50 Inbound Marketing Resources Every B2B Marketer Should Subscribe To

If you’re an inbound marketer in the B2B space, you understand how much time and energy goes into planning and executing your marketing campaigns. Success not only requires a solid inbound strategy, but it also requires deep knowledge of the latest best practices in marketing, content, and design.Lucky for us, there are tons of marketing resources out there for B2B marketers looking for ways to improve performance and move the needle for their company or organization. The challenge, though, is sifting through all the amazing resources out there to find the ones that will make the biggest impact. 

To help, I’ve compiled a list of 50 (that’s right, 50!) of my favorite inbound marketing resources that any B2B marketer can benefit from subscribing to in 2021 and beyond.

Resources for Inbound and Content Marketing Best Practices

The foundation of any great digital marketing campaign requires a solid understanding of general inbound marketing concepts, ideas, and best practices. Whether you are completely new to the world of inbound marketing or have been practicing this methodology for years, these resources will help you stay up to date on all the latest trends. 

1. HubSpot

As early pioneers of the inbound marketing movement, it should come as no surprise that the HubSpot blog is one of the most comprehensive resources for inbound marketers out there. The blog is divided into four main categories—marketing, sales, service, and website—and keeps marketers in all roles at the forefront of inbound marketing trends and best practices. In addition to blog articles and content, HubSpot also offers an amazing inbound marketing training curriculum—and it’s free! 

Must-read articles:

• Are Blogs Dead in 2021? We Asked 10 Marketing Experts
• What Is Clubhouse? [+Should Marketers Care?]
• 7 Marketing Channels to Focus On in 2021
• The Ultimate Guide to B2B Marketing in 2021
• 8 Really Cool Ways to Use Video in Email Marketing

2. SmartBug Media®

Granted, I may be a little biased by mentioning The Intelligent Inbound Blog by SmartBug Media, but with contributions from some of the most intelligent and hard-working marketers and creatives I know, I couldn’t leave it out of my list. New articles are posted daily on topics such as inbound marketing, creative design, marketing strategy, paid media, PR, sales enablement, and web development—providing a valuable resource for any B2B marketer.

Must-read articles:

• Inbound Marketing: The Biggest Shifts Happening in Marketing Strategy
• 5 Tools and Technology for Effectively Reporting on Multi-Touch Attribution
• How to Bridge the Gap Between Sales & Marketing Teams
• The Ultimate Landing Page Checklist: 5 Must-Have Elements
• 4 Signs It’s Time to Run a Tech Stack Audit

3. Seth Godin

I doubt there are many marketers out there who don’t know who Seth Godin is, but in case you don’t, he’s a best-selling author, entrepreneur, and marketer who often writes and speaks about how messages and ideas spread in today’s busy world. Every day, he shares his thoughts in pithy, quick-hitting blog posts.

Must-read articles:

• Publishers, curation and algorithms
• Chasing the cool kids
• Did it do what it was supposed to do?
• “I hate this restaurant”
• FOMO and KIMO

4. Content Marketing Institute

The mission of the Content Marketing Institute is to advance the practice of content marketing through online education, print, and in-person seminars. Subscribers get how-to marketing advice for their content strategies, B2B content marketing case studies, research, and more.

Must-read articles:

• The Right Way to Teach, Tease, and Soothe Your Audience With Content
• How to Get Ranked and Read With a Topic Cluster Model
• 21 SEO Tips, Tactics, and Trends for Website Content in 2021
• 100+ Content Marketing Predictions for 2021
• The Future of Content Marketing? (Spoiler: It Doesn’t Require Doing More)

More Resources for Inbound and Content Marketing Best Practices:

5. G2 Crowd Learning Hub

6. Smart Insights

7. Digital Marketing Institute

8. Contently’s Blog—The Content Strategist

9. Act-On

10. DigitalMarketer

Resources for Account-Based Marketing

Although this article is technically about 50 of the best inbound marketing resources, it would be remiss for me to not mention account-based marketing (ABM), because it’s quickly becoming a B2B marketing standard. Although ABM and inbound marketing are two separate methodologies in their own right, they can be combined to create some pretty amazing (and successful!) marketing campaigns. 

For marketers who are laser-focused on engaging and converting their best prospects, there are several resources that can help.

11. Terminus Blog

Although the concept of account-based marketing can be traced back to the early 1990s, it wasn’t until Terminus introduced the Flip My Funnel movement in 2016 that this methodology really started to grow in popularity. Since then, Terminus has become an impactful thought leader in the space, shedding light onto the downfalls of traditional sales and marketing funnel and how B2B marketers successfully implement this methodology. 

The Terminus blog is full of helpful articles to get you started, covering the latest trends in account-based marketing and tactical how-to guides.

Must-read articles:

• How to Boost ABM With Interactive Content
• How to Measure and Optimize Your Entire ABM Funnel
• How to Build a Business Case for ABM

More Resources for Inbound and Content Marketing Best Practices:

12. ABM Leadership Alliance

13. Drift

14. RollWorks

15. Demandbase

Resources for Content Writing

Once you have your inbound strategy down, the next step is to create or fine-tune your content. These resources will help you improve your writing skills and deliver amazing content that your personas will love to read.

16. Copyblogger

Copyblogger includes over 3,000 articles to help marketers write better content that drives traffic, captures attention, and ultimately increases conversions. You’ll walk away with a plethora of tips and advice to help you more effectively engage an increasingly distracted audience. 

Must-read articles:

• How to Write Bullet Points People Actually Want to Read
• 50 Trigger Words and Phrases for Powerful Multimedia Content
• How to ‘Show, Don’t Tell’ for More Persuasive Copy
• How to Write Killer Email Subject Lines for Sales
• The Structure of Persuasive Copy

17. ProBlogger 

ProBlogger is another great resource for writers. It shares tips on starting a blog, creating content, finding readers, and building a community on your website.

Must-read articles:

• 15 Ways to Hook Readers into Your Blog
• 10 Writing Tips to Help You Sound More Human
• 13 Tips for Building Authority and Influence
• First Step to Beating Writer’s Block: Finding out Why You’re Stuck

More Resources for Content Writing:

18. Copyhackers

19. Writing Forward 

20. SmartBlogger

21. Express Writers

Resources for Branding and Design

As you create content for your audience, it’s important to also consider design principles that will not only help your content stand out, but also solidify your brand. The following resources can help B2B marketers do just that.

22. Canva

The Canva blog is divided into several different categories that make it easy to navigate, depending on your individual interests and marketing goals. You’ll learn about topics such as overall design inspiration, marketing strategy, and branding best practices. If you happen to work in education or for a non-profit, there is also a special section dedicated just to these industries as well. 

Must-read articles:

• Design trends to try in 2021
• 100 color combinations and how to apply them to your designs
• Logo inspiration: 50 of the best logos to inspire you
• How to create a visual style guide for your brand
• Color psychology: The logo color tricks used by top companies—and how to design your own

23. Learn UI Design Blog

The Learn UI Design blog is the perfect combination of design inspiration, UI best practices, and branding techniques to ensure your content converts across all channels. Most articles are written for designers, but a lot of the content can be useful to B2B marketers who don’t have in-house design resources.

Must-read articles:

• Color in UI Design: A (Practical) Framework
• The Step-by-Step Guide for Pairing Fonts
• The #1 Way to Spice Up Your Designs (And Create a More Cohesive Brand)

More Resources for Branding and Design:

24. Creative Bloq

25. Brandfolder

26. Behance

Resources for Content Promotion

Once your content is created and pulled together with awesome eye-catching design, it’s time to promote it. These resources provide great tips on how to optimize your channels for promotion and deliver content to your audience.

27. Social Media Examiner 

Social Media Examiner helps inbound marketers discover how to best use social media marketing to connect with customers and, in turn, drive traffic back to their website. The Examiner stays on top of the latest social media platform updates and how they will affect marketers.

Must-read articles:

• Social Audio: What It Means for Marketers and Businesses
• Social Media Marketing Trends for 2021: Predictions From the Pros
• TikTok Content Marketing: How to Grow Your Business With TikTok
• How to Get More Instagram Traffic
• Why Clubhouse App Might Be the Next Major Social Media Platform

28. Social Media Today 

Social Media Today brings together the news, trends, and best practices for enterprise social and digital marketing. There is something new and insightful to read every day.

Must-read articles:

• How to Utilize Your Instagram Profile at Every Stage of Your Sales Funnel
• The Comparative Performance of Brand vs Direct Response Campaigns
• New Report Looks at the Rising Influence of Online Communities
• The 8 Best Social Media Platforms to Market Your Business in 2021
• 10 Tips to Boost Your LinkedIn Presence in 2021

29. Oktopost

Oktopost is a B2B social media management platform, so naturally their blog is written to the B2B audience. This blog does much more than simply share tips on how to promote your content, though. You’ll also find other helpful resources around digital marketing best practices, employee advocacy, and general B2B marketing tips. 

Must-read articles:

• Measuring Customer Experience for B2B Marketers
• Why Transparency Matters in Social Media Management
• How and Why to Perform a Social Media Audit
• Why Sales Needs Social Media Engagement Insight
• The Power of Social Engagement

More Resources for Content Promotion:

30. Mailchimp

31. AWeber

32. Mailigen’s Email Marketing Blog

Resources for Online Advertising and PPC

When executing your inbound marketing strategy, sometimes a little paid promotion is needed to get things started. These resources for online advertising and PPC tips and best practices can help.

33. Google Ads

The Google Ads and Commerce blog shares insightful news, information and tips to help you make the most of Google Ads and other commerce-related products. Although the vast majority of content shared here is geared towards marketers already using the Google Ads platform, there is still a lot of great information regarding industry trends and consumer behavior that can guide your overall inbound strategy as well. 

Must-read articles:

• Charting a course towards a more privacy-first web
• Greater controls for sensitive ad topics in your Ad Settings
• Audio ads on YouTube expand reach and grow brand awareness

34. PPC Hero

PPC Hero offers tons of helpful resources for paid search marketing, including articles, guides, white papers, reports, webinars, and conferences. Regardless of which channel you are using as part of your paid strategy, you’ll be sure to find something that piques your interest. 

Must-read articles:

• 4 Best YouTube Retargeting Strategies that Work in 2021
• Target Competitors On Facebook Using Interest Based Audiences
• 16 Commonly Asked PPC Questions (And Answers)
• Why You Need To Be Using Google Ads Bid Automation
• 10 Alternatives To Google And Facebook Ads

35. The SEM Post

36. The WordStream Blog 

37. AdEspresso by Hootsuite

Resources for Search Marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Want to spend less on paid promotion? It helps when your content and targeted keywords are ranking high in search engine results and you’re able to bring a steady stream of new organic traffic every month. These SEO resources can help you plan and fine-tune your content to optimize for search.

38. Search Engine Land

Search Engine Land covers SEO topics and news for readers with all levels of SEO expertise. Their daily recap reports everything important that happened in search each day from sources all across the web. That alone makes it worth subscribing to.

Must-read articles:

• Google Search may be showing featured snippets less often
• User-Generated Content — The secret SEO weapon
• How to use schema markup to make an impression in search
• Search behavior has forever changed. How can you stay ahead of the pack?

39. Search Engine Watch

Search Engine Watch gathers the latest SEO news, tips, and research. It’s an excellent resource for anyone looking to stay at the forefront of search, PPC, and analytics trends. If you’re short on time, each article has a 30-second summary at the beginning, so you can quickly absorb key insights without reading the full article. If a particular point piques your interest, you can easily bookmark and dive deeper later!

Must-read articles:

• Data-backed insights on featured snippet optimization
• Turning reviews into opportunities for reputation and SEO impact
• A comprehensive guide on using Google Trends for keyword research
• Five hacks to enhance your organic CTR and rankings in SERPs

40. The Moz Blog

The Moz Blog was my go-to source for information when I first started my career in marketing, and it’s still one of my favorite SEO resources to date. Here, you’ll find tons of advice, research, how-to’s, and insights that will help your SEO efforts and online marketing skills. On the blog, there’s a recurring “Daily SEO Fix” video series that provides quick fixes to your keyword strategies. The articles are well-written, and their videos make learning about SEO even more fun than you thought.

Must-read articles:

• According to the Experts: 5 Technical SEO Trends to Watch in 2021
• How to Resolve Duplicate Content
• Featured Snippets Drop to Historic Lows
• The Potential Impact of Gen Z on SEO
• How to Combine SEO and CRO for the Ultimate Lead Generation Strategy

More Resources for Search Marketing and SEO:

41. Search Engine Journal

42. Yoast SEO Blog

43. SEMrush Blog

44. Backlinko

Resources for Website Optimization (Analytics and Testing)

So you’ve created awesome, attention-grabbing content for your personas, promoted it on several channels and improved your keyword ranking in search engines, and now you have tons of traffic coming to your site, right? Awesome. 

Now, it’s time to optimize your website and landing pages for higher conversion. These resources will help you identify and measure the data that counts in order to increase conversion rates and generate more leads.

45. Neil Patel

If you’ve ever researched anything related to digital marketing, chances are you’ve stumbled across at least a few of Neil Patel’s articles. Niel Patel is a New York Times bestselling author, entrepreneur, and icon in the field of digital marketing. His blog provides several vlogs and podcasts about conversion rate optimization (among other things) and offers plenty of valuable advice for marketers who are looking for help with tracking analytics, performing A/B tests, and much more.

Must-read articles:

• Ensuring a Great User Experience Is the First Step in CRO
• 19 A/B Tests You Should Run on Your Website
• SEO Vs. CRO: How to Drive Search Traffic That Converts into Customers
• 7 Free SEO Tools to Drive Traffic, Clicks, and Sales

46. Unbounce

The Unbounce blog is all about landing page and conversion optimization. They often write about conversion benchmarks and lessons learned from various types of A/B testing. Articles are broken up with lots of visuals that keep you engaged with the content—not that the content needs help, because the information presented is really interesting.

Must-read articles:

• 3 Tips for Getting More Value from Your Landing Pages
• 6 Copywriting Tips for Creating Persuasive Landing Pages (and Converting More Visitors)
• Get More Conversions with Lessons from 13 Irresistible Call to Action Examples
• How Landing Pages Impact Quality Score on Every Ad Platform

47. The Nielsen Norman Group

The Nielsen Norman Group is a great resource for evidence-based user experience research, training, and consulting. They provide UX training seminars and valuable reports (for a fee), but they also produce several articles each week on web usability and user testing topics. Each article begins with a quick summary, which is nice if you’re just looking for the main points or takeaways.

Must-read articles:

• Triangulation: Get Better Research Results by Using Multiple UX Methods
• How to Interpret User Time Spent and Page Views
• How to Test Content with Users
• You Can't Test Everything, So What Should You Test?

More Resources for Website Optimization:

48. The Daily Egg by Crazy Egg

49. Lucky Orange

50. Visual Website Optimizer Blog

B2B Resources for Looking Forward and Growing Your Company

So there you have it: 50 resources that every B2B marketer should subscribe to in 2021. By now, I’m sure you’ve realized that there is a lot of overlap in the topics mentioned, but the end goals for each of these resources are all the same—to help you generate more website leads, increase your marketing ROI, and grow your company. 

If you want more tips and advice on how to enhance your inbound marketing strategy, be sure to check out our Inbound Marketing Playbook for 2020 and Beyond.

Do you know of other great resources for B2B marketers? Tweet at us at @SmartBugMedia and let us know!

This was originally posted in May 2017, and has been reviewed, revised, and updated in March 2021.