What Social Media Channels Are Best For B2B
Kim Stricker
Creating social media strategies for brands by finding, engaging and converting prospects into customers. I Speaker I Strategist I Marketing Consultant
It’s Not Just About LinkedIn: Understanding B2B Social Media Marketing
When you think of brands that have an extraordinary social media presence, most companies that come to mind are probably B2C. Sure, B2B businesses have a more difficult time growing and reaching their audience, but it’s not impossible.
The key to a successful business to business social media campaign is to put your resources into the correct social media channels – and share the right content to them. By doing this, your brand can be noticed by company executives and considered for services. In fact, according to Forbes, 83% of executives actually use social media in their decision-making process to use a company. In addition, 92% of these executives said that social media has influenced a decision of theirs within the last year. Wow!
Difference Between B2B & B2C Social Media
Understanding the difference between B2B and B2C social media will allow you to strategically make the shift from one to another and successfully implement a campaign. Per Sprout Social, these are the main differences between the two:
Focus: B2B brands are focused on conversions, website traffic, and leads. B2C is focused on audience growth, engagement and brand health.
Invest: B2B invest their time in analytics and niche audiences. B2C invests in brand loyalty, customer service and engaging with the community.
Content: B2B content is geared towards a company’s social audience only, whereas B2C also considers the brand’s social community.
Which Channels Are Best for B2B?
If you’ve been ignoring Twitter, Facebook and Instagram because you think only LinkedIn matters for B2B – you’re doing it all wrong!
LinkedIn may be appealing for B2B because it generates leads, but a goal of B2B social media marketing also should be branding. Most people on social media are there to kill time, and your content needs to appeal to that. Do not simply post videos about why your products are so great, but create content that tells stories to spark conversation. After considering this, the other platforms will sound much more appealing!
Social Media Examiner found that more B2B companies are picking up on this and are expanding to other channels:
- 89% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn
- 88% use Facebook
- 83% use Twitter
- 61% use Google+
- 55% use YouTube
- 39% use Pinterest
- 26% use Instagram
A great way to find what other social media channels are right for your B2B business besides LinkedIn is to research what your competitors are using. If they are successfully building a social media presence on Twitter, chances are you can too. Look at the top companies in your industry and check out what platforms they’re throwing resources into.
It’s also recommended to look at social media demographics to find where your target audience hangs out – you may be surprised! Sprout Social has conducted excellent research on social media demographics. Check out the graphics below and learn about each platform’s dominant audience:
For more graphics and details on the Do's and Don'ts of B2B Content check out our full blog post at https://bit.ly/2oryEWn