Developing the use of content marketing for a B2B organization : Case Laatukeskus

This master’s thesis examines developing the use of content marketing for a B2B organization, Laatukeskus. The thesis provides knowledge of the members’ opinions and needs for valuable content, as well as concrete ideas how content marketing can be utilized to support the Laatukeskus strategy and brand renewal. The aim is to develop the marketing communication for members and other stakeholders by content marketing guidelines. The content marketing guidelines will help Laatukeskus to engage with its stakeholder groups more effectively and form long-lasting customer relationships that are based on the needs of the members as key stakeholders. The literature review introduces the key concepts related to branding, corporate communication, marketing communication and content marketing. Stakeholder communication and the aspect of B2B branding are also described. The research method was qualitative approach. The empirical part included two parts: brand interviews for Laatukeskus stakeholders conducted by Miltton Group for the Laatukeskus brand renewal, and member interviews conducted by the author for this research. The brand interviews were conducted at the beginning of 2016, and the member interviews were implemented in December 2016 and January 2017. The main findings of the research show that members and other stakeholders do not view the Laatukeskus brand as strong as it should be. New kind of content and member communication is needed to strengthen the new brand and develop the image of Laatukeskus as a forerunner in Finnish quality development. The research indicates that blog posts, articles, Laatukeskus member newsletter, international aspects, networking and event information, and the presence of Laatukeskus employees are regarded as valuable content by the members. Based on the research results, the content marketing guidelines and several development ideas for future communication and content marketing of Laatukeskus have been provided