Peek Into Our Product-Led Storytelling Process
VEC Studio handles end-to-end Product-Led Storytelling execution for B2B SaaS startups eager to earn the mindshare of prospective (and existing) customers, build pipeline, and drive real revenue growth. This page summarizes how we do it.
1. We Start with Strategy.
But not the regular content strategy obsessed with SEO and keywords. First, we’ll sync with your teams and do thorough research to help you design/articulate a Strategic Narrative for your product. Below is how we do that:
Then, using our Topic Clusters’ Content Strategy (TCCS) Framework, we’d design a custom Product-Led Content Marketing Strategy that puts your narrative front and center. This unique approach is how we:
- Align with your company’s overarching narrative and points of view (PoVs), to deeply establish what sets you apart from the competition. - Study and use your product features and solutions to thoroughly understand how each uniquely solves target buyers problems. - Conduct in-depth competitor and customer research to identify rare business-driving queries and content ideas - Cluster researched queries and ideas around your narrative (for thought leadership) and product features (for how-to guides and sales enablement resources) to drive impact from each piece we craft.
As illustrated below:
We do other critical things in the strategy design phase. Years of experience has taught us that regular buyer personas, which focus on demographics or WHO target readers are, isn’t helpful for crafting content that addresses WHAT pains they want to solve. The Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD) concept, on the other hand, addresses WHAT pains buyers want to solve. But it’s not so helpful for crafting story-driven content that resonates with WHO buyers are and WHY they’ll solve those problems. For content to resonate, get read, and compel action, it must address the WHO, WHAT, and WHY of target readers. To this end, we invented (and will build) ICP StoryScripts for two (2) of your target buyers [for FREE]:
As shown above, ICP StoryScripts helps us craft content that addresses the WHO, WHAT, and WHY of your target B2B audience.
Other things we’d do for you in the first month include:
- Writing conversion-optimized copy for your features’ landing pages - Building out a 6-month content execution plan - Working with you to revamp your blog layouts - Creating a custom content distribution plan - Conducting interviews with internal SMEs - Studying your editorial Style Guide
Like others who have worked with us, you may be wondering. Why create copy for your features or solutions' landing pages as part of our Product-Led Content Marketing Strategy design phase? We do it to ensure: -Each content piece fits nicely into the typical customer journey. -Effective internal linking, so that engaged readers can more easily discover your features or solutions landing pages optimized for conversion. As shown below:
Looks like a lot, right?
Well, doing all these in the first month of our engagements lays the foundation for effective Product-Led Storytelling. Here’s what a B2B Marketing Leader said of our rigorous content strategy design process:
2. Story-Driven Content Crafting
Here at VEC Studio, we believe great ideas are the bedrock of effective story-driven content pieces. To this end, beyond keywords research, we work with stakeholders across your startup to facilitate ongoing ideas' collection. We then use a custom evaluation scale to continually score and select the ideas most likely to have a significant impact on your business. We often prioritize ideas with a score of 2–3:
After ideas, crafting story-driven content prospects actually want to read is an art. Weaving in your product to show (not just tell) its unique value and compel conversion is science. Ensuring every piece we craft embodies both required looking beyond the regular way of briefing content. So instead of the regular way of stuffing keywords into every section of content briefs, we designed a unique way of building story-driven briefs. We call this new content briefing framework StoryBriefs & Outlines:
As illustrated, this ensures each piece we’d craft for you:
- Aligns strategically with your marketing/business goal(s) - Resonates with an ICP StoryScript created in the strategy phase - Discoverable when target readers research with specific queries - Outlined according to the nine Product-Led Storytelling steps
If you think our process is rigorous, you haven’t even seen it all. Before any draft gets to you, it goes through thorough Quality Assurance comprising four sections and over 30 checkboxes. All to further ensure drafts tick all strategy and editorial boxes outlined in the content strategy design phase. Here’s a sneak peek:
The steps may be many to you. And they are. But sticking to them is how we craft and help deliver content experiences that get B2B SaaS Founders excited to say things like:
3. Distribution-Informed Creation
Product-Led Storytelling has an ultimate goal. And that’s to transform every content piece we’d craft for you into a marketing asset that functions like a subtle sales funnel. Specifically, we craft each to achieve three objectives:
- Attract & filter target buyers to read the content - Engage & show how your product solves their problems - Persuade & convert engaged readers into new users/fans:
But we don’t just create content, hit publish, and hope for the best. Of course, we optimize all pieces for long-term organic discovery. Still, when crafting each piece, we keep where your ICPs hang out in mind. This means that for every piece we craft, we’ll also create excerpts for you and SMEs in your organization to share on various platforms. Think social media, newsletters, communities, etc.:
Distribution, as you can tell, is crucial today. So much that it is baked into our content creation process. It’s how we’re able to help startups going up against incumbents with more established content programs still reach target buyers through content, even without ranking high on search engines. And it’s specifically why the Head of Marketing at the Series A startup, Cyber Sierra, raved about our services:
4. Our Setup
A rigorous story-driven content production process, as you can imagine, requires a team of creatives contributing their unique expertise. Our 5-person team setup leveraged to work on every client project enables this. Here’s all the creative brainpower you’ll get for one monthly fee:
A little heads up, though. Our sweetspot is working with B2B SaaS startups selling to mid-market and enterprise buyers, where thoughtful content makes a lot of difference in closing high ACV accounts. To see if we’d be a fit for you…
Victor Eduoh
founder, vec.studio
I look forward to chatting with you.
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Crafted with ❤️ in Port Harcourt