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While any company can work on B2B marketing more networking and partnership, some companies lend themselves better to B2B marketing strategies. The definition of a B2B business is akin to being a middleman. You don’t help a person if you own a B2B business; you help tens to potentially thousands of people within one company.Think about eClincher – we offer services that help businesses. This is different than a company that makes product strictly for consumers, thus our own marketing strategies have to shift.
B2B social media strategies are quickly becoming more and more used among other B2B sectors. While it is true that not all marketing strategies that work for non-B2B interactions will work for B2B businesses, social media is proving to be a profitable venue for businesses that want to reach out to business peers for social engagement.But – it’s likely we’re preaching to the choir. Who isn’t using social media as a vehicle for engagement, lead generation and conversion these days?
The true question will always be this, and it extends to more areas of business than just your marketing strategy: how can I make what I’m doing serve me better? How can I fine-tune it to the point where I’m doing something great instead of something good?It’s always a good idea to pay attention to your social media analytics – or start looking at them right now, if you don’t already. You’re likely working with a social strategy that’s already working in a lot of ways, but you still have to start working harder to make your existing strategies more streamlined.These five pieces of advice are simple – and that’s the beauty of it. Social media strategies for B2B companies don’t have to be overly complicated. Less is more, and these pieces of advice will give you a whole lot more.
Focus on your posting times.
When you post on social media, when do you do it? Is it just posting as you feel like it, or is there a strategy to your posting schedule – if there is one at all. You might not know this, but the times at which you post your tweets and log into Facebook to chat with your friends matters when you’re trying to increase both your visibility and engagement statistics.It’s a general rule of thumb, but noon hours and during the evening (about 5 Pm to 8 PM) are the most frequented social media hours in the business community. This is when most businesspeople are at lunch or at home relaxing – but don’t take our word for it.Your analytics service should be able to tell you what your target time frame is. Who knows? Maybe for you it’s at 9 AM and 4 PM. Find out and schedule your postings around these hours.
More calls to action are needed.
You can’t create a marketing strategy that hinges on simply hoping that your target audience likes what you have to say and uses your service. If you aren’t including more calls to action in your postings, this is exactly what you’re doing.You might think that calls to action are pushy, but that’s your fault. A CTA isn’t something that puts a gun to a potential customer’s head, but it does give them a gentle incentive. Give us your email for a promotional offer. Buy one of our introductory products and get this other product free. Visit our site for more information on this topic you’re interested in. These are all great examples of CTAs that benefit both you and your consumer.
Stay professional.
This is obvious, but many small businesses fall victim to the pratfall of not creating a very decisive business/personal line. It is a good idea to seem like a human business, but this doesn’t mean you have to get overly personal on business accounts.A good example of giving your business a more human quality is introducing a “Meet the Team” page on your website. Updating your business Twitter with life updates? Bad idea.
Being innovative can be profitable.
No big business ever got anywhere without taking a couple of risks. Sure, it’s important to take more profitable risks and think about your risky decisions, but you definitely won’t grow if you continue to play it safe with your engagement strategies.While it’s good to not be too personal on your business social media, don’t take this to mean you have to only post staunch, business-like content. You can occasionally retweet funny yet relevant pictures, infographics and videos that will boost your visibility. Try to break the bold of a boring B2B business and do some things that are out of the box.
Networking via guests.
Everyone loves to hear the opinions of an influencer. This is something that you can utilize, both for your benefit and the benefit of others. Introduce yourself to an influencer and strike up a partnership. You can get a great interview or advice information from these influencers, then post the content you derive from your interaction to your website and social media.This gives you a great edge. You have exclusive content from an influencer, and people will clamor to your site and social accounts to see it. This increases your traffic, your engagement and can help with lead generation.
