How Can B2B Marketers Effectively Use Social Media?

If you’re a B2B marketer, you’re probably using social media. Whether you’re doing all you could is another question.  

Although some 93% of B2B marketers in a recent survey by Social Media Examiner reported they use social media, less than 25% of small-business marketers in a survey by eMarketer indicated they used social media in “a strategic and structured way.” That number rises to just 33% for medium-size businesses.

In our experience, the reluctance to embrace a comprehensive social media marketing strategy results from a number of factors. Some B2B marketers simply feel they don’t have adequate staffing or budgets to make the necessary investment. Some aren’t comfortable with all the nuances of social media marketing. And others feel social media is more the province of B2C marketing and aren’t convinced their target audience is active on social media. That’s where they’re wrong.

A TSUNAMI OF ONLINE ACTIVITY

The businesses which comprise your target market are visiting and networking on social media sites. They’re part of the almost 2 billion users of social media around the globe. And chances are they’re already talking about you—on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. The opportunity is unquestionably there—to build new partnerships, improve search engine rankings, acquire valuable business intelligence and increase sales—but you have to jump in, all the way, to take advantage of it.

IT’S ABOUT ENGAGEMENT, NOT DIRECT SALES

Succeeding at social media is more about pull than push. It’s about listening more than talking, gathering intelligence about your target audience, then engaging them in meaningful conversation. And it’s about providing valuable content and practical advice through engaging blogs, videos, white papers, case studies and webinars. In short, winning at social media is about establishing trust in your expertise and loyalty to your brand.

THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

Over the years, we’ve discovered that your social media strategy should encompass meaningful engagement on multiple sites, with principal focus on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. Each has its own rules of engagement and provides different opportunities.

FACEBOOK: BUSINESSES ARE PEOPLE, TOO

Businesses don’t buy from businesses; they buy from people, people whom they trust and respect. Facebook, with its emphasis on social networking, is your opportunity to show your audience the personal side of your business, from your CEO to your sales staff. Bring prospective buyers inside your company by showcasing your people, what they do, and how well they do it. You should also encourage prospective buyers to join in the conversation. Facebook will enable you to make the human connections which lead to increased sales.

LINKEDIN: MEET BUSINESSES WHERE THEY ARE

More than 75% of B2B buyers are using social media to find products and services, and the vast majority are visiting LinkedIn to find company information to aid their purchases. LinkedIn carries the advantage of robust features to promote your B2B business. You can, for example use the Company Overview feature to provide a compelling narrative about what you do, and the Services/Product Description to break out your products and services, with links to press releases and news about the launch of new products.

TWITTER: BROADCAST NEWS

With some 700 million users and 58 million daily tweets, Twitter is the ideal forum for disseminating important company developments and updates in snippets, and to share valuable content to improve search rankings. Be sure to use hashtags to organize tweets around relevant topics to ensure your company gets found and noticed.

CONCLUSION

Our years of experience working with B2B marketers shows that a solid social media strategy is a smart investment to build your brand, improve search rankings and increase conversions and sales. You can win with social media if you do it right by understanding how social media channels work and by making a real commitment of time and resources.