of content, but you also need to get down to business and create a strategic plan to begin defining the next steps.

At this stage it is useful to create a real road map to create and then distribute the contents.

There are several tools that can help us create an editorial calendar for content distribution, for example, task and team management applications like ClickUp are ideal for this and also provide ready-made templates to customize to create the editorial calendar of content.

But the most important thing is not the tool we choose to use, but rather understanding what are the essential elements to establish.

For each content it is important to define:

• content type;
• topic;
• distribution channel;
• publishing frequency.

As you can see in the examples above, you can also identify multiple distribution channels for the same type of content. This is where what is called repurposing content comes into play, that is, reusing content by transforming it into new formats.

An example could be the creation of a video tutorial that is re-proposed in the form of a blog post. Or even a blog post from which an infographic is created to share via e-mail.

In transforming content into new formats, you can also use specific tools such as Hubspot’s Content Remix which, thanks to AI, helps us recreate new formats starting from a type of content.

In addition to this tool, you can also use ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI-based tools for this purpose. These tools are undoubtedly useful for gathering ideas and reworking them, not surprisingly, according to data collected by the Content Marketing Institute in 2025, 81% of B2B marketing departments will use AI and this figure is growing compared to last year (72%).

4 Practical Examples of Content Marketing Strategies

Now that we have seen the fundamental aspects to consider, let’s see some practical examples of content marketing that we can implement as part of our strategy.

We have selected three effective strategies today that you can focus on and from which you can obtain excellent results.

Focus on video content

According to the Content Marketing Institute research updated to 2025, videos are considered the most effective type of content.

According to the research conducted, videos are the type of content that works best in the B2B sector (58%) followed by case studies (53%) and e-books (45%).

These numbers should make you seriously think about adopting this type of content and including it in your content marketing strategy.

Don’t underestimate e-mails

One of the distribution channels that, even today, proves to be very effective is represented by newsletters.

Newsletters are used as a means of distributing content by 71% of marketing teams and other types of emails by 63%. (Source: Content Marketing Institute)

In the context of content creation, newsletters are also an excellent method for reproposing blog content in a reduced format and therefore more suitable for being used in a short time.

Conduct and publish industry research

Industry reports and researches are among the most effective examples of content marketing.

This type of content works on multiple fronts:

• receives more shares than other formats;
• it is mentioned and can therefore also become an excellent source of backlinks;
• it allows you to become the source in your environment and therefore also increases the authority of your brand.

Creating Blog Posts to Intercept Searches

As we have seen, among the most effective types of content are blog articles, both short and in-depth.

Creating a blog and aiming to intercept specific searches related to keywords relevant to the business can be an excellent strategy for obtaining organic traffic.

This format is ideal for an audience that is looking for detailed explanations, comparative analyses and the opinion of experts in the sector.

Blog articles therefore allow us to grow both organically (SEO) and in terms of authority.

How to navigate B2B content marketing

Let’s summarize what we have seen to understand how to take the first steps to outline a content marketing plan in the B2B sector.

• Choose distribution channels: you need to analyze the channels you have available or the new assets to create.
• Define the type of content: the content must be created thinking about the distribution channel and the stage of the messy middle in which the target is located.
• Create a road map: in this phase you start to create an editorial calendar by connecting types of content to distribution channels. You can consider repurposing content to exploit content by adapting it to different distribution channels.

The entire content marketing strategy must revolve around a key point: the target. For this reason, in order to make progress, you need to start with an in-depth study of the market and clarify the objectives to aim for.

At Visilay we always analyze the starting situation of individual customers and the market to be able to define measurable goals together and establish the concrete actions to carry out. We can assist you both in the strategic phase and in the tracking phase to define the effectiveness of the contents.