Steve Bloodworth’s career spans process improvement digital and content leadership across large B2B organisations. After leaving university and joining Caterpillar in his home town he became a certified Six Sigma black belt - an experience that instilled a deep respect for data customer impact and disciplined execution. Over the years that followed Steve applied those principles across multiple B2B organisations gradually specialising in digital and product content where he has become one of the strongest advocates for treating content as a commercial asset rather than a supporting function.

In this episode of The B2B Experience Steve argues that product content is one of the most underestimated drivers of success in B2B organisations. While leaders often focus on pricing product range and sales capability they rarely give the same attention to the quality accuracy and usability of the information that customers rely on to make decisions. The result is that content becomes a silent liability undermining confidence and authority without ever triggering obvious alarms.

Steve explains to Steve Borges, Co-founder of digital customer experience agency Biglight that poor content rarely causes dramatic failures. Instead it creates small moments of doubt. Missing specifications inconsistent descriptions unclear imagery and contradictory information slowly erode trust. Buyers may not complain but they hesitate question and look elsewhere. Over time this hesitation translates into lost revenue longer sales cycles and increased reliance on sales teams to fill gaps that content should already address.

A key theme in the conversation is how difficult it can be to secure investment in content improvement. Steve shares stories of situations where content issues were widely known but consistently deprioritised. Content problems are often seen as cosmetic or secondary until someone finds a way to make their impact visible.

One of the most effective approaches Steve describes is grounding content discussions in real customer experience. By showing how customers struggle to find information misunderstand products or abandon journeys organisations are forced to confront the operational consequences of poor content. In some cases the catalyst for change is surprisingly basic such as customers being unable to log in access product data or complete simple tasks. These moments reveal how fragile confidence can be.

Steve repeatedly returns to the idea that content is a proxy for organisational competence. From a buyer’s perspective inaccurate or confusing content signals deeper problems. If a supplier cannot describe their own products clearly why should they be trusted to deliver reliably or support complex requirements. This is particularly true in B2B environments where purchases are high risk and high value.

The episode explores how strong content reduces friction across the buying journey. When customers can self-serve confidently sales teams spend less time answering repetitive questions and more time adding value. Support teams face fewer avoidable issues. The organisation becomes easier to do business with not because of a single transformation but because small sources of friction have been systematically removed.

Steve also emphasises the importance of structured content audits. Rather than trying to fix everything at once effective teams identify where content failure has the greatest commercial impact. This might be core product ranges high traffic pages or moments where customers most frequently drop out of the journey. Prioritisation ensures effort is focused where it delivers measurable value.

Customer research plays a central role in this process. Steve describes how usability testing and behavioural insight reveal issues that internal teams often overlook. What seems obvious to an expert may be confusing to a buyer encountering a product for the first time. Observing real behaviour removes opinion from the equation and replaces it with evidence.

Testing is another recurring theme. Steve advocates a test and learn approach to content improvement using A/B testing and controlled changes to validate impact. This aligns closely with his Six Sigma background where assumptions are challenged and improvements are proven rather than asserted. Over time this builds organisational confidence in content investment because results are visible and repeatable.

The commercial outcomes of this approach are significant. Improved content increases conversion efficiency reduces reliance on sales intervention and builds trust earlier in the buying process. It also supports long term brand authority by demonstrating clarity competence and consistency. Content becomes part of the experience rather than an afterthought.

Steve is clear that none of this requires radical reinvention. The most effective improvements are often incremental. Fixing critical gaps removing ambiguity and making information easier to access can have an outsized impact. The challenge is not knowing what to do but committing to doing it consistently.

The episode closes with a reflection on leadership responsibility. Steve argues that content deserves senior attention because it sits at the intersection of customer experience operational efficiency and revenue. Treating content as a strategic asset rather than a maintenance task changes how organisations prioritise investment and measure success.

For leaders willing to look beyond surface metrics this conversation offers a clear message. If customers lack confidence in your content they will lack confidence in your business. Fixing that starts with understanding real customer needs testing improvements and taking content seriously as a driver of growth.

Topics connected to this episode

The role of product content in building trust and authority

How poor product content undermines buyer confidence

Using content audits to identify critical gaps

Making content problems visible to secure investment

Customer research and usability testing for content improvement

Identifying friction points in product journeys

Incremental content improvements and prioritisation

Test and learn approaches to product content

A/B testing product content and presentation

The impact of content quality on revenue and conversion  

B2B product content

Product content audit

Content quality assessment

Content optimisation

Customer research in B2B

Customer journey friction

Usability testing

A B testing in B2B

Experience design

Trust and authority in B2B buying

Data driven content improvement

‍