The Thinking PR and Marketing Pro’s Guide to expanding B2B content horizons
In the B2B world, content is the linchpin keeping business strategies, messaging, and marketing all aligned, and it plays a key role in boosting sales and increasing brand awareness. But seasoned B2B PR and marketing professionals know all too well that creating content is just the start – the most challenging part is getting it into places where it will thrive, be that top-tier tech and industry media, company blogs, or social media profiles!
The pressure is on for B2B PR and marketing pros to find new channels for content to generate leads, boost conversions, and increase brand equity.
In today’s digital era, social media is one of the most powerful launchpads for content. With over 75% of B2B buyers using social media to help them make buying decisions, its gravitational pull can focus content strategies and yield faster results. To fuel our social media success, this week we take a look at Oktopost’s top tips for tapping into the power of social media publishing to ensure content marketing strategies land every time!
The art of social media publishing means thinking out of the digital straightjacket
Social media publishing is not as simple as publishing content on all platforms. There is a whole range of social platforms out there offering a range of versatile ways of creating and publishing content. B2B pros need to strategize social posts to help meet specific social media marketing goals. In fact, there’s a wide range of PR and marketing strategies available to master social media publishing, from social listening, which monitors and analyzes social media conversations to ensure content is relevant to their audience, to repurposing content to suit certain social media audiences and algorithms. More details on here about the perfect blend of content for a rounded B2B social campaign.
But creating content is just the start of the journey. Next, B2B PR and marketing pros need to think about where they are publishing the content – and this doesn’t always have to be through the company channel. Think of utilizing an SME and their executive profile – remember, a credible voice goes a long way in the B2B landscape – or publishing content via employee advocacy boards.
The power of social publishing in a new B2B buying landscape – catch that lead!
A strong social publishing strategy can be the difference between landing and not landing a lead. As we’ve discussed before, the B2B sales funnel has a new powerhouse and a range of different buying personas that B2B pros need to appeal to. The most prominent of these new B2B buyers is the Gen Z buyer, and they’re doing things slightly differently, particularly when it comes to doing their brand research, with many checking social channels vs. getting it from sales representatives.
This is where social media publishing flexes its muscles. The more original and industry-relevant content B2B pros can use on their social platforms, the more effectively they will capture the interest of top-tier leads, increase brand awareness, and foster customer relationships. So, what content must B2B PR and marketing pros produce, and where should they be posting it?
What content? For what platform? Think before you jump!
In truth, there’s no definite answer on what content B2B PR and marketing pros should be producing for each social media platform. However, looking at audience metrics, their industry focus, and of course the platform’s algorithms can help paint a clearer picture of what content best suits each platform.
The B2B social media landscape has been a turbulent place over the past couple of years, but LinkedIn is still coming out on top. While many may think longer-form text content is ideal for LinkedIn, they aren’t wrong, but recently, LinkedIn has experienced its own video boom. Yet it’s not the only platform B2B pros need to think about video content for, with Instagram and TikTok also favoring video content.
But don’t forget that shorter, text-based posts, whether it be a company announcement, customer reviews, or snapshot of longer content, still have a place in social media strategies and are perfect for X or Threads!
What platform holds the keys to future social posting success?
Despite LinkedIn being a prominent platform among B2B decision-makers, most people have at least two social media accounts – whether that be TikTok, Facebook, X, Instagram, or some of the newer platforms such as Threads and Bluesky. B2B buyers have long relied on a strong supply of content before deciding, and with Gen Z becoming increasingly influential in B2B sales, B2B PR and marketing professionals need to utilize a range of different content formats across various social channels.
B2B pros also can’t forget about the new kid on the social media block, the Fediverse, an open-source, decentralized platform that allows users to interact with one another, regardless of the social platform. With big social players such as Threads joining the Fediverse, B2B pros that act now will be able to exploit it to their advantage, and with the constant threat of U.S. bans coming in for TikTok, they’ll be one step ahead of their competitors.
Regardless of the platform, the best social publishing strategies ensure that content is tailored to each platform, and B2B pros should look to diversify their reach by publishing through other channels with their niche audiences.
5,4,3,2,1 time for your content to take off!
In today’s crowded B2B landscape, a strong social media publishing strategy can help launch your content into orbit, giving B2B PR and marketing pros the edge over their competitors when B2B buyers are deciding.
There’s a whole plethora of social media platforms and content formats ready and waiting. There’s never been a better time to implement them into your content and social media strategy.
Sam Walker is PR Executive at IBA International.
