How B2B Marketers Are Scoring Big with Social Media

HOW BUSINESS TO BUSINESS MARKETERS ARE SCORING BIG WITH SOCIAL MEDIA digg మ Social media marketing is often associated with business-to-consumer (B2C) markets. However, despite the unique marketing challenges business-to-business (B2B) marketers encounter while trying to reach key decision makers in their market, new research from Social Media Examiner proves that many have officially cracked the social media code and are successfully using it to generate new business. CONFIDENCE AND EXPERIENCE Participation in social media marketing by B2B marketers has climbed over 90 percent, inching significantly above 2010's numbers. B2B Marketers bring a wealth of social media experience to the campaigns they manage. Compared to their B2C counterparts, these marketers are more likely to have three or more years of experience: I B2B MarketersI B2C Marketers 17% 18% 6 MONTHS 83% 93% 21% 24% 6-12 MONTHS 38.5% 41% 1-3 YEARS 18% > 3 YEARS 14% NO EXPERIENCE, 2010 2012 BUT PLAN TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA 3.5% 4% NO EXPERIENCE, 1.5% AND DON'T PLAN TO 0% USE SOCIAL MEDIA EXPERIENCE PAYS OFF FOR B2B MARKETERS Due to their experience and dedication to social media, B2B marketers are seeing some phenomenal results-and are outpacing their B2C contemporaries. Gathered marketplace insights Saw improved search rankings from their social efforts from their social efforts B2B 69% B2B 60% B2C 60% B2C 50% Acquired new business partnerships through social media Found that social media helped them develop loyal fans B2B 56% B2B 53% B2C 45% B2C 63% B2B marketers face a challenge in this regard. Building fan bases in the B2B sphere is inherently different than the B2C market because customers are members of organizations rather than individual consumers. TOOLS THEY USE It's no surprise that nearly all marketers use Facebook, but B2B marketers are far more versed than B2C professionals in LinkedIn, blogging, and Google+. 96% B2B Users I B2C Users 87% 87% 84% 80% 66% 59% 56% 59% 57% 44% 38% 23% 20% 21% 20% 17% 14% 15% 13% 6% 4% You Tube in మ YouTube or Other Video Social Bookmarking/ News Sites Google+ Photo Sharing Sites Facebook Twitter Linkedin Blogs Forums Geo Location Daily Deals HOW THEY WILL INVEST THEIR TIME B2B: 76% A strong network is often a B2B marketer's greatest asset. Therefore, it's no surprise that the top area where these marketers want to increase their social media use is on LinkedIn: B2C: 55% B2B: 71% B2B marketers also plan to invest more time in blogging than their B2C counterparts, a smart strategy for anyone looking to improve their search rankings: B2C: 65% B2B: 68% In a quest to improve their fan-building skills, a significant portion of B2B marketers will increase their use of Facebook. However, this is still one area that B2C marketers dominate: B2C: 76% B2B marketers are very bottom-line focused, and this is reflected in the areas of social media marketing they want to learn more about this year: 77% 72% 74% Discovering best social media tactics Measuring effectiveness Converting activities of social media to sales SOURCES: SocialMedia Examiner Created By FIVE Marketo 2012 SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING INDUSTRY REPORT, HTTP://BIT.LY/SMM2012 COLUMN