B2B Myth of the Week: Facebook Advertising Isn’t Worth the Money
by MGB2B
The Myth: B2B Facebook Advertising Does Not Pay Off
The Reality: Facebook Advertising Is Highly Effective for B2B Brands
Facebook is one of today’s top advertising platforms – not just for B2C, but for B2B brands, too. It is cost-efficient and easy to operate. While you may only think of Facebook as something you experience on a personal level, B2B marketers have found Facebook to be one of the top social media platforms for ROI.
Utilizing B2B Facebook advertising is much different than simply waiting for your Facebook page to grow organically. A company’s Facebook presence is important for keeping your core users informed and up-to-date. But ads can help you generate new leads and bring them into the sales funnel.
Here Are the Key Benefits of B2B Facebook Advertising:
- Advanced Targeting Options. Facebook is one of the only platforms that offers in-depth, advanced target marketing. Aside from basic distinguishes like age, gender, and geography, allows you to focus on things like interest, education level, job title, and even current workplace. This allows B2B marketers to target those who are less likely to be tire kickers and more likely to be high-quality prospects.
- Lead Generation. While having a Facebook presence on its own is important, running ads actually attracts new leads. And with the level of targeting mentioned above, they are more likely to be qualified leads. A CEO or decision-maker might be on their personal Facebook page and notice your ad, targeted specifically at their job title in their industry. If you catch them at the right moment with the right message or content offer, you’ll have a new lead in your sales funnel.
- Facebook Keeps Improving for B2B. As Facebook gets older, it gets more sophisticated. Their offering of Lead Ads gives B2B marketers even more tools to follow up with prospects who show interest. It will be interesting to see what else they roll out in 2018.
When done right, B2B Facebook advertising can be just the shot in the arm your social media strategy needs. Make it a focal point in your next social campaign, and let the opportunities speak for themselves.
Continue ReadingB2B Myth of the Week: B2B Holiday Marketing Packs Zero Punch
by Emily Swet
The Myth: B2B Holiday Marketing Packs Zero Punch
The Truth: The Holidays Are the Perfect Time for One Last Knock Out
It seems like the moment the Jack-O-Lantern is blown out, the world becomes one big B2C holiday marketing free-for-all. But believe it or not, there is a good opportunity to get your B2B brand in front of your customers a few more times before Q4 ends. Consider this:
- Buyers often have use-it-or-loose it budgets at the end of the year. Give them a chance to spend it up.
- The holidays throw a wrench into everyone’s schedules. You may have an opportunity to get directly in front of a decision-maker that wouldn’t ordinarily happen.
- The general spirit of merriment during the holidays make customers more likely to engage, and more receptive to acts of goodwill.
Considering we’re just a few days shy of Thanksgiving, there isn’t a whole lot of time to create a campaign from scratch. Instead, let’s focus on what’s possible. Here are a few scalable to-dos between now and Dec. 31.
Re-gift Your Content
Create a relevant article, end-of-year checklist, or white paper for your consumers. If you don’t have time to create fresh content, take a look at your top performers from the year, then reuse and repurpose them. Turn the info from a blog post into an infographic. Take a high-performing newsletter and turn it into a blog post. You get the idea.
Show Gratitude
Build a stronger relationship and a positive image with the simple act of saying thanks. Extend a thank you to your customers, to your staff, and anyone else that might contribute to the success of your brand. Saying thank you to your staff via social media gives your brand life behind your logo. And sending a tailored holiday-themed “thank you” to your customers will keep you top of mind in the year to come.
Offer A Discount
A well-timed offer or incentive can help you stand out from the competition at year end. Furthermore, customers are groomed for year-end deals. Leverage that behavior: use seasonal language (think: Black Friday, Cyber Monday, A Holiday Gift From Us, etc). Discounts can be positioned as urgent, one-time deals or as a personal gift from your company to your client.
Don’t leave the season to the B2C marketers alone. Done right, your B2B holiday marketing plan can have you off to the start of a great New Year.
Continue ReadingB2B Monday Myth: I Can Save Money By Keeping Digital Marketing In-House
by MGB2B
The Myth: Keeping Digital Marketing In-House Saves You Money
The Truth: With All the People You Need to Hire, Outside Help Is Worth Looking Into
Some companies are big enough that they can afford the marketing team they need to run their digital campaigns. But often, this is not the case. The number of people you need to have on staff to do digital marketing well is higher than you might think.
Think about it in terms of the different channels you need to drive prospects into your sales funnel. Then, consider the people who make that happen. Let’s take a look at the key components of a strong digital program:
- Paid Search and SEO. These are easily two of the most important parts of a successful digital marketing program, but B2B brands are often unsure of how to execute them successfully. You can hire an expert internally or an outside agency to help you avoid roadblocks.
- Email. This is easily overlooked, but it is essential for reaching both prospects and current customers. Whoever runs your email program should know everything there is about segmentation, testing, landing pages, and reporting (just to name a few).
- Content Creation. This is a big one. Content takes a lot of time. And often a lot of people, depending on how many pieces of content you’d like to produce each month. The best thing to do is calculate that first, then figure out how many people you’ll need to pull it off. Some companies use 1 or 2 people. Larger brands often have entire content studios producing their content. Wherever you fall on the spectrum, your content team will also rely on some of your key staff outside of the marketing department for stories, demos, and other substantial pieces they can turn into engaging content. Together, you can create the arsenal of content you need for a successful campaign.
- Social Media. Have interns running your company’s social media? You may want to rethink that. Content is no good unless it’s distributed properly. You’ll need someone who can not only post now and again but create an overarching social media strategy that can be fine-tuned and perfected over time.
- Design. With increasing demand for compelling visual content and landing pages that drive prospects to convert, you’ll need a talented designer to help you. Many B2B brands focus on quantity when it comes to content, leaving design and writing to fall by the wayside. But you can’t underestimate the importance of design. Simple, intuitive design is a difficult goal to achieve, but there are designers out there who make it happen every day. Those are the ones you want to work with.
- Reporting. Some reporting will fall to your Search person. Some to your Email person. And some to your Social person. But you’re going to need someone who can evaluate everything from the top down and make recommendations to improve your marketing program overall. This might be your Marketing Director or someone beneath him or her. But it needs to be someone who’s good with numbers. And someone who both cares about accuracy and can interpret data.
- Web Development. Not all web developers are created equal. If you’re lucky, you can find one who is brilliant not just at coding but at understanding the consumer’s journey online. They understand the importance of user experience. And do everything they can to make it smooth and seamless. There are not many who have mastered this. So when you find someone who has, do whatever you can to make them stick around for as long as possible.
Depending on the needs of your organization, you’ll need at least one person working in each of these categories (if not more!). And you won’t likely want entry-level people in these positions.
So, using the list above, add up the salaries of your mid-to-expert-level internal digital team. Then compare the total to what an ad agency or other outside service might charge. More likely than not, your number is going to be higher than the agency’s.
Often what works best is a mix of an internal team and an outside agency. Your lean, internal team works with the agency to develop a sound marketing strategy, and each one uses their strengths to implement the seven key components listed above. Which gives you the most bang for your marketing buck. And keeps you – and your CFO – smiling.
Continue Reading