New Year’s Resolutions: Ideas and Insights for B2B Marketers

It’s that time of year again, where if you haven’t already set your goals for 2024, you’re probably searching for New Year’s resolution ideas that you can actually commit to.

The concept of a “New Year’s resolution” hasn’t always been one I’ve embraced – and it looks like I’m not alone. Less than one in five people set resolutions at the beginning of 2023.

In my personal life, I always see “New Years” resolutions as limiting. I believe you can decide to change something in your life whenever you choose – not just when you start a new calendar. However, there’s something powerful about setting resolutions for your professional life.

Studies actually show us that goal setting really does make you more likely to be successful. It’s something I’ve seen myself over the years, working as part of the Today Digital team.

In today’s fast-moving world of B2B marketing (particularly in the tech industry), setting some clear goals could be the key getting the “edge” you really need.

That’s why I’m sharing some of my top New Year’s resolution ideas, insights, and tips, to inspire marketers like me.

Coming Up with New Year’s Resolution Ideas: Top Tips

Before I share some of my personal best New Year’s resolution ideas, let me explain my strategy – how I came up with these ideas in the first place. The reason most of us have abandoned our New Year’s resolutions by March isn’t because we’re flighty or fickle.

It’s because we’re not setting the right resolutions in the first place. If your resolutions aren’t well-informed, and realistic, just like your business goals, they’re not going to work out.

So, how do you define the ideas that make the most sense?

Look to the Past for Inspiration

Almost every goal I’ve set in my professional life has been a result of the things I’ve learned and discovered along the way. As a content writer, I check the stats of my highest-ranking most-read content with tools like Google Analytics and SEMRush, to set goals like:

• Create more in-depth content
• Share more personal experiences
• Leverage the latest industry trends

Taking a data-driven approach with your New Year’s resolution ideas is a good way to ensure you’re setting goals that are going to have an impact – at least in my opinion.

Be Specific

If you’ve ever set marketing or business goals before, you’ll know how important it is to be specific. You can’t just say you want to “be a better journalist”. You need to define what that really means to you. For me, creating better content in 2024 will be about conducting more in-depth research, learning more about the journeys of the customers I serve, and putting more of myself into my content.

These are all things I’ve learned can contribute to my success by working with Today Digital. So ask yourself, what do you really want to accomplish, and how?

Connect with Your Team

Before I started writing this article, the first thing I did was speak to the team at Today Digital. Why? Because your colleagues and connections are an amazing source of inspiration. I asked them what they’ve accomplished this year, and what they accomplish next year. Here’s what they said:

• Rory Greener (Tech Journalist): I wish to continue to hone my craft and become a better storyteller in the New Year because immersive technologies offer unique possibilities for narrative exploration. I want to craft compelling articles, podcasts, or even VR experiences that truly transport readers to the forefront of this groundbreaking field.
• Loraine Jenkins (Senior Account Manager): I want to take more advantage of the incredible work/life balance we’ve been given at Today Digital. With the new four-day work week, I can spend more time in my new allotment, nurturing my mind and spirit.
• Kieran Devlin (Tech Journalist): I’d like to become more of an expert/authoritative voice on UC in general, but also AI as it enters its biggest year yet in 2024. I’d ideally like to develop my knowledge base around UC and AI to the point where I’d feel comfortable and confident in doing news analysis and commentary on virtually every topic UC Today covers.

Be Ambitious (But Realistic)

Take a little inspiration from Loraine above. New Years’ Resolutions – even professional ones, don’t have to be overly ambitious. They don’t even have to be directly related to what you do every day in your marketing role. Sometimes little goals, like looking after yourself more, can make a huge difference in your professional life.

Don’t be afraid to start small when coming up with New Years’ Resolutions ideas. Once you achieve your first “small goal”, you can move onto the next!

Be Patient

One of the reasons I’ve given up on my own New Year’s Resolutions in the past, is that I’ve been too impatient. I wanted to see results straight away. My years with Today Digital, and as a content writer in general, have shown me that patience is really key to success.

Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t immediately achieve your goals. Give yourself time to form new habits, and celebrate the little wins you do get. Say this year you want to become more efficient in your work, start by trying to shave just ten minutes off your day.

New Years Resolution Ideas for B2B Marketers

Now let’s get to the good stuff. The follow New Years Resolution ideas aren’t just goals I’m setting for myself as a B2B marketer – they’re targets I think can apply to anyone in this industry.

I know – AI is a controversial topic, particularly for B2B m

Make Friends with the Bots

I know – AI is a controversial topic, particularly for B2B marketers and journalists. When hype for AI started ramping up in the content creation world, I admit I was afraid. I genuinely thought bots would be taking over, creating all of our content for us on autopilot.

The team at Today Digital showed me that didn’t have to be the case. They helped me see the benefits of making friends with the bots. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Copilot really can change the way you work. They can make it easier to come up with innovative ideas for content, understand your customers, and even plan marketing campaigns.

Embracing AI isn’t about relinquishing control and handing your full workload over to the bots. It’s about knowing where you can effectively lean on technology to get an edge. In the B2B marketing space, where it’s becoming even more important to create content that outshines the competition, and provides in-depth insights, AI can really help.

Work Smarter, Not Harder

Hard work is still important if you want to succeed in any role – particularly B2B marketing. Since B2B customers have longer, more complex purchasing cycles, it really does take more work to guide your prospects through the sales funnel. But that doesn’t mean you can’t take some shortcuts.

Automation is an amazing thing. It saves me time every day when I need to follow up with clients, or make sure a post is published at just the right time. If you’re not already using this tech in your B2B marketing strategy, I recommend starting now, or you risk falling behind.

Other ways to work smarter instead of harder in B2B marketing include:

• Taking more breaks: I know, it’s tough. However, we can really only concentrate for so long. Eventually, you need to take a moment to stop and refresh, or you’ll burn out.
• Change your schedule: Working “smarter” can even change your whole schedule. We embraced the 4-day work week at Today Digital in 2023, and we’ve never been more productive (or healthier!).
• Ask for help: When I’m not sure what to write about, or what my content should include, I don’t just do more research. I turn to my team. If you’re working in B2B marketing, remember to connect with your sales and customer service teams too. They’re great for providing insights into your audience you might not have.

Just take a moment and ask yourself, are you really making the most of your time?

Experiment More Often

In the last couple of years, the way B2B customers search for content, research products and connect with brands has changed. We’ve seen the rise of new marketing campaigns pushed across channels like TikTok and Facebook Stories, as well as the introduction of “metaverse ad campaigns”.

So make one of your New Years’ Resolution ideas this year all about experimentation. Be ready to embrace the latest trends as they emerge. We’ve already started doing this at Today Digital, producing new omnichannel product guides, videos, and social media campaigns.

In fact, experimentation with video is one of the ways we discovered that video is one of the most powerful tools for B2B marketing. Our video events and channels attract more attention than we could have imagined, and they’re carefully targeted at the right people.

Experimenting is the only way to find out what’s really going to work for B2B marketing in 2024, as AI, automation, and changing algorithms continue to influence the web. Step outside of your comfort zone with me.

Be More Human

This might sound like the oddest idea I’ve listed so far. You’re already a human being – how can you be “more human”? The simple answer is, stop treating B2B customers like robots in your marketing. Sure, we know that B2B customers tend to be more influenced by things like data and statistics, but that doesn’t mean they’re not emotionally driven too.

I’ve found some of my highest-performing content in the last year has been the stuff where I’ve really let my own opinions, insights, and personality shine through. I honestly believe the human touch will be the most important part of B2B marketing in the years ahead.

With AI content creation taking over, the only way to really get an edge and connect with your target audience, is to be more human. Show your experience, expertise, and authority when you’re creating content, emailing customers, or posting on social media.

Remember, 2024 will be the year of “authenticity”. Customers don’t want to see endless streams of AI-generated drivel. They want real stories, and real people.

Learn More

For me, this resolution will probably be the easiest to keep. I’m a self-diagnosed knowledge addict that loves to learn, and I think that’s part of what makes me a good marketer. The world keeps changing, and we need to change along with it.

So, how do you learn more in 2024?

• Read more: Follow your favorite authors on channels related to your industry (you can check me out on UCToday, XRToday, and CXToday if you like). Read reports from market leaders, buy books from Amazon. Feed your inner bookworm. I definitely recommend staying up to date on news stories about things like Google algorithms – they’ll be changing a lot next year.
• Collect more of the right data: Great B2B marketing is usually data-driven. I can spend hours on SEMRush and other platforms just gathering stats. Data will give you insights into what works for your brand. Just make sure you’re focusing on the right data. The potential “search volume” of your target keywords doesn’t matter as much as how many people actually read your content. Focus on engagement first.
• Listen more: Listening isn’t just for people in customer service, or for showing respect to the people you love. It’s one of the best ways to learn. I’m not just talking about listening to educational podcasts (though those are great). I’m talking about listening to everyone. Your peers, your customers, even your competitors. You’ll get insights into strategies for your B2B marketing campaigns you’ve never thought of before.

Be More Strategic

Finally, my last recommendation for anyone in search of New Years’ Resolutions ideas for B2B marketing is simple: be more strategic. Over the last year with Today Digital, I’ve learned that spending more time on strategy, and less time just on “content”, makes a real difference.

As we head into 2024, the focus for B2B marketers should definitely be on “quality” over quantity. That’s particularly true as Google continues to change its algorithms, and customers become more discerning about the content they consume.

So devise a strategy, using the data you’ve collected, and the trends you’ve recognized in your industry. Think carefully about which social media channels you’re going to use, how you’re going to personalize your campaigns for specific audiences, and how you’re going to tackle ranking in the age of the LLM-powered search engine.

Determine how you’re going to track the results of every campaign you produce, whether you’re monitoring metrics linked to brand awareness, reputation, or engagement.

Here’s to an Incredible 2024

I’m hoping these New Years Resolution ideas and insights have given you some of the inspiration you need to start 2024 on the right foot. But remember – the goals and tips I’ve shared here don’t just have to be for January. Use them whenever you need help refining your professional goals.