B2B marketing is different on many levels. Mainly, there are many more decision makers involved in the conversion funnel. This makes targeting very hard: You need to keep a lot of personas in mind.
How is social media marketing in B2B sector different from generic social media marketing? Let’s discuss!
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About Julie
Julie Ewald @julieewald is the “Chief Everything Officer” (CEO) of Impressa Solutions
Questions we discussed
Q1 How did you become a digital marketer? Please share your career story!
Being a digital marketer wasn’t the plan! I have a BA and MFA in creative writing, but I kept finding myself taking on marketing responsibilities when I *thought* I’d taken on other jobs! I ended up liking marketing a lot…
When the economy decided being a professor wasn’t an option for me anymore (and some other stuff happened), I turned to freelance, writing blog posts and web content. It all kind of evolved from there.
Good question! I got busy and something had to give. I wasn't in the position to charge more without greater development. So I launched an agency, and then started to work to grow it. #vcbuzz
— Julie Ewald (@julieewald) October 15, 2019
Oh geez. We're smallish and relatively scrappy, so keeping the agency going is a lot of work and can be crazy stressful. If I could be a freelance consultant, I'd sleep easier. But… #vcbuzz
— Julie Ewald (@julieewald) October 15, 2019
I feel a lot more fulfilled with the agency. Helping others learn, grow, and build a career (and helping more companies succeed) is something I would never ever trade. And I wouldn’t have had the chance to gain the skills and experience without it
Very true Ann. Especially when you have an amazing team and want them to maintain their passion ? for your strategic vision!
— Rebecca Murtagh ? (@VirtualMarketer) October 15, 2019
(and they stay longer)#business #leadership #entrepreneur #VCBuzz #CrowdSuccess
Continue providing value through ongoing training, development, and engaging opportunities. But I don’t expect them to stay forever. If we foster kickass marketers who peace out and get a baller brand job in three to five years, I’m stoked!
Q2 How is social media marketing in B2B sector different from generic social media marketing?
In many ways, it’s not necessarily different. At the most basic, it’s still about meeting your audience where they are and having conversations with authentic, resonant conversations that add value.
But timing is everything here. Sure, your audience may be on FB, but with B2B social media, they may not be on FB when they’re in a work mindset and don’t want to engage there. LI or Twitter may be better fits.
But some B2B audiences behave more like at large consumers, so FB is a far better bet than others.
#B2B conpanies tend to approach customers as non-human entities…
— Rebecca Murtagh ? (@VirtualMarketer) October 15, 2019
Often forgetting that
HUMANS make purchase decisions.
Relationships are just as important to B2B #brands as #retail or B2C.#vcbuzz #marketing #ecommerce
And, most B2B sales cycles are longer than B2C. So pushing for sales or using messaging for folks at the decision phase of the buyer’s journey just won’t work the same.
A2: They might have two different audiences and social media platforms to use, but you're still marketing to an audience, just using different strategies. #vcbuzz https://t.co/PAIiULcV8Z
— GrowVisibility (@growvisibility) October 15, 2019
Q3 What are some examples of B2B companies doing social media marketing well?
Not as many as I’d like to see! But…
I think one that nails it is @Upwork. They have two very different audiences: freelancers and clients (and subsets within those). They do a great job of meeting each audience where they are, but … they focus more on freelancers, likely because they behave more like consumers and are engaged more on social.
That behavior is also likely why @Upwork runs with freelancer-focused content on Insta and FB, and a blend on Twitter and LI. But, I would like to see them not post the same thing across all channels at the same time as often…
Unless it’s about me — they’ve been a great support to @Impressa_LV and me.
Q4 How to target your audience on social media in a most effective way?
You need to have a good foundation re. your brand, positioning, and personas. If you don’t fully understand your audience and why they’d want to engage with you and where and what value they get from you, you’re going to miss the mark or underperform.
Listening to them is important and joining in conversations they are already having, too.
A4: Make sure you know where your audience is on social media and where they like to engage with you. #vcbuzz https://t.co/Qf47mpdBlR
— GrowVisibility (@growvisibility) October 15, 2019
Interacting is KEY! #vcbuzz
— Anna Fox (@manifestcon) October 15, 2019
You may kill it for your clients, but not marketing your #marketingagency may be killing it. https://t.co/hlqkaDkR4u
— Julie Ewald (@julieewald) October 15, 2019
Q5 What are your favorite B2B social media marketing tools?
Not all of them are technically social media tools. I am a fan of @hubspot@sproutsocial, @databoxhq, @hashtagify, @canva, @wave_video, @asana, and @trello for keeping campaigns tight.
A5. @BlueJeansNet is my favorite social media marketing software for business to business #vcbuzz
— Cheval John, Social Media Professional (@chevd80) October 15, 2019
Our previous B2B marketing chats:
- How to Organize and Promote a Niche Meetup with Dennis Shiao @dshiao #VCBuzz
- How to Up Your Conversions with @ZacJohnson #VCBuzz
- Analytics to Improve Conversion: Twitter Chat with Amel Mehenaoui @amelm #VCBuzz
- Social Media ROI: Art or Science? with David Pepper @thedavepepper #VCBuzz
- Lead Generation Tips and Tricks with Mike McDonald @MikeSMcDonald #VCBuzz