B2B Social Media Strategy

Laura Dunkley (Background) Profile Links -http://www.linkedin.com/in/lauraldunkley , http://www.lauradunkley.com/Independent Sales & Marketing professional with a passion for Public Relations. Offering various skills and experience across these professional silos to give value added perspective and offering to the entire organization.Working independently with companies to develop strategic communications: to support success in reaching their overall business goals and objectives.Specialties:Strategic business development, sales, marketing, reputation management, customer service, brand management, communication excellence, social media management, event planning, content development, business writing (i.e. press releases, RFPs, brochures)Working with businesses in the area of strategic communications to support their business goals and objectives. Offering services throughout various stages of their program: Research, Planning, Managing, Training and Evaluation. Services: Social Media, marketing, writing, website management, internal communications, sales support, project management and consulting.

Social Business is an integrated approach – Ultimately to create relationships to support overall business goals and objectives.“An organization that has put in place the strategies, technologies and processes to systematically engage all the individuals of its ecosystem (employees, customers, partners, suppliers) to maximize the co-created value”

Build awarenessLet them know who you are as a company (brand awareness) – what are your values, your mission, competitive differentiation, etc.Let them know that you understand their business challenge(s)You are able to provide a product or service to meet their needsYou will be there to support their needs: short-term and long-term.Are you out there to be found? Know where your customers are spending time (talking, researching, etc.) and make sure you are there.EducateProvide them with the right information, at the right part of their buying cycle, to help with their buying decision(s)Once your customers invest in your product/service, what do they need for long-term satisfaction? (i.e. user manuals, training, customer service, upgrades)Can you be a resource of information to support their business goals? Help them be successful and they will be more receptive to other products or services you may have for them in the future.Engage (‘Call to Action’)Information – you don’t want to have everything out on the internet for your customer to have access to, but make sure you give them enough to want to ask for more. Certain information can be available by registering an email address. Information that requires a discussion should always be request for a meeting.B2B companies searching for product/service will most likely spend more time researching online before contacting a company for a discussion opportunity. If you don’t give them enough information to give them the confidence to contact you, they will move on to your competitor. No one likes a pushy sales person, but if they think what you have to offer is worth it, they will call. Give them the opportunity to find out enough about you to give them the confidence that you are worth the time and risk to take the chance in calling you for more information Purchase – Sometimes you can cut down the sales cycle and go right to purchase. Isn’t this every company’s dream? This is why inbound marketing has become so popular, especially among B2B companies.Make sure all your online sites (website and social media) have easily found ‘call to action’ buttons to meet the goals of your campaign: For purchasing, your button could say ‘BUY NOW’. Customer service – if there is a problem, make sure your customer can easily contact you and get the help they need. Many companies still think a 1-800 number is the only way to offer customer support. Social Media and websites all need to be considered a customer service point of contact. Your customers are on many platforms themselves – personally and for business – and they expect you to be there listening and responding as well.

…facts that can display the value social media could bring to your B2B marketing practices.74% of B2B marketing companies use Twitter to distribute content (Content Marketing Institute)58% of marketers who have been using social media for more than 3 years report it has helped them improve sales (Social Media Examiner)B2B marketers who use Twitter generate twice as many leads as those that do not (Inside View)For B2B companies, LinkedIn was the most effective, with 65% having acquired a customer through the professional network (Marketing Charts)55% of B2B survey respondents search for information on social media (MediaBistro)Marketers spend an average of 4-6 hours a week on social media (Social Media Examiner)Fewer than 30% of large organizations will block social media in 2014, vs 50% in 2010 (Gartner)The number one benefit of social media marketing is generating more business exposure (85%), followed by increasing traffic (69%) and providing marketplace insight (65%)(Social Media Examiner)Identifying the value of social media marketing efforts comes down to looking at four factors: financial, branding, risk management, and digital marketing (Forrester)Social Media can improve relations with employees. 82% of employees say they trust a company more when the CEO and leadership team communicate via social media (eMarketer)Now we come to an 11th stat showing that more than two-thirds of companies surveyed by IBM do not have the internal infrastructure to incorporate and manage Social Media intitiatives. 11. 68% of CMOs say their companies are unprepared to fully incorporate social media (IBM)http://web.marsdenassociates.com/perceptions-blog/bid/146450/11-Must-Read-Stats-on-B2B-Social-Media-Use

Lack of infrastructure – implement and engage68% of CMOs say their companiesare unprepared to fully incorporate social media“ 87 percent of B2B brands use social media to engage audiences and distribute digital content to prospective and current customers, which is an impressive leap from 74 percent in 2012. ”“It's being adopted at an accelerated rate as a proven lead-generating engine to drive more traffic to websites, thus opening up opportunities for your prospects to engage with you at the Top, Middle and Bottom of the Sales Funnel”

25% of users on social networks are in the 35-44 age bracket with the average age being 37Average Age on Facebook is 38Facebook Top interests are communities, fashion/cosmetics, politics, instant messenger, humor and discussion and chatTwitter - Largest age group at 45% is the 18-34 age group with the second largest bracket being the 35-49 year olds at 24%http://www.jeffbullas.com/2010/09/09/what-social-media-network-should-your-brand-use-for-your-target-markets/

This is just an example. Meant to be an exercise for B2B companies - who is influencing who. Who is priority stakeholders in overall strategy of the company, missions and goals..success of your company. Key messages from large stakeholders will be important.

Essential components of a communication strategy…Goals & Objectives – these give you direction, help measure success & help with planningAlways remember… Social Media is just a tool. Part of the tactics within each of these groups… but not the end all be all. Integration!

Social Media Guidelines: Top 10 takeaways Contact your Human Resources department (if you have one) for any current policies that are in placeContact Legal (your department or lawyer) to find out what you MUST have in your policy and any advice on how to implementPolicy needs to be written up in plain language & signed by each staff member or affiliated partner (i.e. brand ambassadors, therapists working in the same office, etc.). Anyone who is directly involved with your company needs to sign this document. They are on social media whether you have a corporate account or not, so guidelines need to be in place.It is an extension of your corporate culture, so start with your company values and mission statement for setting the standards and helping with direction.Communicate, train, follow-up and monitor on a regular basisProvide rules on how to respond to certain commentsRespect one another - a key message to get acrossDefine the parameters on how and when they can use Social Media at workENCOURAGE them to use social media! Your staff can be your greatest asset when talking about your business.Guide employees through the process on what is appropriate corporate topics to discuss - NOT financials or proprietary information!!!Let them know there will be consequences if these rules are not followed. Always remember your employees are your best ambassadors. Create a company culture that cultivates transparency, honesty and authenticity with responsibility – online and offline.Here is a list of other useful resources on the topic of creating a social media policy for your company.

Click 1 – Website is your hub + clients & other people are out there talking, and part of your business – they are your bottom line (goal is to inform and engage)Click 2 – Website + Platforms that have new content (that can be repurposed across other platforms & used as business reference)Click 3 – Social Media – two-way communication ,fast, repurpose content, build engagement

Calendar of possible monthly editorial calendar. Increase in activity and planning around events (i.e. in-studio events, charity events, news/press release, product launch, etc)

Original – any information created by your sales agency, staff / ambassadors – directly involved with an event, review of a product, personal insight…. Store Events Workshops PK Sessions Tech Tips Race Review Athlete interview Rides with storesCurated – what you collect and share from other sources – always stating the sourceCorporateAdvocacy Work User Manuals Tech Manuals Press Releases (i.e. Company updates) Trade Show event notices Merchandising Tips Product Releases

KISS – Keep it Simple Stupid - Simplicity – “Become the master of exclusion”Unexpectedness – Present in a striking wayConcreteness – get to the point, use visualsEmotions – experiences & feelingsStories – easier to remember

Research Tipshttp://www.lauradunkley.com/2012/03/12/social-media-getting-started-research/Employees can be your best resource – If you are not tech-savvy, it is most likely that a few of your staff have been using social media personally for many years and will be more than happy to help you get started. Ask their advice.Know your customers – Many of your sales people will have ‘front-line’ feedback about your customer’s buying habits, how often your customers use mobile devices when walking around the store checking prices, and even customer feedback on where and how they spend their on-line time. Where your customers are (online platforms i.e. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc), there you should be also.Competition – See what your competitors are doing.Industry Support – Do any of your industry groups, or brands offer marketing support for your development of social media in your business?More information – There are more books and online articles available for your reading pleasure, but this can get quite overwhelming considering the technology and development of this field of business is constantly evolving. But if you are interested, check out My BlogRoll for more links to blogs & articles on the subject.Outside help – There are many marketing and public relations consultants and agencies that are experts in the area of social media and digital marketing. Limited budget? Look for a recent graduate looking to develop their portfolio. A more complex plan, consult a seasoned professional.Social Media: How to start your social media planhttp://www.lauradunkley.com/2012/03/15/social-media-how-to-start-your-social-media-plan/Write it down – It is so tempting to just ask your manager/tech-savvy employee to design a Facebook page and start posting store ‘stuff’, but if you want to get real results, you need to have a plan written down and reference it regularly to make sure you are still on track. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy; however, if you have the resources, calling in someone trained in communications with social media experience will save you time putting the plan together and they will be able to offer you some advice on best-practices. If you choose to have them assist in implementation and training, make sure that their price is included in your budget as an option for you to review. (Budget coming up in our next blog).What does success look like to you? – Objectives must be clear, realistic and measurable. Set milestones, expected results, and how you will evaluate at the end of a certain period. Create short-term and long-term goals. If it is customer engagement (i.e. to build an audience for your business) then ‘LIKES’ to a Facebook page could be included. Are you looking to promote a new product? Then measure the number of mentions, sentiment toward the product and increase in purchases directly related to traffic from your social media sites (i.e. short survey at time of purchase) could be part of your objectives.What social media sites to target? – This is where your research notes come in handy (you did make notes after the last blog, right?). Location, Location, Location – is the famous retailers phrase for success and it is not so different here. You need to be where your customers are, be involved with their online conversations, and make sure you have a call to action so they know where to find you and how to buy from you. Monitor these sites for opportunities to respond to any negative conversations to keep your reputation in tact. If a customer has a complaint, and they are active online, they will most likely share that complaint with MANY people through their online networks. If you are monitoring these networks you can respond in a timely fashion. This is now an opportunity! It will give you a chance to show exceptional service and turn that complaint into a possible ‘Thank-you”.Policies / Guidelines - Many forward thinking companies encourage their employees to be ambassadors for their company – online and offline. Because of this, it is well worth the effort to put down some guidelines for your employees to protect your company’s reputation. If managing content for your social media sites is their job, you will want it to be more thorough since they will be the ‘voice’ of your organization. No matter what, make it clear on what your expectations are. “You cannot effectively hold employees accountable for their actions if you are not clear as to what these workers should and shouldn’t be doing” Jodie Shaw – ActionCOACH. If you are looking for more information on developing these guidelines, Hearsay Social offers A “How-to” on writing a social media plan and policy that can be downloaded at this link.Get out your calendar! – Once you know what you want to achieve, so now you need an evaluation period. Remember, you need time to get your plan started (designed and implemented), your staff trained and then opportunity to get the word out that you have a social media presence, so make sure you pick a reasonable period of time to give this a chance. In my opinion it has to be at least a twelve month period from the point of having everything online and active. Use this daily! But also consider using it in parallel with other business events that involve your targeted stakeholders- Sales, Customer appreciation days, Team Races, Community festivals, Staff birthdays, monthly Facebook contests (see, now we have potential for even MORE kinds of events now that you are being ‘social’).Things to remember….Content is KingFind your influencersSee what your competitors & others in your industry are doingSpeed of conversation increasedTwo way communication & Three way communicationEngagement – Build relationshipsVisual is important Be where your customers areListen & RespondNo one tool is perfect for everythingSupport business objectives (Strategic)Content should be RITE – Relevant, Interesting, Timely and Entertaining (Mark Schaeffer ROI)Policies should be in place for using SM (employees)Evaluate & Measure – Constantly changing

Laura Dunkley (Background) Profile Links -http://www.linkedin.com/in/lauraldunkley , http://www.lauradunkley.com/Independent Sales & Marketing professional with a passion for Public Relations. Offering various skills and experience across these professional silos to give value added perspective and offering to the entire organization.Working independently with companies to develop strategic communications: to support success in reaching their overall business goals and objectives.Specialties:Strategic business development, sales, marketing, reputation management, customer service, brand management, communication excellence, social media management, event planning, content development, business writing (i.e. press releases, RFPs, brochures)Working with businesses in the area of strategic communications to support their business goals and objectives. Offering services throughout various stages of their program: Research, Planning, Managing, Training and Evaluation. Services: Social Media, marketing, writing, website management, internal communications, sales support, project management and consulting.