Rules for BtoB corporate website content
- Basics -

Hello. I'm Haga from the BtoB team in the Marketing & Sales department.

Over the next two posts, titled "The Laws of Content," I would like to introduce you to the concept of "content," an important element of BtoB corporate websites.

Generally speaking, websites are built on content, and the quality of the content has a big impact on the effectiveness of the website. Therefore, I would like to divide content into two categories: "basic content" and "applied content."

First, in the basic section, we will introduce the ``5 basic contents'' that are essential for a corporate website of a BtoB company, and in the next advanced section, we will introduce advanced content that can further increase the appeal to users.

In other words, the five basic pieces of content are so important that without them, a corporate website may not be able to fulfill its minimum role. These may seem like obvious things, but I would like to go over them one by one.

1. Company Profile

First, let's start with the "company information," which is the most basic part of a corporate website. A company overview is essential information to convey to first-time visitors that you are a "trustworthy company." The necessary information is as follows:

[Minimum requirements]
・Company name ・Head office location ・Representative director ・Establishment ・Capital ・Business details

[Things that are good to add]
・Management philosophy ・Message from the president ・List of offices ・History

We recommend posting a "Management Philosophy," which explains the company's philosophy and how employees live by it, and a "Message from the President," in which the president expresses his or her thoughts and feelings in his or her own words, as content that communicates the company's thinking to users.

Also, if you have multiple locations, you should list them all together (including their addresses and contact information) so that they can be checked at once. For companies with a long history, posting a history can help users trust you, so be sure to post that as well.

2. Product and service information

Next, we have "product and service information," which is arguably the most important piece of content on a BtoB corporate website. This is because users check the content posted here, compare it with the products and services of other companies, and consider whether or not to purchase it.

First of all, you need to post detailed information about the product or service (such as specifications), and it would be helpful to also post easy-to-understand "features" and "examples of use." In addition, if you could mention any issues users may have and propose solutions based on those issues, it would be easier to visualize the product or service.

The thing to pay attention to here is the readability of the page. It is common for BtoB company websites to have detailed pages that are full of text information. This can discourage users from looking at the page. If they don't read it, the page is as good as not existing. It is necessary to make the page easy to read by making good use of figures and photos.

It is also helpful to provide search and filtering functions in various patterns so that users can find the products and services they are looking for. We recommend creating a path that makes it easy for users to find the information they are looking for by using "functions," "features," "purposes," "issues," "solutions," etc.

OSG Corporation ( https://www.osg.co.jp/index.html )
The detailed page provides information such as product features, processing examples, and links to related information, and is structured to reflect user needs. In addition, the site makes extensive use of photographs and illustrations, making it visually easy to view.

3. Announcement Information

Content that transmits "information" related to a company is essential for quickly delivering the latest news to users. It is desirable for information on a website to be updated whenever there are changes and always be up-to-date. The best example of this is "announcement information."

Because speedy and frequent updates are required, many companies have adopted CMS (content management systems) in recent years and have established systems that allow them to carry out updates in-house.

In order to allow users to see daily news at a glance, such as announcements of new products and services, and information about events such as festivals and seminars, it is common for "announcements" to be displayed prominently on the homepage of a corporate website.

Nifco Inc. ( https://www.nifco.com/ )
Announcements are displayed in the first view of the top page. Announcements of different genres are neatly organized by switching tabs.

4. Recruitment Information

BtoB companies also put a lot of effort into their "recruitment information" pages. As a company, securing and developing human resources is a very important issue. In addition to posting information on a job information site, it is also necessary to have the information you need to convey when interested users visit your corporate website.

Simply posting the job description will not allow users to imagine themselves working there. In addition to the job description, we recommend that you provide content that will help users deepen their understanding of the company by introducing the job description, the image of actual employees working there, and the company's philosophy and systems.

Recently, more and more companies are creating websites dedicated to recruitment, separate from their corporate websites. By turning senior employees' "real voices" into content in the form of interviews, it is possible to convey the rewards and excitement of BtoB business, which is generally difficult to convey.

Kaga Electronics Co., Ltd. New Graduate Recruitment Site ( http://recruit.taxan.co.jp/ )
BtoB companies tend to have a stuffy impression, but this site allows you to "see the people's faces" through employee introductions and roundtable discussions.

5. Contact Form

Finally, there is the "inquiry form," which is important when users who are interested in your company want to get in touch.

Creating a pre-defined, dedicated "inquiry form" allows users to easily make inquiries. However, if the inquiry form is difficult to find or has many complicated input fields, there is a high possibility that users will abandon the form before completing their inquiry. It is important to consider what the inquiry form should look like from the user's perspective. Don't forget to also prepare a system that allows for a prompt response after receiving an inquiry.

In addition, it is useful to set up an FAQ page that lists frequently asked questions and their answers in advance. Setting up a navigation system within the inquiry page also reduces the amount of work required to respond to inquiries.

Central Glass Co., Ltd. ( http://www.cgco.co.jp/ )
The form has a small number of input fields and is designed with the user in mind, including examples of how to fill them in and indications of required and left-field fields.

I think that the "5 basic contents" that I introduced this time are already present on the corporate website of most companies. However, content is meaningless if it is just "there". I think that content will only be truly functional if the information that needs to be conveyed is accurately conveyed to the user.

First, we recommend that you double-check these five pieces of content to make sure they contain all the information you need to convey to your users.

In the next installment, titled "Advanced," I'd like to introduce some examples of content that will further increase the appeal of your corporate website.