DogBytes Blog

Tips for Defining a Social Media Strategy for a B2B Company

  

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When discussing social media with B2B companies (after they tell us their industry is different and social media marketing won't work there), people often ask us, "How do you even get started?".  Our answer is always the same.  Begin with the end in mind.  Have a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish so that you have a plan and a vision you can execute against.

Regardless of industry, to turn social media into a valuable corporate asset, you will need to produce content, and the first question you should ask yourself is, who are we generating it for.

Social Media Audience Definition

• Describe your ideal prospect and your existing customers.  Are they different?

• What is their job description, education level, age?

• Where do they get their content today

• What questions are they trying to answer

• What are their concerns, their goals, their challenges, how are they changing?

• How many of them are there?

• Define your secondary audience - media, secondary prospects, industry at large, bloggers

After you have defined your audience, you can start to describe what and how you want to engage with them.

Social Media Editorial Mission

• Define the value you will provide to your audience

• What are the topics you will cover on a consistent basis

• Define the social media vehicles you will utilize and prioritize them.  

  • Blog, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Others

• Define how many times you will publish on each 

• Here is a good example of an editorial mission modified as a "welcome to our blog" blog post - http://blogs.carouselindustries.com/general/welcome-to-the-carousel-industries-blog/

• Your internal editorial mission should also include company goals, for example:

  • Generate more traffic to your website
  • Improve engagment with customers, prospects and potential prospects
  • Generate more leads via on-line channels
  • Enhance our perception as a thought leader in the industry
  • Nuture sales prospects through the sales pipeline

Accomplishing these first two steps will make you feel as if you are on much firmer ground.  At this point, you can start making progress without feeling as if you are making a mistake.

The next things to define include your Target Keyword Universe (might as well think about SEO from the very beginning), your Editorial Voice (how are you going to come across) and start setting up an "Industry Listening Outpost" so that you have a steady stream of information and news to work with.  But each of those is future post.  Stay tuned!