{"id":2252,"date":"2015-02-11T10:50:37","date_gmt":"2015-02-11T15:50:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thatwhitepaperguy.com\/?p=2252"},"modified":"2021-01-26T12:50:55","modified_gmt":"2021-01-26T17:50:55","slug":"moving-from-tech-writer-to-b2b-writer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thatwhitepaperguy.com\/moving-from-tech-writer-to-b2b-writer\/","title":{"rendered":"Moving from tech writer to B2B writer"},"content":{"rendered":"
Then you\u2019ve likely seen B2B content like white papers and slide decks. <\/strong><\/p>\n You may even have written some yourself.<\/p>\n You already know how to write precisely and explain how things work.<\/p>\n So why not take advantage of the biggest boom in writing that’s come along in years?<\/p>\n It’s called B2B content marketing, and any tech writer\u00a0is well-positioned to move into it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As you know, B2B content includes blog posts, case studies, e-newsletters, press releases, slide decks. video scripts, white papers…<\/p>\n In fact, B2B content includes any piece of writing that helps a company rise in Google’s search results and attract prospective buyers.<\/p>\n It’s not sales copy. And there are never any\u00a0“Buy now” buttons in the margins.<\/p>\n B2B content is designed\u00a0to help business people understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision.<\/p>\n And there’s a desperate shortage of good writers who can produce it.\u00a0That’s where you come in, as an experienced technical writer.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s review the great skills you already have:<\/p>\n All these will be very helpful to you as a B2B content writer.<\/p>\n Here are some skills you\u00a0may need to develop to succeed in B2B content writing:<\/p>\n When you first start to write content, your past as a technical writer may get in your way.<\/p>\n If you wrote for aerospace, you might\u00a0have been restricted to a controlled vocabulary of a few hundred words.<\/p>\n For the military, you might\u00a0have written to a Grade 5 or 6 level.<\/p>\n Wherever you worked,\u00a0you soon learned\u00a0that any figures of speech\u00a0or\u00a0rhetorical devices were not welcome\u00a0in any technical manual.<\/p>\n In B2B content, you have to let go of the constraints. You have to be more passionate, more opinionated, and more forceful in your writing.<\/p>\n You’ll need to shift your focus from writing to explain to writing to<\/strong> persuade<\/strong>.<\/p>\n If you can get past the following hurdles, you can have a wonderful future as a B2B content writer.<\/p>\n You’ve probably heard people\u00a0say that moving from tech writing to marketing is “going to the dark side”?<\/p>\n Well, it\u2019s not. Without sales, there’d be no money for salaries. Without marketing, there’d be fewer sales.<\/p>\n When\u00a0you worked as a technical writer, your job depended on money brought in by sales and marketing.<\/p>\n And when you write B2B content, no one is going to ask you to lie, cheat, or steal.<\/p>\n You won\u2019t be writing breathless infomercials (\u201cHow much would you expect to pay?\u201d) or ditzy sales letters (\u201cAct now! This limited-time offer is available only to the first 250 buyers!!\u201d)<\/p>\n In fact, part of your job as a B2B writer is to resist sticking\u00a0the same old marketing-speak into your work. To appeal to busy business people, your content must be useful and compelling… not hot air.<\/p>\n But, B2B content is\u00a0different from\u00a0technical writing.<\/p>\n You won’t be slapped down like a misbehaving child for using a striking phrase or a light tone.<\/p>\n As a B2B writer, you’ll need to write about an industry challenge or tell a story about a particular company’s problem.<\/p>\n To write in a compelling way, you must take a reasoned but passionate stand. You must express your position forcefully and eloquently.<\/p>\n You must take off the tech writing muzzle and find your voice.<\/p>\n In tech writing, it’s all about the accuracy of the content. Style, schmyle. You have a style guide to tell you how to handle most issues.<\/p>\n In B2B content, you must marry factual evidence with compelling style. You must\u00a0back up all your assertions with proof.<\/p>\n And, you’ll need to rewrite and polish like never before.\u00a0One draft or two for technical accuracy won\u2019t be enough. You must labor over your words to craft a message that explains and persuades.<\/p>\n In short, you must let your writer-self\u00a0take flight in a way you never could in any technical manual.<\/p>\n Not sure how to get into B2B content?<\/p>\n Check out my\u00a0Crash Course in B2B Content<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n This is a quick-start guide to writing the 12 most popular forms of B2B content, from blog posts to white papers.<\/p>\n The crash course\u00a0describes each format, shows\u00a0examples including a detailed video walkthrough, tells the going rates you can\u00a0charge,\u00a0and gives lots of\u00a0tips to help you start writing right away.<\/p>\nWhat is B2B content?<\/h3>\n
You already have many\u00a0skills<\/h3>\n
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Some new skills you may\u00a0need<\/h3>\n
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A few\u00a0things you may need to “unlearn”<\/h3>\n
1. Sales &\u00a0marketing is not “the dark side”<\/h3>\n
2. Take off the tech-writing muzzle<\/h3>\n
3. Content\u00a0alone is not enough<\/h3>\n
Need more help getting started?<\/h3>\n