When I first started working on AD’s own social media strategy, it’s fair to say that at the time the B2B world – including those industries we operate in -was only taking baby steps in ‘social’. There was a lot of scepticism as to its benefits, and not a little confusion about the platform offerings.
Over the intervening years, here at AD we’ve grown our Twitter stream to become one of the key influencers in our sphere, and our blog is also well read judging by our Google Analytics results, not to mention our Linkedin and Google+ presences. In parallel with our own efforts, I’ve observed how printers, journalists, design agencies, creatives and many other contacts we touch in our working day have also adopted social, becoming more involved in YouTube, online communities and Linkedin discussions, for example. Platform confusion is settling down (although new fads do pop up from time to time, and we monitor them closely to see if they will impact B2B), and there is a growing acceptance that social media is essential to any integrated communications plan. A study by Eloqua at the end of 2012 showed that 64% of B2B marketers were using social media in the UK, and there is mounting evidence of B2B suppliers recognising how social is useful both for brand awareness and as a sales channel – three years ago this would not have been the case.
I’m delighted things are moving in a positive direction, as I’ve always been firmly of the opinion that social cannot be ignored, it is simply another strand of the marketing mix and one that should be seamlessly integrated into a communications plan of any sort alongside earned, bought and owned media.
Harnessing our experiences and the knowledge we’ve acquired, we’ve generated a brief guide to give you an idea of how to embark on a B2B social media strategy if you haven’t already; what to think about before you get started and what it can do for you and your business. We discuss the pros and cons of the most common platforms alongside how to resource your social activity. So, if you’re thinking about taking that first step, or are already dabbling but want confirmation that you’re on the right lines, contact us for our White Paper: ‘Social Media – an overview in a B2B context’ and we’ll mail it right over to you.