By Aisha Noreen
Social media engagement is essential for any business, be it a B2B company or businesses operating in the B2C space. Through social media, users seek connections with people and their favorite brands. That is why 93% of global marketers are using social media to promote businesses.
Unlike the business-to-consumer (B2C) spectrum, engagement with business-to-business (B2B) customers is very challenging. Usually, B2C customer personas are much more straightforward than B2B because you need to target multiple decision-makers in B2B content marketing.
Any minute mistake in B2B marketing on social platforms can cost you thousands of dollars. Therefore, your content must be comprehensive and exciting enough to attract your potential customer’s attention.
Where 48% of B2B customers encounter boring content lacking creativity, I understand that finding new and interesting ways to reach your B2B target audience is daunting. Therefore, I am going to share 10 tested B2B social media content ideas that will surely engage your audience.
So whether you’re looking to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, or generate leads, you’ll find something here that will help you achieve your goals. So what are you waiting for? Let’s get started!
1. Focus on Your Customer’s Need
Tell me honestly, aren’t you annoyed by the content that is too salesy? There is no denying that pushing hard-selling content is easily overlooked. Around 76 percent of consumers expect companies to recognize their needs. Therefore, 88 percent of the top B2B content marketers prefer their target audience’s needs over promotional or sales content.
So, if you hit your customers’ pain points, your prospects will be unable to resist engaging with your post. One of the best ways to address customer needs is to look for something that your customers or followers are always asking. Then turn those frequently asked questions (FAQs) into a social media post.
Not only will this be helpful for your target audience, but it also shows that you’re paying attention to their needs. Hence, having the image of being helpful will reinforce the purchasing confidence of your B2B customers.
2. Utilize User-Generated Content
User-generated content (UGC) is the brand-specific content that customers create and publish on social media. It is a great way to add some variety to your social media feeds. Moreover, you build social proof by showing off your happy customers through UGC.
Hence, UGC boosts your reliability and brings your brand’s promises into perspective. UGC comes in many forms, including;
- Videos,
- Images,
- Testimonial,
- Reviews, or
- Podcast
To get UGC from your existing customers, you can ask your followers to share photos/videos of them using your products. Or you can share testimonials and reviews that you’ve received on social media in comments, emails, or direct messages.
Either way, UGC is a win-win. Your followers get to see your products in action, and you get free content for your social media channels. Everybody’s happy!
3. Offer Tips & Tricks
B2B customers always look for ways to improve their businesses. So why not help them out by sharing some tips and tricks? This could be anything from helpful hints on using your products or service to tips on how to be more productive.
For example, if you are promoting a Software as a service (SaaS) company, you can share tips on product-relevant topics. You can use different keyword research tools to identify relevant topics based on search volume. Then present that relevant information in bullets, flow charts, or infographics form.
If your followers find the information valuable, they will want to learn more and click on your post. And, of course, they’ll be more likely to engage with your content in the future if you impress them with the previous post.
4. Go Live on Social Media
Live video is all the rage these days. And for a good reason – it’s a great way to connect with your B2B audience more personally. If you’ve never gone live on social media before, now is the time to give it a try.
For social media live streaming, you can;
- Do a Q&A session,
- Give a behind-the-scenes tour of your company,
- Host a casual conversation with one of your company’s thought leaders, or
- Start an educational podcast.
This way, your followers will have the opportunity to see the human side of your business. Moreover, they will feel that they have personalized services.
5. Run a Contest or Giveaway
People love free stuff. So why not run a contest or giveaway on your social media channels? This is a great way to increase engagement and get people talking about your brand. Nowadays, 84% of B2B customers start the purchasing process with a referral.
Moreover, more than 90% of all B2B buying decisions are influenced by peer recommendations. According to a study, 78% of promotional items or giveaways recipients happily recommend the company. Hence, giveaways or social media contests are an effective way to get more buyers.
Just be sure to make the contest’s rules clear and easy to understand. And, of course, choose a prize that your target audience will actually want to win.
6. Share Infographics
Infographics are an exciting way to take complex topics and make them easy to understand. They’re also very shareable, which means they can help increase your social media reach.
Infographics are one of the top five most used types of content by B2B marketers, and around 65% of B2B marketers use infographics to promote business on different platforms. Moreover, 84% of Infographic World survey respondents found infographics an effective medium for marketing.
So, you can use infographics on your social media channels to engage your audience. If you’re not sure where to start, there are plenty of tools out there that can help you create infographics, even if you don’t have any design experience. Canva is a great option that’s both easy to use and affordable.
7. Share Case Studies
Do you have a customer who’s achieved great results with your products or services? If so, why not share their story?
Case studies are an excellent way to showcase the value of your products or services. They’re also a great way to build social proof and show potential customers that you’re the real deal.
According to a survey, 83% of digital marketers use case studies, making them the top three content types used in marketing. Through case studies, your prospective buyers can relate themselves to the success stories you shared and feel confident in their buying decision.
8. Use Memes
Memes are a great way to add some levity to your B2B social media content. They’re also a great way to reach a wider audience since they tend to be very shareable. Adding a touch of comedy through memes can make your B2B content less boring and draw attention to your brand, service, or product.
You can find several successful B2B memes marketing case studies and plan your social media content accordingly. Just be sure to keep memes relevant to your target audience and use them occasionally. Also, keep memes recognizable and ensure they don’t have offensive elements.
9. Send Out Fill-in-the-Blank Social Updates
Fill-in-the-blank social updates are fun and create instant engagement on your social media channels. They’re also a great way to get to know your audience better. To create a fill-in-the-blank update, you must come up with a statement or question and leave a blank for your followers to fill in.
For example, “The best thing about _____ is _____”, “The best strategy I adopted for my website is _____”, “I work out because _____”.
By using fill-in-the-blank updates, you can generate some interesting content for your social media channels. Moreover, you will get some valuable insights into your customer’s needs, can get feedback on your product or service, or have an idea about a unique product or service. So why not give them a try?
10. Behind the Scene Posts
Using “behind the scene posts” candidly showcases your business and allows your clients to see your business from a different perspective. It adds a human element to your content and acts as an effective medium to communicate your brand values and company culture.
By showing a little vulnerability through “behind the scene posts,” you help your customers acknowledge your business. “Behind the scene” posts can be;
- Sneak peek at something in the working process,
- Photos of teamwork,
- Showing workplace and facilities,
- Showing yourself when you aren’t working (what you do outside the office),
- Company events, etc.
So, if you want to tell your brand’s story, behind-the-scenes posts are the most effective way. Through such posts, not only will your customers connect with your brand, but your employees and team will also feel acknowledged and motivated.
Pro Tip
Deciding the right social media platform for your B2B company is vital for your marketing strategy. Even if you are creating exciting and eye-catching content, you may not get the desired ROI if you are not using the right platform.
For example, if most of your target audience is on LinkedIn, approaching them via FaceBook or Instagram would waste time and resources. A survey concluded that 79% of B2B marketers found LinkedIn more beneficial to getting business, while 54 percent voted for Facebook and 36% for YouTube.
Therefore, knowing the right social media platform for your target audience must be a part of your marketing research.
Final Words
Before you start any social campaign or activity, make sure to do thorough research about your target audience and prepare the buyer’s persona. To achieve your marketing objectives,
do not forget to track the performance of each idea and improve future content accordingly.
Using the above-mentioned B2B social media content ideas, you can break the cycle of sameness and increase your brand’s visibility. Start putting these ideas into action and watch your engagement numbers soar.
About the Author
Aisha Noreen – an owner of a small business, I went through multiple challenges which I overcame by experimenting with different ideas. I love sharing those ideas with others who are looking for solutions to problems concerning marketing, business registration, personal asset protection, and business operation in a compliant manner at MoneyAisle.com. Outside work, people know me as a movie buff and my recommended films make the day of my friends.