Issue 105: Think like a reporter to inform your content production
I LOOOVE it when B2B brands toot their product horn with confidence.
But if all that self-love comes from a place of zero evidence, the odds of gaining buyers’ trust are pretty dim.
Because you end up sounding nothing but salesy 😬
The solution? Think like a reporter.
Reporters are hell-bent on:
Providing accurate information
Gathering evidence to support it
They share various angles to the story, leaving the reader to “think” independently.
That’s what you need to be doing when planning content for interested buyers:
Provide all the resources buyers would need to make their purchase decision
Gather and share all the evidence to back up product-related information
When you take this approach, you:
✅ Quickly earn readers’ respect
(How many times have you felt frustrated when you can’t find the product info you need as you evaluate it? The answer explains why informing like a reporter builds trust and respect)
✅ Come across as less salesy
(Because hey, you’re providing all the helpful resources readers need, when they need them in their buying journey)
✅ Drive more sales
(Because you aren’t being pushy or one-sided — read: subjective — in your content. You’re letting the buyer call their purchase shots like the adults that they are!)
Okay so how does this wear-a-reporter’s-hat-thing work practically speaking? I hear you.
When you plan content for deeper funnel stages (readers are problem-aware and looking for a solution), focus on 2 pillars from a reporter’s arsenal:
Inform about the solution you offer + the ones in the market
Provide evidence related to how your product is being used and what others are saying about it
Both these pillars help you prioritize the type of content to create and guide your production angle when you create them (or ask writers to write them):
Let’s look at both these reporting branches throughout the content workflow:
A) Think like a reporter when planning content
Inform:
Related to your solution = create feature deep dives, use-case roundups, and product how-tos
Related to alternate solutions = plan comparison pieces, and product listicles (X tools for Y use case or X tools for Z buyer type)
Provide evidence:
Related to how your product is used = share customer stories sharing how they use your tool and internal use cases
Related to what others are saying = plan case studies and tool reviews, and gather testimonials from third-party platforms in a central, easily accessible document
B) Think like a reporter when creating content
Inform & provide evidence:
Don’t be subjective or opinion-oriented (the place for that is in thought leadership pieces). Just provide all the product-related info that’ll incline readers toward trying or demo-ing your tool
Lace evidence through the content piece (screenshots from social proof shared on social media, results from case studies, and stories of how your team or customers use the product or specific feature in the spotlight)
Don’t share your opinions in comparison pieces. Remember to ‘inform’ here again using evidence from customer reviews to explain what users like and dislike about the tools under comparison. Leave the decision to the reader (!).
Inform who exactly each solution is for in product roundups. Instead of superficial descriptions of what each solution does in ‘X tools for Y use cases or ICP’ listicles, be helpful — report on who will benefit the most for each tool (comb through online reviews and study the tools for this)
C) Think like a reporter when reviewing content pipeline & pieces
Ask yourself:
Are we comprehensively reporting on how each feature works, what its use cases are, when it’ll help a user in their workflow, and what jobs-to-be-done it’ll help them accomplish?
Are we providing enough evidence-based info in each content piece that does justice to what our SaaS tool can do? Is there enough social proof that implies ‘we’re a helpful solution for the buyer’, rather than claiming ‘we are the best.’
Are we creating resources that offer an unbiased, honest, and transparent take on how our product and competing tools stand against each other?
Focused on top-funnel content these days instead? This framework will help 🙌
Cheers,
Masooma