The document provides a social media strategy and plan for an auto components B2B business. It identifies key processes that can benefit from social media adoption, including influencing buying behavior, customer relationship management, competition monitoring, and capturing emerging opportunities. It then outlines specific social media concepts and channels that can be used for each process. These include blogs, forums, content marketing and social networking. The document also discusses assessing social media choices based on strategic fit, impact and feasibility.

1. eMarketing Insight
Social media strategy and plan for an
auto components B2B business segment
(sample)
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2. The various processes that can eMarketing Insight
benefit from social media adoption
Key Processes Rationale Social Media
Concepts in use
Influencing the buying B2B buyers seek more information and try to get most value- •Lead
behavior returning purchase. Social media strategies could provide this Generation
information at ease. •Web 2.0
•Blogs
Customer relationship Capture customer feedback, tracking customer’s social habits •Web 3.0
management •Social Graph
•Forums
•Social
Competition management Monitoring Competitors’ behavior in social media space
networking
•Social news
•Emotional
Internal Knowledge Employee engagement with the customers’ voice and internal Marketing
management knowledge sharing •Inbound
Marketing
•Outbound
Capturing emerging market So that we don’t miss on any emerging marketing opportunity Marketing
opportunities for innovative auto-component development. •eNewsletter
•cross-media
marketing
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3. Influencing the buying behavior
If you want to sell Johnny Green what Johnny Green buys, You have to see Johnny Green through Johnny Green’s eyes eMarketing Insight
Buying Target Buying Social Media Strategies
Process Centre Roles*
Pre-buying •Initiator •Share company content on various company owned social media outposts (e.g. based on Auto-
Stage •Gatekeeper expo)
(Brand •Create a weekly content focused eNewsletter
Awareness) •Advertise content in targeted online channels( i.e. Auto-industry newsletters, networks )
•YouTube page
•A Facebook business page as a way to both communicate with realtor clients and to build brand
awareness. Facebook fan pages are today’s direct mail.
•Create blog editorial calendar every month to enforce daily posting and thorough but varied topic
coverage
•Create a dedicated area on the website to house content resources
Recognize Need •Initiator •Identify the 3 most prevalent places where your customers (the respective Buying Roles) spend
•Influencer time. This may be:
a) Popular Automotive Forums
b) Auto-Industry blogs
Evaluate •Buyer
c) LinkedIn.
Options •User
•Influencer
•Seek out the 3 most prevalent channels through which customer seek information for ex.
a) Website
Eliminate •User b) Professional N/ws online & offline
Doubts •Buyer
•Influencer • Following the Blogs of these Buying roles to understand their interest areas and psychology to
make a more effective marketing and sales effort customized accordingly
Decide •Decider
•Participating in Final Consumer auto evaluation forums like http://www.automotiveforums.com/
•Influencer
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*source: Webster, F.E, and Wind, Y., organizational buying behavior, Pretence Hall, New Jersey, 1972

4. Customer relationship management Social Media Strategies
Activity eMarketing Insight
Capture customer Experience Providing social media platforms for interaction between customer and R&D people in
our company like:
• B2B Automotive Blogs
•Automotive discussion forums etc.
Providing social media feedback platforms like:
•Products evaluation forums (for registered users only)
Customer Loyalty Programs Building loyalty communities on difference social medias like facebook followers, twitter
followers etc.
Listening Initiatives Online listening initiative to help us start pinpointing conversations and communities your
customers and prospects are involved in.
Competition management Social Media Strategies
Monitoring competitors Social Media Understanding what the competitors are doing in social media space so that we are able
activities to position our marketing efforts better.
Internal Knowledge management Social Media Strategies
Knowledge sharing & collaboration Promoting Internal social communities of employee like:
•Employee Blogging
•CEO Blogs
•Twitter as a broadcasting medium for internal newletters
•Daily discussions forums for employees 4

5. Capturing market opportunities eMarketing Insight
“You’re missing out if you’re not listening and participating.”
Capturing emerging market Social Media Strategies
opportunities
New Product development Participating in different social forums to understand the changing needs of
the final consumer* (the automobile owner). Understanding:
• what they are saying,
•what they are complaining about, and
•what is their measure of making a choice etc.
*Although this activity is also the part of our CRM initiative.
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6. The detailed assessment of eMarketing Insight
our social media choices
Figures could be managed
according to the company Strategic Fit Impact Feasibility Total
requirements
Market
Alignment Expected Cost/Bene Technical Resources Resources
Selection Criteria with Goals
Positionin Industry
Reach fit
Customer
Risk - Financial - People
Weight
g
Weighting Scale 15% 15% 10% 10% 15% 15% 10% 5% 5% 100%
Ranking Criteria: Definitions:
Alignment with Company Goals How aligned is this project to my corporate goals & objectives?
Market Positioning Does this initiative position us better in the auto-components market?
Industry Would adopting this Social Media channel be attractive in auto-components industry?
Expected Reach How popular is this Social Media channel? Will this provide a great deal of exposure for our products?
Cost/Benefit Does this initiative have a solid cost/benefit?
Customer Will this initiative help us better service and maintain our existing accounts?
Technical Risk What is the probability of overcoming the technical challenges of this social media project?
Resources - Financial Do we have the financial resources to execute this social media initiative?
Resources - People Do we have the skills & bandwidth to execute this social media initiative? 6

7. eMarketing Insight
High level impact of these ideas
Better customer relationship management
Better preparedness for new customer acquisition
Capturing the voice of customer and customer’s customer
More prepared for capturing emerging opportunities
More brand awareness
Targeted promotions, hence better cost effectiveness
Employee involved with the lager objectives of the company
Increased communication effectiveness
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8. eMarketing Insight
List of References
• www.emeraldinsight.com Indian auto components, VOL. 24 NO. 4 2008 STRATEGIC DIRCTION
• Kasturi Rangan V.;What is industrial Marketing, HBS, Sept 23, 1994
• Raymond Corey E.; Industrial Buying Behavior, “Procurement Management, strategy, Organizatio an Decision Making” 1978
• C. Anderson James, A. Narus James, and Van Rossum Wouter; Customer Value Proposition in Business Markets, Harvard Business Review, March 2006
• www.indialawoffices.com
• http://www.automotiveforums.com/
• http://www.2828.bz/
• http://www.amrinternational.com/reports/b2b_online_marketing_in_the_united_states_assessment_and_forecast_to_2013
• www.made-from-india.com
• http://www.emarketer.com
• http://www.radian6.com
• http://www.socialmedia.com/about/
• http://www.minonline.com/
• http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2009/02/25/data-b2b-buyers-and-technology-decision-makers-use-social-technologies/
• http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2010/03/05/altimeter-report-the-18-use-cases-of-social-crm-the-new-rules-of-relationship-management/
• http://blogs.business.com/b2b-online-marketing/2009/businesscom-b2b-social-media-case-study/
• http://www.business-strategy-innovation.com/2009/11/five-steps-to-successful-b2b-social.html
• http://www.optify.net/marketing-blogosphere-summary/b2b-marketers-social-media-roi/
• http://www.slideshare.net/Wgconn/toolboxcom-top-5-trends-in-b2b-social-media-usage-what-every-marketer-should-know
• http://www.scribd.com/doc/25562733/Social-Media-for-B2B-Marketing-Whitepaper
• http://www.inbound-marketing-automation.ca/blog/2009/12/06/how-to-run-a-social-media-campaign/
• http://mashable.com/2010/03/25/b2b-marketer-lessons/
• http://socialmediab2b.com/2010/04/b2b-social-media-number-one-reason/
• http://socialmediab2b.com/2010/08/b2b-facebook-brand-pages/
• http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2010/05/social-media-in-the-b2b-world-a-talk-with-hoovers-tim-walker.html
• http://www.socialmediabiz.com/resource/b2b-engagement-managing-your-social-media-mentions
• http://webbiquity.com/social-media-marketing/11-myths-of-social-media-marketing/
• http://dannybrown.me/2010/06/01/bb-marketing-social-media-close-but-no-cigar-yet/
• http://ojoin.com/pr-speak/2010/01/5-ways-b2b-companies-can-use-social-media-for-lead-generation-lead-nurturing/
• http://www.briansolis.com/2010/07/social-media-spend-to-double-this-year/
• http://my.advisor.com/doc/04893
• http://emarketinginsight.wordpress.com/2010/09/21/5-ways-for-b2b-companies-to-engage-on-facebook/
• http://ideas8bottom.blogspot.com/2010/09/on-social-media.html
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eMarketing Insight
http://emarketinginsight.blogspot.com/
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