As part of any successful B2B marketing strategy, your company’s social media channels are a reliable source for reaching and engaging with your audience. However, even with a consistent stream of new content that includes SEO and SEM practices, it can be difficult to expand your reach organically. This is where social media advertising, or paid social, comes into play as a means of quickly reaching a new, targeted audience. It’s one of the biggest social media trends and can be a valuable tool for your B2B business to generate new leads, but it’s important to understand all of your options before you start pouring money across your various networks.
Social Media Ad Platforms
Much like a paid media plan gives you an opportunity to promote content and drive exposure, social media advertising allows your company to put content directly in front of those who will most likely show interest with ads targeted to users based on location, job titles, spending habits or personal interests. By placing control of who sees the ad in your hands, paid social is one of the most effective ways to convert leads. However, as any parent of a teenager can tell you, there are plenty of social media platforms out there, so it’s important to choose those that are most likely to reach members of your target audience.
- Facebook – As the most popular social media platform and one of the most visited websites on the internet, Facebook is a worthy inclusion to any paid social media plan. Whether your company has 1,000 employees or just one, Facebook ads allow organizations of any size to promote their products and services to specific audiences.
- Instagram – Designed to share photos and videos, Instagram can also be used by your business to engage with a new audience. Ads on Instagram can be used in the form of stories, video or lead ads that also appear on Facebook news feeds.
- X (Twitter) – With its fast-paced atmosphere and 280-character limit, X has evolved into a popular form of news consumption among its more than 368 million active users each month but that doesn’t mean it can’t still be used to gain exposure for your company. With promoted posts, your business can place content directly in front of members of your target audience, while promoted trends allow you to generate a conversation with hashtags.
- LinkedIn – With an emphasis on professional networking, LinkedIn is a logical selection for a paid social media campaign. It’s also one of the easiest to navigate with its Campaign Manager setup which allows your business to create objective-based ads to increase website visits, engagement, video views, lead generation, brand awareness or website conversions.
- YouTube – If engaging and interactive video ads interest your B2B company, YouTube is the place to go. Since it’s owned by Google, YouTube works with Google Analytics to measure conversions and capture leads based on who is watching your content and then visiting your website.
Types of Social Media Campaigns
After you’ve gained a full understanding of the various channels and how to advertise on them, it’s time to plan a social media campaign for your company. Selecting the type of campaign depends on what your business is hoping to achieve with the ad. Whether you’re in the early stages of reaching out to members of a new audience or trying to convert leads into clients, the right campaign can put your business on the track to success.
- Prospecting – These campaigns are all about generating awareness about your company and reaching people who have not previously interacted with your business. Utilizing the right keywords can greatly improve prospecting campaigns as it will allow you to specifically target the audience you are trying to reach. You can then engage them with relevant content that encourages them to learn more about your B2B business without delivering a sales pitch. Be sure to keep an eye out for any questions or comments. Ignoring them or responding late can end the interest before it even truly begins.
- Retargeting – While engaging a new audience is necessary to grow your company’s client base, that doesn’t mean you should overlook those who you know. A retargeting campaign focuses on users who have shown interest in the past by visiting your website, following your social media channel or subscribed to your eNewsletter. The goal of a retargeting campaign is to circle back to that initial interest and engage on a deeper level that encourages them to take further action.
- Conversion – As the name suggests, a conversion social media campaign is all about turning interested members of your target audience into new clients for your company by promoting specific actions. Feel free to break out that sales pitch if your efforts are focused solely on securing new business, but other possible actions include downloading free content such as an eBook, completing a contact form or survey, making a call or subscribing to a eNewsletter.
From blog posts and podcasts to videos and infographics, there’s no shortage of content options for your B2B company to choose from when developing your social media ads. Since those you are trying to reach are being bombarded with messages from their own network as well as other businesses, it’s important to ensure that the content you are sharing is relevant and informative to avoid it being overlooked or intentionally ignored. If you need help fleshing out your social media advertising strategy or just want to bounce around some thoughts, let’s connect. We’d love to start a conversation with you about how we can create results for your B2B business.