building the case for b2b social media
DESCRIPTION
As presented at the Apple Expo Canada 2010 at my social media bootcamp. Check it out!TRANSCRIPT
Building the Case for B2B Social Media
AppleExpo
Presented by Humphrey Ho – Agile Dudes Inc.
• Principal Social Media Strategist @ Agile Dudes Inc
• Clients:
• Social Media & Digital Strategy• Online Community Management• Brand Eminence and Monitoring
Humphrey HoCAPM | MBA | H.BSc.
@itshumphrey
Agiledudes.com/thoughts
Did you know?
72% of Internet users are part of one social network – that’s 940 million users! (Insites Consulting)
18% increase in revenue for companies using social media
6% decrease in revenue for companies NOT using social media
(Eric Qualmann, 2009)
57% of US workers use social media once a week
for business purposes (IDC State of Social Business 2009)
33% of adults use social networks for professional purposes(Forrester Research – Conversations Get Onto the Ladder 2010)
The Apple Reseller Summit and AppleExpo have a Twitter Account and Blog?
Follow: @appleexpo Hashtag: #appleexpo Blog: Appleexpo.ca/blog
The Way We Communicate
Baby Boomers (1964 or earlier)
• 7 hours a day on a PC• 1.1 hours a day on an
iPhone or Blackberry• Receive 69 emails a day• 24% befriend clients on
social networking sites• 28% are likely to blog
about work• 14% access social
networking sites from work
Generation X (1965 – 1979)
• 7.8 hours a day on a PC• 1.7 hours a day on an
iPhone or Blackberry• Receive 63 emails a day• 44% befriend clients on
social networking sites• 42% are likely to blog
about work• 39% access social
networking sites from work
Generation Y(1980 or later)
• 8.5 hours a day on a PC• 4 hours a day on an
iPhone or Blackberry• Receive 40 emails a day• 47% befriend clients on
social networking sites• 43% are likely to blog
about work• 62% access social
networking sites from work
Lexis Nexis Technology Gap Survey April 09
All generations agree - the line between professional and personal life is blurring
General Rules of B2B and Social Media
• Social media tools are just that...tools– It’s all in the strategy and implementation of such
tools. B2C and B2B tools are the same!• B2B: Few customers drive majority of revenue– Encourage client-vendor collaboration using SM
• B2B cost of acquisition 3-5x that of retention– Use SM to reduce costs of brand exposure– Target decision makers of prospective accounts
B2B & Social Media – Key
Benefits
Extend Relationsh
ips
Expand Reach
Professional Communitie
s
Increase WOM
Thought Leadershi
p
Reduce Marketing
Spend
Notable companies and social media• American Red Cross - $5 million dollars for Haiti in less than 72
hours
• Ford – 2010 marketing budget = 25% on social media
• Lenovo – Reduced call centre activity 20% with Lenovo Support
Community
• VW – Launches VW GTI solely using social media
• EBay – Users of online community spend 54% more
• Burger King’s Delete 10 Friends – investment = <$50,000
impressions = $32M , press/media value = $400,000Sources: Respective company news releases
Social Media Strategy – The Pre-ListStandardize Nomenclature
Centralize Assets
Purpose of each social media tool
Identify internal/external resources
Time/Schedules?
Policies/Rules of Engagement
Business Objectives
Twitter Tips
• 74 million Tweeple, 50 million tweets• Use as an outpost • Re-tweet others that have similar content• #hashtags!• Setup a tweet schedule• Integrate with other social media properties
Expand Reach Thought Leadership
Increase WOM
Expand ReachFacebook Tips
• 400 million users, 30% activity about brands• Understand your fan base• Focus groups, surveying, technographics• Run incentive promotions• Integrate into other web properties
Reduce Marketing
Spend
Extend Relationships
Expand Reach Thought LeadershipLinkedIn Tips
• 100 million members, 33% over 45• Build Thought Leadership – Answer questions,
post discussions, join groups• Share! Take advantage of LinkedIn Widgets• Cross-promote your profile elsewhere• Host “exclusive” content and seminars
Professional Communities
Social Media Tools At-A-Glance• Blogs
– Corporate, Individual, Public (Ulitzer)• Wikis
– Product/Solution Enabling• Social Networks
– Linkedin, Facebook, MySpace• Microblogging
– Twitter, FriendFeed• Forums/Groups
– Google Groups, open knowledge sharing• Online Video
– YouTube, blip.tv, Vimeo• File Sharing / Podcasting
– Scribd, Slideshare• User Community
– Private knowledge sharing• Bookmarking
– Digg, Delicious, Reddit• WOM (Word of Mouth)
B2B & Social Media – Key
Benefits
Extend Relationsh
ips
Expand Reach
Professional Communitie
s
Increase WOM
Thought Leadershi
p
Reduce Marketing
Spend
Relationship Building• Two-way, real-time nature of social media
enable highly personal brand experience• B2B executives can interact directly with
prospects and customers
Extend Relationships
Expand your Network
• Identify new business leads and partners who pull your content
• Monitor online conversations, trending topics
• Use social media as an outpost
Expand Reach
• Build professional communities, or join an existing one!
• Share insights, answer questions, provide third-party referrals
• Knowledge-sharing...good place to build thought leadership!
Tap Professional CommunitiesProfessional Communities
Increase Third-Party Influence
• Encourage Word-of-Mouth feedback
• Build referral programs by providing a platform for interaction
• Find brand advocates and monitor positive endorsements
Increase WOM
Provide Thought Leadership
• Leverage multimedia channels to give expertise
• Gain exposure through exchanging knowledge with other professionals
• Repurpose existing content for new social media platforms
Thought Leadership
Reduce Marketing Spend
• Safenet – $1 million in direct revenue from LinkedIn IT Security Community
• Vocus - $500,000 revenue– B2B support via @vocus– LinkedIn participation
• Lenovo – 20% reduction in call center activity using Lenovo Community
• SUN – 3000 employees blog about projects – Ranked #451 website
Reduce Marketing
Spend
Things to Consider in Social Media (and how we can help...)
• Social Media Monitoring• Online Community Management• Social Media Bootcamps• Public/Private Social Networks• Social Ready Websites• Mobile• Multimedia Channels • Social Media Blueprint
Social Media Best Practices
• Useful content – helpful and knowledgeable• Comment and reply• KISS (Keep it Simple...)• Linkback and Trackbacks to others• Be consistent – schedule updates• Develop a Social Media Policy• Have a sustainable strategy• Make sure you’re “social-ready”
Agile Dudes Inc.
60 Adelaide Street East
Toronto, Ontario M5C 3E4
416-203-3380
www.agiledudes.com @agiledudes agiledudes.com/thoughts