Social Media Marketing Strategy - 4 Compelling Reasons Why B2B Companies Should Have It

Since social media made headlines about 10 years ago, it has been perceived as an effective communication tool for B2C organizations. B2B companies, on the other hand, are still reluctant to include social media marketing strategy into their marketing strategies. The 3 main reasons behind this hesitation are:

1. The belief that businesses do not use social media to make purchase decisions
2. The impact of social media on B2B businesses is hard to measure
3. The social media marketing budget of a B2B company is smaller than that of a B2C one

While these reasons are certainly valid, many progressive B2B organizations are seen efficiently harnessing the power of social media strategy. The foremost amongst these is General Electric (GE), which uses social media to foster a community of forward-thinking individuals, who can converse about innovation in infrastructure, energy, transportation, health and GE’s products.

Maersk employs social media not only to converse with shipping experts but also to find lost containers! American Express OPEN draws insights and tips from business owners to help more small businesses flourish. In fact, one SME that participated in the company’s annual contest cited a 30% boost in sales thereafter.

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These global market leaders present a convincing case to the effect that even B2B companies must utilize the power of social media. Here are 4 AweSME reasons why:

1. AweSME Engagement

B2B businesses are likely to know the people with whom they are interacting on social media. Social media marketing strategy which includes regular, useful posting happens; it creates valuable engagement with these business partners and add a warm, personal touch to your professional relationship. “Liking” a vendor’s photograph, for instance, helps you build an awesome rapport with him/her.

Besides, according to a survey by eMarketer, 82% of the workforce says that they would trust a business more if its CEO and leadership team communicate via social media. This goes to show that you must get active on social media to attract the best talent to your organization.

2. AweSME Expansion

One of the tried and proven social media marketing strategy; having an informal interaction with customers gives you insight into their opinions, likes and dislikes. In turn, this information helps you create more effective strategies to target new prospects. Also, access to their circles on professional networks helps you to widen your own. Finally, effective engagement and top-of-mind recall will encourage your business partners to recommend your business to others, thus gaining you invaluable word-of-mouth advertising.

3. AweSME Expertise

B2B organizations may use social media to position themselves as experts in their fields of work. Useful, share-worthy content like industry whitepapers, expert blogs and insightful tweets as well as informative replies on forums cement the impression of your business as an industry leader.

4. AweSME Eloquence

Your customers are talking about you, regardless of your Web presence. It is wise to join the conversation and express your point of view. This proves especially critical in times of crisis, when rumors and hearsay create a negative impression about your business. Present the facts from your business’ perspective to re-establish trust and retain loyalty.

Having said that a poorly executed social media marketing strategy serves to alienate customers -It is essential that you do not use this powerful platform to only promote yourself aggressively. Instead, think from the perspective of your customers and create social media posts that are useful and interesting for them.

Use social media marketing strategy to engage with your professional partners, widen your business networks, position yourselves as industry leaders and present your point of view. Include social media as a crucial tool in your AweSME marketing toolkit.

DBS can offer you many more expert insights to help your business turn AweSME! Find out how.