It’s no surprise that many companies use social media to interact with their audiences. B2C companies have always used social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to establish communication with potential customers and followers. So what about the B2B corporate sector? Can social media platforms really help B2B companies find exposure and recognition that they would otherwise miss out on?
84% of employed millennials consider mobile devices and social media essential to their development. While some companies opt for advertisement and brand awareness outside of social media, why not grab the attention of potential partners and investors by creating dedicated pages on sites such as Instagram or Behance? The answer to that question can be summed up in a number of benefits that social media does provide for B2B sector.
Better SEO ranking
To start things off, let’s consider the SEO involved in placing your site on social media platforms. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) was created in order for authoritative, relevant brands to be visible on search engines.
Putting your name on social media platforms directly implies that you are willing to go a step further in your SEO optimization in order to rank your site higher than before. Google’s SERP loves sites with social media integration, sharing abilities and cross-platform interaction.
Studies show that 65% of brands reported increased success since implementing content marketing strategies into their social media efforts. This will effectively place your company’s website above the competition for the simple reason that you are present on more fronts than one.
Employee networking
If you think that your employees don’t use social media channels to communicate, you are sorely mistaken. However, this can prove beneficial both for their interaction and your long-term company goals.
Involve your employees into the social media strategy by allowing them to publically interact, promote their company culture and be seen by the public. This will give your brand a positive image of healthy work relations, adequate working conditions and happy employees. The B2B scene is often far more intricate than B2C because you are essentially competing with companies that offer very similar products to your own.
Differentiate yourself by putting your employees out there and letting them speak about the company. You will not only attract the eyes of your competition and potential clients but also any future candidates and employees that might come knocking.
High RoI
Investing into social media B2B channels might seem like an expense at first. However, hiring a social media manager and several content creators is more affordable than traditional advertisement. Recently conducted studies show that 49% of B2B businesses focus their marketing strategy on articles. There is a high Return on Investment (RoI) involved in social media strategy implementation.
The content creators you employ can create company blog posts, lists of tips and tricks for industry experts as well as customer and client testimonials. Going a step further than everyone else is always a good idea in the corporate sphere, so make sure to proofread and edit your content before publishing it.
In this regard, you can use several professional writing services that offer proofreading, editing and formatting services for social media content. One of the best writing platforms out there is Trust My Paper respectively. Choosing any type of their services depending on your specific needs will provide you with all the help you need to publish high quality B2B content on you social media channels. As a bonus, you can include international reading options for your content if you work with clients and companies across the world.
More B2B interaction
When was the last time you went for coffee or lunch with someone from another company? Social media channels for B2B marketing can be used for lead nurturing, industry networking and project discussions just like emails. The main difference here being that social media has a certain degree of casualty to it which brings the conversation to a new level.
It’s far easier to interact with other companies and stakeholders through social media than it is through other channels, especially if your partners are miles or countries away. The ensuing B2B interaction that comes from social media presence is something that very few companies take into consideration when passing on the opportunity to establish their online presence through Facebook or LinkedIn.
Building industry authority
Every company strives to become the alpha in their own industry’s niche. Building a presence on social media means that you are willing and able to present your work to others. Believe it or not but the majority of companies, startups and small firms today do invest into social media marketing to some extent.
However, most enterprises focus on building B2C relations without relying on B2B for any income or contracts. This is the biggest mistake most companies make and it’s the one you are able to monetize on. Studies have shown that as much as half of Instagram users follow at least one B2C or B2B account.
The fact that so few companies use social media for B2B means that there is a vacuum of unused attention and potential projects waiting to be claimed. Start building your industry authority by investing into the one aspect of marketing that your competition won’t anticipate – social media.
Building for the future (Conclusion)
The future of content marketing and B2B strategies lies in social interaction and two-way communication. This fact alone should be enough for many to consider social media platforms as viable options for their B2B marketing.
With more and more companies building a presence on one or more of these platforms, only time will tell what the B2B marketing landscape will look like years down the line. All we can do for now is prepare for the future and embrace the trends as they come along.
About the Author
Marie Fincher is a content writer at TrustMyPaper.com with a background in marketing, technology and business intelligence. She frequently writes about data science, BI, new marketing trends and branding strategies. Marie gradually changed her focus from working in marketing to writing about it.
