Getting B2B content off the ground involves a lot of moving parts, and one of the trickiest is the handoff to your copywriter. A brief sets the direction, but the better the background information and source material, the stronger the first draft. If pulling that together feels like a task in itself, don’t fret: you probably already have most of what they need.
1. Your style guide or brand guidelines
A style guide settles the small questions before they turn into feedback on a draft: how you write the company name, whether you use the Oxford comma, which terms you avoid. It also keeps things consistent across everything you publish. Don’t worry if it’s incomplete or out of date. Even a rough one gives your copywriter useful direction.
2. Anything you’ve already published
Website copy, press releases, conference talks, webinars, previous annual reports — all these give your copywriter existing material to work from. They show how you position yourselves, the language and messages you use, and what topics you’ve already covered. Your copywriter can find most of this, but knowing which pieces matter to you is what makes it useful: which case study you’re proud of, which page is out of date, which talk landed well.
3. Internal documents and articles
Everything that lives inside the company — strategy documents, presentations, reports, and internal magazines — is input for your copywriter. These contain the background, thinking, terminology, and detail that never makes it onto the website. They’re where your copywriter picks up specialized knowledge and builds a deeper understanding of how your business works. This is also the type of material people hesitate to share. If that’s you, ask the writer or agency to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). An NDA lets you protect sensitive information without holding back the detail your copywriter needs to do the job well.
4. Team interviews and conversations
Even with plenty of written material to work from, a conversation with someone close to the subject adds context that documents can’t. Your copywriter asksquestions and explores the subject together with your expert — pursuing the details, stories, and perspectives that shape the piece. And it doesn’t have to be a big time commitment: 45 minutes with the right person can give your copywriter plenty of useful material.
5. Research, reports, and data
Market research, industry reports, your own performance data — if it exists, send it over. This is the substance your copywriter uses to add depth: emerging trends, major developments, and the evidence behind the claims you want to make. It’s also a quick way for your copywriter to build a broader understanding of your industry through sources you already know and trust.
6. Examples of copy you like
Share a few examples of writing you like. This could include a competitor’s website, a well-written article, or a piece of content a colleague sent round. It doesn’t have to be B2B: B2C copy that spoke to you, got the tone of voice right, or did a great job explaining a topic works just as well. A word or two on what you liked about it is enough. And it works the other way too: if there’s something you’d rather avoid, that’s just as useful to see.
Send us what you have
You’ve almost certainly got more to work with than you think, and plenty for our writers to create B2B content that works. Get in touch with us, and we’ll work together on mapping what’s there and what we still need. Making the most of what you already have is part of what we do.
Keliya Perry
10 September 2026