Understanding the B2B digital landscape

B2B purchase decisions typically involve multiple stakeholders, longer sales cycles, and more extensive research phases than B2C. That’s changing.

According to recent research by Gartner, B2B buyers spend only 17% of their time meeting with potential suppliers when considering a purchase. The rest? They're researching independently online. Don’t spill your coffee just yet: less face time doesn’t mean less sales - it just means virtual selling is more important.

This shift in buying behaviour makes it crucial that the brand maintains visibility throughout the entire customer journey—from initial research to final decision. That's where the strategic combination of SEO and paid media comes into play.

Start by building strong SEO foundations

Think of SEO as your digital storefront; it needs to be welcoming, well-organised, and easy to find.

To build those foundations, you need two tools: content that connects, and technical excellence.

Google doesn’t like gobbledegook. So, your business-y buzzwords won’t cut the mustard. Search engines value content that’s relevant and useful to your audience.

In order to outrank your competitors, you need to highlight your experience, expertise, authority and trustworthiness. Without that, fewer prospects will discover your services, costing you potential new business.

When creating content, speak directly to your audience's pain points and challenges. Focus on:

• Detailed, solution-focused blog posts that showcase your expertise
• Industry-specific case studies that demonstrate real results
• Educational resources that help potential clients make informed decisions
• Technical documentation that supports complex product offerings

Remember, B2B decision-makers are looking for expertise and reliability. Your content should position your brand as a trusted authority in your field.

Technical excellence

If compelling content is the filling, think of technical SEO as the bread that holds your sandwich together. It improves your website’s technical performance, making it faster, easier to crawl, and more understandable for search engines.

When ranking your website on search engine result pages (SERPs), Google considers your user’s experience – like how fast pages load – and what your structured data tells them.

The internet will give you a dozen technical SEO checklists. But it doesn’t have to be War and Peace; there are quick wins if you know how to get them. To start, ensure your website:

• Loads quickly across all devices
• Features a clear, logical structure
• Includes relevant schema markup for B2B-specific content
• Maintains mobile responsiveness for on-the-go research

Amplify your reach with paid media

While SEO builds your long-term digital presence, paid media helps you capture immediate opportunities and target specific decision-makers.

Like Binet and Field said in The Long and the Short of It, it’s about balancing brand building (SEO) with sales activation (paid media) to maximise your growth. We go the whole nine yards on it in our blog about driving sales and building brands.

To make it work for your brand, you need to ensure you leverage strategic channel selections and smart audience targeting.

Strategic channel selection

Not all paid media channels are created equal in the B2B space. Sure, your kids are hanging out on TikTok—but are your customers? Focus your efforts on platforms where your audience actively seeks business solutions:

• LinkedIn for professional targeting and thought leadership
• Google Ads for capturing high-intent search traffic
• Remarketing campaigns to nurture interested prospects
• Industry-specific programmatic advertising

Smart audience targeting

In B2B marketing, precision is everything. Unlike B2C campaigns where broad demographic targeting might suffice, B2B paid media demands a laser-focused approach to reach key decision-makers. You’re not hitting hundreds of balls on the driving range; you’re going for a hole-in-one on the PGA tour.

Success hinges on understanding not just who your ideal customer is, but where they are in their buying journey and what information they need at each stage. By leveraging advanced targeting capabilities across different platforms, you can ensure your message reaches the right people at the right time.

When using paid media to reach potential customers, you’ll need to utilise:

• Job title and company size targeting
• Industry-specific interest targeting
• Custom intent audiences based on research behaviours
• Account-based marketing (ABM) approaches for key prospects

Making SEO and paid media work together

SEO and paid media are great for building your brand and getting results. But the real magic happens when your SEO and paid media complement each other.

Want to create that synergy? You’ll need to implement this holy trinity:

1. Keyword intelligence sharing
2. Content amplification
3. Unified measurement

Keyword Intelligence Sharing

The siloed approach to SEO and paid media is a thing of the past. Smart B2B marketers understand that data sharing between these channels creates opportunities for optimisation and growth.

Your paid campaigns provide immediate feedback on keyword performance, conversion rates, and user behaviour; valuable insights that can inform your organic content strategy.

Consider how paid search terms with high conversion rates might signal untapped SEO opportunities.

Similarly, organic keywords that drive quality traffic but face tough competition could be ideal candidates for paid campaigns. This two-way intelligence sharing helps you:

• Identify gaps in your keyword coverage across both channels
• Optimise budget allocation based on keyword performance
• Discover new content opportunities from paid search queries
• Test messaging effectiveness before committing to long-term SEO investments
• Understand seasonal trends and market shifts through real-time paid data

Content amplification

Creating high-quality content for SEO is just the first step.

Strategic paid promotion can significantly accelerate your content's impact and reach. Think of it as giving your best performing content a boost to reach decision-makers who might otherwise miss it in the crowded B2B space.

Effective content amplification strategies include:

• Promoting cornerstone content pieces to targeted LinkedIn audiences
• Using Google Ads to capture high-intent readers searching for specific solutions
• Implementing remarketing campaigns to nurture users who've engaged with your content
• Creating platform-specific versions of your content for maximum impact
• Testing different content formats (whitepapers, videos, case studies) with paid promotion

Pro tip: Don't wait for content to prove itself organically before investing in promotion. If a piece aligns with your business objectives and target audience needs, consider promoting it from day one to build momentum.

Unified measurement

Understanding the true impact of your combined SEO and paid media efforts requires a sophisticated approach to measurement. It's not enough to look at these channels in isolation—you need to understand how they work together to drive business results.

Create a comprehensive measurement framework that includes:

Attribution Modelling

• Implement multi-touch attribution to understand the role of each channel in the conversion path
• Track how paid media supports SEO visibility and vice versa
• Measure the impact of combined channel exposure on conversion rates
• Analyse the customer journey across both organic and paid touchpoints

Performance Metrics

• Set channel-specific KPIs that align with overall business objectives
• Monitor cross-channel impact on lead quality and sales pipeline
• Track engagement metrics across both organic and paid content
• Measure the influence of paid promotion on organic rankings

ROI Analysis

• Calculate the combined cost-per-acquisition (CPA) across channels
• Assess the lifetime value of customers acquired through different channel combinations
• Evaluate the impact of integrated campaigns on sales cycle length
• Monitor the efficiency of budget allocation between channels

Remember to regularly review these metrics with key stakeholders and use the insights to refine your strategy. The goal isn't just to measure performance but to continuously optimise how these channels work together.

The path to B2B success

Remember, using SEO and paid media for B2B isn't about choosing one over the other—it's about creating a unified strategy that leverages the strengths of both channels. Start by:

1. Auditing your current digital presence
2. Identifying gaps in your customer journey
3. Creating a content calendar that supports both channels
4. Developing a measurement framework for success
5. Regularly reviewing and adjusting your approach

Ready to transform your B2B digital marketing strategy?

Understanding how to use SEO and paid media for B2B success is just the beginning. The real challenge lies in execution and optimisation. At Leopard Co, we help businesses navigate these complex waters and create strategies that drive real results.

Want to learn more about how we can help you combine SEO and paid media for maximum impact?

Get in touch at hello@leopardco.com we'd love to explore the possibilities together.