B2B marketers have had a notoriously tough time with successfully integrating social media strategies into their digital blueprint; especially when it comes to influencer marketing.
Instagram influencer posts don’t seem to provide the same impact as they do for B2C organizations, Snapchat takeovers see minimal results, and visibility on places like Facebook and Twitter continues to decrease.
This has been a big problem for B2B companies as social media is one of the most vital marketing destinations available and influencers continue to suck up more of marketer’s budgets.
Mark Fidelman recently joined James Carbary to discuss how B2B companies can overcome these plights on episode 300 of the B2B Growth Show, a podcast which is “. . . dedicated to helping B2B businesses achieve explosive growth.”
If your business needs a helping hand in navigating the rapidly changing landscape of digital and influencer marketing, here are some of the most tangible and effective tips from the podcast.
What’s New in B2B Influencer Marketing?
Firstly, what hasn’t changed is the fact that email marketing is still the most powerful communications channel for B2B, despite influencer-led efforts.
What is changing, however, is that many B2B companies and employees are starting to make their presence known on social media websites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Looking into the future, the trend is indicating that B2B organizations will need to begin moving into the video realm as content needs a more meaningful format to stand out among the noise. Expect to see increased focus on video in the B2B space in 2017.
What Does Good Video Marketing Look Like?
Video content doesn’t need to be professional quality to be good; it simply needs to resonate with its audience by addressing common pain points or by showcasing a product while being entertaining and educational, but not overly promotional.
Additionally, it has to be consistent. To make any real impact, companies need to commit to video content for at least two years. Once a brand is able to stick out that period, develop a following, and learn to make content that resonates with their audience, they will have a significant advantage over the competition.
What Obstacles Do Businesses Face in Video Marketing?
The biggest hurdle is that most companies don’t know how to do video marketing.
Learning how is identical to any other process – it starts with practice. Mark helped his own process along by creating a video every day for 30 days, but never published them. This was simply a tactic to become more comfortable on camera.
The second piece is understanding how to shoot video with good lighting and audio. Again, this doesn’t need to be Hollywood quality, but it does need to be something that people will tune in to. If it’s longer than a couple of minutes, there needs to be a lot of b-roll to keep people entertained; millennials especially.
The best thing to do is look at what proven influencers are doing, note their video components and qualities, and replicate that internally.
Stellar B2B Influencer Campaigns
Fanatics Media recently partnered with a small B2B company and created an infographic detailing who the top influencers in their space were and how they spent their days. This is a perfect example of a B2B company promoting their influencers and themselves simultaneously.
Combining video into this dynamic allows for creativity to emerge. For instance, a brand interviewing an influencer and asking them their top tips for [Insert Topic]. These videos can be published individually and then the company can aggregate those responses into a single video and promote that via social media and through the influencers included in the video.
The key is that the content needs to benefit the company and the influencers, while reaching a certain level of creativity.
What Would You Say to People Promoting Influencers via Blogs Instead of Video?
Blogs are great, but everyone knows the text space is already way too noisy. In order to differentiate yourself from your competitors you need to start making video. It’s a lot of work, but the payoff within 12 months is enormous.
What are some Practical Steps to get into Influencer Marketing?
Fanatics Media has an influencer marketing checklist that details how we assemble and manage our campaigns. It is extremely comprehensive so there’s a lot of guidance there. If it seems too daunting, however, Fanatics Media can help.
Don’t forget to check out the full interview at Sweet Fish Media where Mark discusses some of the YouTube growth hacks detailed on the Fanatics Media channel, the kinds of benefits B2B companies can receive from video content, and plenty of other influencer marketing tips, tricks, and tactics for B2B organizations.
