Whether you’re creating content for a B2C or a B2B audience, a deep understanding of your target group is essential. If you don’t know what information your readers or viewers are looking for, where they are in the customer journey, what their typical characteristics are, or how your product or service fits their needs — hold off on launching that content. It could turn out to be a wasted investment.

A clear picture of your audience

In content marketing, profiling your audience has evolved into a strategic discipline of its own: developing buyer personas. This clear, detailed profile — enriched with carefully selected characteristics — helps you tailor your content to the right people. It’s a valuable piece of your documented content marketing strategy, making sure every content creator, internal or external, knows exactly who they’re addressing.

B2C vs. B2B: the key differences

Is your content aimed at consumers or businesses? That difference brings important nuances you shouldn’t ignore. Can you simply base B2B buyer personas on the same principles as B2C ones? After all, a person might be a consumer one moment and a purchasing manager the next — the same individual in different roles. But should you adjust your approach when speaking to them in a business context? The answer is: absolutely.

Consider a different decision-making context

First, responsibility shifts. A consumer makes decisions based on personal needs and experiences, while a B2B customer reasons on behalf of their company — taking company goals, plans, and experiences into account. It sounds obvious, but it’s an essential point because it fundamentally changes how you develop a buyer persona.

Not only does a B2B audience look for different things, but they also respond differently to the content you deliver. Impulse purchases? Rare in B2B. Instead, logical, rational content carries more weight. That’s important in B2C too, but impulse is far less likely to tip the scales in B2B.

Translated to the customer journey, this means B2B audiences attach even more value to information that supports their purchase research. Think reports, whitepapers, case studies, and free product trials — especially in the later stages of the process.

So, how do you reflect that in your persona? Look at the objectives of the companies you’re targeting. What deeper purpose drives them? What company values matter to them? Don’t skip these aspects — they’ll help you assess whether your content adds value. Alongside concrete needs, map out the challenges your B2B persona faces and what motivates them to tackle those challenges.

One B2B buyer persona, many faces

Here’s another important distinction: in B2B, you’re summarizing a diverse group of people into one or more buyer personas. Isn’t that the case in B2C too? Sure — you group diverse individuals into profiles. But in B2B, you’re not only grouping different companies — within each of those, there’s a whole team of decision-makers and influencers.

That means a B2B buyer persona needs extra layers. Start with a central figure — a CEO, CIO, procurement manager, or another key contact. Choose carefully, as this is your core audience. From there, add characteristics that might apply to other stakeholders your content could reach.

Maybe you’re targeting the CEO, but you know your content on HR topics will also land with the HR director. Keep that in mind while building your persona. Avoid turning it into a random collection of traits — clearly note which characteristics belong in the persona and go beyond basic demographic details like age, gender, or education.

Key elements to include:

• Motivations: What does this person want to achieve? What are their tasks and responsibilities?
• Challenges: What obstacles do they face, and how can your products or services help?
• Needs: What resources do they require to reach their goals or overcome barriers?
• Deal-breakers: What could prevent them from working with your company? What kind of content do they avoid?
• History: How have you previously reached this person? What reactions have you received? Who are they currently working with?

Experience shows that answering these questions is often more complex in B2B than in B2C — because of that inherent diversity. Take the time to go deep, and consider strategic advice to help unravel the complexities.

Don’t forget the business-specific traits

Finally, B2B personas should also include some elements you won’t find in B2C profiles. Think about financial details (how much do these types of companies typically spend on your kind of products or services?), brand preferences, decision influencers (ranging from internal stakeholders to third-party reviews), and online behavior (which social platforms matter to them, and how is that evolving?).

An interesting question: should you focus only on positive attributes? Maybe not — you might be less interested in profiles drawn to a market segment that’s less profitable for you. Be clear about this, so everyone knows when it’s better not to target certain prospects.

Plenty of online templates can help you present this information clearly. The exact format doesn’t matter as much, but consistency across your personas does. It’s important to be able to compare them based on the same set of criteria.

A B2B buyer persona is never static

If you take a close look at the characteristics to include, one thing is clear: they can shift — often faster in B2B than in B2C. New business goals, financial results, experiences with your company, or evolving interests can all trigger changes. If you notice these shifts frequently within your audience, it’s time to adjust your persona.

In short: buyer personas are never ‘finished’. You need to lay the foundation as part of your strategy, but regular updates are essential. And even if your audience stays the same, your own business objectives might change — and that will inevitably impact your buyer personas too.