The art of words: Spotlight on content marketing at The Marketing Pod

With The Marketing Pod’s unique structure of five centres of excellence, we’re lucky to be able to pick the brains of people who are experts in their specific field. With specialists in PR, Creative, Content, Digital and Strategy, we love to dig a little deeper into the roles of our Podsters and share some of their insights and knowledge. It’s been fascinating to read the thoughts of our award-winning PR team, web developers and designers. Now, it’s time to hear from our content team. 

Great, I thought. I can do that. After all, I am a content writer. I’m literally writing about my own day. Easy. But I’m embarrassed to say, as I sat at my keyboard plotting questions, setting out a structure and pulling together some thoughts… my mind went blank. What I’ve actually done today is sit at my desk, read, type, re-read and re-typed (x 10). I’ve had two coffees and a Lucozade Energy. It certainly doesn’t feel as inspirational as Lead Developer, Kris Bradbury, studying code with one hand while rocking his newborn baby with the other.

So, like any struggling copywriter in 2024, I reached out for some inspiration to get me started:

ChatGPT

As a large language model, I cannot help with your request to write a blog on life as a copywriter in a B2B marketing agency.

Damn. That didn’t work either.

The truth is, it’s an interesting time to be a copywriter. On the one hand, because digital media and content marketing has become an essential strategy for businesses, creating high-quality and engaging content is more crucial than ever. On the other hand, the job of the humble professional copywriter seems to constantly carry a question mark over its head. Do we need it? Or are generative AI models good enough to automate content? Does anyone even read anymore?

At Pod, we believe that content writing remains a powerful tool for B2B marketers today. Our content writers are experts at crafting compelling stories that resonate with target audiences and enhance brand visibility. So, what is it to be a B2B copywriter in 2024? How do we differentiate our human touch from that of a machine? And what makes the Pod’s Content Centre of Excellence special?

What makes copywriting at Pod stand out?

The content writers at Pod all come from a professional writing background – including journalism, academia, creative writing and marketing. This means we have a wide range of skills in the team, as well as a wide variety of writing styles to suit any client. We also proofread and edit each others’ work internally before sharing it with clients, ensuring that each piece of content is always thoroughly reviewed.

More uniquely, we’re also experts in the subject matter at hand. Pod is an integrated B2B agency specialising in energy, utilities and cleantech, and we love working with ambitious, ethical and sustainable businesses. And these are topics we all understand. For example one of our Content & PR Writers was part of the marketing team at one of the world’s largest energy management and automation companies. 

This means we can really get a strong understanding of what our clients are asking for and what their customers want. And it gives our copywriting an edge because we can get on with the job of planning, researching and crafting our pieces – whether they be long-form white papers or a five-word web banner – and delivering for the client.

What makes content writing important today, and why are we so passionate about it?

Content is still the backbone of modern B2B marketing. It’s what connects brands to their audiences in a meaningful way. It’s about telling stories, digging deep into a business’ value proposition, understanding how it improves people’s lives and turning it into compelling content. That’s what makes us so passionate about it.

How do we create content for a new campaign?

Every new project at Pod starts with thorough research and, ideally, a client workshop. Deep diving into the client’s industry, understanding their brand voice and identifying their target audience helps us craft content that really resonates with its audience.

There’s nothing more helpful than truly listening to a client’s story, including their challenges, ambitions and goals. Getting the background, the passion, the details, the whats, whys, wheres and hows and figuring out how we can turn all of this knowledge into an impactful content strategy – this is what we’re passionate about.

Once the plan is in place, it’s up to us to draft, revise and finally publish the approved content. Throughout the process, we maintain close communication with account managers and clients to ensure the final product meets their expectations. We also continue to track its performance to make sure it delivers results – so we can learn what may or may not be working for future content assets.

How do we collaborate with other Centres of Excellence at Pod?

At Pod, we like to say there are five centres of excellence, but only one team. Our Strategy team, who is in constant touch with our clients, provides us with the briefs to write our content. Most assets also require an element of design, so we need to work with our Creative team to understand how they can help us bring a document to life – for example by including eye-catching call outs, quotes, fact boxes or extra headlines. Finally, our Digital team helps us ensure our online or social content is optimised for search engines by incorporating relevant keywords and following best practices for SEO. Of course, we need to find the balance between prioritising storytelling and keeping the content engaging, while creating copy that ranks well and resonates.

What does the future look like for copywriting?

This is a question we’ve asked ourselves and answered a number of times in the last year. Despite all the technological changes and advancements, there’s no doubt in our minds that investing in professional content writing is still worthwhile for businesses – and will remain so for the foreseeable future. 

Although AI-based tools can be of assistance when writing content, we believe that well-crafted content needs to incorporate human nuances that AI still doesn’t offer – such as your tone of voice, anecdotes and firsthand expertise. This helps brands differentiate themselves from competitors, build trust, engage audiences and ultimately drive sales. 

Our advice for aspiring content writers

Pod content writers are a unique and quirky bunch – so if you are too, our first advice would be to not fight that. Hold on to your personality and unique traits: they will be your secret weapon to write fresh and original content. 

We also think that if you have the writing bug, you just know. All of us started writing in a variety of formats – blogs, mini-fiction, poetry, journals, essays…the list goes on. So, our advice is to practise different formats, keep writing and stay curious. 

It can also be helpful to keep what you write and select your favourite pieces to build a portfolio, which you can use to pitch yourself, or even just to network with other professionals by exchanging openings and advice. 

Most importantly, be passionate about storytelling and understand the value your words can bring to your audience.

Our approach to copywriting in 3 words

Engage, inform, entertain.

Do you need help with your business’ copywriting? Discover how our amazing Content team can assist you. Click here to get in touch.