erica_bell_bio_image (1) Erica Bell is the Social Media Specialist at Business.com. She also writes on number of topics including online marketing and shares small business tips. You can connect with Business.com on Facebook or Twitter!

 

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B2B businesses are continuing to break into social media spaces. Whether you’re a B2B or B2C business, there is a good chance your customers are on social networks doing research and talking with others about the content, products, and services they are interested in. Being a present part of that discussion is crucial to the success of your business. According to one recent study, Social Media Examiner’s “2013 Social Media Marketing Industry Report,” benefits of being on social networks include increased exposure (89%), increased traffic (75%) and provided marketplace insight (69%).

Here are a few social media tips for B2B marketers looking to increase exposure and traffic to their site:

Get on the Right Networks

B2B marketers are focusing on networks and platforms where they can truly connect with business decision makers. B2B buyers are on LinkedIn, a social network for professionals, and for this reason it makes sense that Social Media Examiner found that 78% of B2B marketers plan to increase their use of LinkedIn. While a large majority of the business world is located on Facebook, it’s not a top priority for B2B marketers. In fact, the same report mentioned earlier found that only 29% of B2B marketers think Facebook marketing is effective. While Google+ plays a smaller role now, over half (57%) of B2B marketers plan to increase Google+ activities. As you develop your social strategy, consider where it is your customers can be found. LinkedIn and Google+ are top networks for those in B2B followed by Facebook, Twitter, and blogging.

Build Your Blog Out

Being on the right social platforms isn’t the only way to increase exposure and traffic. A recent Business.com article covering Social Media Marketing World discusses three key takeaways from the conference, including utilizing LinkedIn. As they note in the article, blogging is a key component of B2B social media success. Social Media Examiner found that 71% of B2B marketers plan to increase their blogging activity in 2013. This upswing in blogging activity is clearly a priority for small businesses with at least 70% of small businesses looking to increase their blogging, compared to 58% of large businesses. As you’ll notice, the size of the business doesn’t matter – blogging is making a big splash and many plan to make the most of the opportunities blogging provides.

If you want your blog to be more successful, consider optimizing for mobile devices with responsive web design or featuring a podcast in a post every now and then. While we see stats all the time about how important mobile optimization is, only 31% of B2B marketers have optimized their blogs for mobile devices. If you want to increase exposure and traffic, while lowering your mobile bounce rate, get your blog optimized for mobile devices.

Use Social Data

B2B Social media networks provide your business with the data it needs to create more targeted social posts, blog content, and more. While B2C businesses are slower to hop on board with social intelligence, 71% of B2B companies (71%) use social media for intelligence-gathering. Social networks provide businesses with insight into conversations surrounding the products and services, industry, and their ideal buyer behavior. Spend some time combing these networks, either on your own or with a social monitoring tool, to gain social insight into your buyers, consumers and audience.58% of B2B companies use social media to develop and build a loyal fan base and social intelligence can help you do just that. See which keywords bring your audience in, which hashtags generate the most tweets, and what others are saying about your business to redefine your social strategy and customer experience.

Simply by getting on the right social networks and using social data, you can become more effective and successful with social media. Use the information current customers are providing you with to begin making the most of the opportunities provided by social networks. Conversations on your Facebook page and with your Twitter account can help you develop new blog content, perfect for sharing. The quick and dirty tips for developing a B2B social presence are: get on the right networks, build your blog, and use social data. 

 

Photo credit: Flickr user Thomson Data