A survey of 1,500 B2B respondents by DigitalZone finds that about 1/3rd report reading on their own time; but the gap between what they read, and what gives them confidence is plain to see
Business executives read vendor content outside of work hours. At least some of them do, according to a global survey of 1,500 B2B respondents by Digitalzone, with a margin of error of +/- 3%. About one-third of respondents indicated they do industry reading on their personal time.
What type of content are they reading on their personal time?
According to the survey:
- Long videos – 34%
- Infographics – 32%
- Short videos – 28%
- Articles – 25%
- Email / newsletters – 22%
- Interactive content – 21%
- Podcasts – 16%
If you look at the graphic nearby, which contrasts reading at work with personal time, short-form video is the only content format where respondents say they spend more time reading at home than they do at work.
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The survey asked a follow-up question – what types of content hold your attention when reading in your personal time?
The answers:
- Market trends – 44%
- News and current events – 38%
- Success stories – 29%
- Product reviews – 28%
- Educational content – 24%
These findings also remind me of two separate studies around content.
A study based on systems data by Netline found, which I covered earlier this year, found that prospective customers who download content today, will read it a week later.
The next one was the same study by Netline conducted in 2019. It found 51% of C-suite executives at large companies use personal emails – such as @gmail or @yahoo to register for content. That’s significant because many companies screen these emails out – and it’s a big mistake.
What gives buyers confidence?
The survey later asked respondents, “When you’re evaluating vendors, what gives you the most confidence in your decision?
Here are the answers:
- Proof of concept – 45%
- Transparent pricing – 44%
- Responsive communication – 39%
- Personalized proposal – 36%
- Understanding of business – 32%
- Peer recommendations – 27%
- Case studies – 25%
- Independent validation – 14%
- Vendor reputation – 6%
Did you notice anything? Of the seven types of content mentioned above, only case studies are on the list of what gives buyers confidence (“success stories” and “case studies” are generally synonymous). Most of what is high on this list is not in the purview of marketing.
A proof of concept? It takes a sales engineer.
Transparent pricing? That’s a leadership decision. They don’t like to list prices for fear of giving up negotiation power, but other studies have shown that without it, you might not make the short list.
Responsive communication? It depends on where they are in the pipeline, but typically this is a sales responsibility to respond to customer inquiries. Ditto for personalized proposals.
It’s not until we get to the fifth item – understanding the business – that marketing has a direct role. Prospective customers need to get the sense from your marketing content that your business understands your customer’s industry and the problem they are trying to solve.
Marketing can influence peer recommendations if they have an effective customer marketing program that includes reviews. Usually this falls to the team outside of lead gen.
Case studies are squarely on the to-do list for marketing, so make sure they are solid, and please do not put case studies behind a registration gate.
The last two – independent validation and vendor reputation – those could come from several directions, but often these involve PR or comms, which in B2B tech, often reports to marketing.
What can B2B marketing do with these findings?
There are three takeaways for B2B marketing that stand out.
First, taking all the studies mentioned above together, it’s worth thinking about the effect being at home might have on your landing or registration page. While some businesses have attempted the RTW effort, the fact is a lot of people still work from home or are on a hybrid arrangement.
The line between work and home has blurred and that ought to be a consideration when marketing thinks about it’s content strategy.
Second, in terms of confidence, there isn’t much marketing can do about tasks that belong to sales. That is to say, other than stirring up a lively office debate when the sales team doesn’t follow up with new registrants in a timely fashion.
I think this shows one of the key challenges with measurement in marketing: the handoff between marketing and sales. The sales-marketing alignment has dogged marketing my entire career. This is exactly why we’ve seen new functions, like marketing operations, emerge in recent years.
Third, there is something that marketing can do: make sure that factors like understanding the business, peer recommendations and independent validation are reflected in the top-of-the funnel content.
How? Weave your own survey data, customer quotes, product reviews and analyst quotes into your content. That’s a starting point that any B2B marketer with initiative can implement immediately.
The full report is worth a read and is freely available here: Dimensions of Demand 2026: Buyer Report.
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