🔮 The future of content

Who this content is for: Growth-stage B2B SaaS companies ($5M+ ARR) with an inbound-heavy GTM motion.

This week in SaaS

• Carta | Q2 2024 showed modest improvement in the venture ecosystem, with 1,287 new funding rounds and $20.9 billion invested, up 4% and 12% respectively from Q1 (Link)

• Bessemer | Cloud companies are scaling faster than ever, with the average company reaching $100 million ARR in just 7.8 years, down from 10 years in 2016 (Link)

• TechCrunch | Linktree, the link-in-bio platform, has acquired social media scheduling tool Plann for an undisclosed amount (Link)

• TechCrunch | A social media spat has erupted between VC giants Ben Horowitz and Michael Moritz over a potential news story by SF Standard, a news outlet backed by Moritz (Link)

Bookmarks & timeless classics

• HubSpot | The ultimate guide to B2B marketing in 2024 (Link)

• BacklinkO | Here’s what we learned about SEO in 2024 (Link)

• Stratechery | Blogging’s bright future (Link)

• Lenny’s Newsletter | Content-driven growth (Link)

Content marketing strategy

The future of content marketing

B2B revenue leaders have spoken.

Original content has become the new poster child for a SaaS company's content marketing strategy.

Resources are shifting away from long-form assets to digestible and unique experiences, leveraging first-party research, storytelling, and building personal brands.

It’s no surprise that companies are battling to differentiate their brand online. It has become harder to hold engaged attention as short-form videos and AI-generated content saturate online media.

But what does original content look like in practice?

Scott Barker @ The GTM Newsletter [content]

You need a better content strategy

A framework for original content. What’s that, you ask? It’s any content type that is unique, demonstrates out-of-the-box thinking, and provides additional value through novelty or a new perspective.

This article highlights nine examples of original content formats. Here are my top three with examples.

👉 Data studies – Analyze proprietary or third-party data to create unique insights, like SparkToro and Datos' study on ChatGPT user behavior.

👉 First-person narratives – Share personal experiences and lessons learned, like Veed.io CEO Sabba Keynejad's article on growing from zero to 50k customers.

👉 Contrarian content – Challenge industry norms with well-supported arguments, like LinearB's piece on misuses of DORA metrics in engineering organizations.

George Chasiotis @ Growth Unhinged [content]

3 tips to create case studies that turn prospects into buyers

Case studies are a powerful form of original content, offering a narrative-based perspective and a resource to prevent prospects from getting stuck in the sales funnel.

Here’s a practical guide to help write your own studies and customer stories.

👉 Leverage data-driven storytelling – Include specific metrics and results in case studies, similar to Cognizant's approach of highlighting cost savings and efficiency improvements.

👉 Diversify case study formats – Create both text and video versions of case studies, like Xerox's Buena Park School District example, to cater to different audience preferences.

👉 Personalize for different industries – Write industry-specific case study collections, as Xerox did for banking and financial markets, to demonstrate expertise in various sectors.

Ann Gynn @ Product Marketing Alliance [content]

Shoutouts

Special thank you to those who shared their thoughts/ feedback on SaaS Weekly 🙌🏻.

• Mike at Artifacts of Influence

• David at AppSumo

• Stan at Default

• Kevin at Rippling

• Zac at Bain

• Caleb at Podium Partners

• Jared at Flowcos

• Greg at Content Guppy

• Katarina at Userlist

SaaS Weekly Resources

1) The SaaS Weekly Database: Search Thousands of the Best SaaS Articles and Resources

2) Generative AI Tracker: B2B SaaS Companies Adding GenAI Capabilities

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