It’s hard to determine which social media tool is more lauded as the second coming these days, but Facebook certainly ranks up there as a platform that many of the social media experts, mavens, gurus and even people who know what they’re talking about promote as an easy place to start your business’ foray into social media.
But here’s the thing – most of the really good examples out there are of B2C companies using Facebook to reach their target audience. There are far fewer concrete examples of successful use of B2B companies using Facebook. And I’d caution that it’s not a very good tool for B2B companies to use – as least not right now, anyway.
Why? One simple word: blocking. Those of us who dabble around in social media all day from our laptops, iPhones, or the comfort of our Web 2.0-crazed agency jobs can easily forget that THOUSANDS of people work for companies who block Facebook at work (some gobbledy-gook about productivity?). For B2B companies, their target audience is usually (obviously) other companies, but more specifically, it’s the decision-makers within those other companies. This could mean purchasing managers, marketing managers, IT managers or the C-suite. You can have the snazziest Facebook fan page in the world for your business, but if none of your target audience can actually access it during the day while they’re at work (and making those decisions about whether to use your company’s product or service), then it’s probably not the best way to engage your potential customers.
I could write a whole series of posts on the annoyance of Internet blocking software at work, how it’s a management and not an IT issue, how social media tools can actually increase productivity… but these have already been written and rehashed. Shel Holtz even founded a Web site dedicated to the issue, StopBlocking.org. But the reality is that several companies still routinely block Facebook and other services, and while those people your company is trying to reach probably DO have a personal Facebook profile, many of them can only access it at home, after the workday. Unless they are really, really passionate about finding the lowest-cost widget or solving their company’s CRM software needs or testing out a new benefits delivery system (heck, there’re probably people who are), I doubt they’re likely to spend too much of their personal time in the evenings on your company’s Facebook page.
Facebook can certainly be a key tool for your B2B business in adopting social media, but don’t forget the cardinal rule: Go where your customers are. And unfortunately, due to Internet blocking, many of them are NOT on Facebook at work.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I really just want to scream at companies right now. How can you possibly think from a b2b standpoint that Facebook is your best marketing channel? Because its new? Because of its large user base?
Uh…your customers aren’t there guys. Stop. (Thanks Amy for pointing out the insanity of this)
I’m very happy to see I’m not the only person saying this. I have spoken with a few B2B cos recently and they were pushing FaceBook. I pushed back and pointed them more towards LinkedIn for their ‘Social Media’ push.
They initially push, but then gave in once I showed them where their competitors were, and what kind of response they could expect from Facebook vs LinkedIn.
It amazes me that B2B cos are pushing so hard for Facebook… proves that a little knowledge can be very dangerous!
Thanks for your thoughts!
We see B2B customers that are routinely generating 5%-10% of their leads from Social Media right now, with most coming from FB. I feel that in 2009 LI has been surpassed, and is unlikely to catch up to FB for B2B. But more importantly, the quality of leads from Social Networking is higher than that of PPC and even (sometimes) SEO. 5%-10% is nothing to sneeze at, particularly if the leads are higher quality… and FB is growing. We as a company have recently moved into this space because of this observation.
Your concerns about blocking are valid… and I would never recommend a B2B company (or any, I think) make FB their exclusive pitch to the world.
But I believe that B2B in Social Media as clearly BIG. As with the B2B on the Internet in 1992, it’s hard to see how it will develop. But I’m convinced that it’s big… and I want to be in the game.
-Mark