Social Media for B2B Companies: Is It Worth It?

While Social Media Marketing has taken a front seat in B2C marketing, B2B’s sometimes struggle with whether social media platforms (other than LinkedIn) are worth exploring. The fact is that LinkedIn is the undisputed leader for B2B’s, almost 300% more effective in lead generation than Facebook or Twitter. (unbounce.com). However, many businesses are finding great success using other social networks.

Here are a few examples:

Facebook – Intel does not routinely sell to consumers, but uses its Facebook Page to show how innovative they are. Consumers may be more likely to buy a computer from a company that uses the Intel processor. Facebook can raise the consciousness of consumers about the components of products they buy.

Twitter – Avaya monitors Tweets mentioning its brand. When they saw the tweet “… shoretel or avaya? Time for a new phone system very soon.” They responded. Thirteen days later they closed a $250,000 sale. (Reported by Maximize Social Business.) Companies that monitor tweets mentioning problems that they can solve have a “leg up” on their competition.

Google+ — Blogging for the Vocus Marketing Suite, Geoff Livingstone admits that “The combination of more people on Google+ and search rankings makes it an inescapable social network for me.” Besides attracting a strong Business audience, content (including blogs) published on Google+ enjoy the advantage of higher search engine rank because it is a google product.

Pinterest – General Electric has both B2C and B2B sides. They use Pinterest and great images to show the average user and their potential clients how their innovations in areas like health care technologies are changing the world. Using this visual media helps companies explain who they are and what they do. This raises their profile and broadens their reach.

Finally, a 2012 infographic by unbounce.com outlines the top three reasons B2B’s give for using social media:

• 83% said they use it to create awareness of their products.
• 56% encouraged social sharing in order to give their messages a broader reach.
• 55% used it to increase trust by gaining more followers.

If you are a B2B company, are you taking full advantage of the many Social Media Marketing opportunities available to your company?