Content Marketing Research for Tech Companies: A Case Study

03 Jun 2020

Content Marketing Research for Tech Companies: A Case Study

Marketing Problem

It is difficult for a brand to stand out from the competition in today’s saturated media environment. As a result, it is hard for brands to show that they are thought leaders; this is especially true in the tech industry where competition is fierce, and there is intense pressure for high growth. Thereby, original research is an essential way for brands to generate awareness and engagement. As a rule, it establishes the brand as a leader in its field.

Provoke Insights works with a variety of technology companies to conduct research for content marketing purposes, including Apttus, SkilledUp (acquired by Apollo Education), eToro, and A10 Networks. Beyond, these technology companies want to conduct effective and breakthrough thought leadership research to help build a strong reputation in the tech sector. As the leader in research for content marketing research, these companies reach out to Provoke Insights.

Research for content marketing is one of Provoke Insights’ three specialties. The company speaks about the topic at conferences, trains other researchers, and is featured in multiple industry journals on the subject.

Market Research Solution

For our technology clients, Provoke Insights uses our unique methodology to produce research that leads to the most engagement; this includes:

Secondary research. Firstly, by utilizing available information, news, and social listening, Provoke Insights digs in and finds the trending subjects that are engaging consumers. In the same vein, Provoke Insights also considers topics that are getting a little too much media, maybe overreported, and that should be avoided in research.

Develop potential headlines. Secondly, we create ideal or optimal headlines. Importantly, these headlines should excite and interest readers and focus on topics that popped up as engaging in the secondary process. Most importantly, SEO is a driver of these headlines, as we want to make sure that content developed performs well on the internet.

Design Questionnaire. After developing the headlines, Provoke Insights works with the client to design a questionnaire that gives answers to the questions posed by the headlines. Therefore, the headlines are used for directional purposes and do not assure the outcome of survey results. The questionnaire is then programmed online by Provoke Insights, and the research study is conducted.

Mini-Reports. After finishing the survey and collecting responses, Provoke Insights develops a series of mini-reports for each topic/headline. These mini-reports are written in a way that intrigues readers so that they want to click on and read the full research findings.

Pitch An Exclusive. Moreover, with more than one story angle, these tech companies can often pitch research exclusives with multiple journals or news sources.

Multiple Uses. Concluding in using the research for various sources. These sources include blogs, social media, newsletters, email outreach, and websites to keep the buzz going. Many times the research is also used for sales collateral.

Results of the Research

The result of the research has helped tech brands gain notoriety and position them as thought leaders. ROI and metrics are proven for this method.

Tech thought leadership is six times likelier to be shared than most articles on clients’ websites.
Facebook posts of thought leadership research gain approximately 30 times more engagement than other posts.
The tech companies often used the full report to gather contact information and received hundreds of leads from users looking to read the results.