Social Media helps B2B September 21, 2009
Posted by Edwin Ritter in Trends.Tags: B2B, community, integration, relationship, responsiveness, Social Media
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More and more companies are waking up to the potential gains in using Social Media to communicate with their B2B customers. It’s a natural progression when you think about it. By definition, you have an existing relationship with a captive audience. Businesses are now realizing they can expand on that relationship and gain competitive advantage. In a recent blogs post , Valeria Maltoni expands on ways to glean insight on how to leverage SM. Key opportunities in using SM with B2B clients include :
- Communities of customers – get them talking about how you can solve challenges
- Areas to move from conversation to conversion - having a good relationship results from being responsive
- improving a customers journey on every interaction – each one is an opportunity to make a impression.
I posted recently about SM results in using B2B. This is all part of the SM learning curve we are currently in. Very soon, B2B(SM)* will be a ‘Well, of course’ observation for all of us. By being engaged with customers and suppliers, we all are influencing what will become common business practices that naturally integrate SM in the near future. I also envision embedding SM tools in private sites to further expand the experience. To keep ahead of competition, I expect companies will find ways to stay out front that customize SM content even further with promotions, contract anniversaries, service announcements for specific products and so on. Up front planning and being committed to consistently use SM are some of the key success factors. For those of you with more B2B expertise, what do you think? How would you use SM with your B2B clientele?
*B2B(SM) – you heard it hear first!
Social Media use in B2B – Case Study & Results August 31, 2009
Posted by Edwin Ritter in Trends.Tags: B2B, Case Study, Change, Lessons Learned, process, SM, Social Media, Web 2.0
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Found this from a post on a LinkedIn group I subscribe to. Interesting account on how Twitter and other SM tools were used for a recent B2B initiative. Includes Lessons Learned that are worth reading. Here’s the link.
Take aways include :
- There is a learning curve – don’t underestimate
- Training for new skills -have them before you need them
- Not as bad as it seems – the worst did not happen
- Catch up to competition – SM provided increased visibility with others and crowded the landscape a little more
- Blurred lines – between internal groups on who does what.
- Manage from the middle – very interesting concept similar to having decision made by those closest to the work. Trust your staff has the right skills and experience. Don’t wordsmith – not a good use of your time!
It’s great that the lessons learned are added here. Will B2B have increased use of SM? How does that change current SM practices?
