93% of B2B companies are on social media. But, are these businesses best utilizing the social platforms that are not dedicated to B2B business? My bet is no. Here’s how to better utilize those other popular platforms.
49% of B2B marketers say that social media is the toughest lead generation tool. This means that they understand the value of social media marketing, but are not be using it to their best advantage.
If you can strategically work with the various platforms, then social media has the potential to improve marketing optimization, customer experience, brand awareness, and can even increase revenue.
Most B2B marketers go directly to LinkedIn as their primary social platform for reaching out to customers, and rightly so. LinkedIn was created for businesses, so it should come to no surprise that 94% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn for lead generation – making it the most-used B2B social platform.
But, why just stick to a platform where everyone is? Over-saturation of LinkedIn is making it harder and harder to really establish your company on the platform, so why not take advantage of the other platforms?
I bet your customers are on LinkedIn, and I can also bet that they are on the other most popular social media platforms: Facebook and Twitter.
We live in a digital world, so it’s no surprise that many people will check your company’s social profiles before they do business with you.
A Facebook business page gives you a wealth of opportunities to appeal to potential customers, attract the right talent, and a well-reviewed business looks good to not only potential customers, but also potential employees.
In addition to servicing customers, B2B businesses are all about establishing themselves as a thought leader. It’s important to remember that just because a platform exists for social sharing, doesn’t mean that all platforms are created equal. Facebook may not the best platform to establish your company as a thought leader, but it is great a platform to feature your company culture, post shareable content and drive people to opt-in to your email list.
Here are a few best practices for B2B marketers when it comes to Facebook:
- Feature Your Company Culture. This is an excellent way to give potential customers and future employees a sense of your business. For example, share photos of employees enjoying their work, post features of outstanding employees, or enable reviews to give potential customers and partners an idea of how you operate.
- Create Visuals People Want to Share. A shareable image that also asks a question or makes a relatable statement has a much higher chance of engagement than a post with only plain text.
- Drive People to Opt-In. Create a post that promotes a free whitepaper or a free consultation, which someone will receive if they sign up for your email list.
- Share Your Story. Let people know your backstory. Bring your customers in and help them become more emotionally attached to your brand.
Did you know that B2B marketers who use Twitter generate twice as many leads as those who don’t? If that doesn’t motivate you to jump on the Twitter bandwagon, I’m not sure what will.
With only 140 characters to your advantage, Twitter requires some extra creative brainpower, but it’s worth it. This platform is perfect for not only establishing yourself as a thought leader but also making valuable connections within your industry.
Here are a few best practices for B2B marketers when it comes to Twitter:
- Share Your Blog Content. If your company has a blog, then share your content. If you don’t have a blog, then start one! And if you’re not sure where to start, these 4 questions could help.
- Share Industry News. Just because you didn’t write the content doesn’t mean it’s not worth something to your followers. Establishing your business as a thought leader goes beyond creating the content yourself, but understanding what is newsworthy and then sharing that with your followers.
- Analyze Analytics. These insights are crucial to the advancement of not only your Twitter account but also all of your social media accounts. Analytics can tell you who your followers are, what times are best to post for those followers and what kind of content is working best for that audience.
- Engage in Conversation. Respond to tweets, tag other accounts in your content and retweet other users. The best way to become known on a social platform is to engage with other people or businesses that are also on Twitter.
I know the title says to think beyond LinkedIn, but there is value in ensuring that you’re utilizing this platform in the best way you can.
Across the board, B2B marketers rate LinkedIn as the most effective social media platform for lead generation. In fact, 80% of all B2B social media leads come from LinkedIn. If this statistic seems surprising to you, then I would venture to say that you might not be using LinkedIn in a strategic, lead generating way.
Here are a few best practices for B2B marketers when it comes to LinkedIn:
- Regularly Post Updates. An active and engaging feed is the best way to gain leads. These posts can range from blog posts to opportunities for opting-in to job postings.
- Start Groups. When you become an owner and moderator of a group, you gain leadership and recognition within your industry.
- Participate in Groups. As important as it is to start groups and establish yourself as a leader, it’s also important to become part of the conversation. This will do a few things for you: drive traffic to your page, bring members to your group, build brand awareness and establish yourself as a thought leader.
A Final Thought
If you start utilizing these basic strategies for the top three social platforms for B2B marketers, then you can bet on seeing an increase in lead generation. But, remember that maintaining a social media platform takes work, and if you can’t devote the time to the upkeep – then you may want to reconsider adding that platform.
Also, just because a social media platform exists, doesn’t mean you have to have a presence on that social platform. Go to where you believe your customers are, utilize these best practices, and you will be on the right track for increased brand awareness, thought leadership and lead generation.
Anna Crabill 
Great work
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