Social media is an essential part of the B2B marketing process, but did you know it’s also vital to a business’s B2B lead generation strategy? That’s right! Social selling is the new cold calling.
Long gone are the days of picking up the phone and calling prospects. B2B sellers are becoming tech-savvy with social media platforms, and it’s equivalent to cold calling—social selling. According to research, 61% of organizations engaged in social selling reported a positive impact on revenue growth.
Before we can continue explaining the significance of social selling, it’s essential to understand that this marketing strategy is not the same as social media advertising or marketing. Social selling is a nurturing process to build authentic relationships with prospects and drive them down the sales funnel.
Keep reading this post for marketers (should be everyone) interested in social selling and its capabilities. Skyline Studio is here to help you better understand this sales tactic. So your brand can increase its high-quality leads and B2B sales.
Social selling helps drive sales on social media platforms.
With social media becoming a more popular tactic for marketers, social selling will only help your B2B selling and buying goals.
So, what exactly is social selling, and why should B2B businesses implement this sales strategy into their lead generation strategy?
In short, social selling is a strategic method for B2B sellers to connect and build relationships with prospects through social media networks. Your organization’s sales representatives use social media platforms to source, target, and contact potential prospects.
According to Hubspot, social media ranks third among the most effective sales channels, which makes investing B2B marketers’ time and effort in social selling even more worth it. When using social selling, your brand will show prospective buyers that your business understands the ever-evolving social media and technology landscape.
With personalization being a top priority for consumers, social selling provides an excellent solution. Since social media is about creating an online persona that mirrors that of the person or brand, sellers can quickly get to know potential prospects before speaking/meeting a client.
Social media also allows marketers and sellers to conduct audience research more efficiently, which results in sellers targeting prospects more directly and quickly than ever before. Because every social platform has its direct messaging (DM) version, sellers can connect and introduce themselves to key decision-makers at other B2B organizations.
B2B marketers need to know what social selling is not about to understand social selling fully. As marketing and sales professionals, we know that contacting individuals is more accessible. But remember that sellers should not spam prospects when reaching out to them. Like cold calling or emailing, social selling requires strategy during the nurturing process.
Be more concerned about the quality of leads versus the quantity—sellers should not be reaching out to everyone on social media. B2B marketers and sellers should strategize to implement best targeting practices for social selling.
Targeting the right decision makers at B2B organizations will help with conversions and build brand trust and loyalty.
Build authentic relationships with a social selling strategy.
Let’s discuss why social selling works. Aside from building brand awareness and increasing engagement on your accounts, social selling helps build genuine relationships because you meet the consumers where they are already engaging.
Below are four reasons why you need a social selling strategy:
1. Social selling increases leads and sales.
Research conducted by the professional social network LinkedIn shows that leaders in the social selling space create 45% more sales opportunities than brands with a low social selling index.
B2B sellers that are active on social media continue to help your business grow. Sellers that use social selling tend to create a following amongst the B2B community, which increases brand visibility on social media. The more brand awareness your organization creates, the more high-quality leads you drive down the sales funnel.
2. Social selling helps your sellers build authentic relationships.
Buying habits have shifted significantly over the past few years, and as a result, so have the way people network and build relationships. Social media provides B2B professionals infinite networking opportunities, making it a valuable resource for B2B selling and buying.
Social media makes building authentic relationships more possible for B2B marketers and sellers looking to connect with potential buyers because social networks are intended to be platforms where people connect.
With online socializing becoming more popular, social selling has become a tactic that B2B brands can use to increase their lead generation efforts.
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3. Your prospects are engaged in social buying.
Consumers are actively searching for products and services, increasing online shopping trends. With social networks providing e-commerce opportunities directly on their platform, social selling and buying continue to evolve and grow in popularity.
According to e-commerce trends, 77% of people discover new products on social media—that’s a massive audience! For B2B sellers, developing social selling strategies is an excellent opportunity to increase your B2B sales because these buyers are ready to purchase.
4. Your competitors are already into social selling.
Sales is a competitive field, and implementing social selling into your overall B2B marketing and sales strategy will keep you competing with other brands. When brands and those representing the brand engage on social networks, you create brand awareness.
When enough brand awareness is generated through organic and paid reach to your target audience, your brand’s sellers have an advantage over your competitors in generating high-quality leads.
B2B sales representatives should be active on social platforms where their brands engage. If your brand is very active on Facebook, your sellers should be engaging on that platform with sales-related content.
Remember, brands should be conducting market research on why consumers are interested in products. Market research will help sellers target and contact potential buyers while allowing marketers to develop better lead generation strategies.
LinkedIn is the ideal social media platform for B2B social selling.
There are many social media platforms for brands to create accounts and engage with consumers. However, for B2B brands, the best platform to be on is LinkedIn—the professional social network.
LinkedIn is a social platform to connect working professionals with companies, other professionals, and business influencers. Our LinkedIn page is a great place to connect and contact us—our sellers are also active on LinkedIn. Feel free to DM us on LinkedIn.
B2B companies wanting to create more lead generation opportunities for their business should be active on LinkedIn. Want more lead generation strategies? Check out our post on lead generation strategies to increase B2B sales.
According to research conducted by the business social network, 62% of B2B marketers say LinkedIn generates leads at twice the rate of the next-best performing social channel.
LinkedIn is an excellent resource for B2B companies because businesses can directly connect with potential prospects, enabling them to foster professional relationships—it also has a lot of tools available to assist marketers and sellers, including LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is the social selling tool the social network provides businesses with to help you better target prospects. Sales Navigator lets sellers personalize their communications for potential prospects and provides performance insights for B2B marketers.
B2B companies should use LinkedIn and its resources for social selling because you will increase B2B sales and grow your network of buyers.
Are you interested in creating social media campaigns with Skyline Studio to increase your social media presence? Fill out the form below, and we’ll connect with you.
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