7 Tips To Get New Facebook Fans For Your B2B Business

Having a solid B2B social media strategy is key in attracting and converting qualified leads. With over 500 million active users, Facebook is a formidable platform to establish a social presence and more than likely a part of that strategy. Becoming proficient in Facebook marketing is an essential ingredient for modern marketing success.

One of the most effective ways to utilize Facebook marketing for your B2B business is to create a fan page. Attracting new fans to your page takes a mix of careful planning and proper execution. To understand some key ways to attract more fans and boost lead generation, consider the following 7 tips to get new Facebook fans to increase your share of voice in the network:

1. Create An Active Wall

Showing an active wall displays current interaction and interest on the Facebook page. This is also a valuable way to provide social proof to potential fans of the page.

2. Use Photos

Adding photos adds a visual enhancement when combined with text-based updates. Add photos of any physical products or offline events such as conferences and staff at work to promote faces with the products and services. Also encourage customers to post photos of their successes and how they use the company products.

3. Use Videos

If a photo is worth 1,000 words, a video is worth 10,000. By adding video, you add a new dynamic of how and who visitors to your page experience the company. Adding video from internal and external sources such as existing customers on how products work, customer testimonials, case studies and even from off-line events such as conferences and press conferences.

4. Find Fresh Content To Share

Adding content to the Facebook page is as important as adding content to B2B blogs and other content marketing tools. Share a mix of content that’s updated from internal sources including blogs, articles, white papers and newsletters. Also include external sources of relevant content on the Facebook page to share resources that not only include company resources.

5. Nurture Interaction

As part of any optimal B2B social media strategy, interaction with prospects and customers is essential. Between sharing content and media, interact with questions, comments on other’s posted content or even add something non-business related as a way to connect with people.

6. Promote Your Page Across Platforms

Just building a Facebook page won’t let potential fans know it’s there – promotion is a requirement. Be sure to add links to the page from current content including: B2B blogs, web sites, marketing materials and newsletters. Also, encourage current connections on such B2B social media networks as LinkedIn to visit the page. One other way to promote the page is to ensure optimization of page content and structure for optimal search engine results.

7. Create Facebook Only Exclusives

Look to add Facebook exclusive contests, discounts and content to those who become fans of the page. This gives fans the sense of uniqueness by becoming a fan. This also allows better tracking of leads from unique resources from the company Facebook page.

This was originally posted by Maria Pergolinosable

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17 Compelling And Highly Usable B2B Marketing Statistics

Knowing what’s happening in the B2B marketing industry is key to understanding current and future trends. One of the best sources of information is industry statistics.

For your use in PowerPoints, to share with associates or just to get up to date, below are 17 usable and compelling B2B Marketing stats collected from various sources around the B2B industry:

B2B Social Spending

B2B advertising spend on social media and lead generation sites is forecasted to grow at an annualized rate of 21% and 17% respectively to 2013
Online accounted for 7% of the B2B marketing mix in 2008. This is set to reach 12% by 2013
Source: AMR International B2B Online Marketing Assessment and Forecast to 2013

US business-to-business (B2B) advertising and marketing spending will increase by 0.8% this year, to $129 billion
Interactive spending will climb 9.2%, to $51.5 billion this year
Source: eMarketer

B2B interactive marketing spending will climb to nearly $4.8 billion in 2014
Source: Forrester Research

B2B Social Participation

86% of B2B firms are using social media, compared to 82% of B2C outfits
Only 32% of B2B firms engage in social media on a daily basis compared with 52% of B2C firms
36% of B2B executives have “low interest in social media” compared with just 12% for B2C executives
Source: BizReport

34% of B2B marketers are not measuring social success at all, versus just 10% of B2C marketers
46% of B2B marketers said social media was perceived as irrelevant to their company, versus 12% of B2C marketers
Source: eMarketer

54% of CIOs prohibit the use of social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook while at work
Source: Robert Half

B2B Customer Perspective and Buying Process

93% of business buyers believe all companies should have a social media presence
85% of business buyers believe companies shouldn’t just present information via social media – they should also interact and engage with them
Source: Buzz Marketing

Bloggers on Brands

71% of all respondents who maintain blogs for a business – their own or one they work for – report that they have increased their visibility within their industries through their blogs
70% of bloggers are talking about brands on their blog organically
46% of respondents post about the brands they love (or hate)
38% post brand or product reviews
Source: Technorati

This was originally posted by Maria Pergolinosable