1. Stay social, but know your audience
Whilst there are similarities between B2B and B2C social media strategies, the methods of reaching your customer or audience base within those two verticals can be wildly different.
You need to remember that social networks are built for mass consumption and specifically for reaching significant audiences – meaning that for more niche business projects, you need to think very carefully about who your audience is and what you know about them.
However, most significantly, this media is social, so treat it as such. Anyone accessing your materials or content will be looking for a human touch and it’s your job to ensure you deliver that.
2. Cover live events
Engaging with your follower base is an essential staple of B2B social – particularly where you’re working with clients who have small or particularly prominent audiences.
One way of managing this constant contact organically is through live event coverage. At Progressive we’ve worked hard to find an effective formula for covering live events – using Twitter to give the audience a varied experience of what is going on at a range of industry relevant functions using videos, infographics and contributions from other event attendees.
Event coverage is not suitable for all platforms – LinkedIn and Facebook algorithms don’t reward the sort of posting regularity that is commonplace on Twitter, so use those other networks for promoting a more comprehensive round-up at the end of the day once the session has finished.
3. Manage your time
Sustaining social output across multiple handles simultaneously while keeping your mind on industry trends and strategy is an arduous task.
There are a number of tools available to help you maximise your time and help get the most out of the resources you’re able to give to social. This is of particular use when you’re dealing with overseas markets and projects but also helps you balance other work too.
Being social is about a consistent content output rather than a non-stop barrage of messaging. Decide upon your desired posting schedule – be that three posts per week, or six tweets every day – and stick to it.
4. Keep an eye on the competition
To stay ahead of the curve, it’s incredibly important to check in on your competitors to see how their approach matches up with your own.
Such is the varied universe of B2B clients and projects out there that there is no automatic assumption that your strategy should match that of your rivals. However, keep an eye out for tips and tricks that might benefit your target audience. If something works for you, don’t be afraid to keep moving forward with it.
5. Brand formats and assets
Infographics, videos and images are a major weapon in the armoury of any self-respecting social media manager.
Aside from experimenting with each of the above to get a tailored approach for your audience, it’s also important find a way of stamping your mark on each asset you use.
This need not require a massive design team to overhaul your visual assets, but the use of logos and branded materials can help boost engagement and give all posts an extra sense of ownership.
Written by Cameron Sharpe