As a content agency, we are always interested in which formats work best to help our clients move small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) through the sales cycle. To find out, we recently fielded an SMB Pulse survey of 500 principals of U.S. companies with up to 500 employees. Specifically, we looked at the research stage of the sales cycle, to determine which formats SMBs use most to research your products and services.

As is often the case in marketing to SMBs, there are interesting differences in research content preferences by industry group, which we define as:

• Professional Services (PS): Advertising/Consulting/Design/Marketing Services, Architect/Engineering, Banking/Insurance/Mortgage, Computer Services/Consulting, Computer Software/Internet, Financial Services/Accounting/Bookkeeping, Legal, Medical/Dental, Publishing/Printing/Media
• Retail/Wholesale (RW): Entertainment/Recreation, Food/Beverage/Restaurants, Real Estate, Retail, Travel/Hotel/Hospitality, Wholesale
• Manufacturing (M): Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing/Mining, Automotive, Computer Hardware/Electronic Equipment, Construction/Contracting/Electrical/Landscape/Plumbing/etc., Energy/Utilities, Manufacturing, Pharmaceutical/Medical Devices/Biotechnology, Telecommunications, Transportation and Warehousing
• Personal Services/Education (PE): Personal Services, Education/Training
  For example, professional services firms are most likely to use articles to learn more about your offerings, followed by an email newsletter and research report. However, retail/wholesale businesses are most likely to use a checklist or worksheet, followed by Facebook posts and an analyst report.

Manufacturers have a different set of preferences: they are most likely to use video on your site, followed by LinkedIn posts and a research report. Finally, personal services and educational firms are most likely to use Facebook and blog posts to understand your offerings, followed by a tie between an article; e-Book, guide or handbook; webinar/webcast; and a tweet.

The only formats that are in the top three of any two industry groups are Facebook posts (first for personal services and educational firms, second for retail/wholesale businesses), articles (first for professional services, third for personal services) and research reports (third for both professional services firms and manufacturers). The takeaway is that knowing the content preferences of your target audience is essential to giving them the tools they prefer to research your offerings.

Research Content Preference by Industry

How likely are you to use each of these content formats from vendors like Adobe, Amazon, Dell, Google, Intuit, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Salesforce, etc., to research or assess products or services for your business?

% very likely (500n)

We also looked at how research content preferences vary by respondent age – which we defined as Gen Z/Millennial (ages 18-38), Gen X (39-54), and Boomer/Silent Generation (55+). The differences between generations are significant – even more than they are between industry groups.

Specifically, Gen Z/Millennials are most likely to use Facebook posts to research your offerings – and they are twice as likely to use Facebook as Gen X, and four times as likely as Boomers. Gen Z/Millennials are next most likely to use blog posts and podcasts. Gen X most prefers articles and email newsletters for product research, followed by interactive tools and video on your website. Boomers also most prefer articles, followed by video on your website and a tie between case studies, LinkedIn posts, webcasts and research reports.

Research Content Preference by Generation

How likely are you to use each of these content formats from vendors like Adobe, Amazon, Dell, Google, Intuit, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Salesforce, etc., to research or assess products or services for your business?

% very likely (500n)

Investing in the content formats that your audience prefers means either developing a wide range of formats, or obtaining market insight to identify the format (and topics, and outlets) that work best.

Need help understanding and/or engaging SMBs? Bredin can keep you up to date on evolving SMB needs and challenges through quick-turn, actionable market research. We can also help you develop high-value content and social posts to boost SMB awareness, brand perception, leads, conversion, and revenue.