Featuring:
Lisa Gately, Principal Analyst
Show Notes:
Around nine in 10 B2B buyers use generative AI (genAI) throughout the purchasing process. This is adding more complexity to the already hefty challenge of standing out through content marketing. How should B2B marketers adapt? This week, Principal Analyst Lisa Gately explains how marketers can adjust their strategies to break through to buyers.
The episode starts with Gately explaining that traditional SEO strategies, while still relevant, no longer suffice as buyers increasingly rely on genAI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity to enhance their decision-making. The “zero click” content surfaced by genAI means that marketers can’t always see or track when their brand is mentioned. Most companies also have no way to know whether the models underpinning these tools have been trained on their content, which only adds to the uncertainty.
To cope, marketers need to stay focused on what they can control, Gately says. She recommends doubling down on content marketing fundamentals — creating high-quality, authoritative, and helpful content and using all the levers at marketers’ disposal, including social media, public relations, strategic third-party partnerships, and, yes, search (which she says is not going away, though it’s changing).
The discussion then turns to how the shift in buyers’ search habits affects the role of company websites as informational resources. Gately cites recent Forrester survey data that shows that websites are still a vital part of buyers’ processes. Yet with buyers more informed when they visit vendor websites due to earlier genAI research, content must now be deep, comprehensive, and capable of addressing their complex questions. “Think of it as your mid-to-late funnel content doing a lot of heavy lifting,” Gately explains.
Later, the conversation delves into the current state of marketers’ own use of genAI for creating and repurposing content. While genAI is allowing marketers to create content faster, Gately emphasizes that “you really have to go back and commit to your content strategy and how audience-centric you are. Meaning — do you understand the personas and their role in the buying group, who this content is for, that you’re addressing their needs and pain points?” In other words, effective content is insightful and empathetic, regardless of how it’s created.
The episode includes additional insights and advice for marketers looking to stand out through their content. It closes with Gately previewing her session on this topic at Forrester’s B2B Summit North America, happening in Phoenix from March 31 to April 3. At Summit, Gately will also give a keynote on turning genAI possibilities into reality. Learn more about the event.
