Top B2B Questions about Social Media

by Crystal King on April 21, 2009

I have groups of people that come to me on a regular basis, essentially saying, we know we need to start using social media, but what is it and how do we use it? Underlying each and every conversation I have with these individuals are a few bigger questions:

1. Can you tell me how to use it without me actually going there and trying it out?

2. Why do I really need to be part of the social media “conversation?”  

3. How much time is it going to take? How long do we have to do this (this meaning Twitter, or commenting on blogs, etc.)?

4.  Which social media outlet is best? 

The first question is, of course, the most annoying.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I can understand this question coming from a CEO or SVP of such and such product, but if you are in marketing, get thee to the Internet and start checking out these tools for yourself. Social media is not a fad. That means that if you want to continue to provide relevance in your role as a marketer, it may behoove you to understand how social media will influence, impact and shape all of your marketing campaigns moving forward. Most of the social media sites are very self-explanatory, take just a few minutes to sign up for and maybe a few more minutes to understand the basics of how they function. Google is your friend when it comes to finding “how-to” guides on everything ranging from Facebook to Twitter to YouTube. Don’t be lazy. This is the future of marketing and you will only be further providing value for yourself and your company if you start paying attention. Go to Mashable. Buy the Groundswell book. Read all you can…it’s not as though there aren’t enough “social media experts” in the fray to help you along.

The second question about the Why and What of the social media conversation, to some extent, goes hand in hand with my answer above. Why? Because your audience is using it. Because your influencers (media, analysts, bloggers) are using it.

A recent Forrester report,  ”The Social Technographics of Business Buyers,” by Laura Ramos and Oliver Young, published back in February, showed that B2B buyers are not just relying on traditional print and Web methods to research information. In fact, it showed that social media is becoming the norm when it comes to communication and gathering data.

As mentioned by analyst Josh Bernoff on the Forrester Groundswell blog,  this is the breakdown of how B2B buyers are using social media:

  • Spectators  91%
  • Critics   58%
  • Joiners  55%
  • Collectors   48%
  • Creators  43%
  • Inactives  5%

Also of note: 

“91% of these technology decision-makers were Spectators — the highest number I’ve ever seen in a Social Technographics Profile. This means you can count on the fact that your buyers are reading blogs, watching user generated video, and participating in other social media. Note that 69% of them said they were using this technology for business purposes.”

So there is the Why. Essentially, you can’t afford to not be where your audience is, which is an old school marketing mantra. It’s just that the medium has changed.

Take the time

Question three: how much time is social media going to take? And how long do you have to do it? This is the problem — you can’t look at social media as a “task” with a finite deadline. Granted, you may deliver a campaign using social media channels and THAT may have some sort of ending, but your interaction with social media should not be looked upon as something that “ends” at any given point. 

The difference is that social media gives power to the people, not to the companies. It’s not the same as picking up a magazine and seeing a print ad. Social media drives conversation and discussion. It’s where you network and meet people of relevant interest. It’s a way to ask questions and find answers. Your customers, prospects, influencers and vendors are using social media for a million different reasons. Time to jump into the conversation so when the discussion turns to something relevant for you, you are ready and able to participate.

For those of you who want definitive answers on time it takes…it depends. Once you set up your networks its often just a matter of monitoring or maintaining. I probably spend 20 min a day with Twitter. About the same on Facebook. The rest is just a mish-mash of time depending on needs or projects. Some days I spend a lot of time managing my company’s YouTube channel but then will go a week without needing to touch it. If you have a lot of videos to manage that may not be the case (or if you are being redundant in areas such as Viddler or Vimeo and you need to upload multiple videos).  So really, it’s about your needs, the size of your network, the quality of the conversations in your network, any campaigns you might be running, etc.  

4.  Which new media outlet is best? 

Again, it depends. What you need to do first is to sit down and determine what the overall needs of your company are. Ask yourself some key questions.

  • Who is your audience?   Media? Analysts? Auto mechanics? Web designers?  Healthcare professionals?   Knowing your audience will help you determine if you need a broad strategy or a niche possibility.
  • What kind of content do you want to share with your audience?  Video? Slideshows? White papers? Podcasts? Webinars? All of the above? There are new media sites for all of those assets and many that give you the ability to share them all.
  • How much discussion do you want? Most of the various social media and new media technologies give you power over commenting. Some companies are terrified of getting customer feedback in a public forum, others relish the opportunity ( http://www.twitter.com/comcastcares ). Be ready with a strategy for responses to feedback, how you will participate in the discussion, how much moderation is needed, who you choose to be part of the conversation (are you comfortable with random employees Twittering or sharing information on SlideShare?). More and more companies are hiring people to specifically respond to social media activity and for good reason.

In order to best answer #4, the number one thing that you can do to help determine the right outlets for your company is to get involved. Sign up for a few services and watch how people use the tools. Comment, respond, join in the fray. There are no definitive answers when it comes down to what is “best” or even possible. A week of futzing around to understand the new media technologies and social media sites at your disposal will go along way toward helping you fine tune what makes the most sense for your organization.

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