Tangential content is content that’s related to, but not about, your core business.
In B2B content marketing, many organizations have an ultra-narrow focus on branded content that addresses specific, common questions. While this content is valuable – if it’s helpful and informative – it leaves brands weaker in terms of social shares and backlinks.
Long story short, influencers are less likely to tout your branded content to their followers or link back to your site if they feel your only goal is to get more sales.
Of course, branded content builds trust and rapport for a certain informed and eager subset of your audience. But what if you could reach twice as many people, foster “top of the funnel” awareness, and improve the way people see your brand?
That’s where tangential content comes in.
Why Tangential Content Matters for B2B Enterprises
There are two schools of thought in B2B marketing today:
- Some marketers insist that “B2B doesn’t have to be boring.”
- Others admit that B2B often is boring – and want a solution.
While it might be hard to get people interested in industrial farm equipment or microprocessors, even the most specialized B2B brand has knowledge that can benefit a wider audience.
By creating tangential content that shares that knowledge, you make it more likely that users fitting your target buyer persona will share your content with other qualified buyers.
You also net a broader socially-savvy audience that could benefit you in the future.
Let’s look at some examples of tangential content:
- A real estate agency that posts about popular tourist destinations in its market.
- A bank that provides personal finance planning content, like budgeting tools.
- A drone services company that produces aerial videos of local landmarks.
Can Your Brand Afford to Ignore Tangential Content?
Yes, you can go without tangential content – and its benefits.
Many B2B brands are doing just that … and leaving a lot of social clout on the table.
However, there are some brands that are fortunate enough not to need tangential content to fill a niche in their digital marketing ecosystem. They already have many of the advantages tangential content would offer, and might not see an enormous bump from adopting it.
Those brands:
- Are interesting and useful to the general population – not only to the experts.
- Have multiple publishers with enthusiastic readerships covering their niche.
- Already see a phenomenal response to their existing branded Web content.
Most B2B brands don’t meet all of these criteria. Some don’t quite qualify for any of them. If you want your content marketing to produce more ROI, consider adding tangential content. You might find you don’t need much of it to amplify all your other content initiatives.