B2B social media use growing – or is it?

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Industry News B2B Marketing News2011-11-17

 

According to a recent study from strategic consulting company White Horse, B2B marketers are using social media more prevalently compared to B2C companies, contrary to popular belief, BtoB Online reports.

Specifically, it was revealed that 86 percent of B2B companies participate in some form social media marketing, using at least one of the “big three” platforms – Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. Blogging was also found to be effectively used by these companies.

The survey polled 104 marketing professionals and revealed results that contradict the widely held perception that B2B marketers have been slow to adopt this practice.

One reason for the results can be seen in B2B companies’ willingness to take risks. For example, only 12 percent of B2B marketers view loss of branding control while using social media to be an issue, compared to 26 percent of B2C companies. Furthermore, return on investment isn’t weighed as heavily, with 42 percent of B2B’s worried about ROI compared to 48 percent of B2C.

However, Kathy Baughman, president of influencer marketing company ComBlu, cautions that the use of social media is still “very young.” Furthermore, other studies – such as a recent release from Accenture, found that just eight percent of the 200 marketing executives surveyed participate in social media.

 

© Brafton, Inc. 2009

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