The last time the team of Opus Communication spoke about “B2B Marketing: To be or not to be in Social Media” the importance of Digital Marketing for B2B was explained. We at Opus Communication will try to further discuss by explaining different Social Media Strategies that will help the B2B marketers.
Overview of Social Networking Sites
It has all started when social networking began in the form of general online communities on the World Wide Web such as Theglobe.com (1995),Geocities (1994) and Tripod.com (1995). In the late 1990s, user profiles became a central feature of social networking sites, allowing users to compile lists of “friends” and search for other users with similar interests. New social networking methods were developed by the end of the 1990s and many sites began to develop more advanced features for users to find and manage friends. Orkut, Hi5, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other social networking sites emerges as a new platform for users to interact with their friends and other communities. These social networking sites cater to the different needs of the user. Facebook, launched in 2004, emerges as the largest social networking site in the worldin early 2009 among all other social networking sites.
How Businesses incorporate into Social Media
Social media and business are two phrases that have sat uncomfortably for several years. It was all started when these social networking sites have developed into mass audience participation, real time news and networking sites, and the ways in which people use them. This has opened a new gateway to business applications to enhance the user online experience.
How Social Media Helps B2B Marketers
A well designed content & Strategy plan is the fuel needed to power effective social media campaigns that serve to inform, educate, entertain, persuade, engage and endure the online users. Although in social media, a marketer cannot expect from an agency to get the desired result on the very first day. It needs time and strategy which will help them in future to get the desired results.
Social media can deliver many things, but mainly it offers business three Key Opportunities.
- It offers an opportunity to boost customer acquisition by expanding a brand’s reach, add scale to campaigns and enhance conversion through recommendations.
- It gives an opportunity by forming a deeper relationships and advocacy through improving customer service, brand reputation and even product and service quality.
- It also provides the opportunity to access a huge market to test, trial and crowd source new ideas about your products and services.
Opus Believe that using the CARE model will help you in evaluating what Content you want to be associated with, what Audience/s you wish to interact with, how Relevant you are going to be, and how you might go about Evaluation of your activities.
3 Marketing Approach for B2B Marketers
Opus suggests that by using CARE Model B2B Marketers can start creating strategies through 3 Marketing Approach on social media which are:
- Building Brand Awareness
- Showcasing your expertise
- Making contact for sale/lead generation
1. Building brand awareness
Many B2B social media marketing campaigns put their primary focus on racking up as many interactions as possible. After all, it’s easy to set firm goals based on how many users go through to your Page.
While this is the best method most of the time, an interaction-based approach may not actually be the best use of your resources for all elements of your campaign. The main drawback is that it’s dependent upon your ad budget. Every single click costs money, so once you blow through your budget, your ads will cease running, and your company’s visibility will promptly vanish into the ether. Eyes on your brand logo are worth nothing in the abstract, but making first contact can bring value down the road. Impressions are an overlooked KPI that B2B companies need to learn to embrace, at least on occasion.
2. Showcasing your expertise
People turn to sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn not just to interact with others, but also to read the news, track the markets, and keep up with the latest developments in their fields of expertise — in short, they turn to social media to learn from other users. This means you can position your brand as a valued contributor of information, and in doing so bolster your visibility among potential clients. By participating in relevant corners of social media, you’ll also get to communicate directly with potential clients without the attendant pressures of selling.
3. Making contact for sales/lead generation
Of course, your B2B marketing campaign’s ultimate goal is to generate sales, so you’ll have to plot out a strategy for direct contact at some point. Not only is B2B social media marketing a great tool for raising your brand’s visibility, it’s a great way to follow through and make genuine connections with potential buyers. Start off by making a list of potential businesses that you’d like to work with, and then find where their social media presence is strongest.
Social Media- A new way of life
Adhering to these strategies will help give a sense of order to your B2B marketing efforts on social media. That said, it bears repeating the social media is not a magic conduit to sales and brand visibility. If you pour money and time into a social media strategy without planning in advance, it’s almost guaranteed to yield a terrible ROI. The truth is that B2B social media works better as a tool that you can use to influence your sales targets, rather than a channel to direct conversions. This is especially true because social networking sites so thoroughly blend personal and professional interactions. It’s important that you never come off as spam bot fishing for leads. Instead, you should make a genuine effort to join conversations, add value to them, and in doing so present your brand in the best possible light. The ultimate goal is to ensure that each of your potential clients has laid eyes on your brand before you initiate first contact with them.