Marketing, even for B2B technology companies, is all about people. There are several good ways to develop social resources. One idea is to cultivate brand ambassadors. Basically, this means converting your existing audience into word-of-mouth marketers who are enthusiastic about sharing your message.
This works because it distributes your company name across several sources. When people beyond your normal range of influence hear about your company from multiple sources, they begin to think of it as trustworthy. This means that B2B companies need to be present and responsive on social media platforms with company profiles as well as relying on brand ambassadors. Reviews are important, too. Connecting positively with industry influencers is like social proof on steroids.
Retweeting messages from influencers and relevant clients can have an impact on what they think about your company and what they might say about it. Sharing pertinent information can win brownie points with others in the industry, as well. A B2B company can also send an e-mail or direct message to trusted influencers to build the relationship, and specific mentions on Twitter get the attention people who might generate business leads.
To build or maintain trust, your company will have to respond appropriately when under attack by malware —and this does happen. Building a strong social network requires creativity and an investment of time, but since a social marketing strategy is built on social resources, B2B companies can work on the two issues as if they were one. When it comes from employees personally and not from the company itself , the marketing is more word-of-mouth than a planned campaign.
To help employees invest in the marketing process, send out an e-mail to employees with content they can share. Sending an e-mail like this once a month is fine.
Likewise, you can ask an employee to share content on a personal LinkedIn Publishing page. Using the company profile can build social proof at the same time that it draws on it. One good way for a company to utilize social proof is in blog posts.
Cross-promoting this way can create social proof as well as spend it. If the external source is against the idea, they can always say no, and the company will still have another contact to engage with when time permits. Not all social resources are free. Business-driving Pinterest campaigns, Reddit ads and Instagram ads are also included in the discussion. One advantage of paid advertising is that it can help a B2B company hit its target audience.
This can save time and make the social media marketing strategy more manageable. In its simplest sense, a platform is like a step stool. There are plenty of social media platforms to choose from. The most successful campaigns utilize a variety of choices at one time. For a B2B technology company, Instagram can be used effectively to build brand awareness. Pictures and fifteen-second videos can help form a friendly connection with users.
There are several ways to use Instagram to help build a brand , such as sending out company updates. Sharing content that widens the sales funnel and providing thought leadership on Instagram can also make an impact. Pew Research Center listed LinkedIn as one of the five fastest growing social media platforms. LinkedIn is four times as more likely than other social media sites to grab the attention of people interested in business topics and drive traffic to business web sites.
Industry insights are in demand. Posting about twenty times a month, during business hours, is a simple but effective LinkedIn strategy. Optimizing a LinkedIn profile is another branding strategy that can help with B2B marketing.
Creating an intriguing profile attracts industry professionals. Conversing with them and, when possible, with LinkedIn influencers allows you to showcase the unique features of your B2B technology company. In the same study that Pew Research Center listed LinkedIn as one of the five fastest growing social media platforms, Facebook was declared to still be the number one social media platform.
Facebook has more than 2 billion active users in a single day. Reddit is the seventh most popular website in the United States, and its largest demographic includes men ages Reddit appeals to technology-minded professionals like those in cybersecurity.
For a B2B technology business to take advantage of Reddit, content has to be thoughtful. Marketing done here is more a like-minded connection than a promotion of any sort.
One interesting thing to note: posts on Reddit are more likely to go viral than posts on any other social media platform. So far, YouTube is one of the top three social media platforms for marketing for B2B technology companies. There are several ways a B2B technology company can use YouTube in an effective social media marketing strategy. Keeping videos short under two minutes is best , posting videos at the right times, and posting educational videos or demonstrations all help.
Videos should be optimized for mobile apps, and a new video should be treated like its own marketing campaign. Two benefits of using YouTube: 1 videos are entertaining as well as educational, which can increase positive emotional response, and 2 videos can be more personable than posts on social media sites like LinkedIn or Twitter. Both benefits help cultivate social resources that can draw business leads later on. Development of new platforms and tracking changes to existing ones can keep B2B technology companies on their toes.
Doing so also lets you promote your services without being too in-your-face or salesy about it. The takeaway here is that customer interactions should be central to your strategy, both in terms of providing service and also producing content.
Pay close attention to any and all mentions and branded keywords to ensure you never miss an opportunity to go engage with a customer. Why, though? Because many marketers either fail to tie their social media to performance to organization-wide data think: sales, traffic or fail to communicate those results across departments. However, social media is a prime place to support company-wide initiatives. The takeaway here is twofold: measure your social efforts in the context of business outcomes and communicate those findings regularly.
Reporting tools like Sprout can make the process so much easier. Below are some tactics to consider for your B2B social media strategy that can help:. A conversational brand voice can highlight the humans behind your social accounts and likewise make you seem more approachable. Email in ClickUp!? Think that's fire?
Adapt your content to social-friendly formats Building more buzz around your content is often as simple as switching up your post captions and formats. For example, would you be interested in following someone that just drops link after link with no commentary? Below are some ideas to both give your social feed s some flavor while also giving your content some entertainment value:. Did you know that LinkedIn was launched in and is the oldest social networking platform still majorly used today?
Using the platform is a great way to get involved in conversations with industry leaders and buyers that are looking for recommendations on products and services. Industry news, thought leadership articles, polls, and career advice are some of the most engaging posts on the platform. LinkedIn has also been used effectively as a platform for employees to build personal brands and share business insights. Getting involved with LinkedIn groups in your industry or areas where you have subject matter expertise is another effective way to generate leads.
Twitter offers one of the best ways to engage in conversations with potential buyers for B2B brands. With over million monthly active users and million tweets sent a day, Twitter is where to stay current and up-to-date in your industry. B2B brands can use hashtags and trending topics to participate in active conversations and understand better what their audiences pain points and needs are.
The more that your company engages in personalized interactions, the more it will be viewed as a helpful and trusted brand, which will lead to more brand loyalty and retention. Many B2B brands offer customer support accounts on Twitter and strengthens relationships with customers that can lead to more customer advocacy. Twitter is also a great resource for social listening and gauging brand sentiment.
You can search mentions and industry terms to see what your target audience is saying about your brand and identify content opportunities. On Twitter, it is especially important to develop a distinct brand personality and show authenticity. Jargon and generic business terms are not going to cut it on a platform that thrives on more buzzworthy content. Show off how your brand is unique and personable to stand out from competitors and generate engagement.
Facebook is the most used social platform with 1. While you get characters, your posts should be less than characters. Use hashtags to connect with an audience or tap in to relevant trends. And as with so much of social media, make it visual. Facebook - This is where you can show more personality than just about any other social media network.
From a frame of mind, visitors to Facebook generally want to have fun and be entertained. This is not the place for serious content. Use as many visuals as possible but make sure they are properly sized for Facebook. LinkedIn - Looking to find and share serious content? If you think about the body language of someone on Facebook, envision someone leaning back in their chair. For LinkedIn, they are leaning forward, searching and ready to learn.
You can post content to your company page and to relevant LinkedIn groups. Again, keep the context and the cocktail party rule in mind. And while it may not have the engagement levels of other networks, it can help with getting your content found through search engines like no other social media platform. That which can be measured can be improved! More important than the number of social media followers you are gaining is their level of engagement :.
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