The document discusses how social media can be used effectively for B2B lead generation and marketing. It notes that social media allows B2B companies to showcase their expertise, integrate social initiatives into traditional campaigns, and gather information from industry conversations. The top benefits of social media for B2Bs are increasing exposure, traffic, insights, lead generation, loyalty, and reducing marketing expenditures. Common social media channels and tools are also discussed, as well as strategies for setting objectives, creating a social media plan, and measuring success.

2. Why Social Media for B2B
Social media is a valuable tool for lead generation
• B2B companies are finding that social media sites can
be useful for prospecting research and lead
generation.
B2B companies showcase their expertise and
thought leadership on social media sites
• Social media sites provide a forum to share insights
and advice with customers. By creating original and
exclusive content, the company can become an
important information resource.
Integrated campaigns can be more effective than
single, stand-alone initiatives
• B2B marketers ought to consider adding social media
initiatives to traditional campaigns to boost their
effectiveness

3. By The Numbers
How B2B is using social media:
• 78% started with informal info
gathering
• 59% engaged with peers who
addressed the challenge
• 48% followed industry
conversations on topic
• 44% conducted anonymous
research of a select group of
vendors
• 41% followed discussions to
learn more about topic
• 37% posted questions on social
networking sites looking for
suggestions and/or feedback
Source: DemandGen Report and Genius.com

4. CHANNELS

5. 5 Most Effective Channels for Lead
Generation
1.
2.
3.
4.
5
Source: eMarketer

6. BENEFITS FOR B2B

7. Benefits of Social for B2B
The top two benefits of
social media marketing
are increasing exposure
and increasing traffic
Source: 2012 Social Media Marketing Industry Report - SocialMediaExaminer.com

8. Increase Exposure #1
• Social media provides an array
of new touch points for B2B
brand executives to interact
with prospects and customers
• Due to two-way, real-time
attributes, social media tools
enable a highly personal brand
experience for B2B customers
and prospects
• The convenience of social
media allows more B2B
executives within respective
organizations to build
relationships with current and
prospective buyers...and
partici9pate in building the
brand

9. More Web Traffic #2
• New content through
blogs aimed at helping
B2B buyers with
solutions generates
good will and
increased web traffic
• Traffic from social
media sites is
increasing in
importance, especially
with Google’s new
search algorithms

10. Better Insights #3
• Social media can shed light on
what your competitors up to, what
do customers and prospects think
of your brand and how people are
responding to your company's
products and pricing
• Insights from social can also
influence your research and
development initiatives by
providing real-time information
enhancing the decision making
process
• Find more data on your target
prospects’ interests, preferences,
motivations, behavior, etc.,
enhancing the information you
already have

11. Lead Generation #4
• 61% of U.S.
marketers use social
media to increase
their lead generation
• Publishing and
sharing content
online is the single
biggest lever to
increase lead
generation
• social proof + strong
ties = social
conversion

12. Increase Loyalty #5
• B2B communities are niche
and tend to be about
passionate experts who can
create quality user content if
incentivized properly
• Programs implemented
through social media help to
engage loyal customers and
facilitate brand advocates that
can help "sell" B2B offerings
through spreading positive
mentions and endorsements
• Improve customer service by
addressing problems quickly
and efficiently while also
demonstrating to potential
customers your attentiveness
to their issues

13. Search Engine Optimization #6
• Social channels can increase
inbound links – people coming to
your site through a social media
campaign provide numerous new
inbound links to your site, which is
key to influencing search engine
rankings
• When consumers are exposed to
both search and social media the
overall search click-through rate
goes up by 94%
• Search engines pay close attention
to social media rankings and
sometimes it is easier to get noticed
through social media outlets than
search engines, which then pick up
on social media activity as a
secondary effect

14. Strengthening Partnerships #7
• Through the value of
their community
participation, you can
increase their standing
and improve the
potential of finding
valuable partnerships
• With their newfound
reach, you can identify
companies with which to
establish revenue-
generating partnerships

15. Reduce Marketing Expenditures #8
• While social media requires an
investment of budget and
professional resources, it's
nowhere near the cost associated
with other media
• Even in tough economic climates,
B2Bs can afford social media
programs and use these
initiatives to gain competitive
advantage
• As the cost of each sale acquired
through social media is
significantly reduced, ROI and
profit margins can increase

16. Sales (Cycle) #9
• 65% of a salesperson's time is spent
not selling. Social selling tools can
speed up sales research
• Educating prospects throughout the
purchasing cycle is a core role of B2B
marketers, with social media providing
them tremendous outlets for
knowledge sharing that can facilitate
faster sales cycles
• Social media tools and platforms
provide B2B's with new ways to
communicate information and answer
buyer questions about their offerings
much more quickly.
• In providing two-way communications,
B2Bs not only inform prospects, but
also build trust and credibility that can
work to increase sales in shorter
periods.

17. TOOLS

18. Social CRM Solutions

19. Social Management Solutions

20. Monitoring Platforms

21. STRATEGY

22. Setting a Strategy
80% of success in social
media is getting you or
your organization ready --
only 20% is about the
technologies

23. Objectives
• Building better relationships with
partners, prospects and customers
• Attracting prospective customers
and compressing sales cycles
• Monitoring competitive positioning
and ensuring you’re ahead
• Establishing thought leadership in
your industry
• Building brand awareness and
preference among decision makers

24. Creating a Plan
• Align objectives
• Listen to the conversation
• Establish resources
• Select channels
• Set specific goals
• Join the conversation
• Integrate with off-line efforts
• Measure

25. Measuring Success
• Reach
• Frequency & traffic
• Influence
• Conversations & transactions
• Sentiment
• Customer service resolution
• Lead generation/conversions