Social Media 101 for B2B: Developing Leads and Brand Awareness

transcript

Social Media 101

Whether you’re a top 10 global company, the mom and pop shop down the street, or the

engineering firm around the corner, internet buzz today suggests that social media is the

place to be. But it isn’t enough to just be present on social media. Drawing on experience

from with working with non-profit and government clients as well as big name brands like

Coca-Cola and Procter & Gamble, this workshop takes a look at the barriers and

opportunities in the social media space. The goal is to help set realistic expectations and

offer some content strategy suggestions that will help make social media work for your

business or organization.

Cosanna Preston, MSc (Oxford), Engagement Strategist

Cosanna has worked in Canada, the UK and Nigeria and has a wealth of experience in

strategy development and communications (digital and traditional).

Her client base has ranged from global heavy weights such as Coca-Cola, PwC, Procter

& Gamble, HP and Pfizer to municipalities in both Nigeria and Canada, and clients in the

financial services, oil and gas, health, e-commerce and manufacturing industries.

Cosanna holds a masters degree from Oxford University and a BA (Honours) from the

University of Alberta. She currently works with SaskPower in customer strategy, delivering

self-service and improving overall customer engagement.

SOCIAL MEDIA 101: Developing Leads and Brand Awareness Presented by :

Cosanna Preston, MSc (Oxford) , Engagement Strategist

May 1, 2015 | APGES Professional Development Day

Regina, SK, Canada

“My teen daughter hasn’t ‘unfriended’

me yet. So I may not be an expert but I

must be doing something right.”

CANADA ONLINE

Canadians are the most digitally engaged population in the world

Users spend 36.7 hours online monthly

82% of us are on social media

The age demographic online is wider than you might think:

59% are between the ages of 18 – 54

Highest age bracket is 35 – 54 (32%)

Social media occupies a significant amount of users time:

We spend an average of 2 hours per day on social media

Mobile: 52% of our time; Desktop 32%

Smart phone users (4 out of 5 mobile users) access daily

E-Commerce Social media is the location for 1 in 3 online ads

49% of the Canadian population purchased online in 2014

(ComScore 2015, WeAreSocial 2014)

SO WHAT IS DRIVING THIS INTEREST IN SOCIAL MEDIA?

Increasingly social media is the

way we find things on the internet 8

SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS AS OUR NEW SEARCH

Google is the default but what do Canada’s top platforms help us find?

1. Facebook (84%) and Google+ (49%)– people, clubs,

entities

2. Twitter (45%) – real-time news

3. LinkedIn (31%) – business contacts

4. Pinterest (28%) – ideas on how to do things

5. YouTube – music, DIY education

6. Blogs – analysis, reviews, opinions

(WeAreSocial 2014, Madrigal 2014)

ARE YOU COMING UP ON THE END OF THEIR SEARCH?

Search results increasingly by

content relevance

How can you join these conversations? 11

No Saskatchewan

names coming up.

A golden

opportunity!

SOCIAL MEDIA IS MORE THAN JUST A CONVERSATION.

(Petersen, Rob. 2014)

“When a prospect conducts

online research and doesn’t find a

great deal of information on an

organization such as news

releases, videos, blogs, case

studies, etc., they might feel the

company is not credible and the

business opportunity is lost.”

Ultimately it’s about building your brand

and creating business leads:

(MarketWired, 2014)

BEHIND THE SEARCH IS: CONTENT MARKETING

“The things that get you to the first page of Google are

relevant content that is regularly updated.”

(Blake, 2013)

USING CONTENT MARKETING IN THE INDUSTRY

56.4% of 266 surveyed firms were using social media

Parsons (Knowledge Architecture) 2011

“While social media once was edgy,

buggy and risky, now it’s the right

tool for the job.”

(Blake 2013)

CASE STUDY: TWENTYSEVEN GLOBAL (Global

Software Engineering Company)

Using content markting, Twentyseven Global:

Created visibility and credibility for Twentyseven Global,

Improved press coverage, social media buzz and an increase in

website traffic.

Improvements in overall content marketing and organic SEO

Increase in business development and sales due to the online

marketing

100-percent improvement in Google search placement.

Showcasing Work

Research &

Knowledge

Commentary

Firm Culture &

Community

Showcasing Work

Design &

Engineering

Ideas & Inspiration

Research &

Knowledge

WHERE DO I START?

Listen

Get on these platforms and follow users that catch your

professional interest

Give you a sense of what content is there, where the gaps are and

what you can add.

Six social networking resources for engineers

Get a handle on content marketing

My.coppyblogger.com

Headlines, SEO, building an audience, converting attention into

business, telling a great marketing story, tips on social media

How Engineers Can Create Project Case Studies That

Attract Great Clients 26

HOW DO I START?

Start simple and pick a single focus:

Showcase your work

Attract great talent

Profile your people, firm culture, community

Content Marketing/Thought Leadership

White papers on industry trends

Commentary on key developments

Pick a platform

Resource effectively

Keep it manageable – a stale presence is a reputation killer

Develop a few pieces of content before releasing any so you have

a library

Develop a content calendar

WHEN DO I START?

Start listening today

Start building content today (you don’t need to publish

it, just stockpile good ideas)

http://offers.hubspot.com/blog-editorial-calendar

http://coschedule.com/blog/content-marketing-editorial-

calendar/

http://coschedule.com/content-marketing-editorial-

calendar

http://www.convinceandconvert.com/social-media-

strategy/how-to-build-a-content-calendar-plus-a-free-

template-for-2014/

Start building a community today (it takes time!) 28