You don’t think that your business could benefit from social media marketing? Well, let us take you through just some of the many reasons why using social media as a marketing tool is both beneficial to your B2B brand and educational to the consumers you want to reach.
Many B2B companies who have already embraced this form of marketing have tasted success and continue to grow as a result when campaigns are carefully planned, constructed and executed.
Having a Social Online Presence Helps Your Business
Think about your own social habits for a moment. Would you buy from a brand without first checking out their social profiles? No? Well, it’s important to remember your potential customers are the same. Your customers will get to know you on social, and gradually be led to your website or other conversion points online. The more people that go to your website to check your business out, the more chances you will have of doing business. This is especially true for B2B audiences. They want something that attracts their attention on social media and leads them to a valuable content source.
People are naturally social creatures, which shows in the popularity of Instagram and Facebook. We rely on social experiences when making decisions and this does not change when we are seeking B2B providers. These social platforms answer questions such as; do I like this company? Can I see myself working with them? Do I trust them?
B2B businesses have a great opportunity through Facebook and Instagram to address these types of questions that potential clients may have. It is so important to reveal your company culture and values to people so that they can begin to make an informed decision based on the information that you provide. People value a powerful connection centred on trust, knowledge and an ability to deliver on promises.
Building connections coupled with strong content based campaigns provides a well thought out end point, turning social users into business customers becomes very viable.
Some examples of brands we LOVE, strutting their B2B stuff on social are Apple on Instagram or HubSpot on Facebook, to name a few. These are companies who have leveraged social media in a unique way. Apple’s company culture is very much focused on innovation and it shows in the way they portray themselves on social media, I mean have you seen their latest Instagram campaign? Take a look and you’ll see what we are talking about; their tagline on Instagram is #ShotOniPhone.
And then HubSpot, their culture is all about HEART (humble, empathetic, adaptable, remarkable and transparent). They care as much about their employees and they do their customers, and when it comes to their Facebook presence, they don’t just toot their own horn (although they have plenty to toot about!) They put content out that plays off tends, pop-culture and even speaks to the latest news in the industry! And it’s all clever and sharable, and not just that – it’s memorable.
The Importance of Highly Targeted Audiences
Through social media, the quality and depth of the connection with your audience is essential for B2B companies to engage with their audience. For the B2B audience, it is all about solutions and problem-solving.
Targeting is essential to your social strategy. Your goal should be to attract an audience that is genuinely interested in your content and the services you have to offer as a business. While vanity metrics, such as likes and follows, offer a level of credibility to your pages, the goal should be to have an audience who you engage in a meaningful way and are excited to share the information that you post as a brand. You want people who pay attention and listen to your advice. This will create authority and a positive brand image in your niche as well as better lead generation further down your marketing funnel.
LinkedIn, A Great Social Platform For Content Marketing
When considering your social media strategy, don’t forget about LinkedIn – one of the most successful platforms for B2B businesses. With LinkedIn, you are not just being social, but you are also networking in a more professional space. The platform allows for longer forms of information to be shared through content marketing, thereby your B2B audience is given more opportunity to learn about you and the services you offer to meet their business needs.
B2B audiences have become smarter, more resourceful and prefer to have all the information available before making a choice. Content marketing offers the reader or researcher high-quality and valuable content on a certain topic. In addition, content marketing, when done properly, allows for people to become a part of your lead generation funnel.
Furthermore, did you know it takes 6 to 8 instances encounters for most people to begin to build trust with a brand? Seeing a brand over and over instills confidence in people that allows them to make a purchasing decision. This is why content marketing is a long-term lead generation strategy that requires the consistent creation of high-quality content which is particularly relevant to your ideal target audience.
In order to build trust with your audience, you need to create opportunities to educate and inspire your potential customers over an extended period of time. You can achieve this by sharing valuable and useful content with them on LinkedIn. When your potential consumer feels ready to make a decision to purchase, they can rely on and refer back to the content you have provided them to be sure of the fact that you have the skills and experience to solve their pain points.
