The complexity of the B2B buying process, compared to that for B2C, often demands more of marketers. Because of the longer B2B sales cycle, marketers must diligently fill the sales pipeline and continuously support sales by keeping prospects engaged with the brand during the sales cycle through the use of multiple touchpoints, like email or campaign nurturing programs.

Marketers have an endless array of digital channels and choices for uncovering prospects, and MarketingProfs and Junta42 found 63% of B2B marketers in North America turn to content marketing as a key lead generation source.

More specifically, North American B2B marketers used articles (78%) and e-newsletters (61%) for their content marketing efforts. More educational and instructional forms of content, like case studies (55%), white papers (43%) and webinars (42%), were also used. These types of educational and instructional content were rated the most valuable for directly supporting B2B marketers’ objectives, according to Focus Research.