Eric Siu eferences the Eccolo Media Technology Content Survey in his post about B2B vs B2C content marketing. The survey is new to me but it is a mine of information about what types of content are valued by tech buyers. Their executive summary singles out one of their "big beliefs: When it comes to content marketing, microsites and campaign landing pages that are well linked to vendor sites can be extraordinarily valuable."

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And this is a really good point about B2B content and thought leadership more generally, the content created needs to focus on a niche, or be divided into silos that make sense to the reader. For example, we work with a lot of law firms and they are full of brilliant experts. However, too often the views of a specialist on IP law are in the same company blog as content from, say, a family lawyer.

And this is not just confusing, it's really detrimental to both individuals. Because of the lack of focus, neither lawyer's clients will derive real value from following the blog and as a result they will not subscribe or return.

Also, the author is wasting time and energy writing to an audience that has little interest in their views - however brilliant.

By contrast, regular, highly-focused content can deliver real business value to clients. It's easy to imagine an over-worked in-house legal counsel receiving an IP-focused newsletter that keeps him abreast of developments. It would make sense that he would feel comfortable knowing that he's up to date and would value the advice of the author. When he next needs advice on an IP issue, who's he likely to call?