The Risks and Rewards of Social Media for B2B

Using social media for B2B marketing is a hot topic these days. It seems that everyone is talking about creating a strategy to use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn for their business. Meanwhile, just as many business leaders question the value of these new communications tools.

Last week’s Business Marketing Association Chicago chapter luncheon on social media provided some interesting perspectives on this topic. More importantly, I was struck by how certain basic marketing principles are critical, no matter how new or hot the communications method.

First, marketers need to evaluate social media in terms of what business problem they’re trying to solve. According to one of the speakers, Paul Gillin, a columnist for BtoB magazine, too many marketers are skipping this step in their eagerness to make sure they’re on the cutting edge. Second, marketers should remember that regardless of the product or service, or the specifications and benefits, they are not selling to a “business.” Ultimately, they’re still selling to people; individuals who want solutions to their problems.

Reconciling these two ideas can help harness the power of social media as an effective marketing tool.

To help decide if social media are pertinent, find out if customers are using them. You can also track competitors or similar products and look for results, such as viewing numbers on YouTube. If content similar to yours is being ignored, then social media may not be the best strategy. But if customers are engaging in social media, then it’s time for you to join the conversation.

Because social media helps people connect, it fulfills the marketing element of people selling to people. Social media are extremely effective in creating a persona for your organization that builds confidence among your customers in your product or service.

Once you decide to engage in social media, you need to be aware that traditional media still play a role in making content visible to your key audiences. YouTube claims that 20 hours of video are uploaded on the site every minute. So for every waterskiing squirrel that “goes viral” there are thousands of seldom-watched clips languishing on the site.

That’s why many companies promote their social media through ads in key social media outlets, links from corporate websites or PR efforts to create news and blogging buzz about their initiatives. Companies that are serious about using social media are even creating their own channels on YouTube, which simplifies finding their content. Siemens is a good example of a B2B company using this tactic, with their channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/siemens.

Sure, there’s some risk in engaging in social media, but many companies are finding the rewards are far more compelling. If you’d like to explore both sides of the social media question, call us at 847-657-6011 or e-mail us.