Social Media for B2B: Should Your Brand Join the Party?

We won’t waste your time. The short answer is yes. But hear us out on why you should join the party and get your B2B brand a social media presence.

Sure, it’s easy to think about how social media can work for B2C brands. We think about the normal average consumer, scrolling through Facebook or Twitter and liking videos and posts about fashion, food, cars, and pets. But what about construction materials, computer parts, management training or email marketing software? How does that fit into this whole social media fuss?

Don’t get intimidated yet. It has been done before, and with good results too. 83% of us B2B marketers have already been using social media to promote our brands, making it one of the most common marketing tactics. 50% of marketers agree that promotion done on social media work effectively, while 57% use social media sharing as a metric for their marketing performance.

While your social media page might not gather as many followers as celebrities like Selena Gomez (136 million Instagram followers) or fashion retailers like ZARA or Adidas at 23 million followers, you can still aim to gain a fanbase of around 700,000 followers like Adobe or maybe even 1.2 million followers like Intel. These two B2B companies are some of the most followed on social media today, making them popular even among people outside their target audience.

Convinced about social media? Well, maybe not yet. So, here are 4 more reasons why you should get your B2B brand into the social media party:

1. Be Where the People Are:
   Just like a party, you won’t be known by other people unless you show up and mingle around. And like B2C brands, B2B brands can create social media pages on the various social media sites to reach out to a target audience. It’s a great way to get some awareness so people can see what your brand is all about.75% of Malaysians are active social media users who would scroll over their feeds daily. In Singapore, the percentage is 83%, which is to say that a big majority of us have social media accounts. And a good chance that your B2B customers are social media users too. Managers, team leaders, and decision-makers are people just like everyone else with interests, hobbies and opinions. By having a social media page, your B2B brand will be introduced to the vast population of social media users, thus increasing your brand awareness.
2. Humanising Your Brand:
   Social media, as the name suggests, is for internet users to flock and socialise. People can do anything on social media these days; from sharing content and news, create events and activities, to even provoking change like what happened during the Arab Spring in late 2010. Brands, while not trying to overthrow a regime, take to social media to connect more closely to their audience.While your corporate website might look formal (it’s supposed to), your social media page can provide a friendlier face for your brand. Posts on social media aren’t the same as your press releases or corporate brochures. They should be more casual, like how you would talk to a friend. The tone of voice varies according to a brand’s personality and campaign goals. Some use a light-hearted and humorous language while others maintain a refined, more sophisticated voice, all according to their marketing strategy.
3. An Effective Marketing Channel:
   Social media is generally an effective marketing channel, done right. It can increase website traffic, improve conversion, and provide backlinks that strengthen your SEO.Moreover, many people are browsing social media through their mobile devices using downloaded mobile apps. This makes it easier for them to look for something i.e. your brand. They don’t even need to type in the search bar when they can find out using hashtags, shared posts, or links.

   

   On DHL eCommerce’s Facebook page, seen here on a mobile platform, there is a lot of information shown; a link to their website (to increase web traffic), an introduction of what they do (brand awareness), and even a way for people to reach out to them via messaging.

4. Customer Interaction & Support:
   Gone are the days when people are expected to wait 15 minutes on the phone to ask one question or get a much-needed and urgent customer support. Especially for B2B brands, customer support is super important to ensure customer satisfaction and retention.Social media is a cost-effective customer support channel. It’s easier for your customers to drop a message on your page and ask for help than holding on the customer service line. Some very responsive brands can even see customers leaving inquiries on the comment sections, because they know a representative will reply and help! And these comments help to increase the presence of a brand on social media.

   One side note: you don’t have to be overly concerned about getting negative comments. This kind of feedback can actually help, because you know where to improve and correct the mistake. And by replying to the negative comment in a helpful way, you are demonstrating your brand’s great customer service, on display for all to see.

The bottom line is, having a social media page accelerates brand recognition, brand awareness, and provides an effective communication tool for both you and your audience. But you don’t have to sign up for all social media listed on the internet. The trick is to know where most of your customers are, and invest there. Once started, there has to be posts and consistent content to keep your audience engaged.

Try it out! Signing up is free, while ads can be bought according to your budget. Marketing consultants can also advise you which platform fits your branding needs the best, and help you establish a solid social media presence for your B2B brand.