Social media marketing is already considered to be one of the best and most effective ways of engaging with customers.

But what if those customers are other businesses? Does social media marketing still work when you’re looking to attract business clients rather than end customers?

In this blog post, we’re looking first at how B2B marketing works and then how it translates in social media marketing - sharing the best ways of making social media work for your B2B business.

What is B2B marketing?

B2B stands for Business to Business. It is a model whereby one business sells to another - be it with a service or a product that meets the needs of the business client.

B2B marketing requires a different approach when compared with B2C marketing. Rather than reaching out to end customers on an emotional or personal level, B2B marketing is often more corporate - with purchase decisions being made by more than one person.

As such, B2B marketing needs to be incredibly compelling and convincing, but it also needs to be professional and engaging. Which is where B2B social media marketing comes into play.

How B2B social media marketing works

B2B social media marketing may sound a bit counter productive on the surface, but when you really get into it you will see how powerful it can be.

B2B social media marketing is becoming more and more prominent as increasingly corporate companies and businesses use social media to introduce their team, to personalise their business, and to showcase great case studies and testimonials.

Crucially, B2B social media marketing isn’t just about converting customers and making sales - it’s also about building relationships and raising awareness of what a business does. Remember, business clients include everyone from large corporate CEOs to small business owners, with social media the number one touchpoint through which you can reach them all.

Challenges associated with B2B social media marketing

Of course, there are challenges to consider with B2B social media marketing.

For one thing, establishing the right tone for each platform and for your industry and client base can be difficult. Social media is often considered to be a more informal marketing platform - however, you still need to strike the right balance of professionalism and relatable language.

It’s also important for businesses looking to stretch their marketing into B2B social media, to determine what their goals are and exactly what they want to achieve. The chances of making direct sales through social media are lower with B2B businesses, and so you will need to focus on other goals such as encouraging followers to get in contact, sign up for an email list, or visit your website.

Finally, just as finding the right tone of voice is important, it’s equally crucial that you balance the more engaging and entertaining side of B2B marketing with professionalism. Yes, poking fun at rivals and engaging in competitive back-and-forth with competitors is good for engagement and attracting attention, but this needs to be weighed against the importance of displaying credibility and a high quality reputation.

Best practices and strategies for B2B marketing on social media

With all that in mind, how can you make B2B social media marketing work for your business?

• Create a goal for your social media marketing and ensure that each post you create, and share aligns with that goal.
• Showcase and use your team in your social media posts, to instantly make your entire business feel more personable and genuine.
• Know who your audience is across the different social media platforms and adjust your content accordingly. LinkedIn followers will be seeking a very different kind of content and experience than those on Instagram or TikTok.
• Keep an eye on your competition and how they leverage B2B social media marketing.
• Use a multimedia approach to your posts, combining text and informative posts with fun videos, memes, and other images to help create that all-important balance.
• Jump onto trends that are specific in your industry.
• Open up conversations about topics that directly affect either your industry or your target customers. This helps to prove that you are relevant and in-touch with current news and events.
• Respond to comments and be engaging with your followers on social media.

Finally, experiment - and don’t be afraid to use a trial and error approach when it comes to building your social media strategy and community. Social media is an intrinsically engaging platform and can boost awareness, relatability, reputation, and more for the right businesses.

If in doubt, let Social Loop help. Our team are skilled in B2B and B2C marketing - and can help take your social media presence to the next level.